Making like Snoopy in a biplane of my own

Wandering around on Facebook the other day, I noticed one of my friends posted something about the Abbotsford (B.C.) air show, which takes place every August. For some reason, it piqued my memory about the time I made like Snoopy, the World War I flying ace. (No, not the video game - the "REAL" WWI flying ace, as read in Peanuts comics or seen on "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" animated Halloween special.)

Really. I lived my "Snoopy" fantasy not in a video game, but in real life.

Well, sort of ...

I was on a group tour of the Valiant Air Command Warbird Air Museum, (which, by the way, is hosting its own 2012 airshow, starting March 9), located near Titusville, Florida. We'd spent the previous day on the water, paddling down the Econ River. This day, we were focused on the air. While waiting for the tour to begin, I noticed an open cockpit biplane sitting on the tarmac outside the museum. Then I noticed a sign offering rides in the plane. 

 

Stearman biplane - my transport for the day.

While not exactly a WWI plane - it was a 1930's Stearman biplane, used to train American combat pilots between the two world wars - it was close enough for me.

The flights are not included as part of the museum tour; it is run by Warbird Flights and it is booked separately. And in this instance, it was not part of our scheduled tour. But I quickly convinced our tour leader to let me "play hooky" and trade some ground time for some time in the air.

I quickly made my arrangements, then began my wait. And wait...and wait...I thought, "I'll never get out of Casablanca..." Oops! Sorry! There's another one of those "Casablanca flashes" I get from time to time (well, it is the 70th anniversary, after all...)

Eventually, the wait ended. As we rose up into the air off the tarmac, I finally caught my breath – we were airborne! Now I could actually relax and enjoy the experience of the wind rushing past me in the open cockpit of the Stearman.

Exhilaration quickly replaced my nervousness about taking my first flight in a open cockpit airplane. While the worst part of the trip was waiting around the hangar to go up, the actual flying itself was much too invigorating to waste any time worrying – even when the pilot asked me if I wanted to take over and "drive" for a while.

If you're in the Titusville, Florida area March 9-12, 2012,

you might want to check out the air show.

I tentatively took the control stick and followed his instructions to keep the top of the fuselage level with the horizon. I was only "driving" for a few minutes, but during that few minutes, I gained a very healthy respect for "fly boys" who piloted these kinds of planes. It took incredible concentration on my part just to keep the plane level. And I didn't have to worry about fuel, air speed, communicating with air traffic control towers or any of the other myriad thoughts that occupy pilots in the air.

During the 20-minute flight, we did not spy any red Fokker triplanes; however, the thrill of playing "Snoopy, the World War I Flying Ace" in search of his nemesis, the Red Baron, was too much. When we found a boat on the river far below that wanted to play "tag" with us as we banked back and forth above it, I couldn’t resist parroting Snoopy, by shouting, "Curse you, Red Baron!" just once.

View from the cockpit.



The museum itself occupies 10 acres of property at the Space Center Executive Airport in Titusville. It displays, maintains and restores all types of aircraft that were indigenous to the world's military air forces going all the way back to WWI and covering present-day aircraft.

The main display area is approximately 30,000 square feet in size and is wide and high enough to accommodate the wingspan and tail assembly of all but the largest bombers.

In addition to the main hangar bay, an area of 15,000 square feet is dedicated to the display of memorabilia associated with the "Valiant" individuals who flew and maintained these aircraft.

If you really want to experience living flying, though, combining the tour with a flight makes for a much better experience than just a tour alone...

Even if you don't spot the Red Baron...

The day I joined 'the Club'

If that title doesn't make you curious enough to read further, almost nothing will...

You'd have to be a pretty incurious sort to not at least want to find out which club it is I joined - the Playboy Club? The Hair Club for Men (and now Women, I see)? The Press Club? The Rod and Gun Club? The Explorers Club?

While I wouldn't mind joining some of those above-mentioned clubs (and would like avoid a few, if possible), if you guessed any of those, you guessed wrong.

I'm talking about joining ... (drum roll, please!) ...

The Sour Toe Cocktail Club!

Of course, what else, would it be?

I am actually celebrating my second anniversary of having joined that illustrious club, so I figured I should shout it to the world (or at least the Internet!)

