Paddling Planet

Pos: 61.5196,-166.1520
Loc: Hooper Bay
Acc: free room

Business as usual in a city – updating, emailing, calls, checking on my tusk export permit, kayak repair, laundry, contacting my new paddling partner and sending him a gear list to bring…many logistics to do to keep

But we had a lovely dinner in the evening with our local helpers Rob, Steve and Melinda. Thanks for cooking, Melinda! Nice chats and many new information for us.
And thanks so much to Steve to not only help us with a room to stay, but also to borrow us his ATV! We made a wonderful evening drive around the village, beach and whatever was interesting to see, including a stop in the local well-stocked, but damn expensive supermarket.. Very nice impressions of Hooper Bay!

Pos: 61.5196,-166.1520

Pos: 61.3199,-165.8730

Pos: 61.0814,-165.4252

Loc: west of Kashunuk River
Acc: Hilleberg Keron 4 tent
Dist: 56,0 km
Start: 09:40 End: 20:52

Paddling partner wanted from Nome to Kotzebue/ Point Hope, mid-Aug to mid-Sep

I am looking short-term for a spontaneous person who is happy to jump in for mid-August to mid-September, from Nome to either Kotzebue or Point Hope, to share a section of my North-American circumnavigation.

I am looking for a happy, cheerful and fully motivated person who is nature- and adventure loving, but needs only moderate kayaking experience as water conditions and landings are very easy here. A bit of endurance is needed for paddling around 35-45 km per day, in moderate speed with easy possible beach breaks, and full-day weather breaks as needed. I AM NOT RACING!

I provide all my experience, my spare “Freya” kayak, maybe wing-paddles, spray-deck, a Hilleberg Keron-4-person tent to share “head to toe”, all cooking, repair, first aid, signaling and bear repellent utensils and many many more equipment pieces which I have double or to share which makes jumping in very easy with small luggage. I can send a very detailed equipment list when you decide this might be for YOU!

You just need to book your return flight to Anchorage, and a single-way to Nome. Return from either Kotzebue or Point Hope, to be booked on the spot. I will do my best to arrive very latest in Nome mid-August with my current paddling partner Fylkir. Fylkir will finish his section in Nome.

In return, he/ she needs to be happy to cook our mutual dinner while I do my ev...

Pos: 60.6239,-165.1779

Loc: Nelson Island north
Acc: Hilleberg Keron 4 tent

no paddling today

We had a lot of long talks last night how to continue our trip, and did both get very little sleep. The conclusion was it would be most reasonable to finish our mutual section in the big city of Nome, where it would be easy to fly in and out.

We have many reasons to do so.
The most urgent and formal reason is that I simply have overlooked on booking our flights that Fylkir was traveling only on a regular three-months tourist visa (until September 3rd), whereas I have a B2-visa and could easily fly home as booked on September 25th.

The second, the more personal reason is that Fylkir needs a break from the gypsy paddling and traveling life with me, and needs to take up a regular job again, which will likely keep him in Iceland for months.

The third, very personal reason is that Fylkir is simply not enjoying this Alaskan section of the trip as much as our recent two-month section in Mexico. He simply feels not adventurous enough to deal on the long run with the wild nature, the daily little unknowns of navigation with imprecise charts and satellite images, weather, tides, change of biorhythm, campsites, encounters with bears, and with the small and possible larger (we did not even have…) inconveniences and dangers of the life on a long-distance paddling- and camping trip, w...

Pos: 60.6239,-165.1779

Loc: Nelson Island north
Acc: Hilleberg Keron 4 tent
Dist: 31,8 km
Start: 08:25 End: 15:30

Pos: 60.4976,-165.2250

Getting closer and closer
The low´s and high´s of the water, challenges of being ON, staying ON and keep ON paddling. Going places puts things in a new perspective, for the most of us a process, we all look (in a degree) for and need in between. Like formatting one´s hard disk on the computer, us humans do need a reset one´s in a while. Seeing it coming or feeling it coming, when not prepared, can create a complicated situation. Was myself not expecting, a lot of the things we have been dealing with, none have been physically extreme hard, in any way some could have been avoided, others not. Like lifting weights or training of all kinds, strain and pain moves, seeing, reaching out, and caching the move created. Can be a rewarding thing in a high degree, like riding big or small waves, collecting the right moments and signals is the key, to make it all count in the most positive way.
In SHORT the last few weeks, have been a BIG eye opener for me. A new view of my life in whole, have been developed, through each hour of many, together with a lot of paddle strokes. Have made me rethink a lot of things, not only my paddling style – even though that one also have changed a lot – but much more my whole lifestyle. Without going to details, things have been up and down for me, the last few weeks. Having a person like Freya in the other kayak, and on the other side of our sleeping pad, have been a “lifesaver” in these situations. As like mentioned earlier, weather hav...

Pos: 60.4976,-165.2250

Pos: 60.4976,-165.2250

Pos: 59.8943,-164.3047

Loc: dry island
Acc: Hilleberg Keron 4 tent
Dist: 40,2 km
Start: 02:30 End: 11:35

It was a bright clear night as all the other here in Alaska, so our “night” paddle was nothing at darkness at all. We launched, yawning, but the water reached our campsite. If we might have made the effort to go further inland…we might have stayed dry over the low high tide, but who knows…nothing indicated here any tide line.

I kept my GPS on low light not to miss the next island, Fylkir had to follow me as his GPS was drowning in no-care moisture from changing batteries with wet fingers yesterday. It might revive the next days when he is putting it out of the Aquapac and into the sunshine.

