Sea kayak instructor extraordinaire

Learning to sea kayak for our Antarctic adventure has been an unexpected revelation.  We've both paddled all sorts of water craft during our lifetime, but neither of us realised the degree of technical expertise and training that is required to be competent, safe and confident in a sea kayak.  Not that sea kayaking is difficult - to the contrary they are extremely efficient in the water, designed to comfortably paddle 20-30 kilometres per day, fully loaded with food and camping gear.  It's just that when you capsize a sea kayak, you're locked-in. If you panic, you WILL drown.  Nobody can get you out, except for you.  Relatively few kayakers can eskimo role, mainly because good kayakers can brace to avoid capsizing; hence it's not a skill they require (unlike actual eskimos who, Gary explained, used to be sewn into their kayak to keep the water out, so if they couldn't roll they'd drown).  When you find yourself upside down in the water, disoriented and with no visibility (we were training in the Mooloolah River - at least we couldn't see the Bull Sharks!), you have to stay calm and methodically run your fingers around your cockpit until you find the strap (that you hope you left out) to release the skirt - pull vigorisly, and gracefully slide out from within and beneath your kayak, all the while remembering not to let go of your paddle, hat, sunglasses, camera or your craft.  That's the easy bit.  Now you're in the water in the middle of the ocean and whatever capsised you is still there (Killer Whale? Leopard Seal? waves?)  You have to get yourself out of the water and back into the kayak that is now full of water, without capsizing again and, in Antarctica, without becoming hypothermic.  Hmmmmm - our talented instructor Gary Forrest wasn't kidding when he said he'd have us totally exhausted after 3 to 4 hours practising his 'cowboy', 'T' and 'scoop' rescues, 'hula hula', bracing and sweep strokes.  A big thank you also to Mark & Jo from the Aussie Sea Kayak Company; Cath, Darrel and Ben for lending us their sea kayaks; and Dave Pass, an inspirational adventurer and sea kayak enthusiast who generously lent us his sea kayak trailer and provided us with additional paddling practice and personal tuition.