The sore and aching muscles that accompany stand-up paddling can sometimes mask the fitness benefits of the sport. Without proper stretching, chronic soreness and stress on the ligaments, tendons, and muscles will almost undoubtedly result in some form of injury and time off the water. Unfortunately, many individuals do not place a regular stretching program at the top of their priority list. Find about five to 10 minutes to incorporate a short stretch routine after each paddle. Try the following sequence of static stretches targeting parts of the body that commonly ache after a long or intense paddle. These stretches are meant to be executed after a warm-up or paddle. Please consult a doctor if in doubt before attempting these stretches, as they are meant for healthy individuals with no known injuries.

We are back with our 4th blog from Flathead Lake in Northern Montana. After exploring Missoula for different places to paddle and play, Bryce and I hopped in our car for the 3 hour drive to one of the largest lakes in Montana, Flathead Lake. We stayed with our friend, Laine Averill, who is an avid SUPer himself. Everyday we would wake up and go for a distance paddle and come back to do some fishing off our boards for Northern Pike and Small Mouth Bass. After a couple days of not catching a fish, Bryce and I decided to slide in and have our luck spear fishing on this clear lake. The lake was pretty cold at a chilling 47 degrees, thank god for our 5mm wetsuits, hoodie, gloves, and booties. Since we heard that the pike grow up too and sometimes exceed 5 ft. in length, we decided to tie off our float lines to our SUPs so we would not lose all our gear to these powerful 50+ lb. fish. After 2 hours of diving we ended up only getting real cold and a small bass, still a big adventure to look for these prehistoric creatures in Montana.

Finding Waves 100 Miles From The Ocean… Standup Paddle Surfing In Washington’s Puget Sound

The alarm beeped far too early on my day off.  I stumble down the hall, turn on the espresso machine and go to the computer to check the buoys.  “How does it look?” asks my wife Lori.  I grumble the usual; “it might be going.”  In the last few years I have learned that predicting waves inside the Puget Sound of Washington State is almost as accurate as flipping a coin.  Modern technology has somewhat improved the forecasting of waves with hourly buoy reports that give wind and swell direction via the internet.  If any one variable is off however, the all-important waves will not arrive.  Normally, around the evergreen state, most people have to drive 3-6 hours for more predictable waves.  But if the stars align, and all the big variables come together, there is beautiful, un-crowded surf only an hour away for a hearty few.

The next day we hooked up with KB and Luke at Strongwater and caravanned to the Alberton Gorge. As we pulled into the parking lot of Triple Bridge we kicked up a whole bunch of Wild Turkeys while walking to the bridge to take a look at the water level. We decided to launch our SUPs at Sandy Beach, a 1/2 mile up from Triple Bridge. Our first rapid was at Triple Bridge with a long whitewater section and a standing wave.    (Bryce on a wave train.)