Introduction
Dear <<First Name>>,
Thanks to those members who contributed photos and materials. After enjoying a SISKA event or paddle, please consider sending a short (100-150 words) summary article; for more information, contact one of us. If you would like to start a regular column, please let us know!
Alan Campbell (SISKA president) and Tony Playfair (editor)
PS: You can find SISKA on Facebook at this link.
PPS: SISKA has a Meetup site for "impromptu" and other paddles organized by club members. For more details, go to https://www.meetup.com/SISKA-Meetup/. To join this, you have to be a club member.
PPPS: You can find the SISKA newsletter archive here: http://goo.gl/VUkafR |
|
Upcoming SISKA Events
Sunday, December 01st, 2019 - 6:30 PM to 7:00 PM - Crystal Pool Indoor Kayaking - City of Victoria
Saturday, December 07th, 2019 - 11:30 AM to 2:30 PM - SISKA Christmas Luncheon and Party
Sunday, December 08th, 2019 - 9:30 AM to 3:00 PM - Brentwood Bay Ferry Wharf to Spectacle Falls/Mackenzie Bight Paddle
Sunday, December 08th, 2019 - 6:30 PM to 9:00 PM - SISKA - Crystal Pool Indoor Kayaking
Tuesday, December 10th, 2019 - 6:30 PM to 9:00 PM - VHF Refresher Course
Tuesday, December 10th, 2019 - 7:30 PM to 9:00 PM - BC's Coastal Wilderness - VNHS
Saturday, December 14th, 2019 - 9:30 AM to 3:00 PM - Telegraph Cove to Cadboro Bay Paddle
Sunday, December 22nd, 2019 - 6:30 PM to 9:00 PM - SISKA - Crystal Pool Indoor Kayaking
Thursday, December 26th, 2019 - 9:30 AM to 3:00 PM - Cadboro Bay to Tentative Turkey Burner to Willows Beach Paddle
Sunday, January 05th, 2020 - 6:30 PM to 7:00 PM - Crystal Pool Indoor Kayaking - City of Victoria
Thursday, January 09th, 2020 - 9:30 AM to 3:00 PM - Cadboro Bay to Oak Bay Marina Paddle
Saturday, January 11th, 2020 - 9:30 AM to 3:00 PM - Esquimalt Lagoon to Millstream Falls Paddle
Sunday, January 19th, 2020 - 6:30 PM to 9:00 PM - SISKA - Crystal Pool Indoor Kayaking
Thursday, January 23rd, 2020 - 9:30 AM to 3:00 PM - Telegraph Cove to Ten Mile Point Paddle
Saturday, January 25th, 2020 - 9:30 AM to 3:00 PM - Albert Head to Wittys Lagoon Paddle
Tuesday, January 28th, 2020 - 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM - Tides & Currents - Session One Part 1
Thursday, January 30th, 2020 - 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM - Tides & Currents - Session One Part 2
|
|
Community Events of Interest
Peoples Paddle for the Coast – Dec 14th
(Trans Mountain Pipeline Fundraiser)
https://pull-together.ca/peoples-paddle-for-the-coast/
If you are aware of an event that should be included in the next Newsletter, please email Alan Campbell at alanglencampbell@shaw.ca.
|
|
Membership Renewal Reminder
by Dave O
All SISKA memberships expire on December 31. You can renew you membership by going to siska.ca and selecting Online Registration under the Membership menu tab. If you have any question contact membership@siska.ca.
|
|
What’s in a Name?
by Vic Turkington
McNeill Bay
As we paddle along the Oak Bay shoreline we often cross the wide open expanse of McNeill Bay near Trial Island. Originally called Shoal Bay, it was renamed in 1860 after William Henry McNeill (1801-75). McNeill became a master mariner at the young age of 22yr. and commanded the square rigged brig Convoy, which plied between Boston and S.America, W. Africa and Hawaii. Later, he traded furs in the PNW on his vessel the Lama, McNeill and his two crew mates were hired by chief factor John McLoughlin of the Hudson Bay Co. McNeill continued to command the Lama and in 1834, among other adventures, he rescued three Japanese sailors after their junk had been wrecked off Cape Flattery.
In 1837, as Capt. of the SS Beaver with James Douglas aboard, he located the harbour that subsequently became Fort Victoria. McNeill was promoted to chief HBC trader in 1839 and put in charge of trading posts at Ft. Stikene, George, Rupert and Simpson. Later in 1851, he was sent to oversee the extraction of a gold ore discovery on Haida Gwaii (unsuccessful.)
He was made chief factor of the HBC in 1856 and eventually retired in 1863 to his 80 hectare estate along the bay that bears his name.
Active even in retirement, he was appointed to the BC pilot board and ran the steamship Enterprise between Victoria and New Westminster. Also named after him are McNeill Avenue in Oak Bay and Port McNeill on northern Vancouver Island.
