This morning Anna and I wake up at 4 am to make sure we can make it to Shearwater post office to retrieve our box of food for the next two weeks. (We are definitely not morning people) On the water the winds start picking up as we paddle west. The skies are dark and we know it’s going to be a long day. We have an exposed crossing to the other side of Fisher Channel where we hope to slide into a small slot called Canoe Passage to get out of the wind. A biologist recommended this to us the day earlier to escape the high winds that were forecasted. Our kayaks slice through the large waves as we push them to the other side. We find the small opening and enjoy the calm waters until we come to a large sandbar that has taken over the channel on low tide.

The question now do we turn around and paddle through the white caps or unload our boats and pack them and the  gear the 100 yards. I look at Anna and she tells me we are unloading the boats. So we unpacked and repack in the downpour of rain.

After breaking my front handle off my boat and packing them through the mud and black muscles our morale is low. We work our way out and across another exposed crossing to Gunboat Passage. At many times it feels like we are not even moving due to the strong wind and the seagulls hovering over us laughing at us. Gunboat Passage should be a lot calmer then the outer waters. That is not the case today as the wind is against us and the tide is creating a swift current as it pushes through the narrow passage. We push on until I feel that it is getting to dangerous and suggest we pull off to the side in a small and undesirable landing spot.

Sometimes time is your friend. Pulling our boats over logs we placed down so we don’t have to unpack them again due to the barnacles and sharp rocks allowed us some rest, food and raised spirits. Not more than 45 minutes later the weather and tide changed as did our own feelings changed. In this world we are learning to go with the weather, tides and our bodies. The next 4 hours are beautiful paddling. We weave our boats in and out of small islands enjoy the current at our backs and smile and talk about normal day life before all we had to do each day was paddle.