Episodes

Today I am joined by Alison French. Alison runs Sea Kayak Plockton in Scotland. Today we talk about finding your why, the reasons you should visit the Shiants, Alison’s famous flapjack, and more. Thank you to Nick Ray from episode #101 for introducin...

Today’s episode was recorded from the show floor at the annual Canoecopia show in Madison, Wisconsin. Billed as the world’s largest paddlesports expo, Canoecopia features more than 100,000 square feet of canoes, kayaks, kit, outfitters, everything yo...

Today’s episode comes from the 29th annual Quiet Adventures Symposium in Lansing, MI. As paddlers, when we hear symposium we often think on-water education and experiences. This is different. It’s more like a trade show with a Great Lakes emphasis, b...

Ken Whiting is a former world champion whitewater kayaker, author, television host, and owner of Heliconia Press, one of the world’s leading media production companies in the outdoor and travel industry. You’ve seen Ken Whiting in the Facing Waves t...

Mark Spitzer shares a detailed account of his 7 month canoe trip down the entire length of the Missouri River and continuing down the Mississippi.  He was joined by his dog, Groucho, who had some adventures of his own.  It’s a great story about the r...

Tom Daly completed the first solo Ireland circumnavigation by kayak in 1979. In today's episode, we talk about the adventure itself, the gear, the freedom, and how this trip almost got him kicked out of the sport. It was a far different time. Certain...

Today we head out to Jersey.  For those in the USA, we’re not talking about the state of New Jersey, we’re talking about the Channel Islands.  Every episode gives me something else to add to the bucket list. This island archipelago is teeming with p...

David Walsh is the force behind Oileain, the definitive guide to the islands of Ireland.  We will talk about his journey to catalog and detail each of the islands, which have been his favorites, which have been the hardest, and more. Oileain.org (we...

Natalie Maderova and Michal Madera join today's episode to share their simple yet effective philosophy on managing a big trip and they bring the credibility to back it up. They’ve circumnavigated Britain, Ireland, and paddled in Alaska with Freya Hof...

Today I am joined by Des Keaney. Des was referred to me by Catriona Woods from episode 89. Des shares a trip around Cape Horn, a few of his favorite places in Ireland, and how he’s overcoming one of life's challenges to continue enjoying paddling.  H...

Today’s episode features Nick Ray. Many of us followed Nick on his 365 day Life Afloat journey around Scotland. It was a quest to find hope and joy in fully immersing himself in the trip and he did just that. We have a great chat about his motivatio...

Today’s episode marks a significant milestone to Paddling the Blue with episode #100. Our first episode released in February 2020 and we’ve come to you every two weeks since and we’ve had more than 120,000 listens from 103 countries.   Thank you to e...

Katie Carr joins today's episode of the Paddling the Blue podcast. Katie recently released the book "Moderate Becoming Good Later" about her brother Toby’s quest to paddle all the areas of what’s known as the shipping forecast.   We have a great conv...

Esther Wheeler is a driven endurance athlete, or as she calls herself, an accidental athlete. Today we will get a fascinating glimpse into the mind of an endurance athlete and how she manages herself before, during, and after the event. There are som...

Mike Conroy joins us for today’s episode of the Paddling the Blue Podcast.  We’ll talk about his trips, but even more so we’ll talk about the deliberate process that Mike has mapped out to reach his goals. Get ready for a fun interview with an everyd...

Welcome to today’s episode of Paddling the Blue.  Today’s guest is Jack Hampton. Jack and friends paddled the Inside Passage with the goal of not only completing the trip, but to explore the lives of those living in the coastal margin communities alo...

Welcome to today’s episode of Paddling the Blue.  Today’s guest is Rupert Kirkwood. Rupert goes by the name The Lone Kayaker.  You may have seen photos of some of his incredible sea life encounters and today we chat about those experiences, his motiv...

Welcome to today’s episode of Paddling the Blue.  Today’s guest is David Johnston. David is an sea kayak instructor, guide, and one of the key architects for some of Paddle Canada’s programs.  We’ll talk about the development of Paddle Canada’s progr...

Brian Wilson is the author of Blazing Paddles, a Scottish Coastal Odyssey where he shares his trip around the country, and Dances with Waves, about his journey around Ireland. Brian shares some of the fun folklore, stories of the people he met along ...

Today’s guest is Dennis Dwyer. Dennis has made several trips to Alaska, having driven from Louisiana to Alaska first in 1987. Dennis has written books on paddling Prince William Sound and the Inside Passage as well as running a popular online group ...

Today’s guest is Renata Chlumska. She is a legendary professional adventurer who brings an incredible history, having reached the Seven Summits, the highest points on each continent. Today she joins us to talk about another expedition that doesn’t in...

John Huth is a Harvard physics professor, a paddler, and author of the book “The Lost Art of Finding our Way”.  We had a fascinating conversation about his different view of navigation using the world around us, what inspired him to write the book an...

Today’s guest is an inspiration to many. I found Catriona Woods through Facebook and followed her adventures throughout Ireland with great interest.  Catriona started paddling late in life and as a reaction to disappointing news. From day one, she so...

Today I am pleased to bring you a really fun conversation with Jon Hynes.  Some of you may already know Jon from the acclaimed documentary with Sean Cahill, Sea Kayak Around Ireland. Others may know him from his work with the Irish Canoe Union, and o...