a kayak - Wavelength Paddling Magazine

The First Word
Spring 2011 Volume 21, Number 1
PM No. 41687515
Editor John Kimantas
Advertising Sales Brent Daniel
Copy Editing Darrell Bellaart
Cover Photo:
Surveying sites for the BC
Marine Trails Network meant
long hours of paddling by
volunteers. BCMTNA president
Stephanie Meinke crosses
toward Brooks Peninsula on one
such trip to survey Heater Point.
Photo by Stephan Meinke.
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Spring 2011 Feb. 4 March 1
Summer 2011 April 15 May 16
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by John Kimantas
What’s in a name? I guess I’ll find out
Is it fitting or a cop-out to rename a magazine on its 20th birthday? Or is that
a betrayal to history and tradition? Either way Wavelength Magazine is officially
Coast&Kayak Magazine now, though I expect unofficially it will be Wavelength forever
in many people’s minds.
Don’t get me wrong. Wavelength is a great name. Too good a name, actually. It’s
so good that there are multiple other Wavelength Magazines out there. There is:
Wavelength Magazine, the weekly live music series and monthly
zine based in Toronto; Wavelength Magazine, the official
publication of the Association of Public Safety Communications
Officials (APCO) in Canada; Wavelength Magazine focusing on
news and advances in radiation therapy, information management
and neuroscience; and most troubling of all, Wavelength
Magazine, the UK surfing magazine. Woe be the subscriber
who contacts me wondering where their next issue is and what
happened to the free flip-flops they were promised. All I can do
is point them in the general direction of England.
This wouldn’t be a problem say 20 years ago, when Wavelength was first conjured
up out there on Gabriola Island (with thanks to Alan and Peter and the rest for
creating such a fantastic legacy). Today Wavelength runs into a problem that couldn’t
have been anticipated 20 years ago – the electronic media. So much depends now on
Google, and if you punch in Wavelength most of the 12.6 million or so search results
will invariably involve Blue Tooth technology or similar (in case you were wondering,
a wavelength is the spatial period of the wave or the distance over which the wave’s
shape repeats. Not particularly poetic by definition.) Not to mention that if you go to
the Official Wavelength Magazine Facebook Page, it’s not us. It’s those Brit surfers.
So I hope Coast&Kayak is distinct enough. I think it summarizes us nicely, since
I like to think our focus extends beyond paddlers to anyone who loves the coast, so
emphasizing that aspect isn’t a bad thing – though I’m sure many will appreciate the
irony that the lead article in this magazine has no coast at all and more rafts than
kayaks. My rebuttal is we are all about inclusion. Canoeists, paddleboarders, surf skiers,
surf kayakers – in fact, anyone who loves exploring by water – you’re all welcome here.
If I owe anyone an apology I think it’s Canoe and Kayak, as we now share the same
initials (C&K Magazine), but I’m sure the world is big enough for the two of us. At
least it’s less crowded than the Wavelength Magazine world.
But to put minds at ease, the name is the only real change. The rest is a constant
evolution, such as our multimedia online edition (please visit if you haven’t seen it
yet), our rejigged website (the online Kayak Buyer’s Guide is awesome now), and other
advances. So here’s to looking back at our history, and ahead to a great next 20 years!
- John Kimantas
We put aside paddles to hike the
Nootka Trail. Get details on this
magnificent route on page 26.
Coast&Kayak Magazine is dedicated to making self-propelled
coastal exploration fun and accessible. Safety and travel
information is provided to augment pre-existing safety and
knowledge. A safety course and proper equipment are advised
before any exploration on water. See a list of paddling instruction
locations at www.coastandkayak.com
4 COAST&KAYAK MAGAZINE SPRING 2011