Bella Bella goes kayaking

My good friends Louise and Jack took me on a kayaking adventure this summer!

Do you know what a kayak is?

 

Kayaks were invented by Inuit people in the Arctic at least four thousand years ago. Kayaks are little boats that are completely covered, except for a hole where the paddler sits. A “kayaker” paddles these little boats using an oar with a blade at either end.

Kayaks used to be made with animal skins that were stretched over frames of wood or whale bone. Nowadays, kayaks are also made from things like fibreglass or plastic, and are used for everything from racing down whitewater rivers to surfing big waves!

 

“Sea-kayaks” are sturdy boats that can be used for longer trips. Sea-kayaking is really popular all along the coast of British Columbia. One of the places kayakers enjoy best is called Desolation Sound, and that is exactly where we went.

  Desolation Sound -- that sounds grim, doesn’t it? In 1792, an explorer named Captain George Vancouver gave the area that name because he found it pretty gloomy ... he must have been feeling grouchy that day! The inlets and passages that make up Desolation Sound are in fact really pretty.

Here I am back on land, safe and sound!





 

Desolation Sound photos courtesy L. Christie

Inuit kayak photo courtesy Mary Harrsch

Story by S. Clouthier