BRANDO YELAVICH EXPLORER

It was another rainy morning on the west coast of Vancouver Island. We set off into the drizzle with another 30km day ahead of us. It was much choppier than I expected, our weather had told us light winds and 1.5m swell. As we paddled on the conditions were becoming worse, this unnerved me, how much worse was it going to get? Ngaio had a wave crash over her boat and pull everything out from the bungees, including our marine radio and our only phone! (She managed to retrieve t

Drip drip drip ... We woke to the unpleasant sensation of water dripping on our faces. It had been steadily raining all night and the water found its way into our tent. We had puddles in every corner of the tent! I got up and tied the fly out tighter while Ngaio busied herself drying out the inside of the tent and setting up a few water catching containers. So much for a snuggly birthday morning! Once the tent was sorted and we had dried the inside, we were back in bed to Kee

It was a beautiful morning in Tofino, the sun was shining and there was a cool autumn chill to the air. We made our way down to the dock to repack our kayaks and head off. We had only had five days off but it took a while to get comfy in the boats again. Ngaio kept saying she didn’t fit in her boat and she was swearing that her legs had gotten longer. We paddled out of the harbour and onto the coast, passing little beaches tucked away in the rocks. We passed some of the bigge

Today was all about preparation. Getting ourselves ready for the next leg of the trip. We are both really keen to get back on the water, for a number of reasons. The biggest reason is that it is now October, the weather is very changeable and it won’t be getting any better. We need to finish paddling the west coast before the wind, swell and weather keep us here forever! We also have friends waiting to meet us in Victoria and we desperately don’t want to miss them. It means s

It was really windy again today so I got the last of the boat repairs out of the way! You asked me some questions yesterday! What is the greatest strength you see in each other while on this adventure ? Ngaios greatest strength is both her intelligence and the ability to be patient and understanding. I’m not the easiest person to live with. Although I don’t let it get in the way of the adventure, I often have emotional challenges that cause me to not want to talk and jus