I always say that I was a backpacker but the truth is that I was much more a mountaineer and whitewater kayak freak. My last Eskimo roll in a keeper hole was two years before I lost my legs.

Oh, to be young again, and healthy enough to survive. I could have made a career in the outdoors: But I was convinced, by friends, that it wasn’t a real occupation. One of my earliest regrets.

Paddle on.