“What’s the notable exception?”
In Kodiak we can experience very strong tidal flows between the islands. On an area-wide scale, the ocean is trying to get up into Cook Inlet on a rising tide and back out on a falling tide. Using this knowledge can be immensely beneficial. On this trip I timed all of the tides perfectly aside from Whale Pass at the end (the scene with all the water rushing in random directions). I got there right at dead low and I thought I would have perhaps 30 minutes of forbearance before the current really reversed, but it changed sooner than I expected. I eddy-hopped and actually overcame the rising tide as I headed east, sprinting around the points. But then I had lunch at the entrance to the pass on Whale Island and after deciding to do a long arc out into Kizhuyak Bay to avoid the current feeding the pass, it soon became clear that I had not paddled out far enough and the gravitational pull of Whale Pass was going to suck me back in. That’s when a passing boat pulled up alongside and asked if I wanted a bit of a assistance. I knew the operator and I said “heck yeah!“ They dropped me off on the south side of the pass about a mile away, and I leisurely made my way down to the PL airstrip.