For those not familiar with the Sour Toe Cocktail (or without the inclination to click on the link above, because you just can't tear yourself away from my riveting prose!), essentially, it involves taking a shot of your favorite liquor libation which also shares a glass with a (get ready for this) a sour toe - that is, an actual human toe that has been dehydrated and preserved in salt.

And - get this - in order to actually qualify, you have to drink the drink and let the toe touch your lips at some point while drinking.

Like the club motto says, "You can drink it fast, you can drink it slow - but the lips have gotta touch the toe."

Only in Canada, you say ...

The tradition began in Dawson City, in the Yukon Territory. Originally, the toe (the original one thought to have been "donated" by some "sourdough" from the Klondike Gold Rush days, probably one lost through frostbite while mushing down the trail) had to be placed in a beer glass full of champagne in order to be an official, genuine Sour Toe Cocktail.

These days, it's a bit more relaxed, it can be any drink - even non-alcoholic, apparently - but where's the fun in that?

Captain Dick welcomes me to the fraternity.

Now ideally, you would become a member of the club by drinking the cocktail in the Yukon. However, Yours Truly became a member in Vancouver, during the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Like many other tourism boards, Tourism Yukon hosted an event during the Games.

It was at that event I had the opportunity to sit down with Captain Dick, the official head of the club, and became a member of this illustrious group. So in a sense, I was sort of on "Yukon soil," kind of like when you're at a Russian embassy in a foreign country, you're considered to be on Russian soil.


Anyway, I sat beside the captain, and I had a choice of rye whiskey, rum, vodka or tequila to mix with my toe. Sadly, there was no Yukon Jack available, that would have been my ideal choice. But, my second choice was whiskey.



A friend of mine, fellow travel writer Lenora Hayman, stood by to snap a picture of the momentous occasion. However, her camera was not as fast as my quaffing ability - I picked up the drink, belted it back - and she still hadn't got the pic.

So I did the only thing I could - I froze in stop-action mode, holding the glass up to my mouth, the toe resting against my lips, all the liquor drained.

 

For half a second, I toyed with the idea of putting the tip of my tongue on it to really see what the toe tasted like, but common sense quickly overruled that, and the picture was taken. Whew!

It didn't really taste that bad, the whiskey was good, went down quick - and I became a card-carrying club member for life.

By the way, although you get a membership card and certificate, you don't get to keep the toe - you have to give it back.

Now, if you want an opportunity to join this elite group, this would be a perfect year - in fact, this month would be the perfect month to do so. The Yukon is hosting its 2012 Yukon Sourdough Rendezvous Feb. 23-26, to mark the 70th anniversary of the Alaska Highway (also known as the Alcan Highway).

 Snowshoeing, one winter activity you can enjoy in the Yukon.

Even if you can't make that date, a trip to the Yukon at any of the year will give you the opportunity to become a member of the Sour Toe Cocktail Club, as well as providing plenty of other excellent travel adventures, including paddling trips and bird-watching in the summer, or dog-sledding and snowshoeing if you prefer to visit during the winter.

Can't make it? Well, you can always buy Sour Toe memorabilia online - even a chocolate sour toe or two.

But, of course, that won't make you a member of the club ...



VIMFF more than just 'mountain' movies

Well, unfortunately I did not make it to the Tales of the Cocktail opening night bash as I had hoped to, Sunday night. From all reports, a good time was had by all, though.

However, I did manage to make it to the "Great Ocean Traverses" presentation at the 2012 Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival, Saturday night at Pacific Cinematheque.



John Vaillant will read
from his book, Tuesday.

In fact, I enjoyed it so much, I'm planning to go to a few more evening presentations that are part of the festival. Tonight (Monday) I'll be taking in On the Trail of Genghis Khan , then Tuesday night, it's "Tiger Night," featuring the film Conflict Tiger (the inspiration for Vancouver writer John Vaillant's book, The Tiger) followed by a reading by Vaillant from his book and capped off by the movie, Broken Tail, the story of a Bengal tiger in India (I've already seen it twice - it's an incredible film!)

But about the ocean traverses...

The first part of Saturday's presentation was a slide show and talk by Paul Gleeson, about rowing across the Atlantic Ocean with his girlfriend as part of an international race (which he later turned into a book.)

