Basketball, Football, and Baseball are all the popular sports that attract most people, particularly from a minority community in an urban area. This book attempts to raise awareness to everyone both inside and outside an urban area as to the unique serenity that paddling offers. The books requires you to consider paddling in your own neighborhood, as you might have a great place to paddle within 30 minutes or your home and not even know it. It details the love of the water in the life of Michael Taylor from childhood that carried into his adult life. It reveals the paddling community in the Chicago area and reviews the purpose and goals of these organizations. Lastly as a Christian the author reflects on the appreciation of nature and the blessings that God provides to all humanity that he sees when he is out on the water.The book is informational, it is funny, and it is spiritual. It is meant to inspire the reader to pick up the sport of paddling and become an advocate for the waterway systems in their community.

A small canoe carved by an Indian boy makes a journey from Lake Superior all the way to the Atlantic Ocean.

What happens on a canoe trip stays on a canoe trip—or does it? From the mouths of eight different storytellers—family members and friends of various ages, who’ve spent twenty years canoe tripping together—Paddle Tales offers true accounts of adventure, drama, and lessons learned on the rivers and lakes of Northern Saskatchewan. You can’t make this stuff up! From tips, tricks, packing lists, menu ideas, and trip notes to stories of white-water mishaps, inclement weather, up-close views of wildlife, and family bonding, this book has a little something for everyone: budding or seasoned canoeists, wilderness enthusiasts, and those who simply appreciate the back country stories from a safe distance. Here in these pages, readers will find themselves humbled by the intensity of the Canadian Shield, the strength of body and mind required to thrive in the wilderness, and the increasing evidence of peace the further one gets from the bustle of urban life. Discover what connecting to nature means for each unique canoeist, and what keeps them going back year after year.

"You want to what?" Barb regards her husband with incredulity at the prospect of paddling down the entire length of the mighty Mississippi River in their recently completed tandem kayak. Paddle for a Purpose sweeps the reader into a journey of faith and personal discovery, as Barb and Gene feel called to volunteer with charity organizations in quaint river towns along one of the most scenic and powerful river systems in America. Against a backdrop of picturesque settings and the river's changing moods, exciting and often humorous accounts of adventure and mishap intermingle with inspiring stories of healing, renewal, beauty, compassion and trust in God.

In this wonderful collection of short, funny pieces, Richard Cutler covers the gamut from nostalgia to conjecture on such topics as clowns, cholesterol and calling in sick to the supervisory voice mail. Along the way he sharpens his wit on exercise, politicians, road rage, souvenir shopping while traveling light and women's attraction to hand-held power tools. He reports on place and people names, profanity-free TV, holiday traditions, guy things and old fashioned etiquette. And he offers his experiences with gene pool backup, old wives' tales, women's fashions (and the storage thereof), following RV's and flying steerage class. The careful reader will discover such incidental insights as his theory of why Eskimos gave up kissing for rubbing noses and what the young Marquis de Sade's nanny said that may have suggested all those weird ideas. But the casual reader will learn something too. And not just that the author has entirely too much time on his hands. Interspersed among these views of the passing scene are subtle indications that--paddles or not--we may all of us be headed up the creek. So to speak.

The Ultimate Guide to Paddling the Everglades! Nothing compares to paddling Everglades and Biscayne National Parks. Encompassing nearly 1.7 million acres combined, these two national parks cover most of South Florida, from Everglades City south to Flamingo and across much of Florida Bay, and from the western shoreline of Biscayne Bay east to the offshore reefs, including part of the upper Florida Keys. Paddlers can discover beautiful ecosystems, fascinating habitats, and many diverse paddling routes. Paddling Everglades and Biscayne National Parks details at least 40 of the very best paddles throughout the National Parks, providing routes for every type of paddler. User-friendly format with informative maps throughout Informative at-a-glance paddle specs for every route Full-color photos throughout GPS coordinates for every put-in/takeout

