In addition to the kind and gifted photographer, Ken Spence,
who was one of our sea kayaking travel companions (http://lbwithblackvelvetrav.blogspot.com/2015/08/thank-you-ken-spence-your-photographic.html)
we were also traveling with a journalist by the name of Martin Fletcher. As we learned Martin was working on a short
article for the Financial Times documenting his Sea Kayaking travel experiences
with ROW. In all honesty I had absolutely
no awareness or knowledge of Martin’s professional resume. I will confess that I have spent zero time in
Martin’s world literally or figuratively.
I follow baking blogs not British journalists. Foreign affairs are not on my radar but
fanciful flourishes are. In reality we are
worlds apart in every way humanely imaginable.
That was until our sea kayaking adventure in August when fate stepped in
and brought together a group of strangers with an interest in unique nature
adventures.
During this unusual travel experience we stripped away our
professional wardrobes, titles and multitasking gifts and opened our eyes to
the wonders of the world around us. Although
this was a working trip for both Martin and Ken it was obvious how genuinely
they each individually relished the opportunity to experience and capture the
experience to the fullest. As Ken was
visually documenting the journey I could see the gears in Martins mind working
through each day in the form of words, thoughts and quotes. He would make notes and verbally discuss the essence
and outline of his article as he was mentally writing and rewriting each word
based on new perceptions, experiences and thoughts. Although I do not possess Martin’s written
flourish or Ken’s photographic talents I often think of experiences in the form
of words and images combined so it was fascinating for me to see them both “at
work.”
Personally what I really respect about Martin is his level
of integrity in the honestly that he felt he needed to portray regarding his experiences
in the pending article. You can’t write
about whales if you do not see them. For
both Martin and I by day three the whales had become creatures of almost
mythological proportions. We were the
two individuals on the trip who had not seen any whales, even at a great
distance. I was anticipating a white unicorn
stallion or fire breathing dragon with emerald green eyes to appear on the
islands with more certainty than I was anticipating a whale encounter. I know that Martin was also questioning their
actual existence. The rugged Johnstone
Strait, between Vancouver Island and the BC mainland, is touted as one of the best
places to whale watch in all of British Columbia. Humpback
whales, 260 Resident and even more Transient Orcas all migrate the channel,
feeding on salmon and the abundant marine life found between its rocky
shores. So it leaves one to wonder after
3 days of paddling “where are the whales?”
Day three is where Martin and Ken’s working status afforded
them the whale encounter of a life time.
After an afternoon of paddling eight of the ten kayaks had been moved to
dry land above the high tide line leaving two kayaks (one double and one
single) near the water for Mel (one of our three tour guides) to take Ken and
Martin back out on the water in hopes of seeing whales while everyone else
remained at camp. Sitting on the rocky
shoreline beach near our tent Anthony and I watched as Mel hurried the men into
the kayaks shortly after our return. We
could see humpback blowhole whale activity finally on our side of the straight
from where we were sitting. As fortunes
would have it they were able to paddle quickly enough to encounter a whale feeding
(the pictures above were captured by Ken of Martin and the whale). Anthony stood there with his binoculars
transfixed by the entire experience. Like
a seasoned sports caster Anthony was verbally sharing with me the play by play
experience that he was viewing. I will
admit that I had very mixed emotions over their additional whale encounter
opportunities. As much as I understood
the logistics of getting everyone out on the water (sometimes this was a very
slow process) and how it was not conducive to a quick launch it was frustrating
to not have the same opportunities that they were afforded. When you wait over 30 years for an experience
it is heartbreaking to miss any opportunity, even the ones not offered to you. Both men were so gracious when they returned
as they knew we had all watched from shore.
And as happy and delighted as I was for their encounter I was
simultaneously mourning the loss of the opportunity for the rest of us. Poor Anthony did his best to cheer me up but
he knew I was pretty glum that evening.
It took everything that night to shake off the spectacular pout I was
wearing. Still the next morning I
remained hopeful that we were only half way into our trip and that there would
be plenty of opportunities for whale encounters for everyone including myself.
The spectacular pictures above were captured by Ken and you
can see the delight in Martin’s face. Today
seeing these pictures brings a true smile to my face which was unfortunately absent
the day of their big adventure. If
nothing I am honest even when I am not having my best moments. Since our return Martin’s travel article has
been published and is available to read on-line (link below). It is interesting to read about his
perceptions and to mull over my own.
Although we were on the same trip our experiences and opinions are not completely
identical (strangely enough we differ mostly about the weather). Yet I think he did a fine job honestly and
accurately portraying his personal experiences and the special opportunities he
was provided with. In addition to
Martin’s high level of personal and professional integrity I found him to be
unpretentious, kind and generous in the sharing of his travel and life
experiences. It is not often you meet
someone who has been arrested in Syria more than once. As a bonus Martin’s witty and charming wife
Katy (pictured above) was able to join him on this kayaking adventure. I love her smile, warm heart and am jealous
of how photogenic she is. She woke up
every day looking perfect and always had a smile and kind word for
everyone.
Martin Fletcher:
Kayaking with Killer
Whales in British Columbia by Martin Fletcher:
Ken Spence
Photography:
No comments:
Post a Comment