Aloha from Kailua Kona on the Big Island of Hawaii! Maybe a few of you remember my name, or from having met my wife and myself in Cottage Grove or Madison years ago. I was usually on the other board, glad to see a few familiar names here, Jackfish, Howard, Argo, I see quite a few others.

Have not been to Q since 2018, the old bones make long trips difficult. The past several years we have been going to Forrest Lodge (Caribou Lake, Armstrong) on motorboat/cabin/fishing trips on a regular basis, and from there we have stuck our noses and paddles into Wabakimi for short periods. Got rid of the tripper canoe, but still have a fine, fine lightweight cedar strip solo, and a couple of ‘yaks.

We recently sold our home on the Turtle Flambeau Flowage, and now spend the bulk of our time on the Big Island. We are members of an outrigger canoe club, they are called OCs. Our previous club was Kai Opua, now we are with Keauhou Canoe Club. We are strictly recreational paddlers, not racers. Frequently our morning workouts look like this – (the site will not let me post links, but you can go here - https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=194796291327583).
Wife and I are the strokers (front two seats, setting the pace) in the first double hull that you see in the video. In winter we come across many humpbacks. Turtles, mantas, and even hammerheads and tigers pay us the occasional visit. There are also racers in our club, but even beyond racers here is how some of the real experts “paddle” OCs – (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9NnfsTea64).

Anyway, thought that you might be interested in seeing some alternative paddling. Best get back to our Ironman duties, our club is working an aid station tomorrow.

Your padding in Hawaii reminds me of paddling with my daughter’s OR canoe club in Guam. She was in a military family and stationed there for 3 years. The club took training paddles several mornings weekly from 530 to 730 am. Very pleasant to be out on the ocean as the sun came up over the island. And it was amazing how fast we could get the boat going. We sometimes paddled accompanied by dolphins.

Also, I am familiar with Forrest Lodge on Caribou Lk near Armstrong ON. We stopped in before a Kopka Rv trip in 2017. The young couple that owned the place then were very eager to sell it. It appears it may have been sold several times since then. We have started/ended trips at the bridge on Little Caribou just east of the lodge several times.

percaflavescens: "Maybe a few of you remember my name, or from having met my wife and me in Cottage Grove or Madison years ago. I was usually on the other board, glad to see a few familiar names here, Jackfish, Howard, Argo, I see quite a few others. "

You bet! A name from the past has returned! Welcome, Perca! Glad you checked in with us. Living the good life in Hawaii... sounds like a pretty good gig. I'll have to check out your videos. Thanks for popping in!