GREAT BEAR SUP EXPEDITION LIVE ON SPOT TRACKER

After a two day drive from Squamish we made it to Prince Rupert last night and our team left on the 4 hr ferry ride to Hartley Bay this morning. Lance, Todd, Steph, Jamie and Diana have all been really excited to get the expedition underway. The wildlife count included numerous eagles, some white sided dolphins and a couple of humpbacks on our journey down. The group spent the afternoon listening to elder Helen Clifton talk about the traditional territory and food harvesting locations of the Gitga'at people. Helen is an amazing speaker and story teller and the two hours with her went by very quickly. After speaking with Helen our group was invited over by Ernie, Lynne and Jodi to their house for a traditional dinner. It was one of the most incredible traditional dinners I have ever had up here. The Hill's were gracious enough to share smoked sockeye salmon bellies, dungeness crabs, seaweed, coho salmon, cold smoked salmon and calm strips. The food just kept coming and coming and even Lance had to tap out. After dinner i had a chance to catch up with friends in the village while Todd, Diana and Lance went for a short paddle. Jen and I closed the evening getting gear ready for the expedition.

It has been raining heavy all day today. I am happy about this because it has been so dry. This rain will get the salmon moving and excited to head up to the rivers......the miracle of life begins......the great Pacific Northwest salmon migration. We will depart Hartley Bay tomorrow morning at 8am and we will head into the majestic and stunning Cornwall Inlet where we will spend tomorrow evening around a campfire in a traditional Gitga'at Raven Longhouse. Everyone is super excited about paddling the SUP's and getting some miles in.........our itinerary remains somewhat flexible as we wait for incredible opportunities gifted to us by the Great Bear.

You will be able to follow the expedition live by SPOT TRACKER from this link.

Sweet Sudbury Summer SUP and lake fun

I have been back in Squamish after an incredible week back in my hometown of Sudbury, Ontario. Aside from relaxing on the deck and fishing for bass and walleye, i also had the chance to introduce friends and family back there to the sport of standup paddleboarding. Sudbury and Northern Ontario will be one of the hotspots in Canada for SUP with the incredible number of lakes and rivers to explore. I had big Jimmy Hann(dad) out on the 12 1" Surftech Laird. He handled it with grace and ease until a rogue 6 inch boat wake threw him to the deadly flat waters of Ramsey Lake. Coniston rock solid friend, Derek Nixon picked up a board and quickly became addicted to the pure paddling pleasure and fitness of the SUP. He's now exploring the lakes and waterways around Barrie, Ontario. Standup4GreatBear supporter and friend Paula Rivard also picked up two SUP's and quickly "donated" them to her children Melissa and Michael. Lots of people jumped on board including my sister Stacey(fitness fanatic) and brother Brad, Pinnacle Sports owners Mia and Adrian, the Kolari family of Wahnapitae Lake, and Uncle John. Some of the first SUPers in Sudbury were Petey B, wife Renee and Aleah who have been patrolling the big waters of their home lake, Wahnapitae. They have been enjoying their Laird Surftech boards. Petey and I have partnered to bring SUP to Sudbury and Northern Ontario. We are really looking forward to the summer of 2011to bring the stoke to local lakes and rivers. Keep your eyes open for LakeSurf Paddleboards.

Petey had a blast towing me into the boat wakes behind his fishing machine. Hot summer days and flat calm warm waters are perfect for practicing inland surfing.  The beauty of SUP is that it is such a multidimensional sport and everyone can enjoy it. Bottom line is that it is SO MUCH FUN.

Also while i was back i had the opportunity to present a slide show on Standup4GreatBear up at Laurentian University, a place i spent countless hours playing basketball for the Voyageurs.  It was great sharing my experience with those people from my hometown who supported my expedition. Thanks to Melissa Rivard who presented me with my own standup4greatbear shirt that  she created for me especially for the presentation.

After an amazing week on Ramsey Lake at mom and dad's SUPing, fishing and canoeing Killarney Provincial Park, it was hard to leave Sudbury and all of my friends and family but i will be back next summer to offer SUP clinics, demos and fitness classes.

FIRST ASCENT- Be First Sponsorship

The Standup4greatbear Expedition was awarded the Be First Sponsorship from First Ascent. First Ascent is a new outdoor gear and clothing company that supplied me with an incredible line of outdoor apparel for the expedition. I was really excited to be associated with First Ascent a company with a motto of Guide Built. Guide Trusted, which really appealed to me. I am excited about my future with Standup4GreatBear. First Ascent has been very supportive of helping me keep oil tankers off our north coast. Recently I wrote a summary of the expedition for their BORN OUT THERE Blog, here it is.

BORN OUT THERE BLOG

Anvil Island, Howe Sound SUP

Rear View Mirror

Anvil Island

I left Porteau Cove this morning to paddle around Anvil Island at around 730 after my morning java at Brackendale Bean Around the World. I had flat calm conditions again which is pretty predictable with the nice weather we have been having. The backside of Anvil Island was stunning with dramatic rock walls with a feeling of remoteness considering there were thousands of cars heading up the sea to sky hiway from where i had left. It seems to be a seal nursery back there as well. I must have paddled with 100 Harbour seals, most were mom's with their pups. Lots of seagulls diving too so i am sure there was a lot of bait in the water which means there was probably a lot of salmon as well. Looked to be a great place to throw the lines down. I also found a nesting area for Cormorants. They had their nests right on the steep rock walls and many of the nests had young birds getting ready to fly. Anvil Island has not changed much in the last thousand years and i really felt a sense of wild and remoteness in the midst of a busy sound. I worked my way south along the backside with great views of the remote Tantalus Range with it's soaring peaks and hanging valleys. By the time i got to the south tip the wind had already started to inflow which sped up my paddle back to Porteau and to the busyness of the provincial park. The air was warm and it felt really good to be just in board shorts as I surfed the small windchop with MT. Garibaldi and Black Tusk on the northern horizon. The paddle took me three hours and it was a little over 20kms. Paddled my Surftech Joe Bark for this one which makes me smile everytime I paddle it, fast and efficient,......the ultimate coastal cruiser.