Instructional Expeditions Without Borders

Exploring national and international waters through skill building, adventure and challenge. 

Not your average guided excursion.

Belize

Belize sea kayak adventure combines paddle and snorkel time on both the protected waters of Glover’s Reef Atoll and the Central Barrier Reef Islands in the South Water Caye Marine Reserve.

Spend three nights at a unique Basecamp on Glover’s Southwest Caye, a remote 13 acre island. Sleep in comfortable tent-walled cabanas and dine on fresh seafood, tropical fruit and local fare. Kayak, SUP and snorkel amongst Glover’s tropical islands and 700 patch reefs. Then four days of exploration moving island to island on the central barrier reef.

Skill Level:
This is a remote location, so previous paddling experience in a sea kayak is definitely a requirement for this expedition. Participants are to be proficient but not highly-skilled paddlers, you should be familiar with the core paddling strokes and able to perform a wet exit and rescues if required, Paddle Canada L2 skills or similar skill level would be a good place to start. We could be exposed to wind and waves and open swell on this trip. A good forward stroke is an asset, and an ability to paddle 3nm/ hour is preferred.

** This year we have added an additional trip which is geared more towards paddlers which have a bit less experience with a preference for glamping rather then camping.

What’s Included:

Standard Expedition-
- Local guide and a Blue Dog guide (Amber).
- All Group Gear
- Full Gear Outfitting
- All Meals as described
- Accommodations during trip
- Transportation from Belize City to Dangriga to Bocawina
- Boat to Glover’s with return to Reef

* Participants can expect to have a combination of doubles and singles on this trip

What’s Not Included:

Standard Expedition-
- Transportation to Belize City, return from Dangringa to Belize City
- Accommodations after the trip
- Snorkel Gear (rental available for $40)
- Any gratuities
- Any alcoholic beverages bought out at the reef.

Available for Rent:

- Snorkel Gear

  • This trip is for your everyday paddler, looking to relax, explore by kayak, snorkel some amazing reef and be immersed in the culture. There is no camping on this program, the entire trip will be in glamping tents or ocean side villas.

    Day 1

    Stay: Bocawina Rainforest Resort

    Meals: Dinner

    Rendezvous and travel to Bocawina Resort. Welcome and self explore. After everyone has arrived and is settled in we gather for a meet and greet cocktail and review the plan for the coming days.

    Day 2

    Stay: Glover's Reef Basecamp

    Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

    In the morning depart by water taxi 36 miles offshore to our Adventure Basecamp on Southwest Caye, within the Glover’s Reef Marine Reserve. After settling into your tent cabana, guides provide professional instruction - teaching sea kayaking, snorkeling, and safety in tropical seas before we head out on the water.

    Glover’s is one of only four atolls in the Caribbean Sea and the waters are exceptionally clear with over 700 patch reefs and snorkel sites

    Day 3-4

    Stay: Glover's Reef Basecamp on Southwest Caye

    Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

    Perfect days of sun, turquoise clear waters, coral reefs, great food and a full range of adventure activities for you to choose from each day. In the evenings we host informative sessions on the history and cultures of Belize, its unique marine ecosystem. Our final night here includes a cultural night of Garifuna drums, dance and traditional foods.

    Days 5

    Stay: Tobacco Caye

    Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

    For our last morning at Glover's Reef the choice is yours; you may choose to don a mask, snorkel, and fins for a final visit to your favorite coral reef, or fly fish on the flats with your most productive Bonefish fly.

    After lunch a motorboat charter will pick up the group and on route back to the mainland be dropped off at Tobacco Caye on the Southern Barrier Reef. Your gear, food, water, and kayaks will be awaiting you.

    Day 5 & 6

    Stay: Tobacco Caye.

    Explore around Tobacco our first afternoon Explore around Tobacco Caye, a light paddle, snorkelling and enjoy a beautiful dinner by the water. The following day paddle over to the mangroves, enjoy the birdlife and explore the crystal blue seas

    Day 7.
    Enjoy our last morning relaxing in the hammocks, have our final breakfast and board the water taxi back to Dangriga.

    $2875 USD (plus tax & service fee)

  • This trip is geared towards paddlers with experience paddling in wind and committing to open water crossings. Belize can be very windy, so it is important that all paddlers joining this trip can paddle into a headwind of 15 knots, for a minimum of 3 nm. Ideally, we are looking for people who have a minimum Paddle Canada L2 skills and practice skills frequently. Boats are a mixture of Boreal Designs, Necky & Seaward Doubles.

    Day 1

    Stay: Bocawina Rainforest Resort

    Meals: Dinner

    Rendezvous and travel to Bocawina Resort. Welcome and self explore. After everyone has arrived and is settled in we gather for a meet and greet cocktail and review the plan for the coming days.

    Day 2

    Stay: Glover's Reef Basecamp

    Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

    In the morning depart by water taxi 36 miles offshore to our Adventure Basecamp on Southwest Caye, within the Glover’s Reef Marine Reserve. After settling into your tent cabana, guides provide professional instruction - teaching sea kayaking, snorkeling, and safety in tropical seas before we head out on the water.

