FOREWORD Book 3

by Justine Curgenven

I first met Freya when sea kayaking was becoming central in both of our lives. We were at the Anglesey sea kayak symposium in about 2002, where a vibrant collection of paddlers from around the world gathered to play and learn in the dynamic and exciting tidal waters. I had recently moved to North Wales to be closer to this fantastic playground.

Freya fancied a change from being a dominant force in the bodybuilding and then sky-diving scenes. She showed up at Anglesey as a rookie paddler determined to make a splash as a sea kayaker. You do not remember everybody at an event with over a hundred people.

However, Freya tends to stand out, not just because of her six-foot stature but also her supreme confidence and go-get-it attitude. I remember her coming up beside me during one evening of dancing. She put her arm around my shoulder, saying, “Come on, girl!” and kicking her long legs high into the air. I was unsure whether she was trying to befriend or compete with me. If it was the latter, she definitely won that one.

One evening I would give the first showing of a new film I had made called “This is the Sea,“ which I intended to launch and sell. After the presentation, Freya was excited and urged me to sell her the first VHS tape, the only one in production. She wanted a signature, and I autographed it to her “To Full-On Freya.“

We would later meet as guest presenters at many sea kayaking events worldwide. At an event in New Zealand, I would film her for a sequel film, “This is the Sea 3”. Freya performed many Greenland-style rolls she had mastered but also renamed the traditionally “G-style“ to “German-style.“ She made an impact by playfully and somewhat provocatively performing headstands and other gymnastics and balancing movements in her kayak in skin-tight black pants.

 Freya moved on from performing and teaching rolling to expedition paddling. Her first big trip was around Iceland with Greg Stamer. She went out the gates like a racehorse, starting with a hundred-kilometer crossing. Her aim was speed, and she succeeded in being the fastest around the island. The same year, she set her sights on becoming the first woman to kayak around the South Island of New Zealand. She planned her trip the same season that another woman and I planned our separate trips. She named her kayak “Veni – Vidi – Vici” – “I came, I saw, I conquered” and happened to be the first starting the southern summer season. She succeeded, which was by no means guaranteed. I can attest firsthand how committing the island’s west coast is with relentless surf landings and fierce winds in the fjords. I would not want to complete the trip solo as Freya did. Yet this was just a warm-up for the three continents that followed.

It took Freya eleven months to “Race around Australia” and thirty months to “THINK BIGGER“ around South America. When Freya took on her “Third Continent, the North Island“ - North America, I lived on Vancouver Island’s west coast with my partner. Freya stayed with us on her way past.

I accepted a last-minute invite to join her on the water for eight days. I never thought I would paddle with Freya as I had preconceptions that she would be competitive and set in her ways. I was not even sure she enjoyed her trips, having read one of her earlier blogs. She reported occasionally paddling with her eyes shut when the days on the water became too long. She described the paddling as ‘her job.’

I soon had my prejudices shattered. Freya was unfalteringly cheery, even after five days of almost constant rain when everything was damp. She readily shared her pre-packed ziplock bags of fresh vegetables, crackers, and cheese. Freya even gave me half of her favorite white chocolate. On day two, we ate our lunch drifting by feeding grey whales, and Freya’s “Oh wonderful” calls made me realize that she enjoys these trips. She thrives on the wilderness and the beauty around her.

Like all long-distance paddlers, she must constantly weigh up, lingering in a beautiful or exciting spot or pushing on to the next place. You cannot stop everywhere, even when you have set aside eight or ten years to paddle around a continent. Freya needs to cover thirty-three kilometers every day for almost six months of the year to complete her fifty-thousand-kilometer paddle in ten years.

In calmer waters, we chatted. Around rougher headlands, we typically paddled one behind the other until the sound of waves crashing on rocks had diminished. We compared my map and compass navigation with her GPS, waypoints, and her long, high-capacity ruddered kayak with my skegged boat. We had the occasional friendly sprint to a beach, but it was a collaboration, not a competition. Perhaps by the time you are on your third continent, you are secure enough not to have to constantly prove you are the best.

Freya recognized that her attitude had changed in the ten years since she started making these trips. She wanted a new challenge after many miles of putting herself alone against the elements. She said, “I need to work on my people skills.”

I was the first of a relay of paddlers to accompany Freya almost constantly around North America. She is sharing her considerable experience and learning from others. An experience shared can be more fulfilling and provide more entertaining stories, like those in this book.

I wish Freya luck on the remainder of her third continent!