Introduction
Dear Tony,
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 |
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Upcoming SISKA Events
Wednesday, October 28th, 2020 - 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM - Monthly Meeting
Friday, October 30th, 2020 - 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM - Towing Clinic
Saturday, October 31st, 2020 - 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM - Paddle Canada Sea Kayak Basic
Saturday, October 31st, 2020 - 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM - Paddle Canada Sea Kayak Level 1
Saturday, October 31st, 2020 - 9:30 AM to 3:30 PM - Relaxed Paddle - Spirit Bay to Becher Bay clockwise to Movie Set beach Paddle
Sunday, November 01st, 2020 - 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM - Paddle Canada Sea Kayak Level 1 - Part 2
Saturday, November 14th, 2020 - 9:30 AM to 3:30 PM - Energizer Paddle - Cadboro Bay to Gonzales Beach Paddle
Saturday, November 28th, 2020 - 9:30 AM to 3:30 PM - Relaxed Paddle - Pedder Bay to Bentinck Island (inside route) Paddle
Tuesday, December 01st, 2020 - 9:30 AM to 3:30 PM - Light Paddle - Brentwood Bay Ferry Wharf to Senanus Island and area Paddle
Saturday, December 05th, 2020 - 9:30 AM to 3:30 PM - Relaxed Paddle - Cadboro Bay to Cadboro Bay tour Paddle
Sunday, December 13th, 2020 - 9:30 AM to 3:30 PM - Energizer Paddle - Oak Bay Marina - Parking Lot to Chatham and Discovery Islands Paddle
Wednesday, December 16th, 2020 - 4:00 PM to 4:00 PM - Monthly Meeting
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Community Events of Interest
These events are not formally supported by SISKA, but considered to be of interest to a significant number of our members.
Any member may request an event to be included in this section by sending a note to chairperson@siska.ca.
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Siska November 2020 Meeting
by Fred Pishalski
Please come join us for our November 25, 2020 monthly meeting. This will be a Zoom meeting (see below) ..... Our speaker will be former SISKA President, Mike Jackson, who will share his experience helping to clean up parts of BC rugged West coast.
Cleaning up the Great Bear Rainforest
Michael Jackson has recently returned from a six-week expedition to the outer islands of the Great Bear Rainforest where he was assistant expedition leader for a fleet of nine small tour vessels which managed to clean up 127 tones of marine debris. You may have read an Introduction to this project in the Times Colonist. For his fellow SISKA members, Mike will talk about what makes the Great Bear Rainforest special and about the unique debris cleanup project.
Michael Jackson Bio
Michael Jackson has been a Victoria resident since 1986 when he took up a position teaching science at St Michaels University School (recently retired). He is a founding director and past president of SISKA as well as an active paddle leader and instructor for the club. In his spare time over the years, he worked as a naturalist and expedition leader for several companies in Canada and the US ? from the Arctic to the Galapagos to the Antarctic. Mike wrote one of the leading natural history guidebooks to the Galapagos Islands (1986,1997), a destination he travels to frequently as a guide, most recently to the Islands in February. He was in the Antarctic for much of the past winter and the Arctic in the summer of 2019.
Mike has been leading trips on the BC and Southeast Alaska coasts for six years with Victoria company Maple Leaf Adventures. During that time, he has had the fortune to show guests the natural and cultural wonders of Haida Gwaii, Southeast Alaska and the Great Bear Rainforest.
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Zoom Meeting Info
Topic: SISKA Monthly Meeting
Time: Nov 25, 2020 07:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88052818827?pwd=SjFVUnlKSFVDd0tzZ3FLQWppdU9DZz09
Meeting ID: 880 5281 8827
Passcode: 390220
One tap mobile
+13462487799,,88052818827#,,,,,,0#,,390220# US (Houston)
+16465588656,,88052818827#,,,,,,0#,,390220# US (New York)
Dial by your location
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 646 558 8656 US (New York)
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+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
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+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
Meeting ID: 880 5281 8827
Passcode: 390220
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kS74rWyah
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$50 Siska Subsidy For First Aid Certification/Recertification
by Alan Campbell
To encourage our members to take a First Aid course, or to recertify and keep their current certification valid, SISKA will provide a $50 subsidy to those completing a basic, advanced, or wilderness first aid course. Simply enroll with the course and organization of your choice and email chairperson@siska.ca to confirm when you have completed it successfully.
