Beach accomodation $125 per night.
Small or large. Expedition-ready. The new Wisper XP has two sizes of cockpits to choose from, with rudder as standard. Fits you. Fits your travels. Made in Canada by Feathercraft, naturally.
long strip of sandy islands that shield the U.S. Intracoastal Waterway from the outer coast. While the popular surf beaches of Cape Hatteras and the northern Outer Banks yield larger, more reliable waves year- round, Surf City waves average over a metre in December. Te town is less popular among turf-warring board surfers and is generally free of strong currents and sharks. For barely $100 per night, the five of us rented an apartment-style motel suite a stone’s throw from the ocean.
We fell into a surfer’s routine: breakfast, morning session, lunch, afternoon session, and then an evening-long happy hour at the motel
After 24 hours on the road, we emerged from the trucks, leaned
into a northeast wind and gazed towards Bermuda. Jorma and Lor- raine rolled in just after dark, overloaded with dogs, boats, wet pad- dling gear and a healthy selection of cheap beer, boxes of wine and a Mason jar of moonshine. With the wind whistling through the palm trees, surf lashing the beach and sugarplum fairies dancing in our heads we shared tales from the road. We awoke the next morning to barreling waves and a deserted beach. A merry Christmas indeed.
the wave period longer and the surf less sloppy. Craig had a Zen mo- ment when he skipped down the face of a glassy giant in his plan- ing-hull surf kayak, carved a bottom-turn and peered into the black, foam-rimmed tube. Jorma ventured far offshore to ride the biggest breaks in his whitewater boat. Kim and Lorraine shredded the foamy waves closest to shore. We all stumbled back to the motel exhausted. By day three we fell into a surfer’s routine: Breakfast, morning ses-
B
sion, lunch, afternoon session, and then an evening-long happy hour at the motel. I eventually let myself believe that the dozens of dorsal fins cutting
the water offshore were only dolphins, and I figured out more aggres- sive ways to handle the intimidating breakers. On our last day, the waves were so clean that we could hardly bear scampering to shore to sponge out the bilge. Happy hour for me happened on the water, when the low-angle sun caused the waves to sparkle and steep break- ers cartwheeled my sea kayak end over end. Te foaming waves were soft and forgiving, begging me for just one more ride. Until the sun set, I obliged, rolling up and punching out for that final glorious surf.
CONOR MIHELL is a writer based in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.
Award winning design, made in Canada quality, patented comfort and attention to detail goes into making every Salus PFD. These things are best appreciated on the water, when you are thinking about them the least and enjoying your adventure the most.
SALUS. Live the adventure.
salusmarine.com www.adventurekayakmag.com 41
Y BOXING DAY we were no longer the crazy Canadians obliv- iously battling chilly gale force winds. Te swell became higher,
Feathercraft_1-4pgad-Rapid.indd 1
Kayaks that go everywhere
www.feathercraft.com 888.681.8437
28/01/10 12:58 PM
PHOTO: RICK MATTHEWS
Wisper Xp
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