The trip from Seattle to Juneau is about two hours and 15 minutes in the air. Flying from Vancouver would be a little quicker if there were direct flights. Let鈥檚 guess it鈥檚 about two hours even.
Paddling it in a canoe takes about 55 days.
Liam Godfrey and Jake Dombek, both 22, have been paddling steadily north to Juneau for the last two months, leaving southern British Columbia on June 7. Rowing more than 1,287 kilometres with all their gear, relying only on what they prepared, they鈥檝e been working their way up the Inside Passage.
鈥淭he timing was perfect and we just went all in,鈥� Dombek said in an interview with the Juneau Empire, who just graduated college. 鈥淲e鈥檇 never planned a trip this big and did it.鈥�
On day 27 they made their way to Prince Rupert, the halfway point of the trip where they were welcomed by eagles and fog.
Rowing an average of 20 miles every day, Godfrey and Dombek spent hours a day working their way up the coast, stopping in small towns along the way where they鈥檇 mailed themselves food drops before they stepped off.
鈥淭here鈥檚 pretty much no other place as beautiful that you could just paddle through,鈥� said Godfrey.
Godfrey said he was living in BC last year when they had the idea for the trip. Both men started planning then, and spent the time working out the details, which could be difficult and time-consuming. This was made more difficult because they were frequently working, going to college, or both.
鈥淭he hardest part was maintaining our cohesiveness, getting our crap together,鈥� Godfrey said.
The men worked with a number of companies, including Clipper Canoes, to source gear for their trip. They also put together a fundraising campaign so that they could raise and donate money to Pacific Wild, a nonprofit foundation dedicated to protecting the Great Bear Rainforest on the Pacific Coast.
鈥淭hat kind of became what this trip was about,鈥� Godfrey said. 鈥淲e wanted to raise awareness and give back to this beautiful area we were paddling through.鈥�
The two donated their funds raised to date to Pacific Wild before leaving, said Dombek.
The trip itself has taken them up the coast, often running through tidal flats and by the odd glacier on the way north. Navigation was done by maps, with redundancy in the form of an independent GPS and their phones.
鈥淲e鈥檙e both a fan of paper charts,鈥� Godfrey laughed, as he traced the route north, showing where they鈥檇 camped.
The men said they picked a canoe for a few reasons; ease of loading, and higher gunwales for ocean chop. Their canoe, 18.5 feet long, carried more than 700 pounds, between their gear, supplies and themselves, Godfrey guessed.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a lot easier to load, and you can fit more gear,鈥� Dombek said. 鈥淲e wouldn鈥檛 have wanted to do it in any other boat.鈥�
Camping was largely on whichever beach looked promising, or islands where they could find them, for security from bears and other wildlife. Carnivorous wildlife was a concern that they took precautions for every night, but nothing ever troubled them, the men said.
鈥淵ou have to be aware of potentially dangerous animals,鈥� Dombek said. 鈥淵ou just sleep a little better on an island鈥�
The trip was free of any serious trouble, and good weather for the majority, Dombek said. Godfrey added that there were a few days of rough seas where they elected not to go out, and a few 5-8 mile ocean crossings to get across inlets that would take far too long to go down and out again.
Their biggest problem, perhaps, was running out of things to talk about as they paddled alone but for each other for two months.
鈥淭here were some days when it鈥檇 just be quiet,鈥� Godfrey said. 鈥淲e just had nothing else to say.鈥�
From here, the boys will meet their fathers and make their way up to Glacier Bay and do some canoeing with them.
鈥淲e鈥檙e excited to share with someone else,鈥� Dombek said.
They don鈥檛 have any other trips like this planned, though Godfrey added that they were both always thinking about other trips. Both men laughed and added that the next one probably won鈥檛 be quite as long; 55 days is a long time to paddle.
鈥淭here鈥檚 an aspect of seeing how what you can do: how far can you go?鈥� Godfrey said.
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鈥� Contact reporter Michael S. Lockett at 523-2271 or mlockett@juneauempire.com.