Numerous accredited trainers are available in the Victoria area including Alert First-Aid, Red Cross, St John’s Ambulance and several community recreation centres, through which a variety of courses are scheduled at different times.
In order to manage this new program, we have set aside $1,000 in our 2020 budget at this time, and will re-evaluate it once the first 20 members have claimed a subsidy.
So…don’t delay, sign up for a first aid course today!
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Five SISKA Members Earn Paddle Canada Level 1 Certification!
by Alan Campbell
Congrats to those who took the Paddle Canada Level 1 Course Sat Oct 24 and Sun Oct 25!
Val Chater, Kirstine Murdoch, Bob McKechnie, Lawrie Spooner and Christophe Peschard.
Kudos are also due to their instructors, Mike Jackson, Jennie Sutton and Brad Wipp, all of whom participated in SISKA’s first Zoom-based classroom session on Saturday morning.
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As lead instructor, Mike stayed with the group throughout the rest of the weekend’s on-water sea kayak skills training in Cadboro Bay, assisted by Jennie for kayak re-entry practice with the group on Saturday afternoon. Very well done, everyone!
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Writer Confidential - Takaya The Wolf
by Alan Campbell
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For nearly eight years, a solitary wolf lived on an archipelago off Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Solitary, but not alone; Takaya, captured the hearts of local people and wildlife enthusiasts around the world.
But in March 2020, after being relocated from Victoria, the wolf was shot by a hunter, legally. The loss and subsequent outcry from a devastated public have spurred a debate about wildlife management in British Columbia: why do we allow wolves to be hunted? Who is to blame for Takaya’s death?
Read Larry Pynn’s investigative story, “The Lone Wolf That Was Loved to Death,” and on October 29 at 11:30 a.m. (PDT), join Hakai Magazine editor in chief Jude Isabella as she interviews Pynn, our reporter at large, about his experience researching and reporting the story.
View the recorded show on YouTube.
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Advisory: Sidney Spit Closure - November 1, 2020 through February 28, 2021
by Alan Campbell
All Parks Canada land on Sidney Island will be closed for public safety reasons to facilitate hunting by First Nations.
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Seasonal Public Closure of Sidney Spit
This letter is to inform boaters and kayakers that from November 1st, 2020 to February 28th 2021, all Parks Canada lands on Sidney Island will be closed to visitors to facilitate fallow deer and black-tailed deer hunting by Coast Salish First Nations. There will be no visitor access to the beaches, day use areas, or washrooms on Sidney Island during this closure period, including the day use area which in the past has been left open during the closure. Boaters may continue to use the mooring buoys and anchorage area at their own risk.
Recognizing Indigenous Rights
Local First Nations have an historical relationship to lands throughout Gulf Islands National Park Reserve and continue to exercise their right to harvest within the park reserve. Parks Canada lands on Sidney Island are a suitable place to focus this activity as they can be effectively closed to visitors and there are high number of invasive fallow deer that threaten the ecological health of the island.
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There are no other seasonal closures planned in Gulf Islands National Park Reserve. We encourage marine users to make use of the many coves, beaches, picnic sites, and back-country camping areas that continue to be available year round.
Thank you for respecting this closure. For more information on what's open and closed, visit our website.
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Attracting new blood to our team of SISKA Paddle Leaders
by Gary Jacek
Many of you may know that SISKA has grown during the past decade from a modest club of about 100 paddlers to our present membership topping 300.
This metric tells us that we are doing a good job of attracting new members.
On the other hand, along with promoting safe paddling and stewardship of the places we paddle, we also offer two organized club paddles per month.
Our SISKA Paddle Leaders will accept between 8 and ~20 paddlers for these paddles, depending upon weather, sea state, distance and other safety challenges.
Ten years ago with about 100 members, it was easy for a member to sign up for one of our monthly club paddles. Now with more than 300 members, it is far more likely you could be told the paddle is full. Go away. Try again next month. And nobody wants that.
More worrying is that many of our initial cohort of SISKA paddle leaders have "aged out", moved away or taken a new path in life. And a SISKA paddle cannot go ahead without one of our Paddle Leaders.
