How Kayaking Allowed Us to Trust Each Other

We would be the first to admit that our friendship has not been the easiest to handle in the past. There were times when both of us were at each other’s throats. We had a mutual respect and understanding, but a lot of intense competition and rivalry that would get in the way of our friendship. Over the past few years, we have found a way to grow closer than before. Many of our friends ask how we managed to do that. The truth is that we found a way to trust each other through our passion for kayaking!

A lot of people would find that statement strange. “How can kayaking help you to trust another person?” It is a common question that we get when we mention our circumstances. The explanation is simple. When you are kayaking with another person, you are relying on them to ensure that both of you are safe and having a good time. It is why you can develop a level of trust that may have not been present before. When we went kayaking around the country, testing the toughest of waters, we realized that our mutual trust was greater than any issues between us.

When you are in the water, working as hard as you can to make sure that your kayak is in the right direction, you are just relying on each other’s intuition. In those moments, you cannot have doubt or inhibitions towards each other. It is a matter of using your strengths and the other person’s talents in the best way possible. It is precisely what we did. We managed to have incredible experiences, while it strengthened our passion for spending more time outdoors. We have enjoyed some great camping and kayaking trips in the past couple years that we would not trade for anything else.

If we had one bit of advice for anyone who is considering getting into kayaking for the first time, it would be to pack properly! The first couple of times we went on a trip, we made the mistake of not packing well enough. Either we forgot our kayaking cooler or we did not pack enough supplies to safely set up our tents. If you have all the necessary possessions, food and accessories, you can have an incredible trip, whether you are going with a friend, significant other or the whole family!