Getting Ready for a Large Kayak Challenge

ttthayer

Hi All,

I have been using myfitnesspal on and off for 8 years now and having nothing but good to say about it. I have used it to get ready for various challenges and to just track my general health, fitness, and nutrition goals. Now, I am getting ready for perhaps the largest challenge I have ever taken on and would like to know if anyone out there has any advice on how to prepare for this challenge.

I am setting out at the end of June 2025 to paddle the Georgian Bay Circle in Ontario Canada. I will be thru paddling it in my Kayak and it will be approximately 1,000 kms and should take me somewhere between 30 to 40 days, weather dependent. If anyone knows the Georgian Bay, it can get rather nasty at a moments notice, which is why it has a number of ship wrecks, and I want to make sure I am in good enough shape to get to shore quickly should I be notified of an approaching storm. Don't get me wrong, I have no intention of being very far from shore at anytime except for at the end of the journey where there is no choice. There is a stretch of open water at the end that will be somewhere between 6 to 7 kms. This stretch also has a shipping lane, thus the reason for extra days, so I can take into consideration both weather and shipping traffic.

I would very much appreciate any insights as to recommended exercises to get ready for a challenge like this.

Cheers,

Tom

rorowoah

Tom! This sounds amazing and incredible! How cool that you are taking this on. I dont have a solid plan to recommend (though I have kayaking experience and love it!), but what came to mind for me was to look at the forums on Teton Gravity Research where fellow adventurers post. They may be able to help or point you in the right direction! You also might try an educator/outfitter like Nantahala Outdoor School in North Carolina, which happens to be near one of the Olympic training runs for paddling. I wish you luck and would love to hear about how it goes!