Paddle Coordinators past and present have done our best to recruit new SISKA paddle leaders from the pool of club members who hold Paddle Canada Level 2 certification.
But we have only been treading water, replacing the SISKA paddle leaders we have lost over time. This is not a good narrative for our growing club.
We only lack one resource to enable us to offer, and keep offering more SISKA club paddles per month--Paddle Leaders. And this is what keeps your Paddle Coordinator up at night.
So with this in mind the SISKA Executive has approved a new program to engage our members who DO NOT currently hold the two certifications required to be a SISKA Paddle Leader.
Paddle Canada Level 2 certification
Restricted Marine Operators Certificate (Marine Radio)
If you are a keen PC Level 1 paddler, or you are an experienced, strong paddler who revels in "conditions", but simply chose to spend your discretionary dollars on yet another adventure, instead of PC2 certification, WE WANT YOU. And we want to reduce the financial barriers that prevent you from joining our SISKA Paddle Leader team.
Effective June 12, 2019 if you:
1. Obtain your Paddle Canada Level 2 sea kayak certification
2. Obtain your Restricted Marine Operators Certificate (Marine Radio)
3. Retain your receipts for courses taken/passed as shown above
4. Attend a SISKA Paddle Leader orientation evening
5. Lead a minimum of 2 SISKA paddles per calendar year
For each year that you lead 2 SISKA paddles, submit your PC2/RMOC receipts to the SISKA Paddle Coordinator and the club will reimburse 25% of your course tuition for #1 and #2 above. This offer will be extended for the first 3 years that you are a SISKA Paddle Leader, to a maximum of 75% reimbursement.
If you find this is an attractive offer, Gary Jacek would love to hear from you. You can reach him at PaddlesAndTrips@SISKA.CA
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What's in a name
by Vic Turkington
Discovery Island
Discovery Island was named after Capt. Vancouver's ship the HMS Discovery (1846) while the adjacent Chatam Island took the name of his supply ship, the HMS Chatam.
This is definitely one of our favourite paddling destinations - for good reason. It heralds a pristine world full of small islets, lagoons, nooks and crannies, birds, marine life and challenging currents - a virtual paradise located only 2 nm from Oak Bay Marina.
Discovery Island has some interesting history. The Lekwungen (Songhees) First Nations, who first lived there, called it Thichness. A First Nation's Reserve was established, however, they stopped living on the island in the 1950s.
In 1858, the 410 ton American paddle steamer “Sea Bird”, on a voyage from Victoria caught fire and was beached on Discovery Is. at Sea Bird Point. Two passengers died and the vessel was burnt to the waterline.
During the 1860s, various owners acquired land on Discovery Island , including George Rudlin who operated a logging company and gave his name to the bay with the beach and campsite, where we usually have lunch.
The lighthouse at Sea Bird Point was built in 1886. Richard Brinn was appointed the first lighthouse keeper, assisted by his daughter Mary Ann Croft (who did most of the work). After her father's death in1902 she became the first female lighthouse keeper in Canada. Mary Ann Croft retired in 1932, aged 67, with a pension of $43/mth. It was rumoured that she supplemented her income by assisting rum runners to relay messages to each other - Discovery Is.was a popular base for rum runners during the prohibition era. The police apparently nick-named Mary Ann ”Queen of the Rum Runners”. She was later awarded the Imperial Service Medal by the Lt. Gov. in 1934 (presumably for her lighthouse services). The lighthouse was de-staffed and automated in 1996 after 110yrs. of service. An adjacent building now houses a painting in memory of Takaya, the much beloved island wolf.
In 1912, Warburton Pike acquired 160 acres and built a house near the centre of the island. Captain Ernest Beaumont bought the property in1918 and lived in the house with his wife. He owned a 40ft yacht which he used to travel to and from the island. He got to know the local waters intimately and apparently used to say:
“ I know where all the rocks are; I've bumped into all of them and once in awhile I bump into them again to remind myself of their presence” (sounds familiar)
However, in 1950, Capt. Beaumont's boat sank in Enterprise channel with the loss of the engineer Robert Gale, while he barely managed to make it to shore. Capt. Beaumont was very philanthropic and hosted numerous scouts, cadets and other youth to the island (about 20,000 in his lifetime). He used to row around Discovery and the Chatam Islands as well as to the Victoria Yacht Club, to keep fit. He lived on the island for 50 yrs. and died at the age of 92 in1967. In his will he donated his property to the Province of British Columbia.
