Honoring those who searched for the Fitz

If you’re a fan of Great Lakes freighters or if your friends are, you’re seeing many posts today about the Edmund Fitzgerald on this 40th anniversary of her tragic sinking with all 29 crew members on board. Here’s a video and song about a lesser known aspect of that tragedy. […]

Video of this year’s Door County Sea Kayak Symposium

Each year the Door County Sea Kayak Symposium (DCSKS) takes place during the second weekend of July at Rowley’s Bay near the northern end of Wisconsin’s Door County. In the 2015 edition, 170 kayakers with skills ranging from novice to advanced took part in classes and trips led by 38 […]

Some Like It Cold: Sheboygan Surfing

“From countless hours of reading surf magazines, he realized for the first time that Sheboygan was in the best location for surfing anywhere on the Great Lakes. Understanding that surfers are only restricted by geographic necessity (a coastline that generates sizable waves), he no longer saw a series of river […]

Running the Wolf

I’ve been learning how to be a whitewater kayaker for four years so you’d think I’d be better at it by now. But when it comes to playboating tricks I still can’t loop, cartwheel or blunt. I attribute my poky learning curve to my advanced years; that’s my ego-protection rationale […]

ASCI: Endless whitewater

What I’m about to tell you may sound a little crazy but here goes. There is a river located on a mountain. Unlike most mountain rivers, this one never reaches the valley. That’s because this river flows in a loop. I know, crazy, right? And that’s not all. The mountain […]

Gozo: A wonderland of sea caves

Ever heard of Gozo? Me neither until recently. Most Americans have never heard it, let alone been there. At least that’s the conclusion I reach based on conversations with friends and Gozitans. Yes, that’s what they’re called. The first I heard of Gozo, a nine-mile long island that’s one of […]

Rome’s Tiber River: Is it “safe”?

During a recent visit to Rome, Mary and I needed a break from sightseeing at the popular tourist attractions. To escape the madding crowd we strolled to the historic Tiber River. As I gazed at the scene, I thought about the history this river witnessed through the years. According to […]

Review of “Anyone Can Kayak – River Running” DVD

Last week I received a copy of the newest DVD – “River Running” – produced by the father-son team of Greg and Tim Parker at AnybodyCanKayak.com from Verona, Wis. They previously teamed up to produce other instructional DVDs including Basic Playboating (2009), Rolling (2010) and Advanced Hole Tricks (2011). The […]