Just Released; TRAK Files Episode 1

After over a year of filming, and 2 months of editing episode 1 of the TRAK Files is finally released! 7 months more of filming and editing to come too fully produce the entire series!.



The TRAK Files will follow Jaime Sharp along with the TRAK folding kayak as they explore the world of kayaking, international travel and Just what the TRAK Kayak can deliver to current and potential clients, wether they are weekend warriors, technical paddlers or international adventurers!



Enjoy the begining of a fun adventure! J

Trak Surf Video

Here is a Little Video I put together of the Trak T-1600 Surfing in Tophino.


Trak Surf Video from Wandering Wolf Productions on Vimeo.

Pan America Trip

The Trak atop the Taurus in Seattle

I sleep tonight in the back of my Station wagon, outside the ferry terminal to Vancouver island and it is near freezing, as the recent snow fall, still has remnants on the ground. With my folding Trak kayak atop the car, and I, a ferry boat ride away from a comfortable sleep in a house, am jammed amongst the boxes of my stuff I retrieved from my ex's place in California.
  The last couple of weeks have been spent journeying south along the length of the USA, to clear up and finalize some unfinished business with my best friend and ex fiancé, who now lives in Merced California. It was an emotional time, raising issues of me leaving her for my “crazy dreams of adventure”, I feel I can’t do while staying with her, and my desires to be with her and live our love.

My journey started with me shooting straight to Eugene Oregon, to catch up with Ian Westmoreland, his Toyota Tacoma and dog buddy, who I all last saw in Costa Rica, earlier in the year, after we drove from Belize to panama. It was a fun contrast to now catch up with them in Oregon and go camp up in the woods in winter, after last adventuring in the tropics. More of that story here

We put the Trak in an almost empty lake for a paddle, before heading into the trees to camp beneath a water fall, under an overhanging cliff. We had a fire, cooked pasta, drank beer and talked shit about Sasquatch. In the morning we awoke to find 6 inches on fresh snow had fallen, which answered the question of why we suddenly got so cold in the night.

I then moved on south to catch up with Nina and spend a week with her sorting out life. It ended with bitter sweet love knowing that we both need to follow very different paths at the moment to for full our ambitions. There is lots of love and respect between us and that is great.Doesn't mean the hearts aren't aching over this, we are great together.

Pic of Nina and I, a couple of years ago at Rainbow Bridge Utah.

In the mean time I did a lot of sponsorship soliciting, and logistics for the NZ expedition. Man this stuff takes a lot of time. Some friends from Phoenix where coming out to the coast to paddle for thanks giving, so I headed to southern LA, to surf kayak with them and camp out. Turned out to be one of the few weekends where there was no surf. I got some great distance paddling along the coast in the Trak. Cresting waves that rolled at me, side on, as I pushed along the coast in the lovely warm sun (a nice change after the winter paddling in BC). I started getting an idea again of what the NZ trip will be like. I can’t wait.Got out paddling with my mate Hut Wade of Journeys west in his Cedar Strip kayak. very nice boat!! his Non Profit Org, does guiding and also works with homeless kids and gets them into the outdoors. awesome. http://www.journeyswest.org/

I then headed north again, loading my gear, saying good bye to Nina, and sleeping in a rest stop in Oregon , the first sleep amongst my stuff in the back. The next day I stopped in at Charlie and Marianne's in Seattle. I meet this wonderful couple in Belize earlier this year, and Charlie and I had some great talks and found that we where similar people, and he having a few years on me became a bit of a mentor. Thus I was dying for the chance to sit and catch up with him as soon as I could. These two also helped me a lot by letting me post gear I needed to them, and being full supporters of my ambitions they donated some finances to the cause.

Thanks heaps for everything guys.
That led to me driving on the next night from Seattle, all the way up to horseshoe bay to catch the 9pm ferry, to find that on this day, Wednesday, there is no 9pm ferry. I will sleep here tonight and get the 6.30 am one.
I fly out in three days now, so much to do and so little time. All this prep is driving me nuts but I also really enjoy it. Sponsors are coming through and lots of money being spent of gear.

My sleeping bag jammed down the right side, even more jammed when I am sleeping in it!