He was humorous, charming, witty - your typical Irishman. A very inspirational talk, as well. He left us with four questions:

1. What would you do if you knew you only had five years to live?
2. What would you do if you had no limitations?
3. What would you do if you knew you could not fail?
4. What would you like to see if you could meet yourself in the future, five years from now?

Crossing the Swell: Paul and Tori row across the Atlantic.



Beau Miles: by kayak around Africa



Following a short intermission, we then watched an amazing film about Beau Miles attempting to kayak around the southern tip of Africa from Mozambique to Namibia. Lots of hardship, there, in terms of dealing with waves, bureaucrats, more waves, wind, and the usual nicks and other health issues that are a part of long-distance kayak touring.

If you're really into paddling, there's more in store at the VIMFF. Wednesday night is "Kayak Night" and features several short- and medium-length films about kayaking. Those hit the waves at Denman Cinemas.

Also running that night, at Centennial Theatre, are several other water-conservation oriented presentations, as part of the "Sacred Headwaters" theme, including White Water, Black Gold.

I might not make it to those, having had my fill (if that's possible!) of water, paddling, rowing et al, already. But I'm really pumped about Tuesday's "Tiger Night."

From Sasha Snow's film, Conflict Tiger

Oh, and by the way - there are plenty of other films that do showcase mountains, mountain climbing and bicycling. But, as you have may have guessed, given the title of my blog, I'm more of a paddler than a pedaller, more of a birder than a climber.

The VIMFF website lists all the themes and movies as the festival continues through until Saturday, Feb. 18.

Maybe I'll see you at one of the events...

Sips and snails and cocktail tales ... ?

Now that I've grabbed your attention...

From time to time in this space I've alluded to some of the various beverages and concoctions I've enjoyed, both at home and in my travels around the world.

Regular readers may have picked up on the fact that I love "vintage" ... anything. Vintage travel books, vintage travel stickers, vintage travel posters, vintage movies, vintage music, vintage clothing - the list is pretty much endless.

So it stands to reason that any event that combines cocktails with a vintage theme is almost a "must-not-miss" event on my social/travel calendar.

That's why I'm so pumped up about attending the "Tales of the Cocktail Tour Vancouver" 2012 Hollywood North official opening party, this coming Sunday evening at the Rosewood Hotel Georgia, in downtown Vancouver.

To quote from the invitation/press release I received the other day:

"This event will take you back to 1930's Vancouver, a favourite Hollywood haunt at the height of U.S. prohibition ...1930's-themed cocktails from Hendrick's Gin, Glenfiddich, Sailor Jerry Spiced Rum, Tullamore Dew, Grant's and Gibson's Finest will be served by spirits superstars like Charlotte Voisey - the two time Tales of the Cocktail Golden Spirit Winner and William Grant & Sons Global Brand Ambassador - and Xavier Padovani, the Global Brand Ambassador for Hendrick's Gin."

Wow. Guess I better dust off the old fedora for this event. (But for the record - I won't be wearing spats. I don't own spats. In fact, I've never worn spats. I've had a few, mind you ...)

Running through until Wednesday, the entire multi-day event features tastings, seminars and lots and LOTS of good food. And cocktails.

Of course, Yours Truly will be blogging about the opening after attending it. But until then, to honor the spirit (or "spirits") of the event, I'll share with you a few cocktail recipes (some vintage, some not so vintage) along with some book titles you may want to check out.

STORK CLUB

Named for the famous New York night club, from The Stork Club Cocktail Book (1946)

- 1-1/2 oz gin

- juice of half an orange

- dash of lime juice

- dash Cointreau

- dash Angostura bitters



A stork club: icy cold and ready to sip.

Pour ingredients into an ice-filled shaker. Shake, then pour into a cocktail glass.

(While the original recipe is taken from the book listed above, I came upon it in one of the books I consider to be one of my "cocktail bibles": Straight Up or On the Rocks, A cultural history of American drink, by William Grimes.)

                          VESPER MARTINI

Here it is, the official, the one-and-only James Bond Vesper Martini. This makes ONE martini, so use with caution ...

- 3 oz. dry gin
- 1 oz vodka
- 1/2 oz. blonde Lillet (it's a French aperitif)

Pour ingredients into chilled cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake well for one minute. Strain into chilled martini glass with a large, thin slice of lemon peel.

