Confessions of an Addict
Double blog special today!
Following in the footsteps of the likes of Rush Limbaugh, Lindsay Lohan, and many others, I must confess, I am an addict. Shocking, I know. Yes, folks, I need help. I am seriously addicted to a blog that my friend writes daily. I check it multiple times through the day, reading not only his fantastic prose, but also the comments from his many other loyal followers. I even check in regularly to see where his SPOT Transmitter satellite beacon has pinned down his current location.
What is so interesting about my friend Jake Stachovak, you might ask? Well, he is undertaking a 5000 mile kayak journey from Portage Wisconsin, down the Wisconsin River, over to the Mississippi, across the Gulf, around Florida, up the Eastern Seaboard, over the New York Canals and Great Lakes, back to his starting point. IN A KAYAK. This is no small feat in a much larger boat, but doing so self-supported and solo is nothing short of amazing. He intends the journey to take about 9 months to complete.
Jake is a wonderful guy who I know from my friends kayak shop in San Diego, Aqua Adventures. Not only does he have the kindest of spirits, but he is also an incredibly skilled kayaker. Thankfully he does a much better job of offering daily updates to his blog than I myself do.
He currently is in Florida heading south past the Crystal river, over 1300 miles into his journey which began in early December. His posts about his experiences paddling are pretty phenomenal, but the real saga are the challenges he faces when encounter some rather nefarious humans when he goes to town every week or so to fill his water bags, buy some more calories, and charge his batteries on his equipment. To date he has had all his many thousands of dollars of gear stolen (and miraculously recovered), nearly had his kayak frozen into a popsicle until spring, and been maced by two baggie pants punks.
The worthy objective and purpose for Jake’s trip is to delineated that his trip is a collection of trips that anyone along his route could be doing in their own backyard. Fellowship? Hmmm, ever heard me exclaim what it is about paddlesports that I enjoy most? I was even lucky enough to see Jake at the start of his trip as he passed through Oklahoma on I-40. Everyone he encounters has to sign the Seda Ikkuma kayak that he is paddling. This has become quite the collage of signatures.
So, if you find yourself craving another piece of chocolate cake, or one two many smokes, dial up your internet, and check out www.portagetoportage.com instead. I can assure you, if you take the time to start reading from the beginning, it will be more than worth your time. Go Jake, Go!!!