Written by Everyone has been sharing advice with us, from padding strokes to bear protection, and it’s exciting to think about how close May really is. Our supplies are starting to form a pile, and our shopping list is getting a little shorter, but our reading list just keeps getting longer.
There are so many cool things I would like to read before we go. Right now we are reading Rowing to Latitude, Kayaking the Inside Passage, the NOLS Sea Kayak Instructor Notebook, and Sea Kayaking by John Dowd. There are a bunch of books on the history and art of the people who have lived along the Inside Passage that I would like to read, I would like to re-read some things on predicting and understanding marine weather, and I would really like to understand more about whales and salmon since they are both such a huge part of the Inside Passage. I have sailed a fair bit around the San Juans, the Gulf Islands, and Vancouver Island, and there are amazing pockets of wildlife right in the middle of civilization. I can’t wait to see what it is like when we are living day-to-day in such a remote wilderness. Most of our long-term travel has been by bike, and you are always connected to the next town by a road. On the kayaks, with four months to paddle, we will be able to explore in all directions. I want to read enough before we go to appreciate the places we will be traveling through, but not so much I create expectations that cannot be met. If I could leave tomorrow, without any more preparation, I would, but for now I’ll have to settle for more reading.