Santa Barbara International Film Festival!
Honestly, the SBIFF was one of the “reach” festivals for us. Thus, it is a pretty humbling experience to be able to show the movie at this very prestigious festival. I hope that you will be able to join us at our two screenings in Santa Barbara:
Sunday Jan 30 – 11 am at the Metro Four, Theatre IV
Tuesday Feb 1 – 10am at the Metro Four, Theatre I
In addition to the above, we are super stoked to be working with our friends at Blueline Paddle Surf on a very special board demo day! more details to come…
Stray Magazine features Destination 3˚
“Stray” is an online magazine and gathering place for adventurous people who aspire to extraordinary lives. That’s their official line. We like it because Chris Emery is one of the few we’ve seen who’s really trying to redefine web writing and presentation. Plus, he’s running one of our stories.
Check out “Standing Up Against a Tide of Plastic” here.
What have we done…
Sitting here on Kauai, enjoying this weird combination of rain and “vog,” has given me, Jen, a chance to think about what we’ve done. We still have more to do, but Morgan Hoesterey and Jenny Kalmbach paddled 72 miles the other day. Non-stop. Solo.
They paddled through a sunset and a sunrise and the pitch black of a full moon covered by clouds. They had monster swells rise out of the darkness. Their only light was from the escort boat, but they had to paddle in the choking exhaust to really “enjoy” the glow. From the boat all we could see were their glow sticks: Morgan was green, Jenny red, and Jeff yellow. They would disappear into the darkness between swells.
Through the dark we could hear the clatter of paddle on board, splash, and a worried “Are you ok?” The blessed “Yeah, I’m fine” let us breathe again until they disappeared again.
They paddled by feel. Leaving in the afternoon and paddling through the night, they never saw Kauai until an hour or so before they arrived, when the sun came up.
They are my heros. What they went through out there is a story I’m humbled to tell. But so honored to as well. The stories have only just begun. Chris Aguilar, Shannon Switzer, and Gregg Hoesterey spent 72 miles on a boat going 4-5 knots through swell that had us zigging more than we were zagging looking through viewfinders to capture the scene.
Anders Jonsson, Morgan’s husband, never abandoned his watch, purposefully making himself uncomfortable so that he wouldn’t fall asleep. And he never did. Ryan Lopossa orchestrated Jenny’s support on a boat whose fly bridge, from the relative stability of ours, appeared to touch the water as it rolled side to side in the swells. They are my heros too.
Thanks to all of you for your support, and stay with us as the Destination 3° story unfolds!
Destination 3° : Blown Away
Like one of those pretty paint cans in the clearance bin at the hardware store, this story wasn’t quite the right mix for its online benefactor.
After only about two weeks, 55 paddled miles, three islands, dozens of creature encounters, and 35-knot winds, we’ve been blown away.
Our original start date was Monday, April 5 from the Big Island. No real reason – we knew that nature would tell us when – we just needed a date to start and Monday seemed like a good choice. The gale-force winds whipping across the leeward side of the island were our first clue that we weren’t going anywhere for awhile. Leeward on the Big Island is in the shadow of the volcano Mauna Kea, and normally quite calm as a result. The winds were cranking.
That first channel for the doomed April 5 start was the Alenuihaha which links the Big Island to Maui. Mauna Kea (the tallest mountain in the world at 13,796 feet (4,205 metres) above sea level, and 33,000 ft (10,000 meters) from base to summit) is on one side, and Haleakala, another volcano, at 10,023 ft (3,055 meters) above sea level, is on Maui.
The wind is funneled through the channel between the volcanoes and accelerates to nearly double the wind speed on shore. If we were experiencing 25 or so knot winds, the channel was pushing 50. So we waited. Every morning we’d check NOAA sites, and naval sites, buoy readings, and weather stations; we’d check in with a Professor Caldwell at the University of Hawaii and boat captains who made their livings in these channels, all in the hope that something or someone would tell us “go.” By Monday we were sure (pretty sure) that the high pressure system demolishing our channel was going to break down, giving us about a 24-hour window to make our move. And it did.
Less than 10 minutes after leaving shore at Keokea, just around 7 a.m., on Wednesday, April 7, a baby humpback slapped its tail on the water in front of Jenny. Satisfied, he found Morgan and did the same. Before swimming off with his mother, the whale swam toward the front of the escort boat, rolled just enough to look up at everyone on the bow and swam away. A blessing, we decided, for sure. We were blown away.
The conditions for the infamous Alenuihaha, the research-vessel sinking, sailboat splintering mariner’s nightmare were as gentle as they possibly ever could be there. Fifteen knot winds blew 3-4 foot swells in cobalt seas all day long. From point to point, the channel is about 32 nautical miles. All in all with the pull of the currents and finding a safe place to land, Jenny and Morgan each paddled some 40 miles in about nine hours.
