Easykayaker: A Guide to Laid-Back Paddling

Explore all the advantages of kayaking in Paul Grey and Gary Backlund's Easykayaker: A Guide to Laid-back Vancouver Island Paddling, aimed at families and their children or beginner and intermediate kayakers. As opposed to the more adventurous and intimidating books written about the exhilarating sport of kayaking, Easykayaker introduces kayaking as a relaxing sport as well as a thrilling one.

Easykayaker discusses easy-to-paddle trips in thorough easy-to-read chapters and provides people with all the basic information they will need to get started—with sections on buying a suitable kayak, camping, kayaking with kids and how to choose an appropriate tour guide. The book focuses mainly on eastern Vancouver Island and other popular Vancouver Island paddling locations ranging from the Gulf Islands to the Broken Group and Nootka Sound.

Grey and Backlund also cover safety and coastal regulations, rescue techniques and information on tides, currents, marine winds and weather as well as other useful tips for novice kayakers. The book is complete with concise regional maps of Vancouver Island, charts, black-and-white photos and diagrams.

Paul Grey was born in Nanaimo in 1951. His family has lived in Nanaimo and area for well over 100 years. He teaches at Coal Tyee Elementary School situated above the Northfield mining shaft his father worked as a young man. In 1993 Paul won the local Prime Minister's Awards for an environmental teaching project with his Grade 3 students. Three years later he won a provincial level Prime Minister's Award. In 1997 he won a Royal Bank fellowship to Queen's University in Ontario for his work in Information Technology. Paul has worked on several science projects with the Mid Island Science & Technology Council (MISTIC). He has been recognized for his outstanding science work and received a lithograph as the outstanding science teacher of BC in 1999. Paul has written four books including Easykayaker: a Guide to Laid-back Vancouver Island Paddling and Kayaking Vancouver Island: Great Trips from Port Hardy to Victoria. Paul is a co-founder of the Wave Publications Cooperative.

Gary Backlund has helped organize the last four Vancouver Island Paddlefests held in Ladysmith, BC. He is a house designer and building consultant and has delivered workshops on housing maintenance for First Nation communities throughout BC and the Yukon. Gary and his daughter, Katherine are the volunteer wardens for the Woodley Range Ecological Reserve, the home of 29 rare plant species. Gary and his family own and operate a British Columbia Managed Forest. Gary also sits on the Cowichan Valley Regional District's Round Table on the Environment.