FAQs

Hiking

Can I join your expedition if I'm alone?
Yes, as many persons come to us on their own. Most groups consist of couples, singles and friends traveling together.

What is the size of your groups?
Maximum of ten participants and 2 guides. A small group minimizes impact on the areas we visit, allows more individualized attention, develops group bonding, and better ensures safety.

What are your guides' qualifications?
Our guides have a keen interest in the outdoors, love their work, and enjoy sharing their knowledge. They are seasoned backpackers and possess wilderness first aid. They possess backgrounds in areas such as natural and cultural history, photography and low impact wilderness travel.

What type of shape do I have to be in?
Because of the very physically demanding nature of hiking, you should be fit. We will supply you with a conditioning program to help you. Failure to adequately prepare will not only compromise your safety and enjoyment of the hike, but will also impact others in your group.

How difficult are the hikes?
It is not simple to rate hikes, as most all will possess easy to strenuous sections, and one person's easy is another's strenuous. We have opted to rate the hikes by their overall character.
Easy: well maintained trails and/or mostly flat terrain. Moderate: mostly good trails, with significant elevation changes of a gradual nature or short but strenuous. Strenuous: will contain some or all of following conditions: off trail hiking, creek/river crossings, rough terrain, significant elevation changes, long hiking days.

Do I share in carrying the group equipment?
Our guides carry most of the group equipment such as pots/pans, stoves, tarps, major first aid kit, repair kit, fuel, kitchen set, bear spray, phone/radios. You may be asked to help with an item.

How much weight will I have to carry?
This is usually the first question on most people's mind. And, it is difficult to give a blanket response, as many variables come into play. The number of days, where you are hiking, how many are in the group, what personal gear you bring, will all affect the weight you carry. The West Coast Trail and the Rockies both have a food drop thereby reducing the weight, while the other expeditions do not.
Here is a breakdown of weights you should consider, excluding your personal gear:
Backpack - 5 – 8 lbs
Sleeping Bag - 3 lbs
Sleeping Pad - 2 lbs
Tent - 4 lbs – based on two sharing
Food - 6 – 10 lbs

Canoeing

Can I join your expedition if I'm alone?
Yes, as many persons come to us on their own. Most groups consist of couples, singles and friends traveling together.

What is the size of your groups?
Maximum of ten participants and 2 guides. A small group minimizes impact on the areas we visit, allows more individualized attention, develops group bonding, and better ensures safety.

What are your guides' qualifications?
Our guides have a keen interest in the outdoors, love their work, and enjoy sharing their knowledge. They are certified in canoeing, wilderness first aid, and emergency procedures. They possess backgrounds in areas such as natural and cultural history, photography and low impact wilderness travel.

When is the best time to do a trip?
We schedule all of our trips to coincide with the best weather and the best time to see wildlife.

How much paddling will I do?
Generally speaking we like to get going around 9 and get into camp around 4. This would be interrupted with lunch, shore breaks, drifting, wildlife viewing, photographic opportunities. Some days may find us setting camp early due to poor weather and other days extending our days to make up for lost time.

Do I have to be in good physical shape?
There is a correlation between your physical readiness and your enjoyment of paddling. We will send home some conditioning ideas for you. Normal upper body strength and flexibility are key. Paddling is more technique than strength.

What kind of canoes do you use?
We use, Clipper , 17′ canoes, for expeditions. They have proven themselves to be stable and comfortable craft.

Can children come along?
Equipment and physical constraints may limit your child's participation. We can usually place youngsters in the middle of the canoe. Call our office to discuss whether the expedition is suitable for your child.

What if I'm an experienced paddler?
The fact that you have had previous canoeing experience should in no way detract from your enjoying the trip.

What qualifies a river as being suitable for beginners?
Physical requirements for river trips are generally modest. Rivers are ranked according to the difficulty of their most severe rapids:
Class 1 - Easy flat water/lake and mild waves-current/river. Few or no obstructions, all easy to avoid. Some maneuvering may be required to navigate around log jams or sweepers. Risk to swimmers is slight. Self-rescue is easy.
Class 2 - Straightforward rapids with wide, clear channels that are obvious without scouting. Occasional maneuvering may be required, but rocks and medium-size waves are easily avoided with some training. Swimmers are seldon injured. Group rescue is seldom necessary.
Class 3 - Moderate waves and narrower channels due to obstructions such as rocks or gravel bars. Quick and accurate river reading is required with instinctive maneuvers orchestrated with a paddling partner.
Class 4 - Expert whitewater canoeist. Difficult, with narrow channels obstructed by rocks, steep and narrow drops.

Do I have to have paddling experience?
No, but it would be helpful if you familiarize yourself with the rudimentary strokes: forward, reverse, "j", draw, pry and sweep. Our guides will instruct you in these strokes and before too long you should be comfortable in their use. We have selected rivers and lakes that are suitable for the beginner.

Kayaking

What do I have to supply?
We supply kayaks, paddles, pfds [lifejackets], dry bags for storing clothing, tents, cooking and eating utensils, solar showers, major first aid kit, paddling jacket. You provide sleeping bag, sleeping pad, and personal clothing/toiletries/etc.

Can I join your sea kayaking expedition if I'm alone?
Yes, as many persons come to us on their own. Most groups consist of couples, singles and friends traveling together.

What is the size of your kayaking groups?
Maximum of ten participants and 2 guides. This is the standard client to guide ratio recommended by both the B.C. Alliance of Sea Kayak Guides and the Canadian Association of Sea Kayak Guides. A small group minimizes impact on the areas we visit, allows more individualized attention, develops group bonding, and better ensures safety.

What are your guides' qualifications?
Our guides have a keen interest in the outdoors, love their work, and enjoy sharing their knowledge. They are certified in sea kayaking, possess wilderness first aid, and emergency procedures. They possess backgrounds in areas such as natural and cultural history, photography and low impact wilderness travel.

When is the best time to do a kayak trip?
We schedule all of our trips to coincide with the best weather and the best time to see marine wildlife. Coastal conditions however are always unpredictable, so you should be prepared with the right equipment and clothing. Marine wildlife is also very unpredictable. We do not give any guarantees that you will see whales, seals, eagles, etc. but we will do our best to find them.

How much paddling will I do?
Many factors such as currents, tides, winds, animal sightings, group ability and what the group wants will determine this. Generally, you can expect to paddle for about four hours a day. Flexibility is the key to a great kayaking experience.

Do I have to be in good physical shape to kayak?
Our trips are meant for those in reasonably good shape. Paddling does not require great strength as much as it requires technique. We will send home some conditioning ideas for you. Normal upper body strength and flexibility are key.

What kind of kayaks do you use?
We use Seawards double and single sea kayaks for our expeditions. We ask that paddlers who want to use a single have previous kayaking experience and be a strong enough paddler to keep up with doubles.

Can children come along?
Our sea kayaking expeditions are best suited to teenagers. Equipment and physical constraints limit who we can take. Call our office to discuss whether the expedition is suitable for your child.

What if I'm an experienced sea kayaker?
Our experienced guides can assist you with fine tuning you're navigation, route selection, reading tide and current tables skills and more.

Do I have to have kayaking experience?
No. Ocean kayaking is easy to learn. The kayaks have a rudder system controlled by foot pedals allowing easy maneuvering. Our guides will give you instruction basic paddling techniques to enable you to paddle with confidence and ease.