Basically, the same thing

I've recently returned from holidays. Unlike most previous ones, this time they were quite long (three weeks). Also, I went to an exotic location with a lovely ocean full of humpback whales (I saw one jumping just from the coast and I even wasn't on the coast that much). However, I have not kayaked a single minute.

And this wasn't the first time I was not faithful. Earlier in the year, a couple of truly perfect long weekends similarly went by without touching a paddle either. Instead, I went canyoning.

Canyoning is something I started doing a few years earlier than kayaking and I'm no expert at it either. However, same as kayaking, I love it dearly. Up until 2007 it was my main outdoor activity and faced little competition for the larger chunks of my spare time. Then, I got my kayak... and my heart has been somewhat torn a number of times. One just has too little time for the really cool things...

I believe I like both kayaking and canyoning so much because, for me, in the end, they are largely the same thing: a way to gain access to special moments and places. Saying just that may not convey adequately the actual similarity of the experience (again: for me). As when sea kayaking, when canyoning my special moments usually come from the contemplation of the awe-inspiring places where you suddenly find yourself and are not usually associated to jumping into pools or abseiling under a waterfall: that's just what I do to get there.

And you do get to some really special places...


Note: As usual, the photographs are not mine and are here through the kindness of their authors, largely Santi and Annabella, but also (I guess, no longer sure who shot what) Sol, Miriam, and Dani I and II. You might see a few more pics (a really tiny selection of many taken) of this particular canyoning outing here. Special thanks go to Santi, guide extraordinaire and to Dolomismo, his and Annabella's company. Without them, I would not have been there.