Did you know that the mighty Colorado River used to reach the ocean but now it doesn’t due to heavy water diversion? It’s something that people have told me but never really thought about it or imagined what that could look like.

Back in 2011 a group of kayakers paddled down the Green and Colorado Rivers from source to sea and filmed the whole thing. They edited the entire 113 day journey into 3.5 minutes and called the short film, Mirror River.

Spoiler alert: it goes trickle > raging river > trickle.

I'm totally on a paddling film roll these days but don’t worry, I will get back to other boring topics soon enough.

Last year at this time I interviewed Steve Weileman to shed some light on an expedition he was planning which would look for and survey Tsunami debris that has floated over from Japan and washed up on Washington state coastline.

Well, the kayak expedition happened and it was a complete success and Steve made a film out of it which was released earlier this winter. It did quite well at a couple of paddling festivals winning Best Environmental Film at both the Waterwalker Film Festival and the Reel Paddling Film Festival.

This past week Steve uploaded the full-length documentary, Ikkatsu: The Roadless Coast to Vimeo and released it free to the public.

In March of 2011 Japan suffered a devastating earthquake followed by a series of equally devastating tsunamis. As the waters receded, an estimated 1.5 million tons of debris was washed back into the Pacific - all of which was destined to land on distant shores.

In the summer of 2012 three professional kayakers, supported by a group of scientific advisors, undertook an unprecedented journey to paddle the roadless coast of Washington, and to survey the debris on some of the wildest shoreline in the United States. When they returned, they shared the data they had compiled with the scientific community and put together their story of adventure and environmental crisis in this documentary.

Steve is planning on going up to Alaska this summer for a month to survey that region and is hoping for your support. All the details on their expedition can be found here.

My friend Conor sent me this email letting me know about a new sea kayaking film that he discovered. I couldn’t have written the description any better so I just stole this from him:

Thought I'd share this great short film about sea kayaking in B.C.'s Great Bear Rainforest--the same wild channels that could soon be plied by supertankers if the Northern Gateway Pipeline happens. The 8-minute film is excellent not for its technical proficiency but rather for the compelling story it tells. It doesn't focus on politics but rather the simple joys of being immersed in wilderness. It's well worth watching and sharing with others.

Walk on Water is a very inspirational whitewater kayaking film that you need to watch.

Here is the description on the Youtube:

When a skiing accident left Greg Mallory paralyzed from the waist down, he turned to whitewater kayaking to help him escape his wheelchair. Now he's an accomplished Class V whitewater paddler who finds strength, challenge and meaning in paddling rivers. This is his story.

Walk on Water was directed by Andy Maser who has shot several other whitewater films for both PBS and National Geographic. Check out his website where he has a very good documentary he put together about the largest dam removal project in the US. It’s called Oregon Field Guide Special: The White Salmon River Runs Free. If you are into exploding dams and huge flood water it will be right up your alley.

Thanks for Bryan for the heads-up.

Have I got a treat for you today. I just got an email from the fine folks at the Greenland Tourist Association who just released a series of short films highlighting the great things about Greenland.

Take a look at the amazing sea kayak film they put together. What can I say, it’s gorgeous. When you are done with that watch the second clip below which more of a general film about what makes Greenland wicked awesome.

If you are wondering who the paddlers are in the films, one of them is Jens-Pavia Brandt from Greenland Outdoors. He is a local guide working in the Kangerlussuaq Fjord [map link] in western Greenland and offers a whole range of trips in the area for intermediate to advanced paddlers as well as rentals for those who want to do their own thing.

I recently heard about another trip being organized that you might be interested in. This summer the guiding company, Uncommon Adventures is organizing a 12-day adventure to Greenland but what’s unique about this trip is that 7-time Greenland National champion, Maligiaq Padilla will be co-leading the adventure.

Here is the trip description from the website:

This one is completely different. Combine the logistics expertise that Uncommon Adventures is known for with the celebrity status of our co-leader and you arrive to community dinners thrown in your honor. Travel like a Greenlander...hand-lining fish for dinner, learning to eat seal, hunting with your camera, paddling in sea ice, camping in sites used as traditional hunt camps for generations.  Think cultural immersion, think travel like a Greenlander with a Greenlander...all with a bit of a safety net that comes with our 31 year history in the kayak tripping business.

They are planning to do a loop of about 100 miles on the west side of Greenland out of Sisimiut [map link]

The trip starts at $4900 and you can get all the details here.