Plaques, from the Scouts and the Province of British Colombia, thanking him for his generous gift are located just west of Rudlin Bay, near the old apple orchard.
The southern part of Discovery Island was established as a Provincial Marine Park in 1972. The eastern part with the lighthouse belongs to the Coast Guard, while a small lot nearby is privately owned. The rest of the island and the Chatam Islands are a First Nations Reserve.
There have been many sightings over the years of a sea monster known as”Cadborosaurus willsi” (Caddy), in the waters off Discovery Is.
It is described as a serpent like creature, about 30ft long, greenish brown, which swims very rapidly. There are accounts from First Nations stories of a similar sea monster, dating back generations and also sightings in more recent times.
See account of Mrs.Langley: (http://www.discoveryisland.ca).
Cadborosaurus willsi
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To date, there have been no known sightings by SISKA members...
but.... ROLLERS BEWARE !
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Safety Tip
by Rapid Media via Lynn Baier
Let's Talk Knives!
So most of us are I am sure, familiar with the four rescue tools that everyone should at minimum carry on moving water at all times.
1) Whistle
2) Knife
3) Throw bag
4) Carabiner
Let's talk about #2 in the list above.
In most discussions you see on paddling knives, the discussion focuses on three points, what knife to buy, where to attach it, and how to attach it. I will not be addressing any of those points here. There is plenty of discussion on those elswhere.
Instead let's talk about care and maintenance.
Knives are primarily designed to do one job. Which is to cut things. To do this efficiently requires that the edge be as sharp as possable. Water knives are usually either stainless steel or titanium. Both oxadise and
Will loose sharpness over time simply by contact with the oxygen in the air. So periodical sharpening is required.
In a rescue situation the knife should be able to for safety sake cut through fabric with ease. If you have to saw at nylon webbing, rope, or any other material, the risk of injury is increased. So I want my knife as sharp as reasonably possable. In an emergency It needs to do it's job instantly. With as little force as possable.
Before I talk about sharpening. I want to mention a couple points on safety.
1) Properly sharpened Knives are dangerous! Consider it to be looking for an opportunity to cut you to the bone literally. Which it can do with very little force!
2) And yes I have to say this. Never ever ever run your finger or any other part of your body down the blade to see if it is sharp! Never ever! I worked in a knife store once and saw multiple people do this even after I told them not to! No, I do not know why they licked their thumb before doing this. And yes they did bleed alot. ON OUR CARPET!
Sharpening:
There are a ton of knife sharpening products on the market. Including man made, and natural wetstones. Diamond hones. And ceramic sharpeners. I am not going to suggest one is better than another. I will just say that there is a ton of material on YouTube about sharpening knives. I suggest videos from reputable knife companies, and I would avoid any powered sharpening machine. I will place a reputable video regarding sharpening in the comments.
Care:
All knives Oxidize. Titanium will oxidize but not rust.
Stainless steel is stainless. It is NOT rustproof. The only care that a fixed blade water knife should require is to be rinsed off in fresh water and wiped dry after a paddle. And storing where air can circulate. NOT in a dry bag with wet material. If it does rust. A light buffing with fine steel wool will usually remove it easily and satisfactorily. It will probably remove some finish. But this does not affect the use of the knife.
Keep it sharp, use it, enjoy it, and as always, be safe!
Editor comment - Any of the Spyderco Salt Series are excellent. I have had one in my life jacket for a few years and never wash it. The blade has not rusted, it's H1 steel, although the pins holding the handle in place have rusted the knife still works as good as the day I got it. Had to use it recently to cut some rope off of floats and it worked in seconds compared to a titanium competitor.
Salt Series have yellow handles. Serrated is best for ropes and general marine use.
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Tips from the trips
by Debbie Leach
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Love it or lose it!
If you love your gear...attach it to your boat or your body. And remember your glasses ! We could tell you stories!
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