I just finished a new book by Biffle French, "Paddling the
Waters of Vashon Island," a delightful book that turned out
to be much more than I expected. My thought when I
started reading it was that it was going to just be a guide
book for the Vashon area. Although it includes all the useful
information one would find in a guide book it mixes it in
with stories and experiences that express the personality of
the area.
For those of you not familiar with Vashon Island it is near
Tacoma Washington not far from the famous Tacoma
Narrows Bridge (galloping Gertie). It was fun reading and
learning through the experiences and adventures of Biffle.
This is much better than most guide books where the
author lists the launch points, directions etc in a monotone
dry robotic fashion. A very easy read that has made me
want to meet up with Biffle and experience the waters of
Vashon Island.
Some of the highlights for me were Biffle’s attitude towards
paddling. He describes his boat as a floating psychiatrist.
“You can’t be depressed in a kayak.” This is exactly how I
feel about paddling. I often use my boat as an escape from
the day to day stresses of life and work. Sounds like Biffle
feels the same way. Biffle also describes the importance of
being self reliant and having a reliable self rescue when
paddling. I couldn’t agree more with his statement that “self
rescue is life.” He even devotes an entire chapter titled
appropriately “Cold” that discusses some of the dangers of
paddling in our Northwest waters.
However I must say I am in disagreement with his attitude
towards drysuits. He doesn’t use one and he says he
imagines the use of one must be miserably uncomfortable. I
love my drysuit. I think if you purchase a quality drysuit
they don’t have to be that uncomfortable and the benefits
they can offer are huge. But I do agree that a paddler
shouldn’t rely on a drysuit as a substitute for a reliable self
rescue. Biffle describes one such paddler he came across
that said he wore a drysuit so that he didn’t have to worry
about self rescue. Instead he could wait for somebody to
come pick him up. Tragically this has recently been proven
to be untrue where a local paddler lost his life due to cold
water exposure despite the use of a drysuit.
Vashon Island residents are reliant upon a ferry to get back
and forth to the mainland. There are no bridges. This
creates some of the charm. There are many such islands in
the Northwest. Lummi and Guemes are a couple near
where I live. They all seem to have their own ferry
Waters of Vashon Island," a delightful book that turned out
to be much more than I expected. My thought when I
started reading it was that it was going to just be a guide
book for the Vashon area. Although it includes all the useful
information one would find in a guide book it mixes it in
with stories and experiences that express the personality of
the area.
For those of you not familiar with Vashon Island it is near
Tacoma Washington not far from the famous Tacoma
Narrows Bridge (galloping Gertie). It was fun reading and
learning through the experiences and adventures of Biffle.
This is much better than most guide books where the
author lists the launch points, directions etc in a monotone
dry robotic fashion. A very easy read that has made me
want to meet up with Biffle and experience the waters of
Vashon Island.
Some of the highlights for me were Biffle’s attitude towards
paddling. He describes his boat as a floating psychiatrist.
“You can’t be depressed in a kayak.” This is exactly how I
feel about paddling. I often use my boat as an escape from
the day to day stresses of life and work. Sounds like Biffle
feels the same way. Biffle also describes the importance of
being self reliant and having a reliable self rescue when
paddling. I couldn’t agree more with his statement that “self
rescue is life.” He even devotes an entire chapter titled
appropriately “Cold” that discusses some of the dangers of
paddling in our Northwest waters.
However I must say I am in disagreement with his attitude
towards drysuits. He doesn’t use one and he says he
imagines the use of one must be miserably uncomfortable. I
love my drysuit. I think if you purchase a quality drysuit
they don’t have to be that uncomfortable and the benefits
they can offer are huge. But I do agree that a paddler
shouldn’t rely on a drysuit as a substitute for a reliable self
rescue. Biffle describes one such paddler he came across
that said he wore a drysuit so that he didn’t have to worry
about self rescue. Instead he could wait for somebody to
come pick him up. Tragically this has recently been proven
to be untrue where a local paddler lost his life due to cold
water exposure despite the use of a drysuit.
Vashon Island residents are reliant upon a ferry to get back
and forth to the mainland. There are no bridges. This
creates some of the charm. There are many such islands in
the Northwest. Lummi and Guemes are a couple near
where I live. They all seem to have their own ferry
problems. Biffle talks about one very amusing ferry story
where the ferry system reduced the number of passengers
allowed on board because we as a society are getting fatter.
Thus the name of this post “big butted ferry passengers
might sink boat” a quote from the book.
This book takes you along as Biffle paddles around Vashon
Island in a series of day trips. The wildlife provide as much
of the stories as do some of the characters he meets along
the way. I especially liked his description of his encounter
with an aggressive Steller Sea Lion . I am always looking
for interesting stories of places people have paddled. I like
to read about places that I would love to go like the Inside
Passage, Queen Charlotte Islands, etc.
This book is entertaining even if you will never get the
opportunity to paddle around Vashon. It is a newer book
and currently hard to find. But like most things now it is
available online through Amazon or the author's blog, also
titled Paddling the Waters of Vashon Island, where he
gives us more stories, adventures and great photos. Now I
feel like going for a paddle.
Roger Funk
where the ferry system reduced the number of passengers
allowed on board because we as a society are getting fatter.
Thus the name of this post “big butted ferry passengers
might sink boat” a quote from the book.
This book takes you along as Biffle paddles around Vashon
Island in a series of day trips. The wildlife provide as much
of the stories as do some of the characters he meets along
the way. I especially liked his description of his encounter
with an aggressive Steller Sea Lion . I am always looking
for interesting stories of places people have paddled. I like
to read about places that I would love to go like the Inside
Passage, Queen Charlotte Islands, etc.
This book is entertaining even if you will never get the
opportunity to paddle around Vashon. It is a newer book
and currently hard to find. But like most things now it is
available online through Amazon or the author's blog, also
titled Paddling the Waters of Vashon Island, where he
gives us more stories, adventures and great photos. Now I
feel like going for a paddle.
Roger Funk
| Review of Paddling the Waters of Vashon Island By Roger Funk Kayak Succor |
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