(Originally from Ian Fleming's Casino Royale (1953); again, I discovered it in Grimes' book Straight Up or On the Rocks. )

  

The ONLY way to make a Vesper...

AFRICAN PARROT (or PARAKEET)

I have to include at least one "parrot" drink in this blog, given its name. This one comes from The Essential Book of Boat Drinks & Assorted Frozen Concoctions (that help me hang on!) by Olaf Nordstrom.

- 1 oz blackberry brandy

- 1/2 oz port

- 1/2 oz brandy

Fill shaker with cracked ice. Add ingredients. Shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

CANOE RIVER SPECIAL

Try as I might to find one, none of my cocktail reference/recipe books featured any kind of drink with the word "canoe," "kayak" or even "paddle" in their name. However, a search of the web turned up this recipe on Drinks Mixer :

- 1/4 cup Kahlua coffee liqueur

- 1/4 cup Bailey's Irish cream

- 3/4 oz Grand Marnier orange liqueur

- 1 dash Absolut vodka

Pour all ingredients into a blender 3/4 filled with crushed ice.

Blend until smooth. Pour into a cocktail glass, and serve.



Good reading, better drinking.

One final note: although I didn't include any recipes from this book here in this blogpost, one of my favorite books of all time on the subject of cocktails is Hemingway & Bailey's Bartending Guide To Great American Writers.

Each two-page section features a bio, a bibliography and a recipe of a particular writer's favorite drink.

Well worth the purchase.

Anyway, happy imbibing!

Maybe I'll see you Sunday at the Rosewood Hotel Georgia in downtown Vancouver; just look for the guy in the brown fedora...



Gatineau Park a wonderful winter playground

Skates and skis, snowshoes and sleds - take your pick; you can enjoy activities involving each one of those types of winter equipment at Gatineau Park, in Canada's Capital Region.

Ottawa just finished playing host to the 2012 NHL All-Star Game this past Sunday, and that, of course, involves skates. However, while watching hockey can be fun, if you like a more active pastime, you'll want to lace up a pair of skates and head out to Gatineau, located about a 20-minute drive from the heart of Canada's capital city.


Over the bridge and through the woods...



I was born in Ottawa, but moved away when I was two and I only returned once, back in 1974, for a fall weekend of football watching. So I'd never see Gatineau, except in photos.

This past March (2011), I was lucky enough to return and finally spend some quality time there, and while I can skate, I can also snowshoe. Actually, snowshoeing is one of the easiest winter activities you can participate in; if you can walk, you can snowshoe.

While the park offers some great paddling and bird-watching opportunities, those types of activities (especially the former!) tend to take place during the summer months when it is warmer - but also much busier. And while you can't paddle in the winter, you can still see birds and other wildlife, as the park is home to deer, beaver, black bear and nearly 230 bird species.

The park is much quieter in the winter, and I don't just mean because there are fewer people. With the ground covered with snow, all noises seem to be muffled, the white winter blanket acting like a natural layer of soundproofing. Even snowshoeing with a small group of people as I was for two days last March, you can hang back just a bit and quickly be surrounded by stillness and silence.

But it's not completely silent. Ten minutes along the trail, I could hear the rat-a-tat-tat of a woodpecker, banging on a nearby tree looking from something to nibble on. Below on my right, I could hear the gurgling of a stream not completely iced over. Keeping rhythm with these sounds was the steady crunch-crunch-crunch of my snowshoes biting into the snow along the trail.

Trudging across the tundra, mile after mile...

You also want to keep your eyes open; while you may not see wildlife itself, you will see many signs in the snow, such as footprints, something you won't see as easily in the summer.

One of the trails, close to the visitors' centre, takes you to the former visitors' centre. From there the trail heads off in several different directions.

You won't run out of trail, anytime soon. The park contains 55 kilometres of trails just for snowshoeing.

If you're too young to snowshoe, you might end up like Santa Claus, riding a tiny sleigh - but instead of reindeer, your sleigh will probably end up being pulled by a parent. During my excursions in the park, I saw this practice on a few occasions.

If you like something a bit quicker, there are also designated cross-country ski trails - more than 200 km, in fact, for classic cross-country skiing and 100 km shared with skate skiers. There are another 45 km of back-country ski trails.

