Paddle Articles

Dragon Boat - Cali Paddler Answers the Call

Cali Paddler Dragon Boat"I'm so pumped! I feel like a puppy who's tail is wagging and it won't stop!!!", Megs after her first race.

Earlier this year, Cali Paddler had its first exposure to a Dragon Boat race when we attended the Long Beach Festival in July as a vendor and spectator. We were stoked on what we saw, and invited by many in the community to get in a dragon boat race and learn first hand how exciting it can be. So, this past weekend, we did just that. But rather than just send one or two folks, we entered a whole team, from every walk of paddling life we could find throughout the state. And their response? Read for yourself.

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Pacific Paddle Games - What was it like for the rest of us?

Pacific Paddle Games 2015- Start of Women's Prone
By now you have seen recaps of the elite races. Looked at photos of the most crazy wipe-outs, and we have heard about how the pros came to play (and did not disappoint in the least). But our mantra at Cali Paddler is to Be EPIC (Every Paddler in California). And so we took the chance to get a recap from 'one of us' for this years Pacific Paddle Games. Read first hand from Maggie Adams, founder of Blue Paddle SUP, about California's new world stage race in Dana Point.

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Race Recap - MBX 2015 (Monterey Bay Crossing Outrigger Challenge)

Monterey Bay Crossing 2016

An epic race that goes from Santa Cruz to Monterey, along one of the most diverse and lush marine sanctuaries in California, deserves our attention. Join our contributors with their tales of their journey at MBX!

We are stoked to share the perspective of a SoCal Paddler who made the trek to experience some awesome NorCal Waters. A novice oc6 crew who decided to tackle the challenge. And an oc1 paddler who made the crossing and might have been the youngest on record to do it solo.

Enjoy their stories! And be sure to check this out next year in 2016

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The White Canoe (a story of a Molokai Hoe crossing)

Molokai Hoe 2014[This was written by Team Writer Clarke after his Molokai Hoe journey across the Ka'iwi Channel in October 2014. Good luck to all the Cali Paddlers who will be taking on this special journey in the coming days and years. ]

I didn’t really set out to do this race when teams were first being discussed months and months ago. In fact it took some pretty amazing support and encouragement for me to even think it could become a reality. But it did. Conditions were described by several local Hawaiian clubs as “challenging” “fun” “rough”. I had some amazing teammates, some were in the canoe, some back home, help get me across. And I will be putting this down as one of those achievements that makes me a better person, nevermind just a better paddler.

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MBX 2015 - OC1 Crossing Recap

Monterey Bay Crossing 2015
I decided to really challenge myself and compete in the OC1 category. Looking back, I think a bit of “crazy” came over me when wanting to do the crossing. Training for the race was difficult.  I often trained alone, putting in a lot of early mornings and late nights. Training for more than 2.5 hours was new to me and presented many new challenges that I had to overcome. A lot went in to being 100% ready for the race, from the millimeters of adjusting the ama, to the miles and hours put into training and getting ready. My goal had been set from previous training sessions. I wanted to complete the MBX in 4 hours. I felt ready.

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MBX 2015 - A SoCal Paddler Perspective

Monterey Bay Crossing - Map
Paddle Recap - As we try and bridge the different paddle regions of our state we often reach out to those who travel from their normal waters to try something a little different. Thank you to Conrad Stielau for taking the time to do this interview and share his impressions. This adventure-loving paddler from San Diego and friends from the Newport/Long Beach area made the trek up to Santa Cruz for the Monterey Bay Crossing. Enjoy this qa session and his impressions of MBX for those who might want to try it in 2016.

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MBX 2015 - Whattacrew Novice Team Tackle the Crossing

Monterey Bay Crossing - Iron Novice Crew[Join Jocelyn and this novice group (nicknamed "Whatacrew") as they take on their longest race yet, the Monterey Bay Crossing. After an amazing season, this ended up being the final bang to go out on!]

This past weekend "WhattaCrew" faced their biggest challenge yet. A full novice crew, who decided to take on the Monterey Bay Challenge, Ironed the entire 26 miles. As I sit here, not sure how to even start describing the entire experience from beginning to end, I go back to the first day we were all tossed into a canoe together and knew immediately this was about to be one EPIC ride! Let me tell you how we earned our vacation...

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Memoir of a Voyage: Moku ‘o Keawe to Mokupuni ‘o Maui - Journey to my Roots

Cali Paddler Explorations Big Island to Maui
In the darkness of the early morning, with a sliver of moon and an army of stars watching over us, we carefully set our canoes on the water at Kawaihae Harbor on the northwest side of the Big Island of Hawaiʻi. The time had come for thirty five paddlers from around the world, many of us total strangers who share a passion for Hawaiian Outrigger Paddling, to embark on a long awaited voyage from Moku ʻo Keawe (Big Island, Hawaiʻi) to Mokupuni ʻo Maui (Island of Maui).

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Vitamin "Sea"

Vitamin SEA
If you have you ever camped beside a river, fallen asleep next to crashing waves after a surf, tossed stones into a lake, or brought your deep thoughts to the ocean at sunset for a swim...you've felt it. The magical presence of water, in all its forms.
I think we can all agree that there is a sensual force that acts upon us physically, mentally and for some, spiritually, when we are near water. It is a mystical sensation. No doubt we have all experienced this in a multitude of ways while playing in, on, or around, this luxurious liquid. However, much like Sasquatch, or Tahoe Tessie, it's a bit hard to explain at a dinner party. I'm hoping to change that for you.
I believe there is far more going on here; that we aren't completely mindful of. So... Let's dive in!

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Cali Paddler Explorations: Brent Allen Outside

Brent Allen Outside
Cali Paddler is proud to showcase and highlight the wonderful sense of exploration Brent Allen has for our state's beautiful coastlines. With a sense of stewardship through his coordination of beach and waterway cleanups, and his respect for sea life by promoting and teaching safe distance paddle techniques (did you know its helpful to seek out kelp beds during whale breaching episodes to help keep a safe distance?) Brent has become a favorite of Cali Paddler. He has no shortage of amazing up close nature experiences to share with us and remind us how important it is for Cali Paddlers to respect and nurture the waters we love. He offers paddle tours of the Monterey area and is a great resource to contact next time you want to explore our wild coastlines in a safe and respectful manner with an experienced tour guide. He will take you places you never dreamed of. Enjoy the videos below to see what we mean!

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