Destination 3° Completes Four of the Eight Channels Including the Infamous Alenuihaha
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Destination 3° Completes Four of the Eight Channels Including the Infamous Alenuihaha
MOLOKAI, HAWAII, April 20, 2010 – On April 19, 2010, Jenny Kalmbach and Morgan Hoesterey, two of the world’s elite female standup paddlers, completed the fourth channel in their eight-channel quest – Destination 3° – to link together the Hawaiian island chain via the legendary open-ocean channels that separate them.
After being delayed several days on the Big Island by gale-force winds, Hoesterey and Kalmbach crossed the Alenuihaha channel between the Big Island and Maui on April 7. The Alenuihaha is notorious for blistering winds, crushing swells, and strong currents. With 15-knot north/northeast winds and 6-ft swells, they completed the channel, paddling more than 40 miles in just over nine hours.
“The Alenuihaha was one of the more mentally challenging things I’ve ever had to do,” says Hoesterey. Even though we had really good conditions, it was a reality check for me as to how big this entire challenge is.”
Destination 3° is a way to use one of the world’s fastest growing sports – stand-up paddling – to raise awareness of one of the oceans’ most pressing issues: plastics contamination. Hoesterey and Kalmbach are paddling to raise awareness for the Algalita Marine Research foundation and its mission to quantify the issue and the impact of plastics contamination on the marine environment and by extension, the human food chain.
They followed up the Alenuihaha with a short run on the Kealakahiki channel between Maui and Molokini; 12 miles in the Au’au channel from Maui to Lanai’i; and a 15-mile stretch in the Pailolo channel from to Maui to Molokai.
On each island, Hoesterey and Kalmbach have documented the pervasive plastic litter both above and below the waterline. Strong currents carry plastics from around the world to Hawaii’s beaches, and inhabited or not, no beach yet has not been afflicted.
Up next is a paddle along Molokai’s famous sea cliffs; the Kaiwi channel from Molokai to Oahu on April 23; the 80-mile Kauai channel under the full moon on April 28; and finally finishing with the Kaulakahi channel between Kauai and Niihau.
About Algalita
The Algalita Marine Research Foundation is dedicated to the protection of the marine environment and its watersheds through research, education, and restoration. Learn more at www.algalita.org
About Destination 3°
Destination 3° is Jenny Kalmbach and Morgan Hoesterey’s stand-up paddle adventure across the three degrees of latitude that separate the islands of Hawaii and the nine legendary channels that link them together. Learn more at www.destination3.com and on Facebook at Destination 3° (degrees), or on Twitter at 3degreepaddle.
For sponsorship and press inquiries, contact
Jennifer Holcomb
310.266.0053
Tags: destination 3 degrees, hawaiian islands, hoesterey, http://destination3.com/, jenny, kalmbach, morgan, paddle, Stand up paddle, SUP
This entry was posted on Monday, April 19th, 2010 at 8:03 AM and is filed under PR.