Landing on Maui, the adventure began: we didn’t have a ride. Five boards, six people, eight cases of camera equipment, and we won’t even mention the luggage sat on the dock like so much wasted plastic as the sky faded to dusk. Cabs wouldn’t take us, rental car companies were closed. But here’s the thing about stand up paddlers: the sport is new and the community close. A couple of paddlers were loading up for the day, and noticed our plight, or maybe the state-the-art race boards. Before we knew it, our gear was loaded and the two surfboards were on their way to the hotel. That left the race boards. Even after nine hours and 40 miles of paddling across one of the world’s most notorious stretches of water, Jenny was able to convince fishermen to transport hers and Morgan’s boards.
Imagine the scene as an old truck towing a 18-ft fishing boat, loaded with gear, and with race boards hanging out over the engines pulled around the sweeping drive of the Hilton Grand Wailea. We were blown away.
We spent our days on Maui resting and exploring, exploring and resting. And then resting some more, getting ready both mentally and physically for what was next. Alenuihaha may have been gentle, but it was clear that it took its toll on both as Jenny and Morgan as they pushed themselves beyond what they knew they were capable of before. They paddled to Molokini for a short day trip, paddling around and freediving all along the walls of the partially submerged crater. The next crossing was the Au’au, linking Maui to Lanai.
Monday, April 12 brought waist to chest high swells following to Lanai under 10 – 20 knot winds. Slater Trout, a Bark team rider from Maui, joined in for a fun 10-mile downwind paddle that had the trio riding swells all the way. Landing at what used to be known as “Club Lanai” a popular tour boat landing spot, they were greeting with trash. Lots and lots of plastic trash. The beach has been abandoned for years. Once the tour boats stopped, there really isn’t any other easy access to the beach. But deflated pool toys, 5-gallon water containers, rope, lids, jugs, water bottles, balloons, unidentifiable plastic grate-like things, and shards of every shape, size, and hue littered the beach.
Though there were no footprints, no trails, humans were all over that beach. We were blown away.
Destination 3° on somuchmorehawaii.com
A Stand-up Paddle Adventure Across Hawaii
Welcome to our world. Here at Destination 3° challenges do not go uncontested and dreams are never not mostly reality. At least in our heads. When we sent our channel crossing idea out into the world, we thought it was a little different from the start, but we believed in it.
Crossing each of the Hawaiian channels on stand-up paddleboards is no small feat: Morgan Hoesterey and Jenny Kalmbach, our paddlers, will log more than 200 nautical miles across three degrees of latitude and some of the world’s most notorious and challenging open ocean waters. Laird and Dave have done it. But they’re Laird and Dave, and that’s the beauty of challenges: they’re personal.
Part of our challenge is to see Hawaii in a way that not many people get to see the islands – from the water. Each channel has a name, a personality, and a story to tell. We’ve crossed four of the eight major channels already, and after each, our adventures and perspective change a little more. From both above and below the waterline, each of the stories of the islands and the people we meet along the way are unique.
We launched from the Big Island on April 7; the Alenuihaha channel flowed between us and Maui. Dangerous, treacherous, deadly (a personal “favorite”…gulp), and impossible are usually the words that gather to describe this crossing. Roughly translated, Alenuihaha means “of very large, trough-like waves.”
We made it. After nine hours and more than 40 miles of paddling, Maui was the reward. We used Maui as a base for about a week and were able to paddle to Molokini, Lanai’i, and finally Molokai.
By linking the islands by the waters that separate them, we also see the whales, turtles, fish, and sharks that live here. We see them in their world. We see the reefs. But more importantly, we see how we influence their world.
We are paddling for plastic, or better, to keep plastic out of oceans, away from marine life, and out of the human food chain. The Algalita Marine Research Foundation is a fantastic, grassroots organization based in Long Beach, California, working to change the way we understand our impact on the ocean environment. We’ve been working closely with them to connect their messages with people who can make a difference.
In many ways, making an impact is the easy part, because everyone can make a difference at the most basic level by rethinking how they will use disposable plastic products. Strong currents carry plastics from around the world to Hawaii’s beaches and inhabited or not, no beach we’ve seen yet has been left untouched by plastic.
We’ll be on Molokai until about the 21st when we paddle the Kaiwi channel from Molokai to Oahu. The Kauai channel lies ahead as well, all 80-some miles of it. We’ll paddle that one under the full moon on April 28 and probably all through the next day.
So, welcome to our adventure. We are so excited that you are here! Stay a while, and bring your friends. Follow us online at Destination3.com, on Facebook, and on Twitter.
About Jennifer Holcomb
Jennifer Holcomb writes about the ocean and its people. She’s spending the next month or so on a boat exploring Hawaii with Destination 3°.
Destination 3 Degrees on Away.com!
We are honored to be working with Away.com to produce a series of distaches from our trip – here is the introductory one….
In April, a unique adventure is launching from the Big Island of Hawaii with Kauai as its endpoint. Taking to the storied waters that connect the islands, stand-up paddlers Morgan Hoesterey and Jenny Kalmbach are headed for a destination that stretches across three degrees of latitude—over 200 nautical miles—and, as recent reports tell us, a whole lot of plastic debris.
Hoesterey and Kalmbach will paddle from one island to the next, exploring above and below the waterline to help illuminate the impact of plastics contamination on some of the world’s most celebrated shorelines and the creatures these coasts shelter.