The next island was clearly higher as expected, a few big “lumps” indicated likely some stranded dead walrus. We didn’t stop and check in the dawn light, though I’d loved to…on the third lump, I insisted to land for a pee and poop, and surely liked to explore the dead walrus…

I walked up there by myself while Fylkir had his morning coffee, and found tow stranded huge walrus, one longer dead than the other. Both had tusks still in! The longer dead one had only one, about 40 cm long, which I easily could pull out of the jar, though with still some blood clumps on it…yuck…but it will be washed off soon.

The other one had still two tusks of the same size, but it was so fr...

Pos: 59.8943,-164.3047
Loc: dry island
Acc: Hilleberg Keron 4 tent
Dist: 40,2 km
Start: 02:30 End: 18:50

It was a bright clear night as all the other here in Alaska, so our “night” paddle was nothing at darkness at all. We launched, yawning, but the water reached our campsite. If we might have made the effort to go further inland…we might have stayed dry over the low high tide, but who knows…nothing indicated here any tide line.

I kept my GPS on low light not to miss the next island, Fylkir had to follow me as his GPS was drowning in no-care moisture from changing batteries with wet fingers yesterday. It might revive the next days when he is putting it out of the Aquapac and into the sunshine.

The next island was clearly higher as expected, a few big “lumps” indicated likely some stranded dead walrus. We didn’t stop and check in the dawn light, though I’d loved to…on the third lump, I insisted to lad for a pee and poop, and surely liked to explore the dead walrus…

I walked up there by myself while Fylkir had his morning coffee, and found tow stranded huge walrus, one longer dead than the other. Both had tusks still in! The longer dead one had only one, about 40 cm long, which I easily could pull out of the jar, though with still some blood clumps on it…yuck…but it will be washed off soon.

Pos: 59.6808,-163.8625
Loc: wet sandbank
Acc: Hilleberg Keron 4 tent
Dist: 56,5 km
Start: 08:15 End: 18:50

getting out sliding down, drifting out, channel markers, dragonflies 3 x, music, GPS broken, grumpy getting up, shouting at me on island, early plane, moon landscape

I had to make the decision to get up at 7 am and on be on the water before the tide would be running up again, and to paddle and to land on high tide in the afternoon on the first “island” of a small chain of sandbanks. Fylkir was not happy and wanted to sleep longer this morning, but I gently kissed him awake to get up. Still he was cussing and shouting at me in the worst grumpy mood. That’s expedition life!

We packed on top of the grass in a cloud of nasty bugs and could slide the heavy loaded kayaks relatively easy down to the very low water over some harder and softer yucky mud. But we were in the kayaks and ready to go, Fylkir as grumpy as it gets. Breakfast on the current downriver at least gained some free ride and chased some bugs away.

I stripped my dry suit top in the hot sunny day’s air, and decided to get entertained and pushed along on this open water crossing by my music, and was singing along in the most happy mood, Fylkir far behind me not to get “infected”…I LOVE paddling with music and in the different rhythms, it is like having sex with...

Pos: 59.8727,-163.1423
Loc: Kwigillingok
Acc: Hilleberg Keron 4 tent
Dist: 51,9 km
Start: 11:25 End: 21:00

We decided to launch a bit later, jut two hours before high tide. We were hoping the mud flats would be flooded by then, and paddling on top of those would not have too much counter current. This was working fine. We could pack our kayaks on the bottom of the steep grass solid mud cliff, and slide them easy into the water. Our campsite was a bent where the current was rushing past in high speed, so we needed to take care that the counter current was not catching us. All ok.

We could see the tower of Konggiganak plus the standard five windmills from far away, just that the village was located ten kilometers up the river. In these flat wet grassy lands, it was easy to spot any higher thing like a house or tower from far away.

We had to cross the wide mouth of the Ishkowik River first, and were so stupid to do it further out than on the shorter way inside, so we pddled for a while against stroner current. A bnch of smaller motor boats did the better way inside.

We left Konggiganak aside, stayed far out and away from any mudflats and the entrance of the Konggiganak river, which was marked with orange channel marker buoys. It should be the same on the Kwigillingok River, where we were heading to. The same high antenna tower, the same five windmill markers, just the...

Pos: 59.6808,-163.8625
Loc: wet sandbank
Acc: Hilleberg Keron 4 tent
Dist: 56,5 km
Start: 08:15 End: 18:50

sorry, again too tired to write…later…

Pos: 59.8727,-163.1423
Loc: Kwigillingok
Acc: Hilleberg Keron 4 tent
Dist: 51,9 km
Start: 11:25 End: 21:00

Too late and too tired tonight, will write tomorrow

Pos: 60.0405,-162.4830
Loc: Kuskowim River mouth
Acc: Hilleberg Keron 4 tent
Dist: 57,0 km
Start: 04:25 End: 12:10

We felt kind of sad to leave the camp and all the friendly people who were looking after us so nicely. A last shower with hair wash in the evening, but when we were done, most people were gone out of the living room tent. We could only hug Lydia good bye, and we were able to catch Paul some minutes later. Bye bye, Alas and Jonathan!
Greg was so lovely to get up early this morning to wave us while we were leaving. A huge cloud of bugs made packing not really pleasant, no wind this early morning. Greg brought some bug wipes, which made things a bit easier at least o the hands and face. Maybe we should have pulled out our bug nets for the head this morning?

The tide ran out of the river for another hour, our ride downriver was easy and fast. Away from the coast, the tidal channels continued for a long, long while, maybe 6-7 km. We tried to follow some main stream, but the tidal delta was wide and there were many ways out on shallow water, but strong current. Finally, we thought we had left the last sand band and shallow area behind us and we could turn a bit on our course north west. Still some more sand banks offshore made us changing direction and walking and dragging the kayaks behind us for a few kilometers. No big deal, the tide was raising by the minute....