30 Knots, Gusting to 60-Spot On!
It was an event even getting to this location last night. I knew the winds were against me and I wasn’t going anywhere today. I hoped I might be able to catch up with my blog or luxury of luxuries read. It was not to be! The day was spent watching the weather increase in velocity, and determining countermeasures to keep my gear intact.
TIME TO MOVE THE TENT
30 KNOTS GUSTING TO 60
Tavernier
Many thanks to Catherine in Tavernier for her kindness and assistance in helping me pick up packages at the Key Largo post office, supplements at Remedy’s Nutrition. I am so glad to have the supplements back to enhance my performance! We also located white gas for my stove at Backcountry Outfitters. Kristi and JC were very helpful as well as Tom Dolinski who was working on the computers for the shop.
Florida Expedition
One thing I have learned, there is never a dull moment with the CastawaysAgainstCancer.com group. As we went out for our morning paddle, we spied this poor soul’s boat that had run aground in the last few hours. Poor luck for him, photo op for us!
I am back in Florida. Cuba to USA for Education is still on! Paddling the Keys for conditioning and to search for someone who would like the opportunity to LEGALLY travel to Cuba. The paperwork I have from the US government is NOT easy to come by. I am hoping to find a 40 foot Catamaran or the like that will transport me and my small crew and kayak to Marina Hemingway. We will visit Havana, prep for the return paddle, and then set out to return to Key West. Nothing for them to do on the way back except to verify that I completed the paddle.
Piece of Cake, right!
Foster City Kayak Launch Site
It started out as a gorgeous day, but became cold, drizzly, and windy. I got my training in and pulled the kayak out of the water just as it started to rain. Beautiful houses, restaurants, and businesses line the lagoon. At night, lovely lights illuminate the water and surrounding area if one can brave the cold.
Kayak Launch Site
Kayaking for Change
When you read a byline like “World adventurer and educator circumnavigating Oz for education” in a kayak solo no less, one can’t help but be curious about the woman behind the headline. So we tracked down Teresa Diehl to find out more about her inspiring kayaking adventure.
Thank you to TRAVEL PLAY LIVE, Australia’s number one women’s adventure and travel magazine, article by Amy Heague, Chief Editor and Creative Director, for bringing attention to my efforts to empower students in goal setting, life skills, community awareness, and personal achievement.
Day of the Dead Paddle
Blackwater Sound, Key Largo Florida at dusk, Nov 1, 2015 Day of the Dead Paddle.
Great fun was had by all on the night paddle the day after Halloween. My friend, Rebeca, did a fantastic job decorating and coordinating the event. She even got a face painter to show up and paint those horrible skeletons on everyone’s face. I was on the fence on whether I was going to paint my face. In the early afternoon, Rebeca painted her face and started stalking me. That was it… Read more
Miami Expedition Training for Cuba to Key West, and Working with Students
Arriving in Miami in August during a threat of a hurricane, I began the arduous task of getting permission from the United States Government to legally travel by boat to Cuba. I had hoped that if I were poised and ready to go, perhaps the US government would speed up its decision. It was a good plan, but of course it did not go that way. The kayak did not work, wrong supplies showed up, the weather did not cooperate, and financial sponsors pulled out. Hmm, lots of material for my goal setting presentation.
Florida Bay Outfitters (FBO) in Key Largo, Florida, was very helpful in giving me a place to assemble what I did have, accommodation, and a base to train. Monica, who owns FBO with her husband, Frank, arranged for speaking engagements in Tavernier. The school, teachers, and students were lovely and they had a perfect place outside for my presentation.
Training was wonderful in the beautiful and warm Everglades side of the Florida Keys as well as the Oceanside of the Keys. While I had been warned about the crocodiles in the area and the alligators in the streams and rivers, I never saw one.
It always seemed that no matter what direction I was paddling, it was into the wind. From the day I got there until the day I left, there was usually a 15 to 25 mph wind. Repeatedly, the locals would say, “This weather is so unusual. We don’t normally get this much wind, the humidity drops, and temperature cools.” There was actually only about three days that I could have legitimately made an attempt to cross the Florida Straight, and they were not three days in a row! We will need a good seven to ten days straight of favorable conditions to motor or sail to Cuba, rest and get good sleep, assemble, and start the return paddle.
The local paper ran a story about Seychelle, an exceptional Stand Up Paddleboarder. One of her sponsors is Remedy’s Nutrition who is now sponsoring me by supplying my vitamin supplements, protein powder, and keeping my electrolytes balanced and recovery sped up with a pre-work out drink. They have a great store on the Overseas Highway in Key Largo. I love going in there because it smells so nice. You know how health food store usually smell like vitamins, well Remedy’s smells like peppermint and lavender, Fair Dinkum (Aussie expression for the absolute truth)! The staff is very knowledgeable and helpful. Gene thought I should meet Seychelle, who just broke the men’s and women’s world record for longest distance paddleboarded in 24 hours with 110 miles!
WILDERNESS WEAR IN ACTION
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