Introduction
Dear <<First Name>>
And another year begins, with both new and familiar paddle routes to enjoy!
Thanks again to those members who contributed photos and materials. After enjoying a SISKA event or paddle, please consider putting fingers to keyboards and cobbling together 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!
If anyone would be interested in taking over the monthly place names article, please let Mike Jackson know. Ideally the article editor would have a copy of Raincoast Place Names.
And, by the way, you can find archived versions of past SISKA newsletters on our website in the members' section.
Michael Jackson (SISKA president) and Ben van Drimmelen (editor) |
|
It's Membership Renewal time!
We hope you've had a great year of paddling in 2016. With the coming of the new year, it's time to renew you're SISKA membership. Just point your browser to http://siska.ca/membership/online-registration-3.
This year we are asking members to specify whether their paddle experience is Paddle Canada certification or Self Assessed.
|
|
Upcoming Events
January 7, 9:30 am - 3:00 pm, Cadboro Bay to Telegraph Cove Paddle (RELAXED PADDLE)
January 9, 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm, Injury Prevention in Sea Kayaking - Keeping you on the water with Jennie Sutton
January 15, 9:30 am - 3:00 pm, Cattle Point to Chatham/Discovery Islands Paddle (ENERGIZER PADDLE)
January 17, 6:00 pm - 9:30 pm, Tides & Currents with Mike Miles
January 25, 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm, Monthly Meeting - The Jackson's journey down the Pacfic Northwest Coast
January 28, 9:30 am - 3:00 pm, Albert Head to Wittys Lagoon Paddle (ENERGIZER PADDLE)
January 31, 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm, Drysuit Neck & Wrist Gasket Replacement - Group Get-together (with help at hand)
February 7, 6:30 pm - 9:00 pm, Chart & Compass: Navigation Basics Class 1 Part I with John Abercrombie
February 9, 6:30 pm - 9:00 pm, Chart & Compass: Navigation Basics Class 2 Part II with John Abercrombie
February 12, 9:30 am - 3:00 pm, Amherst to Coal Island circumnavigation Paddle (RELAXED PADDLE)
February 14, 6:30 pm - 9:00 pm, Chart & Compass: Navigation Basics Class 1 Part II with John Abercrombie
February 16, 6:30 pm - 9:00 pm, Chart & Compass: Navigation Basics Class 2 Part II with John Abercrombie
February 22, 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm, Monthly Meeting
February 25, 9:30 am - 3:00 pm, Weirs Beach to Whirl Bay Paddle (ENERGIZER PADDLE)
For more details, go to the SISKA website
|
|
What’s in a Name?
This is our local name series! Most of our featured names are drawn from “The Encyclopedia of Raincoast Place Names” by Andrew Scott. We have a copy in the library!
One of our paddles this month went from the lagoon at the south end of Royal Roads to Witty's Lagoon in Parry Bay via Albert head and the Haystock Islets.
Witty's Lagoon
Witty's Lagoon is named after John Witty who purchased the farm adjacent to the lagoon in the mid 1860s. John and his wife Charlotte became influential members of the Metchosin community.
Albert Head
Albert Head was named after Prince Albert (of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha), Queen Victoria's husband, by Capt Henry Kellett of HMS Herald. The First Nation name for the point was Tleepet. Spanish explorer Manuel Quimper landed at the head while making the first European exploration of Juan de Fuca Strait. and "claimed" Vancouver Island for Spain in 1790.
Royal Roads
Royal Bay, as it was originally known, was named in 1846 by Henry Kellett becauses the bay separated the new settlement of Fort Victoria from Albert Head.
Parry Bay
Parry Bay, between William and Albert Heads, was also named by Kellet .Rear Admiral William Parry was a noted Royal Navy officer, hydrographer and explorer. William Head is also named after him.
Haystock Islets
Haystock Islets is most likely a misspelling of the established local name: Haystack Islets . This would have been based on their profile.
|
|
Gordon Brown Clinics
We are very excited to announce that SISKA has organized at least two clinics with Gordon Brown from the Isle of Skye (see his short bio below). There is also information online and the club library has all of Gordon’s excellent instructional DVD’s.
The first clinic will be Sunday, January 22nd at Cowichan Bay and will take a maximum of only 10 participants. Being a member of SISKA and having Level 1 or equivalent experience is required. This is a unique opportunity to learn from an internationally renowned kayak instructor.
A second clinic will be on Wednesday, February 8th. This one is aimed at intermediate to advanced paddlers. Level 2 skills are expected for this clinic.
The cost for either of these sessions will be $120 which can be paid via PayPal after registering. Please contact Jennie Sutton at jls50@shaw.ca to register.
