Raw, awe-inspiring, massive, and just plain gorgeous. The Stikine is the biggest canyon in Canada, located in British Columbia, about a half hour’s drive from Whistler — 80 km of steep wall, dozens of drainage basins, and ample opportunity for boating.
The Stikine River’s Grand Canyon has been called the “K2 of whitewater challenges” — this is as stout and as expert as it gets. Canadian kayaker and film creator Emile Lalonde is spot on: This is the dream for all class V paddlers. In his Sweet Protection Short Film Awards entry, he talks about the work that goes into paddling a river of this caliber, and the emotions he experienced along the way.
Not gonna lie, the opening is bad; he really should’ve cut those first 10 seconds of [bleeps], er, hype. But the rest of the video is worth watching — so don’t judge a book by its cover.
This short film premiered on December 1, 2023.
Runtime: 5 minutes
