The Pacific Northwest, the PNW, #pnwonderland. What river comes to mind for you? For me, being formerly a southeast paddler, I only heard about one river in the PNW, the L Dub, the Little White Salmon River near White Salmon, Washington. It’s as if no other river existed in the Pacific Northwest. And then I had…

The follow up event to the PNW Collegiate Whitewater Fest hosted on the Skykomish River in Washington (http://jacksonkayak.com/blog/2017/12/26/pnw-collegiate-whitewater-fest/), the White Salmon Collegiate Whitewater Festival offered another free whitewater race for anyone who is attending high school or college at least part-time. The event offered an intermediate race (class II-III) from Rattlesnake through Cave Wave, and…

I recently adopted my first dog (in my entire life) and dubbed him Oliver the Adventure Corgi. Prior to adopting him, I had a lot of concerns about being able to continue my lifestyle as a frequent paddler. Others shared similar concerns that I would have to “quit kayaking.” I desired to have my dog…

The Deception Pass Dash, an incredible competition hosted annually at Deception Pass State Park in Oak Harbor, Washington. Paddlers from all disciplines travel to the Pacific Northwest to compete in this 6+ mile tidal race in December. Kayaks, tandem kayaks, canoes, standup paddleboards, surf skis, outrigger canoes, and more were at the start line. 6+…

The Collegiate Whitewater Fest is a FREE race open to anyone who is attending high school, or college at least part time.  A group of paddlers from all around the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia flocked to the Skykomish River near Index, Washington in November for this once-a-year whitewater race. This was my first time…

In October, I had the fortunate opportunity to attend the 2017 ACA Swiftwater Rescue Conference in Mill City, Oregon. This was my first time attending the SWR conference, and it surely will not be my last. The best and brightest in Swiftwater Rescue education presented topics on mechanical advantage systems, entrapment situations, rescue scenarios, steep…

I know, I know. People often want to hear about the new stuff. But I figured I’d spend this blog post reflecting on 2015 Jackson Kayak’s Zen whitewater kayak. This kayak changed me as a paddler, my relationship with Jackson Kayak, and how I thought about sizing with kayaks. First off, the Zen was the…

Since my early days of learning to kayak, I can often recall a mentor in the sport recommending that I visit Sparkleberry Swamp. Honestly, I had never heard of the place nor even knew which state it was in. But at every sea kayaking event I attended, someone would bring up a trip to Sparkleberry.…

For the past six months, I have been paddling Jackson Kayak’s Antix in the southeast and recently the Pacific Northwest. I learned to paddle on rivers like the Chattooga and Ocoee, and as I progress in the sport, I continue to have a lot of fun on class III rivers. I’d like to review Jackson…

The kayak is such an inspiring catalyst of exploration in my life. A kayak has transported me through numerous once-in-a-lifetime experiences including traversing mesmerizing sea caves off the Isle of Skye in Scotland, paddling with porpoises around Tybee Island in Georgia, and paddling next to an aircraft carrier in Charleston Harbor in South Carolina. I’d…