Editorial: Mothership Paddling

June-July 2004

This is an article from WaveLength Magazine, available in print in North America and globally on the web.
To download a pdf copy of the magazine click here: > DOWNLOAD

by Alan Wilson

Welcome to our annual Mothership Paddling issue. As you’ll see in these pages, motherships come in all shapes and sizes—both powerboats and sailboats, large and small, commercial and private. Some commercial motherships offer accommodations aboard and meals, others just transport, and still others a mix of these services. They’re all motherships in one way or another.

Motherships extend a paddler’s range, making distant wilderness more accessible. Looked at from the private power or sail boater’s view, carrying a kayak or two on deck opens up new ways to explore the shoreline once the big boat is at anchor.

Little wonder this blending of boating experience is catching on. It’s a natural and compatible mix.

For the paddling industry, it’s also an opportunity to tap into the $25 billion a year North Americans spend on boating. For boaters, it’s a chance to get closer to the waters we all love.

In this issue, for your enjoyment and information, we’ve gathered a great mix of stories related to mothershipping, including experiences on commercial mothership paddling trips in Alaska, Baja and Chile as well as useful advice pieces for boaters interested in paddling and paddlers interested in acquiring a mothership.

Cartoonist Berry Wijdeven takes us on a search for a mothership of his own, opening his eyes—and ours—to some of the complexities involved.

Green Boating advocate, Sarah Verstegen, gives practical advice on boating impacts—a sort of ‘primer’ to green boating for those thinking of getting a mothership, and a useful reminder for power and sail boaters.

Columnist Bryan Nichols, himself a sailboater who carries a kayak aboard, gives tips for boaters thinking of adding paddling to their boating repertoire.

And we include a handy Mothership Directory, giving the basics about companies that offer mothership paddling in one form or another.

You’ll also enjoy columns by Dan Lewis, encountering migrating gray whales off the west coast, and Alexandra Morton, whose ‘paean’ to spring in the Broughton will uplift weary spirits.

We hope you enjoy this issue as much as we have putting it together. And we wish you all happy paddling this summer—whether you’re kayak camping, day tripping or mothershipping.