Fraser River North Arm – May 14, 2022

Three tandem canoes set off from Burnaby’s Fraser Foreshore park on a rainy Sunday morning. Jim Slade, Jaime Adams, Peter Gutzman, Sue Mills, myself and daughter Melanie. Despite the rain, the trip exceeded expectations. The rain stopped shortly after we cast off. Friendly tugboat pilots tooted their horns as they passed us. The section we paddled was industrial but that didn’t seem to scare the wildlife off. Seals, herons and cormorants were spotted at one time or another. Fascinating to watch the buzz of industry mixed in with nature.

I learned a lot about my paddling friends. Peter is a big fan of the Gothic Metal genre. Jaime loves pink insulation (don’t ask). Jim knows where kitchy little funky restaurants exist along the river. Sue was once a stellar white water kayaker. Melanie is an expert in identifying birds (OK I knew that already). Who knew !

For lunch, Jim led us to a dock where we disembarked and wandered through a labyrinth of lumber yards and warehouses before arriving at the Northern Café. Sadly the wait time was more than our empty stomachs could tolerate so we ate pack lunches on the dock. From there we paddled to the takeout at Vancouver’s Fraser River park. Did we remember to bring enough tie down straps to load all the canoes ? Of course not, but luckily we had our painters as back up.

We all agreed it was a great trip. It was nice to see 3 new members out so soon after Basic Paddlers training. Thanks to Jim for organizing and leading us all.

Dave Apps