So, as we launch our kayaks from McNeill Bay en route to Trial Island or paddle across the wide open bay, we can reflect on the adventurous and successful career of Capt.William McNeill.
|
|
Best of the Banff Film Festival
by Fred Pishalski
On 24th, Gail Miller and Don Scott set up a combined SISKA - BC Marine Trails booth at the this years Best of the Banff Film Festival held at the University of Victoria in the University Centre. A big thanks to both of them.
|
|
A Recent News Item - FYI
by Gary Weeks
Barge Runs Aground on Quadra Island - Nov. 9, 2019
Gary Weeks recently had a discussion with Maureen, a resident about the incident -
Gary -
I would like to submit the email in its entirety to our monthly South Island Sea Kayaking Association’s newsletter. It portrays a wonderful example of how living on Quadra Island actually is, the excitement, the challenges, and an example of how neighborhoods actually monitor marine traffic up and down our coast and how important these same neighborhoods are in doing so.
Maureen -
Watch CHEK TV news as they’ve had a team at the scene of the barge that has run aground on Quadra Island. It was mentioned on Global TV at noon, but the information wasn’t correct – the tug did NOT run aground too, and it wasn’t a “beach” – the Alaska bound barge grounded on the rocks off the shoreline – for those who know the island it was off the road going to the waterfront opposite the building supplies. We went down about noon on Sunday, and 2096 was taken looking north west from the road to the native village, and 2097 was taken from the road height parking space somebody thoughtfully built (for their vehicle) for our convenience! High tide was due at about 3 pm, but they weren’t able to get it off. Although we normally enjoy the peace and tranquility on Quadra Island we do get a little excitement occasionally. We don’t see any environmental damage done as it wasn’t carrying fuel. Barges regularly go by here on the way to Alaska or returning (as do the Alaska cruise ships in the summer). There were ferry workers there who said it happened not long before we came back on the ferry at 10:30 pm Saturday night – but we didn’t see any lights. It had been foggy when we were uphill in the town, but not that obvious at sea level, but we noticed you couldn’t see any lights of Quadra from the other side, we assumed because it was fog – otherwise it meant electricity outage! But it seems there was no outage. So fog would have prevented us from seeing anything – though barges don’t have much lighting anyway. We have very fast tidal movement in the area between Campbell river and Quadra Island, as every 8 hours or so the tide waters have to come in around both ends of the 290 mile length of Vancouver Island to meet just south of Quadra, and then rush back out again, so 10-15 knot tides are not unusual, as well as strong eddies in weird places – which I gather from the ferry workers was part of the problem last night. No news as of Sunday afternoon as to when it’ll get pulled off, as it’s obviously a bigger job than they at first expected. Chek TV and their webpage seem to be doing best coverage of it.
https://bc.ctvnews.ca/barge-that-ran-aground-off-quadra-island-will-be-back-in-the-water-this-afternoon-coast-guard-1.4678650
https://www.cheknews.ca/barge-runs-aground-near-quadra-island-saturday-evening-621535/?fbclid=IwAR27C58UjGWKODMv3NsRIcbc9G7Bf51uRedKRJG6ts67ydu1I-hOclmN8F8
|
|
Our Place Donations
by BJ Porter
At the October meeting, SISKA members were wonderfully generous in responding to the socks appeal for Our Place. Many a cold wet foot was comforted. I will be providing the bin and the box for cash donations (to be spent on socks) at future meetings as well. Thank you in advance on behalf of the Our Place family for any contributions.
|
|
Trip Reports
Fleming Beach to Esquimalt and Victoria Harbours –
Sunday, November 10th
by Alan Campbell
A lucky 13 of us enjoyed a very calm (and dry!) day on the water for this “two harbour special”!
Fleming Beach was our launch, lunch and landing spot, and was very accommodating each time. This is an indented rocky shoreline, so noodling was the order of the day as we squeezed through small passages at a mid-tide! After reaching CFB Esquimalt going west we paddled outside the Brothers Islands back to Fleming. After lunch we headed east to Victoria Harbour, checking the progress of the wastewater treatment plant at McLoughlin Point, and testing out the shoreline paddling channel under Victoria International Marina’s docks and buildings. Many thanks to Blair Dwyer and Tim Frick for these great photos from yet another lovely day on the water!