We are also holding an "instructor" clinic on Saturday January 21st, where Gordon will be focusing on instructional technique. If you are interested in this session, please contact Michael Egilson at onwatercourses@siska.ca.
Gordon Brown:
Gordon is highly qualified, holding the British Canoe Union (BCU) Level 5 Sea Kayak award. In addition, he holds Level 5 Inland Kayak, Level 3 Surf, American Canoe Association (ACA) Advanced Open Water Instructor and WEMSI wilderness first aid certification. He is on the first cohort of the BCU/UKCC Level 4 award, the academic side, delivered by the University of Stirling. He is currently studying for an MSc in Performance Coaching.
Gordon has a lifetime’s experience on the sea and on rivers throughout the world and has trained, tutored and assessed many of the kayaking staff at outdoor centres around the UK.He produced his own sea kayak rescue video Over… and Out way back in 1993 and, far more recently, the DVD’s Sea Kayak with Gordon Brown – Volumes 1, 2 & 3 with Simon Willis. As an author, he has written Sea Kayak – A Manual for Intermediate and Advanced Kayakers and also the chapter on sea kayaking in the latest edition of the BCU handbook. As ever, he is working on other projects in the background, including another book.
He is the organizer of the Scottish Sea Kayak Symposium and is always in demand as a guest coach at sea kayak symposia throughout the world. During the past 12 months, Gordon has provided inspirational coaching at events in Israel, Nova Scotia, Chile, Seattle and San Francisco.
|
|
Names for SISKA paddles?
We want to tweak how we name our club paddles, so we would like suggestions from the membership.
At the moment we categorize our regular paddles as “Relaxed” or “Energizer". We also have 3 or 4 “Special Interest” paddles such as those focused on birding and intertidal.
Can you think of more descriptive or evocative names? Submit your suggestions to Jennie Sutton and you'll be eligible to win a coveted prize! |
|
Pool and clinic costs
Effective January 2017 the Drop-In Pool fee will increase from $15 to $20 and the On and Off Water Clinic fee will increase from $10 to $15. The rationale for this is to cover operating costs of the pool rental and room rentals for clinics. (repeated notice from December newsletter)
|
|
Tips from Trips
Keep your fuel canister warm.
When temperatures drop, coddle your canisters by warming them with your hands or over a steaming cuppa. Or even just wrap the canister in a down jacket or sleeping bag. A bit of heat will nicely extend the life of each unit.
|
|
|
|
More BTUs (OK, British Thermal Units) for your buck!
|
|
Camp-Suited Cookery
(Here we share recipes that can be made deep into a multi-day kayak trip, or any recipe that makes the cooking part of a trip more enjoyable. Please submit your contributions to Lynn Baier at lbaier@telus.net.)
In December, it was pizza. This month, Lynn continues the international theme with an exotic twist - Coq au Vin.
At home, dehydrate thinly sliced onion, sliced mushrooms, garlic and thinly sliced fresh or frozen carrots. Pack those vegetables with ready-pack bacon, canned chicken breast meat (cheapest at Costco - one can should do two people), a cube of chicken stock and a flask of red wine.
In camp, slice the bacon into one-inch pieces and fry until cooked. Add the vegetables, some chicken stock, and red wine. (Do save enough wine to accompany the meal. :-) Bring it all to a boil and then add the chicken breast. Remove from the heat and let sit for about an hour (preferably in a cozy). Re-heat, thicken the gravy, and serve with instant mashed potatoes (in camp, they taste way better than they ought to).
|
|
|
|
Et ... voila!
|
|
SISKA Christmas Paddle
10 hardy paddlers took up the challenge of a paddle before our annual party. We set out from Gyro Park and made our way along the shore past Flower Island and then out to Jemmy Jones Island. After that, we made our way over to Cattle Point and along the shore back to Gyro Park via the Yacht Club. It was a nice way to start the day of the party!
|
|
The SISKA Christmas Party
Festive Food, Fun and Games at SISKA’s 9th Annual Xmas Luncheon Party
A sold-out crowd of 100 happy SISKA members and guests had a blast at our 9th Annual SISKA Xmas Party on December 3rd at the Royal Victoria Yacht Club!
A photo slideshow from our many collective kayaking outings over the past year played while folks found their seats, beverages, greeted friends new and old, and enjoyed their meal in the beautifully decorated RVYC dining room.
Santa Claus (aka Doug Linton) personally congratulated winners of the many prize draws and costume/decorating awards before and after a great seasonal luncheon smorgasbord created by the talented RVYC chef and staff.
The many volunteers who make SISKA work so well were acknowledged by Mike Jackson, SISKA President, and our capable club paddle coordinators were specially recognized by Jennie Sutton, SISKA’s Paddle Coordinator extraordinaire!
