Category: Travel & Adventure

We’re lucky to live in an incredible part of the country. Within a few hours drive of house, we got the ocean, mountains, lakes, forests, deserts and a big city. We try and keep pretty busy, and have some great adventures around here. In the

We got a super late start Friday night, and it was an all night slog to Davenport, with just a few hours of fitful dozing alongside the highway. But I made it to the contest, and had a great time. Didn’t surf as well as

Thanks to Dave for setting up the Pismo Beach Surf Kayak contest. Due to permit issues, low turnout, and predictions of small waves sunday, the contest was condensed to one day. That mean I was surfing 9 heats in a day. (High Performance, International Class,

I (Geoff) went to Germany recently for a work trip, but managed to do a little exploring while there. Flew over a few days early, and came back via England to see my Grandma. Good trip.

Some of you that have known me for awhile may remember that before I got obsessed with kayaking, I used to be an avid rock climber. I’d climb all the time. Kim and I met at an indoor climbing gym, and were climbing partners before

Friday night we had Kim’s mom, aunt and Grandma over for dinner, which meant another insanely late night drive…leaving our our house around 11:30 and with some mandatory roadside naps, we pulled into Jil and Jeff’s sweet mountain cabin right around 8:45 a.m. loaded Jeff’s

My cousin had a 3 day visit this past weekend. We hadn’t seen each other in 20 years, so it was great to see each other and get to know each other better. Friday we spent a long day exploring LA, Hollywood, Santa Monica, and

The Green River, through Desolation and Grey Canyons, is a gorgeous trip, with amazing scenery, camping, and fun rapids. I kayaked it over 6 days this year, and had an amazing time. A great time following in the footsteps of Powell on a spectacular river

The Middle Fork of the Feather is described in the classic CA paddling guidebook as “This is it! The Middle Fork of the Feather River is the best wilderness self-support trip in California.” It is one of the original “Wild and Scenic ” designated rivers.

The East Fork of the Carson flows with the melting snow, and heads east down the Sierra Mtns, into Nevada. It’s a class II+ run, but moves quickly. We did a trip a few weeks, with the great folks from Current Adventures (http://currentadventures.com) who do

Brush Creek, a tributary of the Kern River in CA, is one of the most incredible stretches of whitewater around. It drops about 450 feet per mile, but is suprisingly managble. Lot's of fun drops in the 5-20 foot range. Big fast slides. It's just

When I announced my move back to southern california, more than a few of my outdoorsy friends offered a mix of sympathy and concern. Los Angeles is famous for many things, but it takes a connoisseur to know about the amazing recreational activities beyond the

We enjoyed an awesome last minute trip to the Yucatan peninsula in Mexico. Kim got certified to Scuba dive, and we enjoyed diving, snorkeling, caving, eating, and visiting archeological ruins. Another great vacation.
Pauley Creek is a spectacular kayak run in Northern California. Tons of fun drops, a couple technical rapids. We got a good early season run in, though it meant hiking in through snow. Several good waterfalls. Video inside.
A while back, Kim and I took out the tandem for an awesome tour of Sacramento and the Delta. About 36 miles. Loving the tandem, but I need to figure out some better bars, my hands go numb. We stopped for a quick snack and
It's been a grim winter so far for paddling, but one of the few spots that has water is Clear Creek, located near Redding, CA. I got on it a few weeks ago. Good times.

This past weekend was the national championship for surf kayaking, held at Davenport, CA, and organized by Buck Johnson. I went down a day early to get a practice session in. Friday was super fun. I was on the water from 9 a.m. to 5

After a few days in Guatemala, Kim and Geoff head to Belize for some beachside relaxing and snorkeling.

I took a trip, I was supposed to be working for a raft company as a safety kayaker, but it did not go well.

The other day we were at the Mayan ruins in Tikal in Guatemala, swatting away Mosquitos. At the last minute, we realized Belize was only a 6 hour bus ride away. Wanted to get out of the jungle heat. Belize has been great. we are

Hi everyone! I had a good flight to Guatemala and landed yesterday morning. Geoff picked me from the airport and impressed me with the spanish he learned in one week of intensive spanish lessons (6 hours a day, for 5 days). So, he´s now our

I suppose, after my last post, it would be hard for Guatemala to get worse. If it did, I probably wouldn´t be posting! After arriving it Antigua, I spent a few days recovering my leg and exploring the city. I was hanging out with Babke,

Guatemala has been crazy super ROUGH. I think it has a grudge against me. First, let me apologize, I have no new pictures. My camera is in recover mode, tough in the humid environment here. I’ve faced missed flights, painful injuries, and a terrifying swim
Well, it's Weds now. I've been in Guatemala for 8 days, sweating for the vast majority of that time. I'm writing this from the home of the owner of the raft company, with the sound of the Lanquin river just feet below me. The view

Hmmm.  Weird accents are showing up.  Sorry about that.  Not sure what to do, since they aren’t in what I’m seeing.  Today I woke early,and went for a walk. I bought a tamale, wrapped in banana leaf and a bit different than the tamales I’m

I woke up Tuesday morning around 8 a.m. and sliced off some gluten-free bread for toast. As I sat down at the computer, I realized my flight to Guatemala was that very morning at 12:15 a.m. Panic set in as I scrambled to pack for

First of all, a big thanks to Demany Smith for putting the contest on. It was fun. Good to see everyone, a good vibe. I showed up early Friday, and headed out to surf with Buck, Eric, Vince, John B.,Jared, Graham, Dennis Judson and others.

It's Saturday morning, and I’m already feeling the nerves as I prepare for the WildFlower 70.2 Mile Triathlon. After a long drive to Paso Robles and a fitful night of sleep, I know I’m not fully prepared. The swim is daunting, especially with a mass

I met Eric in the Store where I work, and we got to talking about Kayak surfing. He was new to the area, and we ended up swapping emails, and eventually going “surfing”, although, there was NO surf that day. We did decide to go

I faced this tough course alongside Kim, a first-time marathoner who had only run five miles before. With nerves and excitement, we tackled the steep climbs and beautiful views together. Kim's determination shone as she finished in an amazing 6:21, winning a plaque for 1st
I've never thought of myself as a number chaser, but in March, my friend Tom and I decided to set a goal for our climbing day at Joshua Tree. Inspired by other climbers, we aimed for thirty "stars" but ended up with fifty! With no
Just over a year ago, I decided to run a marathon on Catalina Island, despite my minimal training and growing doubts. As the race day approached, I felt the weight of my decision, especially when I learned about the challenging course with over 4,000 feet
This weekend was absolutely fantastic! I drove almost 300 miles to June Lake, with excitement for my very first ice climbing adventure. Even though it rained and I was a complete newbie, I couldn't wait to tackle those frozen waterfalls. With my buddy Brian as