S T A N D I N G W a V e s
Couch surfing.
photos: Kari mediG
Mission: iMprobable
AN uNliKelY PADDLING FESTIVAL IN THE BRITISH COLUMBIA BACKWOODS
DRIVE THROUGH LIKELY, BRITISH COLUMBIA, “I started the fest back in 1992, so I guess it’s at Quesnel Forks, the site of a 150-year-old min-
362 days of the year and you’ll see little more than been going on now for 17 years,” says Savard. ing ghost town.
a small general store, a post office and the crooked “We don’t really advertise,” he continues, “It just On the first morning of the 17th Annual Unlikely
frame of a hotel and bar affectionately known as seems to come together every year.” Paddle Fest, Savard waits to greet 150 festivalgo-
the Likely Hilton. Out front or inside, you’ll meet With his goatee, hoody and thick, shoulder- ers with cowboy coffee and a schedule of events.
locals wearing plaid shirts, grizzled beards and length red hair tucked under a mesh ball cap, Sa- Last night’s bed—a sleeping bag and Therm-a-
long knives on their belts. Ford F350 diesel dualies vard—a.k.a. Red Shred—is the image of laid-back Rest crumpled beneath the drive shaft of his rent-
will rumble past and large, free roaming dogs will bohemia. But the 41-year-old Williams Lake native ed pick-up—are proof that Savard is keen to kick
watch you with lazy interest. Come during three plays a pivotal role in everything from the region’s off the weekend.
days in late September, however, and you’ll wit- world-class mountain bike trails to the paddling Over the weekend, the glacier-blue waters of
ness a transformation that seems impossible—or, lessons at the local pool. The Unlikely Paddle Fes- the rivers see a steady rotation of kayakers and
at the very least, unlikely. tival is Savard’s way of giving back to his commu- rafters. More unorthodox vessels make an ap-
Over the weekend of B.C. Rivers Day, a prov- nity while appreciating the good fortune of living pearance in the first event on the agenda—aptly
ince-wide celebration of river heritage in British near so much great whitewater. named Anything That Floats. In the ATF, adventur-
Columbia, this former gold mining community in It’s no surprise that Savard chose Likely to host ous participants try their luck in less hydrophilic
the Cariboo-Chilcotin Mountains hosts the Unlikely the festival. The town is geographically endowed vessels that include a loveseat on logs and Sa-
Paddle Festival. Subarus and VW vans stacked with two paddling powerhouse rivers: the Quesnel vard’s Styrofoam-and-duct-tape pirate ship.
with kayaks pull up out front of the Likely Hilton and the Cariboo. On the last evening of the festival, paddlers gather
and international paddlers shoot pool with the The Quesnel River flows from Quesnel Lake— around a campfire at Quesnel Forks and listen to the
locals beneath stag- and salmon-adorned walls. North America’s deepest fiord lake—through hypnotic sounds of a local band. A cool rain doesn’t
Mark Savard, the owner of Red Shreds Bike and town and 11 kilometres of rambling rapids be- dampen the excited chatter of the crowd, or the wide
Board Shed in nearby Williams Lake, is the driving fore funneling into a hole just above its conflu- grin on Savard’s face. His prediction for an 18th Un-
force behind the festival. ence with the equally tumultuous Cariboo River likely Paddle Festival? More than likely. —Kari Medig
12 Rapid spring 2010
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