Bound only by the elements, the women will have unprecedented access to parts of the islands most people never get to see. They’ll cross channels more than 80 miles long and 10,000 feet deep, sometimes under the light of the moon, and always with the cooperation of the winds. For their efforts we’ll all be rewarded with some of the most breathtaking natural beauty our oceans have to offer.
But it’s not all about the paddle. Surfing, diving, and hiking their way around the islands, hoping to recapture the spirit of discovery in this global community, the women will use their project, Destination 3 Degrees, to raise awareness and funds for the Algalita Marine Research Foundation. Algalita is a leading research organization working to identify and understand the impact of plastics contamination in not only our oceans, but on marine life and the human food chain as well.
As Capt. Charles Moore of Algalita explains, “The oceans are downhill from everywhere,” and sadly the majority of the plastic washing up on Hawaii’s beaches comes from everywhere but there on the strong currents that circle the planet.
The ocean is the inspiration and the goal of this journey, and all along the way, Hoesterey and Kalmbach will be posting photos, stories, and videos so everyone can experience the adventure in real time.
Destination 3 Degrees is sponsored in part by Horny Toad, an outdoor lifestyle apparel company that believes in “doing the right thing” and taking fun seriously.
Jennifer Holcomb is an adventure writer and paddler who will be accompanying the Destination 3 Degrees team on their standup paddle adventure across Hawaii’s legendary channels. The team will be making the journey to benefit Algalita Marine Research Foundation, helping to protect the oceans from plastics contamination.
Because It’s Fun…
Welcome to our world. Here, challenges do not go uncontested and dreams are never not mostly reality. At least in our heads.
Just a few days ago we sent our channel crossing idea out into the world. We thought it was a little different from the start, but we believed in it. We also couldn’t help but be a little scared that maybe we were the ones who were a little different.
Crossing each of the Hawaiian channels on standup paddleboards is a big deal; we recognized that as each of us stared at Morgan with “Are you serious?” stretching from a question on the inside to smile on the outside. Laird and Dave have done it. Much faster and stronger than we will. But they’re Laird and Dave, and that’s the beauty of challenges: they’re personal.
Our challenge is Morgan’s fault: the product of a creative, wanderlusty brain infatuated with discovery, at home inside an athlete. We love her.
Morgan is the first woman to complete the Oahu to Molokai race, solo, on a standup paddleboard. She did it because someone told her she couldn’t. She did it because she already knew she was wanted to try all of the channels, and someone else had told her that if given the opportunity, “you should always jump.” He meant tethered to some sort of parachute contraption, but Morgan was just stoked he didn’t tell her not to go.
Morgan approached Jenny at the Molokai race the following year, this past summer. Jenny had just won the race out of a field of eight incredible female paddlers. As Morgan puts it, “She didn’t hate the idea.” The adventure basket had a shape.
Jenny is our fire. The passion, dedication and talent that keep her on top of the podiums are just who she is, and, now, who we are too. Her favorite thing is to cross items off of lists. So we give her the hard lists. Like finding captains and boats, and the course, and money. When she comes back a few hours later, questions answered, with pictures, the rest of realize that maybe we could be a little faster setting up the Twitter account. We really love her.
If you ask either of them why they would do such a thing as paddle nearly 300 miles along a course that crosses at least two of the ocean’s most dangerous channels – battling wind, swell, sun, themselves, and maybe even giant squid – they’d smile at you and say, “Because it’s fun.”
And they mean it.
So, welcome to our adventure. We are so excited that you are here! Stay a while, and bring your friends.
From now until May, and probably a little beyond we will tell our story here and on our Facebook (Destination 3° (degrees)) and Twitter (3degreepaddle) pages. From finding sponsors – sneak peek: it’s really hard and a full-time job, but we’ll tell you everything we know – to training videos, and interviews with shapers, boat captains, channel experts, and the other amazing people who are helping to make this reality, we’ll show you how we did it. And come April, we’ll take you along, electronically, of course, on our adventure. Because, after all, life is too short for competition, and “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than those you did. So throw off those bowlines, sail away from safe harbor, catch the wind in your sails. Explore, Dream. Discover.”
Thank you, Mr. Twain.
About the Adventure
Three degrees of latitude separate the islands of Hawaii. Nine legendary and infamous open-ocean channels link them together. Drawn by ritual, necessity, competition and challenge, watermen have long conquered and been conquered by these channels…but never in an adventure quite like this.
In April 2010, Jenny Kalmbach and Morgan Hoesterey, two of the world’s elite female standup paddleboarders, will make their way across each of these channels, setting competition aside to chase the ultimate prize: ocean adventure.
Inspired by their love of the ocean, Destination 3° is more than a standup paddle adventure, more than an ocean challenge, and more than two women pushing the edges of themselves and their sport, it is a way to give back.
Destination 3° puts Jenny and Morgan in a unique and powerful position to raise awareness and funds to help benefit Algalita Marine Research Foundation in their mission to understand and protect the oceans from the impacts of plastics contamination.
Three degrees over an expanse of water may be a challenge, but in the end, the real challenge is stoking the fires of adventure and awareness of the world that makes it all possible.