Unlike some other coastlines where I was embarking on the unknown, this one was known. And having seen huge waves, giant sea stacks, warning signs of what lies within at various beaches, and gaped from the various cliffs above at the vastness of it all, I was in for a doosey of a week as I attempted to tackle Mendocino, Sonoma and Marin coastline stretches.
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Paddle Articles
CP Explorations - Gualala to Bolinas and the Pt Reyes Hook
CP Explorations - The Lost Coast - Humboldt to Point Arena
CP Explorations - Half Moon Bay 2 Monterey
CP Explorations - Avila to Jalama (Vandenberg or Bust)
CP Explorations - The Coronado Islands, BAJA California Mexico
CP Explorations - Half Moon Bay, Bolinas and a whole lot of in between
EPIC Adventures for a Cause 2020 - originally was SC2SF but it really ended up being a random collection of crazy fun paddles. Come along for a recap of the fun.
Another year, another stretch of new coastline to explore in my forever quest to explore the entire California state. This year, the plan and finishing route were nothing alike. In fact, for the days and hours leading up to it, we almost didn’t even go. You see Santa Cruz was one of many areas dealing with major fires. Families evacuated, homes and state parks burned, roads closed, and air quality bad enough to cause people to avoid being outside at all. So you can imagine our struggle of going up to the area for what was originally supposed to be a three day paddle from San Francisco to Santa Cruz. Would we take hotels from evacuated families, crowd roads that were needed for emergency vehicles? Impose on folks in a time that people were struggling to keep positive. So for this Epic Adventure for a Cause, I want to direct people to the Red Cross for the cause. Please visit https://www.redcross.org/about-us/our-work/disaster-relief/wildfire-relief.html to see how you can help those impacted and even the first-responders.
CP Explorations - Monterey to Morro Bay
Join us on a Cali Paddler Exploration journey along the Big Sur Coastline. 4 day, 120 miles from Monterey to Morro Bay. From socked in fog, to gorgeous sunny days. Hillsides, cliffs, dolphins and sea otters. Helpful tailwinds to horrible up-winds. And a finish for the ages!
CP Explorations - Santa Fe Dam
Cali Paddlers are known for their passion of exploration. A desire to paddle our waters, and pay respects to the amazing wildlife and nature that lives in our waterways. Thank you to Bret Warner from Stand up to Alzheimer’s for exploring this great state and sharing new areas to paddle. -C.P.If you live in Southern California then chances are you have been stuck in afternoon traffic on the 210 and passed by the massive Miller/Coors factory. It is, after all, hard to miss its mammoth containers lining the freeway that proudly bear the companies name and logo. Regardless of any possible beer snobbery, I could see how this factory typifies the urban sprawl that lies east of LA. What also typifies inland SoCal, however, is that there is a nature escape right behind the factory where you can easily forget that you are in the middle of the city.
CP Explorations - Lake Perris
Often times when paddling the lakes of Inland Southern California you will be one of the only paddlers in the water. If you go early enough there is a good chance you could have some of the lakes to yourself. Lake Perris is where I go when I need respite from this solitude. It is by no means like Mission Bay on a Sunday afternoon where one could jump their way to shore along all the 32” wide rental SUPS, but even when I have gone to Lake Perris at 6:00 am in 30/40 degree weather I have seen other craft on the water. It is a meeting place for the long established Valley Wide Kayak Club, a super friendly group that usually does a 5ish mile paddle there on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. It is the only Inland Lake I have ever seen an OC-1 on, or someone on a racing SUP, at least besides myself. Additionally, it is decidedly less windy than any of the mountain lakes like Silverwood or Big Bear...CP Explorations - Catalina Island
For many years now, I have wondered what was on the other side. Beyond the little pocket town of Avalon and gates to dirt roads and bison. Far past the waters where the half day fishing boats stop. Catalina Island marked to me a giant body of land begging to be explored by water. I just knew there were coastlines with giant mountains and cliffs, pocket beaches that may not have ever had people walk upon, and of course, crystal clear water teaming with sea life. So when I became friends with Ernie after the Salton Sea Race and the CP Retreat in March, I asked him if he had paddled the islands perimeter since he moved there this past year. And when he answered "no", the next question was immediate...“would you like to?”
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