    Glover’s is one of only four atolls in the Caribbean Sea and the waters are exceptionally clear with over 700 patch reefs and snorkel sites

    Day 3-4

    Stay: Glover's Reef Basecamp on Southwest Caye

    Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

    Perfect days of sun, turquoise clear waters, coral reefs, great food and a full range of adventure activities for you to choose from each day. In the evenings we host informative sessions on the history and cultures of Belize, its unique marine ecosystem. Our final night here includes a cultural night of Garifuna drums, dance and traditional foods.

    Days 5

    Stay: Southwater Caye

    Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

    For our last morning at Glover's Reef the choice is yours; you may choose to don a mask, snorkel, and fins for a final visit to your favorite coral reef, or fly fish on the flats with your most productive Bonefish fly.

    After lunch a motorboat charter will pick up the group and on route back to the mainland be dropped off at Tobacco Caye on the Southern Barrier Reef. Your gear, food, water, and kayaks will be awaiting you, and from this point you can begin your island to island journey.

    Day 5 to Day 8

    Stay: Camping

    Each day, paddle, snorkel and explore along your way between islands. Sea kayak to nearby patch reefs, paddle to a nearby island resort for a cold beverage, or drag a fishing line near a local patch reef to see what bites your hook - the choice is ours. On arrival to our chosen caye we set camp, work as a group to prepare meals and enjoy the island nights.

    Day 8

    On our last day, we will boat back from Billy Hawk to Dangriga

    $2865 (plus tax & service fee)

Cancellations and Refunds
Of course we regret any cancellations and our cancellation policy is as flexible and understanding as possible.  Many of our trip costs are incurred well in advance of trip departures and other travelers may have been turned away because the trip is full.  All cancellations must be received at our office in writing and our payment policy provides flexibility and peace of mind when you book your next adventure vacation.

‘LifeTime’ Trip Deposit
A $300 ‘Lifetime‘ deposit for each traveler is required to reserve your place. If you need to delay or cancel, your deposit can be transferred to any future scheduled Island Expeditions trip.

Payment and Cancellation
Balance of payment is due 65 days prior to the trip departure.  If you cancel your trip within 65 days of your departure the following refund schedule applies:
60+ days prior to departure: your initial deposit is safe and can be used in the future.
Your LifeTime Trip deposit remains valid and can be used when you reschedule.
We strongly recommend you purchase airfare, trip cancellation and travel medical insurance.

Great Slave Lake, NWT

Blue Dog Kayaking in partnership with Jackpine Paddle offers you an amazing sea kayak adventure in the East Arm of Great Slave Lake, NWT!

Great Slave Lake, located in the southern half of the Northwest Territories, is the 11th largest in the world and, after Great Bear, the biggest entirely within Canada. It measures in at 28,568 square kilometers, roughly the same size as Belgium. Great Slave Lake is also North America’s deepest lake, reaching a maximum depth of more than 615 meters in it’s East Arm– deep enough to cover the CN Tower.

The fabled East Arm of Great Slake Lake has a spectacular reputation among locals, and for good reason. It features deep, clear water with abundant islands, narrow channels with tall red cliffs, and world-class fishing. With craggy cliffs and rocky islands, the islands of the East Arm support bald eagles, terns and gulls. Breathtaking cliffs are built from rock as old as 2.7-billion years (the oldest in the world), making for some of the most epic campsites you’ll ever experience. If fishing is your thing, you’ll definitely want to bring a fishing rod to enjoy the seemingly bottomless depths surrounding these islands. They are swarming with trophy-sized lake trout. And because the lake is clean and cold, fish keep near the surface in summer, making for plenty fishing opportunities from a kayak and from camp.

To add an element of magic to this expedition, we’ve picked dates to take advantage of autumn Aurora season. As you tip your head back in awe to catch the glittering lights dancing across the sky, we’ll show you the best of our spectacular Aurora. Great Slave Lake lies directly in the magnetic “Aurora Belt”, which means it’s one of the most reliable places on earth to spot the northern lights.

If the North has been on your bucket list for ages, the majestic East Arm offers a place like no others: unspoiled, remote, and iconic. These expeditions offer a chance to experience Canada’s newest national park: Thaidene Nëné, or “Land of the Ancestors” in the Denesoline Yati language. The Etthen Island expedition ventures into Thaidene Nëné for part of the route.

Skill Level:
The East Arm is a remote location, so previous paddling experience in a sea kayak is definitely an asset. Participants are not required to be proficient or highly-skilled paddlers, but should be familiar with the basics of kayaking and able to perform a wet exit if required, Paddle Canada L1 skills would be a good place to start. Previous experience camping in the back-country is required. We can be exposed to wind and waves on this trip.

