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Kayak Wendy Rounds the Rock
Ontario schoolteacher soon to become the first woman to circumnavigate NEWFOUNDLAND
>> BY THE TIME you pick up this magazine, Wendy Killoran, 45, will likely have paddled into history as the first woman—and one of a very small number of people—to kayak all the way around Newfoundland. By Killoran’s estimate, her “’Round the Rock” expe-
dition will cover 2,700 to 3,000 kilometres. With an unpaid leave from her job as a primary schoolteacher, and an equipment sponsorship from Kokatat, Killoran took her first paddle stroke on May 5 and gave herself until August 30 to finish the trip. Her four-month estimate was based on 90, 30-kilo-
metre paddling days, plus one month of days off for rest and bad weather. Averaging about 40 kilometres a day lately, Killoran was nearly a month ahead of sched- ule in mid-July, despite struggles with high winds, un- predictable weather and rocky landings. “Newfoundland is not a remote paddling experi-
ence, although it’s a challenging paddling experience because of the rugged shoreline,” Killoran said in a phone interview from Conche, Newfoundland. “Dur- ing the day I paddle in solitude and in the evening usually I land in little villages and meet people. A lot of the time there’s no landing places anywhere else.” Through interviews on local TV and radio, and her
regularly updated web log, she has earned a celebrity’s welcome and offers of free meals and accommodation in many places she lands. She’s developed a taste for Newfoundland cuisine: fresh crab, fisherman’s brew, scruncheons, and homemade white bread topped
with butter, molasses and cream. For 17 days on the remote South Shore, from Isle
aux Morts to Cape St. Mary’s, Killoran paddled with German kayaking sensation Freya Hoffmeister. It was a successful “blind date” partnership set up via email and three phone calls after Killoran was inspired by seeing Hoffmeister’s photo on the back page of a kay- aking magazine. “[Wendy’s] a lovely and lively person, with almost
unlimited endurance for paddling all day for a long period of time,” wrote Hoffmeister in a farewell post on Killoran’s blog. “She loves the sea, she loves the na- ture, she loves to meet people, and she loves the LIFE! (But against all rumours we both still love MEN.)” For the remainder of the trip, Killoran has travelled
solo. “The paddling potential here is unbelievable, and yet I haven’t seen a single paddler except for when I’ve planned to hook up with them,” she said. In 2005, Killoran became the first woman to cir-
cumnavigate PEI. Since taking up kayaking in 1991 she has paddled in Iceland, Greenland and Sardinia, Italy, and circumnavigated Manitoulin Island in Geor- gian Bay. She paddles about 80 days in a typical year, despite living an hour’s drive from her local paddling spot on Lake Huron. Only seven kayakers are known to have circumnavi-
gated Newfoundland. Wendy Killoran is on track to be- come number eight sometime in early August. For up- dates, visit
www.cackletv.com/wendykilloran. —Tim Shuff
ADVENTURE KAYAK | | 13
PHOTOS: WENDY KILLORAN
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