It was crazy. It was unthinkable. It was the adventure of a lifetime. When Don and Dana Starkell left Winnipeg in a tiny three-seater canoe, they had no idea of the dangers that lay ahead. Two years and 12,180 miles later, father and son had each paddled nearly twenty million strokes, slept on beaches, in jungles and fields, dined on tapir, shark, and heaps of roasted ants. They encountered piranhas, wild pigs, and hungry alligators. They were arrested, shot at, taken for spies and drug smugglers, and set upon by pirates. They had lived through terrifying hurricanes, food poisoning, and near starvation. And at the same time they had set a record for a thrilling, unforgettable voyage of discovery and old-fashioned adventure. "Courageous . . . Exciting and always immediate." -- The New York Times Book Review

"A reader's delight. a story with nostalgia, history, lost love, suspense and a touch of American Graffiti." Maxine Paetro, New York Times bestselling author "First-time novelist Bob Williams' the Eastside of Town is a cracking good mystery and an even more compelling coming-of-age story. Set in Central Florida in the eventful 1960's, this rapidly paced novel uses the biggest issues of the day-Vietnam, Civil Rights, and the Kennedy assassination as a catalyst in the life of youthful protagonist Tommy Smith. Readers with a taste for mystery and fine fiction will love it." Mary Stanton ( Claudia Bishop ) author of THE BEAUFORT & COMPANY MYSTERIES "Even if you didn't grow up in Central Florida during the 1960's, the Eastside of Town offers a gripping tale of friendship, lost love, coming to terms with coming-of-age...and murder. Bob Williams knows how to tell a tale, but he also knows how to instill a deep sense of place in his writing. Those who remember Orlando as it used to be will enjoy nostalgic references to such favorite old hangouts as Ronnie's Restaurant and the Orlando Youth Center. Along the way, Williams does a masterful job of creating characters who seem like old friends and plotting a story that keeps us riveted until the end." Bob Morris, (Baja Florida, Bahamarama, Jamaica Dead) Five friends who grew up on the eastside of Orlando who experienced fathers returning from WWII, the mysteries of girls, Friday night lights, prom, integration, civil rights, assassinations of President Kennedy, Bobby Kennedy, and Martin Luther King Jr., the draft, and the Vietnam War are reunited when Jackie, the girl who taught all of them about passion and compassion, is brutally murdered. Tommy Smith convinces his friends they need to find out what happened to Jackie. This may not have been a good idea.

Newly revised guide to the best paddling trips in Iowa, contains trip ideas, and environmental, geological, and historic points of interest.

The definitive guide to seeing all the wonders of Scotland under paddle power. Scotland is one of the most appealing destinations for kayakers, canoeists and paddleboarders from all over the world. That's because if there is one country best seen from the water, it is Scotland. Loch Ness contains more water than all of the rivers and lakes in England and Wales combined – and there are 27,000 other lochs to explore as well. What's more, with 125,000km of rivers and 800 islands, there's always somewhere new to paddle. And the spectacular Scottish scenery only adds to the appeal. This book is the complete guide to paddling the wonderfully varied waterways, lochs, rivers and coasts of Scotland, compiled by Ally Findlay, a paddleboard instructor and tour guide based in Glasgow. He covers all regions of Scotland: - South Scotland, including the coast at Kirkcudbright and Fleet Bay, and inland to Loch Ken, and the Galloway Canoe Trail - Central Scotland, including Loch Lomond and the beautiful Trossachs National Park - East Coast Scotland, including the Forth Bridges - West Coast Scotland, from the coast at Arasaig to lochs and rivers including the amazing Rannoch Moor - Scottish Highlands, which become a magical playground in the northwest following the Inverpoly routes From short paddles to day trips into the stunning wilderness, this book covers excursions for all occasions and all levels of ability, explaining where to begin and what to look out for. Most are well suited to canoe and kayak, but going further, some are even better explored standing up on a paddleboard, including cross-Scotland routes such as the Shin System. With beautiful and evocative photography, and clear maps, this is the essential guide to seeing Scotland under paddle power, exploring where to go, how to get there and what to see en route.