What’s Included:

Standard Expedition-
- Experienced sea kayak instructors/ coaches with previous experience of running expeditions to this location.
- Group gear for the expedition
- All Meals (except breakfast on day 1 and dinner on final day)
- First aid for the group
- Kayak repair kits
- Water Filter
- Expedition quality tents
- Communication devices (VHF Radio and Garmin Inreach)
-Float-plane air charter to the East Arm and back.
- High quality fiberglass Seaward singles and doubles
- Quality paddles, PFDs, sprayskirts, and other safety equipment (you are also welcome to bring your own)
- Airport Shuttles to your own accommodation and return to airport
- 4:1 minimum participant to Instructor ratio.

What’s Not Included:

Standard Expedition-
- Flights to Yellowknife
- Accommodations while in Yellowknife.
- Drysuits or personal camping equipment
- Meals before and after the expedition (breakfast on day 1 and dinner on final day)
- Gratuity for guides/ instructors

Available for Rent:

- Drysuit
- Camping Equipment (mat, sleeping bag)
* If these aren’t selected at checkout we cannot guarantee availability and need a minimum of 4 weeks notice of any rentals.

  • Itinerary -

    Day 1

    In the morning, we board an air charter to the East Arm. As our float plane lifts off the waters of Yellowknife Bay, we get a bird's eye view of the spectacular Canadian Shield as we fly deeper into remote wilderness. Once at camp on a majestic rocky island, we take in our new surroundings: pristine air and clear deep water. It doesn't take long to reel in our first lake trout. Fish fry for dinner?

    DAYS 2-4

    We spend our days moving to a new location each day, setting up camp on beautiful natural sites on the subarctic shield. As we work our way to the North end of Etthen Island, the scenery grows bolder. Spectacular granite cliffs rise along the shore. We are treated to Aurora that dances in the sky above our tents. The fishing is non-stop, and world-class. If the weather permits, we cross over to Utsingi Point for a day trip to hike and explore this stunning peninsula.

    DAYS 5-8

    We paddle around the North end of Etthen Island and are treated to spectacular granite cliffs rising along the shore. It's a breath-taking and stunning scene that few will ever experience. We continue to paddle South, enjoying some of the most unique and beautiful campsites in the Northwest Territories. Perfect paddling on the profound blue depths off Etthen island will offer exciting days. Often, we spot wildlife such as moose or bears. Eventually, we are back to our original campsite having successfully completed our 70 km circumnavigation of Etthen Island.

    DAY 9

    One last chance to pick our fill of wild berries before the float planes roars in to whisk us 200 km back to the nearest civilisation of Yellowknife. After hot showers we meet up in town for cold celebratory beers and final farewells!

    $4250 (plus gst & service fee)

Cancellations and Refunds
Of course we regret any cancellations and our cancellation policy is as flexible and understanding as possible.  Many of our trip costs are incurred well in advance of trip departures and other travelers may have been turned away because the trip is full.  All cancellations must be received at our office in writing and our payment policy provides flexibility and peace of mind when you book your next adventure vacation.

Payment and Cancellation
Blue Dog Kayaking requires 50% deposit upon booking. Balances are due up to 75 days before the start of the trip.
Deposits/ all payments are refundable in full up to 75 days before the start of the trip. No refunds will be given within 75 days of the trip start date.
In the event of participant cancellation within 75 days Blue Dog Kayaking may make a place on another course or trip available at their discretion depending upon the participants circumstances.

In case of emergency

It is wise to take out additional health insurance and trip cancellation insurance to cover any expenses caused in remote locations, or in the event you need to cancel due to injury before the trip. All our instructors and guides are trained in wilderness first aid, carry emergency supplies as well as the means to call for additional resources should we need to. Blue Dog Kayaking Ltd. assumes no liability regarding the delivery of medical care. If an unschedules evacuation should occur participants should expect to assume the costs of that evacuation, similar that you would travelling.

“I just completed this expedition with Amber and Dave in the Broken Group Islands (Aug 2017). To say that my expectations were exceeded would be an understatement. This is not a recreational, guided tour - this program is an empowering, challenging, fun, personalized opportunity to focus on improving your strokes, navigation, weather & tide interpretation, leadership skills, rescues and camp life. Amber and Dave are highly skilled kayakers and incredibly committed instructors. They observed my baseline abilities and were able to see where I was going wrong and make easily understandable suggestions for improvement. They give 120% and inspire you to up your game to make the most of their expertise. They are also wonderful folks and made the trip a whole heckuva lotta fun. I also achieved my L2 skills. I was looking forward to my next Blue Dog course before this one was even over!"
                                                   - Carrie McKellar

Private Programming

Our company thrives on providing the best sea kayak instruction, and coaching. Safety, creating challenging environments, fun and adventure are at the forefront of our programs. Meeting paddlers where they’re at and faciliatting learning to get them to where they would like to be, filling in the learning gaps along the way. Our private programming includes anything from skills refreshers to extended expeditions (certification or not). This programming requires a minimum of 4 participants and a maximum of 8.