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THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME. PHOTO: VIRGINIA MARSHALL


EDITORIAL


Lessons From Dorothy Gale


There are adventurers who roam to all the far-flung ends of the earth seeking adventure, and there are those who find a lifetime of the stuff right on their doorsteps. I confess I’ve spent much of my paddling ca-


reer looking over the rainbow and beyond the horizon for bluer waters. With a paddle and a pair of trusty red clogs rather than sequined ruby slippers, I’ve hunted for Oz on the East Coast and out West, in the South Pacific and on the North Shore. Much of my time now is spent absorbing


other peoples’ adventure stories—emails, blog posts and photo CDs recounting exotic ex- peditions in Baja, Australia, Fiji, Chile, Italy, Alaska and the like. Some drift through my consciousness like clouds, while others snag


10 ADVENTURE KAYAK | SPRING 2012


on the yellow brick road of imagination, linger- ing and becoming tangible, almost personal, through their storytelling. Jon Turk and Erik Boomer’s Ellesmere Island expedition (page 36) is one such example. don Starkell’s storied career (page 23) is another. When the stories accumulate in such


numbers that I have to struggle against the compulsion to do something wickedly ad- venturous, some would say (they’re probably right) wickedly foolish, of my own—book a flight, sublet my apartment, quit my job, buy a Feathercraft (there’s a nice one, borrowed, alas, reviewed on page 32), and turn my back on land—I know it’s time to get out. Not on a summer-long expedition or a record-setting circumnavigation. Just somewhere I can leave


clog prints in the sand and let the waves wash away the funk of self-pity. Most recently, I tied my boat to the roof and


drove two hours for a hastily planned, packed- on-my-lunch-break overnight. On a forgotten coast less than a day’s drive from two of the country’s most populous cities, I watched the sun set and rise over open water. After just 24 hours with my kayak and the coast, I felt infinitely sat- isfied. Like Dorothy in the Land of Oz, I had been transported to a secret, magical kingdom. I’m learning that even a brief trip is more


rewarding than throwing a tantrum at what might be if not for the constraints of time, money, career obligations and family responsi- bilities. With a pair of lucky red shoes, a paddle and a fresh perspective on my own backyard, I can transcend these realities. So be inspired by the achievements of Turk,


Boomer, Starkell and others—I know I am. But don’t discount the adventures close to home, the ones you can do on the weekend, after work, or even on a loosely enforced lunch hour. Dream- ing is important, but so is paddling. Virginia Marshall is Adventure Kayak’s se- nior editor and a fan of old movies.


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