For the past several weeks I have been living from a suitcase as I travel around the country and quite literally the world for a very busy conference season. It has been frustrating looking down through the clouds from 35,000 feet to see lakes, rivers and oceans slide away underneath me, while I sit without a paddle. I desperately want to get on the water but I have just not had the time. To ease my pain I have been reading a great book by Warren Richey entitled Without a Paddle: Racing Twelve Hundred Miles Around Florida by Sea Kayak.
At its core, the idea of traveling 1,200 miles around the coast of Florida in a kayak sounds grueling–the organizers of the Ultimate Florida Challenge warn wouldbe entrants that “even if you are a wellprepared expert, you may die.” But Richey, who writes for the Christian Science Monitor, shows in this fast-paced memoir that a persevering spirit can overcome all physical and mental exhaustion. Still feeling the effects of a divorce that threw his world into upheaval, Richey finds solace in his sea kayak and enters the competition, despite the objections of family and friends. Nearly every day and night, he encounters all possible obstacles: physical ailments (blisters, sore muscles, sleep deprivation), the threat of predators like alligators and pythons, and solitude while paddling through the night. On a diet consisting largely of bagels and Snickers bars, Richey travels on, battling himself and the biggest enemy of all: the clock, as the rules mandate the race be completed within 30 days. Much of the tale centers on his nautical journey, but Richey seamlessly weaves that with his heartbreak from divorce, the bond of a father and son, and moving on with a newfound love. By the end of this wonderfully uplifting book, Richey’s trip has taken him well beyond the perimeter of the Sunshine State.
I have found his story thoughtful and the account of the race inspirational. I am only halfway through the book but I feel I can already recommend it as a must read for any sea kayaker or for anyone really looking for a great book and story.
Below are a couple of quotes from the book that really hit home for me about kayaking and what it means to me:
When you paddle a kayak you move at the rhythm of the Earth itself. You leave the man-made world of machines, technology, civilization, and you enter a different realm. You are no longer traveling through the landscape – you become part of the landscape. There is a pull, a connection that binds you to something mysterious, something fundamental
Many people misunderstand the attraction of sea kayaking. They see it as work. It isn’t. It requires effort, but at it’s core kayaking is an attitude, an ethic. It is a state of mind.