If you're really adventurous, you can camp overnight in the park (yes, many people do enjoy winter camping!) by registering to use the yurts, cabins and campsites designated for that activity.



Former visitors' centre



Even if you choose not to stay overnight, you can enjoy a full day, there. And if you get tired of skiing or snowshoeing, the visitor centre contains a permanent exhibit, "Gatineau Park: Protecting Nature and Sharing Our History" as well as temporary seasonal exhibits, washrooms, a lunch room (no snack bar, though, you need to bring your own food) and gift shop where you can buy Gatineau Park books, maps and souvenirs.


Even though I spent parts of two days there, I wanted to explore the park much more, but alas, my schedule would not allow it. At the beginning of this post, I said I finally got to spend some "quality time" in the area. I guess "quality time" is all relative; I could have used a few more days just to explore the park. As I'm writing this, it strikes me that there is another aspect of quality time: the more quality a place has, the more time you want to spend there.

I guess Gatineau is another gem to add to my growing list of  "places to return to."

'Tis The Season To Be Cooking (and taking culinary journeys)...

After reading an article all about cookbook gift ideas well written by Mia Stansby in the Vancouver Sun (Wednesday, Dec. 21 edition), I thought, they're nice books, but I don't think any of them would be books I'd want in my collection.

I do have quite a collection - an entire bookshelf of cookbooks, in fact.

However ...

They're NOT your grandmother's cookbooks, though...(in fact, they're probably not even your mother's cookbooks - unless she happened to be a headhunter, Moroccan refugee or operator of a bordello).

I collect some of the most eclectic cookbooks you would ever want to read.

Okay, I know you're probably thinking, "What does this have to do with travel?" (Or for that matter, paddling or parrots?)

The fact is, culinary travel - adventures with food, journeys revolving around experiencing the food eaten by other cultures, cooking tours, or whatever term you want to use - is a huge segment of the travel market, these days.

At some point in the future, I'll probably write a blog post about the weirdest foods I've eaten while travelling. But for now, here are a few of my favorite cookbooks that also involve travel - if not real travel, then at least travel of your taste buds to new and distant foods.

To the best of my knowledge, all of these books are available online at Amazon.whatever - if not new, then certainly used.

DINING WITH HEADHUNTERS: Jungle Feasts and Other Culinary Adventures by  Richard Sterling

This is much more than just a cookbook; it's a collection of stories about the author's adventures around southeast Asia, many experienced while he served in the U.S. Navy during the conflict in Vietnam, during the late 1960's and early '70's. Some stories are just plain funny, some poignant, some bawdy (hey, he was a sailor, after all!) and some a combination of all of the above.

Each story is followed by at least one, usually more than one, recipe. The recipes are all based on food or drink he actually experienced in the story with which they're linked.

A few of my fav's: Satay Malaya from "The Feasts of Fatima," a story about falling halfway in love with a lady of the evening; Mojo (a drink) from "Mojo Rising," a story about a retired madam (hmmm...mmm..., am I detecting a pattern here...?); and Madalay Mail Chicken, from "Train Fare" (nope, no working girls in that one!)

THE CASABLANCA COOKBOOK: Wining and Dining at Rick's by Sarah Key, Jennifer Newman Brazil and Vicki Wells

Being a huge fan of this movie, and the owner of several other books about Bogey (and a few Moroccan cookbooks, as well), I had to add this one to my collection several years ago. In addition to some excellent recipes for drinks (champagne cocktail, Senor Ferrari's iced almond coffee) and food (coriander shrimp kebabs, ground lamb kebabs) this little volume contains photos from the movie, games and quotes from the movie. A "must-have" if you're a fan of the movie, a fan of Moroccan food, or just a collector of eclectic cookbooks like Yours Truly.

I really do love Moroccan food, so I guess one of these days, I may even have to travel there...

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ASIAN COOKING Edited by Jeni Wright

This book has been in our household, well, ever since we've had a household. I used it regularly for preparing foods from India, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Burma and Thailand, to name but a few. It's not really eclectic, I guess, but it certainly is useful. It even offers suggestions for recipe substitutions if you can't find an ingredient needed for a particular dish (which can sometimes be a bit of a problem if you live in a community without much selection or variety of Asian ingredients.) It also provides measurements in both metric and imperial formats.

