GET OUT!
Paddling with Island Flair OUTRIGGER PADDLERS TAKE TO HUMBOLDT BAY, ABOARD A SMALLER CANOE BROUGHT UP FROM SHELTER COVE (LEFT) AND THE LARGER, HUMBOLDT-BASED OUTRIGGER (FOREGROUND).
I
By Josephine Johnson outdoors@northcoastjournal.com
PHOTO BY JOSEPHINE JOHNSON
t’s 7 p.m. on a cloudless Thursday, and Humboldt Bay shines like liquid silver under blue skies. Luke Besmer, a Hawaiian outrigger canoe enthusiast, has assembled a crew of six other paddlers eager to get out on that smooth shine. “OK, we need to get the ama attached,” calls out Besmer, “so a couple of you can strap down both iako to the hull. Everyone needs a life jacket, too.” With agile hands, two paddlers begin attaching the outrigger to the boat. They use sturdy red nylon straps to cinch into place the iako, the side spars that jut from the side of the canoe. Once firmly attached, the iako supports the ama, or the outboard float
iconic of Hawaiian outrigger canoes. By 7:20 p.m. the paddlers are primed and ready to put in. With paddles in hand and life jackets secured, the canoe of seven launches at the foot of the Samoa Bridge. We navigate around Woodley Island and catch a bit of the Eureka Boardwalk summer concert series. Then, a harbor seal pokes its head above the surface. We can hear its forceful exhale just a few feet from the canoe. Two dark eyes briefly inspect us before descending again beneath the murky tide. Gulls fly overhead. The sun sinks lower, and the bay glows in crimson, orange, and gold. Paddling an outrigger canoe on Humboldt Bay at sunset really is a little slice of heaven,
continued from previous page
24 NORTH COAST JOURNAL • THURSDAY, AUG. 29, 2013 • northcoastjournal.com
especially after a long day of work. The outrigger is here at all thanks to years of work and multiple donations, much of it fueled by Besmer. He has helped create the Humboldt Outrigger Canoe Club, which organizes at least two weekly paddles on Thursday evenings and Saturday mornings. Since last summer, 40 different paddlers, ranging in age from 5 to 60, have taken a turn. Besmer and fellow outrigger enthusiast Neil Kalson maintain a list of interested folks, and they announce paddling days and times on the club’s Facebook page. Regular paddlers can also get text messages from Besmer. For now, the paddles are free. Rhea Ellis-Anwyl, who has been pad-
dling with the group since January, relishes her time on board. “I get to get out on the bay and paddle with a great community of people who like doing this,” she says. “It’s a great workout with great people.” EllisAnwyl looks forward to when the group gets another boat and — ultimately — creates a Humboldt outrigger racing team for competitions on the bay and beyond. Sharon Kramer, a fish biologist at H.T. Harvey and Associates who is also an avid paddler, is helping the club become a nonprofit organization, to make paddling more sustainable for the long term. “I’d like to help the paddlers establish a more solid presence on the North Coast,” she said.