Bring it on let’s make it work! www.kayakdownundernz.blogspot.com

The View out of our cave in the morning!!

Response to my adventure tales

"On a Yak About the World".  Thank you Jaime for your excellent slideshow presentation on November 3, 2010. It clearly demonstrated a new way for people to explore their passion for kayaking and travelling the world. Back packing a kayak is a brilliant idea and  the tales you shared along with the videos totally captivated the audience. It was amazing how well the Trak T-1600 performed in big seas, strong currents and crashing surf.  Did you notice how the members took a real interest in exploring the folding kayak? I would like take this opportunity to wish you good fortune with your endeavors and to invite you back to present to our club in the near future. Members of the Nanaimo Paddlers have requested your blog site and would like to follow your adventures kayak adventures in New Zealand. By Gloria Martens, Program Coordinator for Nanaimo Paddlers 
 http://www.nanaimopaddlers.org/

www.onayakabout.blogspot.com
www.kayakdownundernz.blogspot.com

Leaving Norway

This is a bit of a leap from my last post, I have let my blog slip behind by about 3 months, and I feel I need to put up a time relative post. Don’t worry though I will continue to fill in the gaps for Norway and they will be seen chronologically, may make viewing a bit hard to find the new entry’s but we will see how we go.
Well it has been a great trip to Norway, a good mix of work, play, learning and knowing. I am heading now to the UK, landing in Heathrow and heading to Bristol to catch up with an old friend Fiona and her Boyfriend Stu. From Bristol I plan to catch a plane to Split, Croatia, hopefully meet up with a friend Tania and her Boyfriend and go sailing for a day or two, I then plan to jump in my Trak and just Kayak out around the islands, explore, meet locals and see what can be found. I am in much need of my own space and a solo trip, so, though I sent out invites to join me, I was quite happy no one could take me up on it. Solo trips are a much needed journey and they tend not to happen enough! Split is in central Croatia and I hope to travel north wards to see some of the islands around Rab, then head south along the coast as far as I can get in my Trak, with hopes of making it to Dubrovnik ( a fair distance and maybe not possible, but thankfully there are always buses). It will be a nice contrast to the cold chilly waters of the North Atlantic and I look forward to being able to walk around in a pair of shorts and nothing else.
 
I will fly back from Dubrovnik Croatia to Heathrow again, from there, catch a bus to Cornwall where there is a sea kayak symposium happening, I hope to meet some new friends and learn some new open water skills with the English, before then heading back to Bristol via bus. I hope then to fly up to Scotland to meet up with some other old friends, and maybe kayak, though also maybe just enjoy a journey without lugging all my gear around. Traveling light is a wonderful experience; having lugged 60 kgs of gear around beforehand makes it even more so! Sea kayaking in Scotland looks amazing though and the storm paddling could be great in October, so we will see what shapes up!
Planning this next stint has been a bit of a fluster, as all my spare time over the last few months went into the Lofoten Trip I just got back from with my two great clients Lyn and Denise. I have spent a lot of time on the computer in the last 40 hours looking at what I want to do and trying to find the best schedule of flights, fairs, departure points, arrival points, bus times ,cost and time analysis of flights versus ground transport ,etc, though it seems to be all working out well. I find it a real novelty how flights in England can be far cheaper and of course quicker than taking a bus!
I had big plans for Europe (as some of you may remember), though time, money, personal life and the looming and exciting 4 month kayak trip along the east coast of New Zealand starting in December, have created a conservative view in my head now. I want to have quality experiences in Croatia and the UK, and not try and fit in Spain and Morocco and Greece and........ You can see where this is going. It is so easy to bite of more than you can chew and you never get the taste of what you are eating.
After Europe I will head back to British Columbia on the 19^th October and begin my training for my NZ Expedition which will be a very challenging 4 month trip along exposed surf battered coastline. The scale of the challenge is now hitting me and all I can now think about is preparing for it. BC in the fall and winter will provide a great training ground for me, with great surf beaches to train on, cold weather, storms, and expansive places to try out my gear and ideas on with loaded multi day trips. This environment should hopefully make the summer environment I will face in NZ quite enjoyable and have me prepared for the more challenging southern stretches on the NZ coast I will be hitting in the southern autumn.