|
|
|
SISKA Paddle from Cadboro Bay to Glencoe Cove – Nov 23, 2019
by Delcie McLellan
We were a group of 12 paddlers who started off from Cadboro Bay with good intentions to reach Glencoe Cove. The wind was predicted at 10 kts from the SE which is getting towards the top end of an Energizer paddle, but still manageable. So we set off and as we rounded 10 Mile Point the wind and choppy seas picked up and the swell was noticeable. Everyone did well but not all were comfortable. At that point we re-evaluated as we’d have a long paddle into the wind coming back from Glencoe and an ebb giving us wind over tide producing steeper waves. A paddler heard a Securite on channel 16 from the Coast Guard giving a gale force warning on Juan de Fuca Strait! It was time to turn around which we did and headed to Jemmy Jones island and then across to Cattle Point and lunch at Willows Beach. With the windy conditions, we launched in some surf, but thanks to our experienced paddlers who helped get everyone out without incident. We headed back to Cattle Point and Mike Jackson, using his local knowledge, lead us along the shoreline, amongst the rocky passages, back to Cadboro Bay. We regrouped at Starbucks for coffee and a debrief sitting outside under the warm heat lamps. It was an exhilarating day with winds up to 12+ knots which was in excess of the forecast. One the paddlers summed it up well, “…paddling with supportive people let me definitely push my limits.”
|
|
|
Chatham and Discovery Islands Paddle: November 2, 2019
by Karen Stefanyk (Paddle Leader)
With overwhelming enthusiasm, twenty paddlers participated in on the November 2, 2019 to Chatham and Discovery Islands; traditionally known as T’ches, or Tlchess (meaning one Island, as they meet by rock at low tide). We had a great mix of new and veteran SISKA paddlers, in addition to all the new 2020 paddle leaders in attendance.
Our paddle took us from the Oak Bay Marina over to Chatham then counter clockwise around Discovery with a lunch stop at the provincial park.
|
|
The sun shone, winds were light, and the currents through the Chain Islets were fun. The highlight of our trip was the opportunity to observe and experience Takaya (the wolf) on the Songhees’ sacred lands, Chatham Island. Every participant had the opportunity to see and hear Takaya at a safe distance from the water. Tayaka’s message was clear that the islands are his and left a lasting impression on many of us.
Many thanks to the many participants that helped safety of the group, it was truly a memorable experience. Credits: M. Teachman (GPS Track); B. Dwyer and S. Finucane (Photos). Additional photos can be viewed here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/iJNaM46M76yMK31R6
|
|
SISKA Announces new Kayak Education and Skills Development Delivery Framework
by Willi Fast
SISKA Club membership continues to grow and we currently have well over 300 members. With that growth, many new members with limited sea kayak experience have joined our ranks. While we have always endeavoured to provide sea kayak education and skills training at all levels, the demand from members has outgrown SISKA’s ability to provide adequate opportunities for development, and provides an opportunity for our club to expand its suite of member services.
To address this gap, SISKA Executive has approved a new framework and structure for delivery of sea kayak education and skills development. The revised framework features two new positions: On Water Coordinator, and Instructor Liaison. The new framework is pictured below.
|
|
We thank Barbara MacDougal and Edgar Hulatt who will continue with the Off Water Coordinator duties. For the coming year, they have scheduled another full slate of off-water courses and clinics addressing weather, tides and currents, navigation, radio communication, tarps and knots, etc.
Michael Egilson will fill the role of Pool Session Coordinator, and continues to schedule and coordinate sessions at Crystal Pool for lessons on wet exits, self- and assisted re-entry, bracing, etc. Thank you Michael!
Thank you to Anne Graves for being our new On Water Course and Clinic Coordinator. Anne will arrange and schedule courses and clinics for club members to address stroke development and improvement, wet exits, solo- and assisted re-entries, paddling in currents, towing, rough water paddling, etc. SISKA will also offer Paddle Canada Sea Kayak Basic and Level 1 certification courses. Scheduled clinics and courses will be offered not only by SISKA certified Instructors, but also through third party commercial instructors who have again agreed to a slate of course offerings for our members. There will be ample opportunity for paddlers of all experience- and skill-levels to participate and grow in our chosen sport.
The final new position of Instructor Liaison will be taken on by Willi Fast. He will be responsible for instructor recruitment, professional development, and Paddle Canada recertification, and will liaise with the Pool Session Coordinator and the On Water Coordinator to encourage SISKA instructors to participate in those courses and clinics.
We look forward to a full year of growth and development as this new framework matures. See you on the water!
|
|
Camp Cookery
by Lynn Beak via Lynn Baier
Thanks to Lynn Beak for giving us this recipe borrowed from ‘A Fork in the Trail’. I’ve had it and it’s better than good. She says it does up well in an outback oven.
|
|
Safety Tip
by Lynn Baier
It is often said that most kayaking injuries occur on land. It is wise to always accept help in carrying your kayak to the beach. Take your time, being aware of obstacles, to carry your kayak and gear to the beach. Leave yourself enough time to get ready to launch without hurrying. Your day will be much more relaxing and safe, and isn’t that what we want?
|
|
Kayak and Gear Repair Resources
by Alan Campbell
For many of us, December heralds the end of the paddling/camping season for another year. But it is a great time to make needed repairs so you’re ready when the conditions are right. Of course, with our mild and changeable coastal climate, that may well be in January!