We encourage our members to continue to support our many sponsors and donors (noted below) whose generosity made for big smiles on the faces of the lucky award and prize draw winners!
Quiz-Mistress Debbie Leach stumped most of us with her 2017 edition of “Heads or Tails?”, a number of members regaled us with their kayak tales and songs, and we all had fun getting up and down singing “The 12 Days of Xmas – SISKA Style”!
Finally, Santa was feted and our busy SISKA Elves congratulated for another great job pulling everything together for this terrific annual event!
Many thanks once again to our 2017 sponsors and donors: Blackline Marine, Coast and Kayak Magazine, Discovery Islands Lodge, Monica Jackson, Mountain Equipment Co-Op, Ocean River Sports, Pacifica Paddle Sports, Pacific Paddling Symposium, Royal Victoria Yacht Club, Stohlquist WaterWare.
|
|
After a Capsize and Rescue - what next?
You may have seen or heard about kayakers capsizing under wharves or in surf or surge channels. We all know about the risk of hypothermia in such situations. However, putting that knowledge into practice and realizing what is actually happening with the swimmer is another matter!
Post-capsize, the swimmer is likely to be in some degree of embarrassment and shock. Add a bit of hypothermia, and you can safely assume that their brain function is compromised; i.e. - the swimmer is not necessarily the best decision-maker.
For best response, just one first aid person should take charge. The rest of the group should stay close and available, but not directly involved. In the majority of cases, the hypothermia will be mild- low moderate. Nevertheless, there are basic actions that should be undertaken as soon as convenient:
- Make sure that the person gets out of ALL wet gear.
- Dry off with a towel and replace wet gear with dry, warm clothing… remember socks and hat!
- If the hypothermia gets to the shivering stage, wrap person in an insulated (or reflective) blanket or use a poncho to keep cool air away.
- Use “hot shots” if needed. That need is quite likely if the swimmer does not wear a dry suit.
- Give person a warm drink and monitor them.
- The most difficult call is whether to take “No” for an answer from the swimmer… remember that their decision-making is usually compromised.
- Most important, keep monitoring the swimmer to ensure that everything is OK.
|
|
Kayakable Birding
Birds are a fine feature of any kayak trip. But which is which? In each Newsletter, we’ll describe a couple of species that you are likely to see at this particular time of year.
This issue, some dabbling ducks. Most of this group prefer shallow freshwater ponds and marshes, but we encounter the odd pair of dabbling ducks in sheltered salt water bays. We dealt with one, the American Wigeon, in March last year; today, a couple more.
The humble Mallard is the most frequently-seen duck and known to most of us. The male is distinctive, with the green head, white neck ring and that tasteful curl above the tail. The female is trickier; - just another brown duck, but note the eyeliner - that prominent dark line through the eye. In any event, her male companions should help with identification.
|
|
|
|
Mallards, female and male
|
|
|
The Gadwall female also looks like a basic brown duck, superficially like a female Mallard - but without that eyeliner. Fortunately, the male is again distinctive, in this case with its puffy head and black butt and bill, so let the showy male be your guide to identifying female Gadwall.
|
|
|
|
Gadwalls
|
|
MEC project grant proposal?
MEC awards project grants for “Access and Activity” twice yearly for proposals that promote outdoor recreation: https://www.mec.ca/en/explore/access-and-activity/ . SISKA members may be interested in applying for such a grant to, for example, promote safe kayaking in our area by making information more accessible to paddlers.
If anyone is interested in following up on this, please contact Alan Campbell or Mike Jackson
|
|
Parks Canada - reservations and free pass
For 2017, Canada's 150th anniversary, Parks Canada, is offering admission passes (called "Discovery Passes") free to those who apply. The pass covers admission to national parks, historic sites and marine conservation areas throughout next year. To apply, or to learn more, go to http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/voyage-travel/admission.aspx
Francine Burnett of Gulf Islands National Park Reserve (GINPR) sends us this note about reserving campsites in 2017:
"GINPR is offering a new service for the paddling community this year! Last season, GINPR offered a reservation service to one of our newer backcountry campgrounds - Shingle Bay on Pender Island - as a pilot. We heard great feedback, so we are adding 2 additional backcountry campgrounds to the reservation service for 2017 - Beaumont on South Pender Island and Narvaez Bay on Saturna Island. This will help visitors with pre-trip planning and allow visitors to secure a campsite ahead of their arrival. The reservation service launches on January 3 (https://reservation.pc.gc.ca/Home.aspx)."
|
|
A note from the executive
The SISKA executive meets once a month at the home of one of the executive (except in the summer) to discuss club business and keep things on the go. Club members are very welcome, but space is limited, so please contact our director at large, Jane Jacek, if you wish to attend.
|
|
|
|
