This list can probably go on forever, there are so many good kayaking books out there!
If there is a book you love and think it should be included here please let us know and we’d love to add it!
The Curve of Time: Not actually about kayaking, but still an amazing read. This is a truly inspiring story of a mother who sailed up and down the BC coast with her 5 kids in the late 1920s.
Rowed Trip: Canadian Adventurers and winners of the National Geographic Adventurer of the Year award built their own rowing kayaks and ‘rowed’ and biked from Scotland to Syria.
Deep Trouble (and More Deep Trouble): Real-life accounts of kayaking accidents told by the survivors, witnesses and rescuers. The goal here is not to scare folks away from kayaking but to provide insight into what can go wrong so we can learn from the mistakes others made.
Inside: One Woman’s Journey Through the Inside Passage: Who doesn’t want to paddle up the inside passage to Alaska? This Memoir by Susan Conrad is a truly inspiring book not just about the physical journey up north but also about the personal journey, experiences and challenges she encountered.
Escape to Clayoquot Sound – Finding Home in a Wild Place: While not directly a kayaking book, this book is written by John and Bea Dowd. John Dowd is an expedition kayaker and the founder of Ecomarine -whose Jericho location we took on when it had to close down.
20 years ago John and Bea moved to a cabin on Vargas Island (in Clayoquot Sound north of Tofino) and lived there for 10 years. This beautiful book with stunning photographs is about their time living there and connecting with the community.
Spirited Waters: Soloing South Through the Inside Passage: Another inspiring memoir by a woman paddling through the inside passage. Much more than a memoir, Spirited Waters is a remarkable blend of adventure travel, natural history, and personal challenge.
On Celtic Tides: One Man’s Journey Around Ireland by Sea Kayak: Chris Duff’s 1200 mile circumnavigation of Ireland. A great kayaking book but also a great travel book about the shores of Ireland.
Fearless: One Woman, One Kayak, One Continent: “Normal” extreme kayakers like to circumnavigate islands or countries. Freya Hoffmeister is far from normal, so she chooses to circumnavigate whole continents instead. This is the story of her first contintental circumnavigation: Australia. She has since circumnavigated South America and is currently circumnavigating North America.
Instructional Books
Navigation, Sea State and Weather -A Paddler’s Manual: This book is for beginner and experienced kayakers alike. It covers just about everything you ever wanted and need to know about kayak navigation, tides & currents, surf, and weather.
Sea Kayak Touring and Leadership Manual: This book aims to be the most complete source of information for sea kayak touring paddlers to increase knowledge, safety, and enjoyment. It covers day trips to multi-month trips and is a fantastic addition to the book above.
Sea Kayaking: A Manual for Long-Distance Touring: While there are a lot of kayak touring manuals out there this one is the absolute must-have and a classic. Written by legendary kayaker and found of Ecomarine John Dowd this is the bible of kayak touring. And yes there is an even newer and updated version out there that is worth mentioning, but what can we say, we do like the history that the original book carries within.
How to Read Water: An amazing book for anybody who’s travelling out at sea (like us kayakers for example). It’s really captivating to read and has lots of useful hints that kayakers can use on a daily basis.