Here is a short list of resources you may wish to consider when undertaking repairs:
Blackline Marine (kayak repairs)
https://www.blacklinemarine.com/services/kayak-repair-and-refit/
Capital Iron (camping, marine repair supplies)
http://www.capitaliron.net/departments/camping/
Comfort Paddling (drysuit repairs, Tuliks and other paddling wear)
https://www.comfortpaddling.net/contact/
Industrial Paint and Plastics (marine fabrication and repair supplies)
https://www.goindustrial.ca/index.php/en/victoria
MEC (paddling and camping repair supplies)
https://www.mec.ca/en/search?org_text=repairs&text=repairs
Ocean River Sports (kayak accessories and parts)
https://oceanriver.com/brand-types/boat-accessories-parts-miscellaneous/
Seaskin (drysuit latex gaskets at more affordable prices)
http://www.seaskin.co.uk/
Trotac Marine (marine supplies)
https://www.trotac.ca/index.html
If you have suggestions for more resources, please email them to chairperson@siska.ca !
|
|
Closures 2019/20 Affecting Kayakers in Gulf Islands National Park Reserve (GINPR)
by Alan Campbell
Please note that the GINPR has closed two areas for deer hunting by First Nations groups.
Follow the links below for more details.
Sidney Island – closed Oct 31/19 to Feb 23/20
https://www.pc.gc.ca/en/pn-np/bc/gulf/bulletins/25D09E1E-4227-47D9-8EBD-A3110464A096
D’Arcy Island – closed weekends Nov 22/19 to Feb 24/20
https://www.pc.gc.ca/en/pn-np/bc/gulf/bulletins/7606CFC0-8286-45B4-A869-3E39E5A36D0F
|
|
Spring Training Planned Again Next Year -
Mark Your Calendars Now for April/May 2020!
by Alan Campbell
In the Spring of 2019, we promoted paddling skills improvement for our club members in a big way!
SISKA organized many on-water clinics courses in conjunction with our Kayak Skills Partners: Blue Dog Kayaking, Go Kayak, Pacifica Paddlesports and SKILS, and offered Paddle Canada Basic and Level 1 Sea Kayaking certification courses through our SISKA member instructors.
These accessible and affordable paddling courses were very well-attended, and the feedback we received indicated that they were also well-appreciated by the many members who wanted to improve their kayaking skills in advance of the upcoming paddling season.
We intend to repeat the program next year and Spring Training 2020 planning is already well underway.
SISKA appreciates the enthusiastic participation of our Kayak Skills Partners in this program, which is aimed at keeping us safe out there on the water. Paddle Canada Basic and Level 1 courses will be scheduled in due course and promoted as part of the Spring Training 2020 initiative.
The online registration process will begin in mid-late January, once the holiday season is over, but we wanted to let you know what is planned at this point so you can mark your calendars and keep the dates available.
|
|
Siska Legendary Christmas Party
All sold out! Email Alan at chairperson@siska.ca
if you would like to be on the waiting list.
Saturday December 7, 2019
Doors open at 11:45 AM
Royal Victoria Yacht Club
3475 Ripon Road, Victoria, BC
(Ripon Rd & Beach Dr – free parking in upper lot or on-street)
- Buy your tickets ASAP - space is limited to 100!
- Still just $35 for members/$45 for non-members
- Buffet luncheon subsidized by SISKA; bar drinks on you
- View the buffet lunch menu at Buffet Luncheon
- If you have special dietary needs please email Deborah at detsten@gmail.com
- You could win a great donated prize by...
- Sharing an entertaining tale, poem, song, “lesson learned” or adventure!
- Still standing in our “Heads or Tails” kayaking trivia game!
Or, if luck is with you, just for showing up!
|
|
To Buy or Sell
Wanted - Inflatable Paddle Float
Dan Dunaway dunaway@shaw.ca
Wanted - Woman’s dry suit for kayaking. Medium size, to fit 5ft 6in, 135 pounds. Prefer front opening, drop seat. Contact Judith Powell at 250-661-8883 or judithpowell701@gmail.com.
For Sale - Stohlquist Drysuit - Shift - Medium - only worn a few times; < 1 year old; like new condition. $800 obo. Contact Mike Stefanyk 250-208-8289 / mjstefanyk@gmail.com
If you have any buy/sell items that you would like to post in the Newsletter, please send a short description and your contact info to newsletter@siska.ca.
|
|
SISKA’s Kayak Skills Course Partners
There are some fine discounts available from our kayak skills course partners for SISKA members who sign up for their skills training programs; have a look at http://siska.ca/docs_public/SISKAsKayakSkillsCoursePartners.pdf.
Our partners are:
|
|
|
|
