Ha, this has been lurking in drafts since September 5th - September was not a good month for blogging for me, tons going on, somehow I uploaded these pictures and never came back to them, so here they are now. Nothing particularly exciting about this paddle, but sometimes a less-momentous paddle is just what the doctor ordered, and this was a good one.
Solo paddle - yes, against suggested practices, but sometimes you just want to be out there on your own time, at your own pace. It was a lovely summer day with a little bit of a breeze. Paddling gear fit in the little bag (suddenly it's that medium bag time of year now, I love summer when the gear fits in the little bag). I didn't roll, that's one thing I won't do without a friend or two around, but I did splash around bracing a lot. The water was lovely. Then the breeze picked up a little bit, and I got a little cool, so I stopped splashing around and paddled harder and then I warmed up again. Summer's good that way.
I went around Canarsie Pol and Ruffle Bar and then back to the club. Nine miles at a moderate pace.
There were flocks of oystercatchers wheet-wheet-wheeting around, and I was surprised by the osprey - I thought you could tell when the ospreys are in by the absence of cormorants on the derelict pier beside the platform, but the pier was lined with cormorants. Earlier in the season the ospreys would chase them off, now there seems to be a truce. Perhaps the territoriality settles down once the youngsters have flown. Summer birds, they'll be heading south soon.
I went to the marsh in Ruffle Bar, where it was quiet and egrets were fishing while schools of small fish ruffled the smooth surface of the water.
Paddled back enjoying the view of the city skyline in the clear air, indulged in my standard low-key schadenfreude while paddling under the bridge over the basin -- is it bad that I enjoy being on the water in my boat even more when I can see people sitting in a traffic jam?
Probably finished off the day with a few cherry tomatoes and chit-chat at the club, 'cause that's how it goes in the summertime.
Yeah, just yer basic paddle, but so nice to have this.
Solo paddle - yes, against suggested practices, but sometimes you just want to be out there on your own time, at your own pace. It was a lovely summer day with a little bit of a breeze. Paddling gear fit in the little bag (suddenly it's that medium bag time of year now, I love summer when the gear fits in the little bag). I didn't roll, that's one thing I won't do without a friend or two around, but I did splash around bracing a lot. The water was lovely. Then the breeze picked up a little bit, and I got a little cool, so I stopped splashing around and paddled harder and then I warmed up again. Summer's good that way.
I went around Canarsie Pol and Ruffle Bar and then back to the club. Nine miles at a moderate pace.
There were flocks of oystercatchers wheet-wheet-wheeting around, and I was surprised by the osprey - I thought you could tell when the ospreys are in by the absence of cormorants on the derelict pier beside the platform, but the pier was lined with cormorants. Earlier in the season the ospreys would chase them off, now there seems to be a truce. Perhaps the territoriality settles down once the youngsters have flown. Summer birds, they'll be heading south soon.
I went to the marsh in Ruffle Bar, where it was quiet and egrets were fishing while schools of small fish ruffled the smooth surface of the water.
Paddled back enjoying the view of the city skyline in the clear air, indulged in my standard low-key schadenfreude while paddling under the bridge over the basin -- is it bad that I enjoy being on the water in my boat even more when I can see people sitting in a traffic jam?
Probably finished off the day with a few cherry tomatoes and chit-chat at the club, 'cause that's how it goes in the summertime.
Yeah, just yer basic paddle, but so nice to have this.
3 comments:
lovely.
I especially like the photo of the grass reflected in the water. Beautiful. I envy your kayak skills. It must be so relaxing.
Be well.
Barbara
It's wonderful being able to get out on the water in this hectic city.
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