Recently met a fella by the name of Chris Walling. He lives on Vancouver Island, and for fun he snorkels in rivers, studying fish with his own two eyes.
Chris, who goes by @steels_norkel on instagram, is a very interesting fella.
Chris, how’d you get into snorkeling in rivers and streams?
Growing up, my dad’s nickname was “The Old Trapper.” He grew up in the middle of Ontario, where hunting and fishing were a big part of his life. He was always the kind of dad who went into the forest with you, showed you the different birds and trees and everything else. Always an observer and a teacher.
In the summertime, we’d go to the river. He would always say, let’s put the mask on and see what’s down there.
The goal would be to collect lures snagged on the bottom, but then there were these teaching moments. “See that rainbow hiding behind that rock? Those are whitefish down there.”
What kinda gear do you use? Any advice for anyone who wants to hop in a river and snorkel it?
I recommend:
A good wetsuit.
Neoprene gloves
And a reasonably good quality facemask.
Also, I wear a big belt knife, with a massive 10-inch blade.
Woah!! What exactly do you get up to when you’re snorkeling the river?
I’ll find a spot with good lighting, that’s shallow enough, where I know fish will be, and then I’ll hang out in that one spot and photograph. Other times, it’s more exploratory. “OK, I wonder what’s in this 10 kilometer stretch of river.” Hike up to my starting point, then drift down through that stretch. I’ll bring the camera, but I’m really there to gather mental data.
What else is interesting about snorkeling in rivers?
I learned really early that a fish in their element is far superior to us in ours. Watching a fish move underwater is amazing. It’s like watching our highest trained athlete on land, as far as their agility and ability to control their body.
What do fish teach you about swimming?
We rarely let ourselves become one with the water. Once you learn how to move with the water like a fish, it’s an amazing feeling.
You drop into an eddy, one that maybe only a really experienced kayaker would even know is there, and hold in place effortlessly through hand movements and bending your knees and rocking them back and forth as a rudder. You hold in that fast water without expending any energy at all. I learned that from the fish.
Any other tips for cold-water swimming?
If you river snorkel a lot, you build up a very unique set of physical abilities. Rain doesn’t bother me. Cold doesn’t bother me. The human body is meant to be stressed — it’s how we were designed, primitively speaking. It makes you feel ten feet tall and bulletproof.
I gain weight nowadays like I never have before, and deep down inside I really think it’s my body adapting to the environment I put it in. When you’re swimming in water this cold, blubber storage becomes essential.
