written and photographed by Mary L. Peachin
May 2001, Vol. 5 No. 7
We looked like a colorful rainbow as we paddled red-and-turquoise two-person kayaks past banks of island forests. Under our red spray skirts, which kept us dry, we wore yellow PFDs (personal floatation devices) covered by green, yellow, or red rain jackets. The area— the Inland Passage between Vancouver Island and Alaska, specifically the Straits of Johnstone—is colorful, but we stood out in our clearly manmade finery, which alerted passing boats and cruise ships to our presence.