The Site for the NZ expedition is up www.kayakdownundernz.blogspot.com, telling all the details so far of what the trip is planned to be, who could be involved. It will develop more as things come together so check it out regularly. I will also have updates posted to my “World Wild Adventure” blog and the “Yak’ About the World” Blog and my Face Book pages. Oh and if any of you would like to join me on the trip or part of it, let me know and we may be able to make it happen.
 
Keep dreaming, it’s what influences reality!
Jaime

First Week In Norway (part 2)

CORPORATES
   

On the Docks with my Trak!

 The The first big task that my new job called me to do, was to be involved in facilitating a Corporate adventure weekend!
The millionaire Club of car salesmen and woman for Audi, Volvo and Skoda where coming to celebrate their annual sales. we where to provide a weekend of coastal fun staying on the wonderful island of Håholmen. Kayaking, Motorised RIB tours, Caving and hiking in the coastal mountains, and off course great food and drink!

Lise, Robert, Pauli, Mari, Didrick, Me

the Atlantic Coastal Road

 

The work is very different than I am used to very simple and un-strenuous activities filled with great sights and food. Fun times though a touch boring for my mind, however very interesting business lessons and ideas are learnt. the first day help manage a group of 28 kayakers paddle 2 hours along the stunning Hustadvika coastline, then switch with 26 more and paddle another 2 hours to the Island of Håholmen. That night we ate and awesome BBQ meal and Drank like merry fishes till the early morn! crazy these people love to drink and drink hard, this was also a golden opportunity for me to drink a lot for free and save on the hefty Norwegian prices ($10US for a beer at a bar!). we where mostly all in bed by 3am, except for a hardy few salesmen who didn't got to sleep and where still drinking when we awoke!

Lise

Lunch time

Second day Lise and I took three individuals out sea kayaking for the afternoon, amongst the great little islands in the area. after a quick lunch only one wanted to continue on with me to the open coast and complete a little circumnavigation and then back to the lodge. the other two went back with Lise to the lodge early to recover from there hangover. The rest of the group had headed up into he mountains for caving and a solid ridge line hike!
   

Håholmen
Håholmen, a fishing community worthy of presevation in the Hustadvika bay, has served as a meeting place, harbour, home and workplace for fishermen, sailors, shopkeepers and travellers for hundreds of years, though stopped in the 1960’s. Since 1989, Kari and Ragnar Thorseth have brought new life to the 300-year-old fishing village, Håholmen, and this beautiful, weather-beaten island has once again become an attractive meeting place for people.  The island has an unusually beautiful, natural harbour, well protected from all types of weather.  Around 30 buildings - several of then dating back to the 1700 and 1800s scatter the island and take you back in time!
Ragnar Thorseth, the creator of the wonderfull lodge we stayed at was born in 1948 , he is an adventurer and writer .
Ragnar Thorseth became known as the adventurer for more adventurous trips in small boats. In 1969 he rowed the first man alone from Norway ( Måløy ) to Lerwick on Shetland. In the next decade he traveled including the Arctic Ocean around over the Atlantic and through the Northwest Passage .In 1982 he was part of a snøscoter expedition across the ice to the North Pole was reached 29 april . In the period April 1984 - 1986 Thorseth sailed around the world with "Saga Siglar" . At the end of the 1980s, he and his family spent a winter in the icy wilderness of Kongsfjorden on Svalbard .
In August 2000 he was involved in a serious horseback riding accident.

Prow of a viking ship

  

IS THAT WHALE??

Ragnars Ship in Sydney

looking back at the lodge

The last night was a very formal business dinner and the guides (the dirty hoods we are), had to eat to ourselves up stairs, though we got served an amazing 5 course meal. after the main dish i was so impressed by the  raw Tuna dish we where served that i asked out how they did it. I shouldn't have asked as i was to find out it was WHALE!!! Argh all my Greeny friends please forgive me!!
more drinking that night and the next day was pack up and ship out!

The transport boat

The Crew, Me , Mari, Lise, Trond

Towing the boats home

What a first week in Norway, more adventures to come!