PERSPECTIVE OF AN OLD MAN’S CREEK

Exploratory kayaking is much more than a descent of untested rivers. There is the dreaming and the planning, the challenges of access and communication, and the mental strategy of dealing with the unknown. Ben Stookesberry recounts stories and lessons taken from two decades in pursuit of the unknown.

By Ben Stookesberry

Day 4, a half-mile away from padding my resume/ego with another first descent when WHAM, a double overhead lateral folds me and my smiley-faced vessel faster than a taco in Mexico City. SMASH! ROLL! Fuck! And all of a sudden, I’m washed up. Yet, thankfully, gloriously, against a pocket of granite bedrock that I grab in wonder, "Is this California!?" I blink away confusion and reality speaks loudly, "NO, YOU’RE IN IDAHO OLD MAN, AND ONE THOUSAND BOULDERS AND A HALF DOZEN LOG JAMS DOWNSTREAM WILL TRY TO END YOUR LIFE IN ADDITION TO YOUR CAREER IF YOU DON’T GET OUT OF THE RIVER!" "Frank, I need help" I mouth to my partner, who, luckily, is out of his boat on shore. In the blink of an eye, I’ve been…

You're reading a preview of

Kayak Session (Digital) - 1 Issue, Fall 2020

DiscountMags is a licensed distributor (not a publisher) of the above content and Publication through Zinio LLC. Accordingly, we have no editorial control over the Publications. Any opinions, advice, statements, services, offers or other information or content expressed or made available by third parties, including those made in Publications offered on our website, are those of the respective author(s) or publisher(s) and not of DiscountMags. DiscountMags does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, truthfulness, or usefulness of all or any portion of any publication or any services or offers made by third parties, nor will we be liable for any loss or damage caused by your reliance on information contained in any Publication, or your use of services offered, or your acceptance of any offers made through the Service or the Publications. For content removal requests, please contact Zinio.