Cooking Thai Cashew Chicken, a recipe from Extending the Table

THE LAST DINNER ON THE TITANIC: Menus and Recipes from the Great Liner by Rick Archbold and Dana McCauley

This is an amazing book, if you're into history, culinary or otherwise. It gives you a glimpse of what it was like to travel on what was, in its day, the largest ocean liner in the world. It details how the ship was organized in terms of class structure (based on whether you were sailing first-class, second-class or third-class. The passengers were restricted, by class, where they could dine, or even have a drink - quite a difference from today's cruise ship industry.

It includes some old photos as well as artists' renderings and conversion charts (after all, these recipes were from Edwardian England, so some recipes do need adjusting).

It's a wonderful book, taking you back to the last days of the "Golden Age of Travel."

EXTENDING THE TABLE: Recipes and stories from Argentina to Zimbabwe by Joetta Handrich Schlabach

This collection of world recipes is another cooking tome that's well-thumbed in our household. It features recipes galore as well as stories from around the world. One of the features I really enjoy is the way the book includes proverbs and quotes about food, sprinkling them throughout the book like a good cook sprinkles herbs and spices throughout a culinary creation to create a tasty meal. Example: Egyptian proverb: "An onion offered by a true friend is like a whole lamb."

A wonderful book for anyone wanting to explore the cuisine of other cultures within the confines of their own kitchen.

WANAPITEI CANOE TRIPPERS' COOKBOOK by Carol Hodgins

You had to know, given the title of this blog, that at least one book would involve a cooking-paddling combination, right?

This book - which is designed in a way that you could take it canoeing with you - talks about nutrition in the wilderness - an entire section is devoted to it. There's also a section on water and environmental issues.

Then there are the recipes ... breakfasts, bannock and bread, meals, soups, salads, desserts - this book covers them all, and more. Say good-bye to those freeze-dried packs you buy at outdoor stores and say hello to some real cooking ...

No time for a long paddle? Try Deer Lake in Burnaby

You don't have to be a rocket scientist - or even a brain surgeon! - to figure out that I love to paddle. (Just look at the name of this blog.)

But I can't always get away for a three- or four-day trip; sometimes it's tough even to get away for a day, even out to a place as close as Pinecone Burke Provincial Park (where there's great canoeing) or to Bowen Island (for kayaking).



Off we go, into the wild blue -- er,
the urban wild blue yonder.

But about 15 minutes away from where I live lies Deer Lake Park. It's a small lake, not even as big as Burnaby Lake Regional Park, but it has one advantage over BLRP: you can rent canoes and kayaks at Deer Lake; you can't do that at Burnaby Lake (although there is a boat launch there, if you bring your own canoe or kayak).

The boat rental facility is seasonal, mind you. After Labour Day weekend, you really need to phone them the day you plan to go to see if they're open, especially on weekdays. Of course, if you have your own canoe or kayak, you don't have to worry about that.

Deer Lake is not challenging, it's not demanding, it doesn't even take very long to paddle around the entire perimeter of the lake. But if you're looking for a nice quiet paddle, a respite from the hustle and bustle of the city, and you don't have much time, you really can't beat it.

There are plenty of ducks and geese there to keep you company on the lake, and they don't seem to be too shy of paddlers, probably since they see them there all the time. If you get close enough to the shore, and have a pair of binoculars, you'll probably be able to spot some songbirds, as well - maybe even a wild squirrel! And overhead, if you're lucky, maybe a raptor will wing its way past you.

One of the striking things I found about paddling there is the way I was within a few metres of wild waterfowl, quiet woods and still water - but if I turned my head and looked in another direction, I could see high-rise buildings off in the distance.

Map of Deer Lake Park,
source: City of Burnaby Parks Dept.

They're far enough away that they don't disturb the ambiance of the lake. It really is quite quiet there, at least during the week, and especially when school is in session. I can imagine it might be a bit busier during the summer months, unless you get on the lake early or late - which you can do, as long as you have your own watercraft.

I'm surprised it took me eight years of living in Vancouver before I actually visited the spot this September.

While that may be my first visit, it certainly will not be the last time I dip a paddle into the waters of Deer Lake.

(If you want to see more pictures taken while paddling at Deer Lake, check out my Facebook photo album, Deer Lake Paddle.)