A lot of my reaction to the statement essentially proposing to restrict whale watching to kayaks comes from the recent Orca migrations in Puget Sound this winter. Kayakers from all over Seattle, Western Canada, and at least as far south as Portland were flocking to the Sound to "watch" the Orcas. The attention and "appreciation" of this migration got so frenetic that suburbanites in the South Sound were parking cars in the petunia beds at $5.00 and $10.00 a space. There was a hoard of kayakers "following" the whales. The authorities warned, and pleaded with boaters not to "chase" the whales, and I ran into this clown in Portland making the comment, "We're not chasing them, we're just following. . . trying to catch up with them." What appears as following to one kayaker comes out as chasing when it becomes purposeful and relentless. Like the stalker claiming he's "just walking down the street," that allegedly harmless walk becomes terrifying to the stalkee. While intentions may be the best, too often I see the putative "nature lovers" creating stress on the species--literally loving them to death. What I'm reacting to (admitedly knee-jerk. . . or some kind of jerk) is the somewhat defensive assertions that "We know what we're doing, and besides we love them and would never hurt them." I keep coming up with the image of this jerk in Portland assuring me, "We're not chasing them! We're just trying to catch up to them!" I don't think there was any intentional or even ancillary disturbance of the whales and seals, but who knows what runs through their heads at the sight of a kayak? Sorry. . . I confess that I spend too much free-time at the keyboard and not nearly enough on the water. Geo. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
Geo. Bergeron wrote: > > A lot of my reaction to the statement essentially proposing to > restrict whale watching to kayaks comes from the recent Orca migrations in > Puget Sound this winter. Kayakers from all over Seattle, Western Canada, and > at least as far south as Portland were flocking to the Sound to "watch" the > Orcas. [snip] The authorities warned, and pleaded with boaters not to "chase" the > whales, and I ran into this clown in Portland making the comment, "We're not > chasing them, we're just following. . . trying to catch up with them." [snip] > While intentions may be the best, too often I see the putative > "nature lovers" creating stress on the species--literally loving them to > death. [snip] I agree *strongly* with George that an ever-increasing number of "nature lovers" (such as us) chasing after wildlife is surely to the detriment (if not the death) of the wildlife we "love." In my neck of the woods, a small party of kayakers quietly gliding down a backwater has pretty much the same effect on the wildlife in the slough as one outboard motorboat passing through. I guess education of people in the ways of the critters is my best suggestion. Awareness of the needs and sensitivities of wild things seems to breed respect and to encourage careful human behavior. That's what I see in those around me who become aware of their effects on birds and other shy beasties. It's mostly those who are entirely ignorant who do the most damage. (Heresy though it may be, most of the duck hunters I have met on my waters seem more aware of the need to save habitat for waterbirds than are the kayakers I meet.) There must be some point, moreover, when even we quiet, nonmotorized types become the problem. An example: On the USFWS Refuge next to me, there are two "navigable" sections of the Columbia River which the USFWS has posted as "off limits" to boaters -- to give migratory birds a chance to rest in isolation from the likes of me. Been told by resource managers such posting is probably unenforceable from a legalistic point of view. Seems like "the law" and what's best for the birds may not always jive. Another example: Seems crazy that "ecotourism" is the banner under which a well-publicized, "official" paddler's water trail (with campsites!) has been proposed adjacent to the sensitive waterways I describe above. I don't know what's best. I know I'm worried about it. -- Dave Kruger Astoria, OR *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
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