Well, it's a month ago to the day since my fledgling flight into the blogosphere. It looks like we all survived that first trip with only a few scrapes, so I thought I'd give it another try.
Three years ago I started kayaking. It instantly became my summer addiction, sort of like a 14 foot plastic crack pipe. I paddled every waterway I could find and was really quite disappointed when cold weather set in to curtail my watery expeditions.
This winter I've been plotting and planning to start kayaking again in the spring. All of the gear was hanging in the garage waiting to hit the water, and I've been hitting every paddling outfitter in central Indiana to see if there would be any deals to be had before the season started.
Much to my delight, I gained two new kayak buddies over the winter. Sara J has been a good friend for... well... a long time, and I was really thrilled to find out that she had gotten herself a kayak a few months ago. She spends part of each summer on a lake in Canada, and started paddling up there last year. She found a deal on a boat down here in Indy, so now she can paddle here as well as "the great white north".
My other new kayak buddy is Elizabeth. She actually works with my wife as a coffee guru at Starbucks, but we've got a lot of common interests too. She's an avid environmentalist and a great kayaker as well.
So the three of us paddlers have been in mothballs all winter, braving the cold and waiting for our moment to hit the water again. We've been to our favorite outfitters to at least soak up some good paddling vibes while we wait on winter to knock it off and spring to hurry up and get on with it.
You can probably imagine our excitement when the weather forecast for last weekend included temps around 60* and sunny! Actually, down here in Nashville the temps were predicted as "low 60's", and we were taking every degree that the weather man would give us. Not a bad forecast for the first weekend in March... through I can't help but think the warmth was due in part to the extra day of February that leap year had given us.
So, we planned a Major Springtime Paddling Event. We'll call it "Late Winterish Paddlefest '08"... and yes, we're still talking about kayaking! Sunday brunch, followed by a nice kayak expedition around Yellow Wood Lake. We got together here in Brown County for roasted vegi frittata, home made pancakes and mimosas, then loaded up to hit the water.
Elizabeth decided to stay back at the house and help Teresa maintain the fragile drinks-to-pancakes ratio rather than kayak with us outdoor crazies. I have to admit, it was a tempting choice to stay on the deck with a drink... but Sara J and I decided to persevere and pack up for the big waters of Yellow Wood. So, with the gear loaded into the truck we headed out.
Sara and I got to the lake, parked up in the trees near the boat ramp, and took our time unloading and getting our gear ready for what promised to be some very cold water. It was about a 30 yard walk around the corner and down the boat ramp, so I packed my remaining gear into my boat and started to carry it down to the waters edge.
I got within about 10 feet of the water, looked out across the lake, and saw nothing but ice! Even with days of warm weather, Yellow Wood was frozen up like a TV dinner. It almost didn't register at first because months of anticipation refused to let my subconscious take it all in. We had planned this trip for some time, taking all the precautions for cold water kayaking... except for the key step of making sure the water is liquid and not solid!
There was a couple in a car that had been watching us for about 15 minutes, and they were quite amused that we intended to paddle and not skate. I cursed them under my breath and set the boats on the ice just to see what would happen... and the wind nearly sent my boat skating across the ice to the middle of the lake. Well, all I can say is "what's the point of starting to make good decisions at this point in the adventure?"
Sara thought about paddling ice-breaker style, but the crust was about 1" thick, and was just impenetrable by anything that is paddle powered. So, we packed back up and returned to my warm sunny deck to aid in the maintenance of the all important alcohol-to-snack ratio that we had entrusted Teresa and Elizabeth with. As a souvenire, we brought back a 5 pound chunk of Yellow Wood Lake with us.
So, winter won that round, but it won't be able to hold on for too much longer. And next time I may just double check the actual water conditions before the next paddling extravaganza.
Three years ago I started kayaking. It instantly became my summer addiction, sort of like a 14 foot plastic crack pipe. I paddled every waterway I could find and was really quite disappointed when cold weather set in to curtail my watery expeditions.
This winter I've been plotting and planning to start kayaking again in the spring. All of the gear was hanging in the garage waiting to hit the water, and I've been hitting every paddling outfitter in central Indiana to see if there would be any deals to be had before the season started.
Much to my delight, I gained two new kayak buddies over the winter. Sara J has been a good friend for... well... a long time, and I was really thrilled to find out that she had gotten herself a kayak a few months ago. She spends part of each summer on a lake in Canada, and started paddling up there last year. She found a deal on a boat down here in Indy, so now she can paddle here as well as "the great white north".
My other new kayak buddy is Elizabeth. She actually works with my wife as a coffee guru at Starbucks, but we've got a lot of common interests too. She's an avid environmentalist and a great kayaker as well.
So the three of us paddlers have been in mothballs all winter, braving the cold and waiting for our moment to hit the water again. We've been to our favorite outfitters to at least soak up some good paddling vibes while we wait on winter to knock it off and spring to hurry up and get on with it.
You can probably imagine our excitement when the weather forecast for last weekend included temps around 60* and sunny! Actually, down here in Nashville the temps were predicted as "low 60's", and we were taking every degree that the weather man would give us. Not a bad forecast for the first weekend in March... through I can't help but think the warmth was due in part to the extra day of February that leap year had given us.
So, we planned a Major Springtime Paddling Event. We'll call it "Late Winterish Paddlefest '08"... and yes, we're still talking about kayaking! Sunday brunch, followed by a nice kayak expedition around Yellow Wood Lake. We got together here in Brown County for roasted vegi frittata, home made pancakes and mimosas, then loaded up to hit the water.
Elizabeth decided to stay back at the house and help Teresa maintain the fragile drinks-to-pancakes ratio rather than kayak with us outdoor crazies. I have to admit, it was a tempting choice to stay on the deck with a drink... but Sara J and I decided to persevere and pack up for the big waters of Yellow Wood. So, with the gear loaded into the truck we headed out.
Sara and I got to the lake, parked up in the trees near the boat ramp, and took our time unloading and getting our gear ready for what promised to be some very cold water. It was about a 30 yard walk around the corner and down the boat ramp, so I packed my remaining gear into my boat and started to carry it down to the waters edge.
I got within about 10 feet of the water, looked out across the lake, and saw nothing but ice! Even with days of warm weather, Yellow Wood was frozen up like a TV dinner. It almost didn't register at first because months of anticipation refused to let my subconscious take it all in. We had planned this trip for some time, taking all the precautions for cold water kayaking... except for the key step of making sure the water is liquid and not solid!
There was a couple in a car that had been watching us for about 15 minutes, and they were quite amused that we intended to paddle and not skate. I cursed them under my breath and set the boats on the ice just to see what would happen... and the wind nearly sent my boat skating across the ice to the middle of the lake. Well, all I can say is "what's the point of starting to make good decisions at this point in the adventure?"
Sara thought about paddling ice-breaker style, but the crust was about 1" thick, and was just impenetrable by anything that is paddle powered. So, we packed back up and returned to my warm sunny deck to aid in the maintenance of the all important alcohol-to-snack ratio that we had entrusted Teresa and Elizabeth with. As a souvenire, we brought back a 5 pound chunk of Yellow Wood Lake with us.
So, winter won that round, but it won't be able to hold on for too much longer. And next time I may just double check the actual water conditions before the next paddling extravaganza.
(Thanks to Sara J for the pix!!)
Posts
