Paddling as procrastination: discuss.
In an attempt to get my mopey ass in gear this afternoon, I finally hauled the boat out of the garage. No whitewater anywhere too close, but there is a convenient lake just a block's walk from here that's been calling my name. I decided to explore a little (no upside-down-ness for me today, as I was all by my lonesome), and paddled into the reedy area of the lake that runs along a strangely wooded, uninhabited smidgeon of this otherwise over-developed suburban nightmare in which I live.
There is a path through the reeds where the waterway "bottlenecks" between the two halves of Twin Lake, which I paddled in hopes of making it all the way to my uncle's back yard -- you know your family lives too close when it's feasible to paddle to their house in a dinky little playboat (small kayak meant for pulling tricks in whitewater rather than going long distances). Alas, it may be feasible to do, but this was my first shot out this spring, after spending much of the winter not doing anything thanks to a shoulder injury. I turned around just short of my goal (how short? Who knows. I can't even guage distance on land; water's impossible), and paddled back into the reeds.
I did make a few friends on my travels. I got within a boats length (and my boat's only 7'2"!) of several mallards on several occasions. I saw a goose and her gosling out for an afternoon swim, though I gave them a wide berth, as mama goose became a bit anxious when she heard my splashing. Best of all, I saw two turtles, one on land, though it slipped into the water when it heard me, and one swam up right next to my boat. I landed, pretty well wiped, to the greetings of curious kids from the daycare next door. The boy, who looked about four, wanted to know how I made the boat go, so I showed him how to use the paddle (on dry land, of course, pretending the air was the water). All three of the kids wanted to sit in the boat, so they took turns, the one- and two-year-old girls sitting together. I wish I'd had a camera, so everyone could see my tiny little kayak that barely fits me holding two people comfortably!
Exhausted, amused, and feeling much better, I toted my toys home, looking forward to Duluth in a week or so, where I can (hopefully!) put the darn thing to its intended use.
In an attempt to get my mopey ass in gear this afternoon, I finally hauled the boat out of the garage. No whitewater anywhere too close, but there is a convenient lake just a block's walk from here that's been calling my name. I decided to explore a little (no upside-down-ness for me today, as I was all by my lonesome), and paddled into the reedy area of the lake that runs along a strangely wooded, uninhabited smidgeon of this otherwise over-developed suburban nightmare in which I live.
There is a path through the reeds where the waterway "bottlenecks" between the two halves of Twin Lake, which I paddled in hopes of making it all the way to my uncle's back yard -- you know your family lives too close when it's feasible to paddle to their house in a dinky little playboat (small kayak meant for pulling tricks in whitewater rather than going long distances). Alas, it may be feasible to do, but this was my first shot out this spring, after spending much of the winter not doing anything thanks to a shoulder injury. I turned around just short of my goal (how short? Who knows. I can't even guage distance on land; water's impossible), and paddled back into the reeds.
I did make a few friends on my travels. I got within a boats length (and my boat's only 7'2"!) of several mallards on several occasions. I saw a goose and her gosling out for an afternoon swim, though I gave them a wide berth, as mama goose became a bit anxious when she heard my splashing. Best of all, I saw two turtles, one on land, though it slipped into the water when it heard me, and one swam up right next to my boat. I landed, pretty well wiped, to the greetings of curious kids from the daycare next door. The boy, who looked about four, wanted to know how I made the boat go, so I showed him how to use the paddle (on dry land, of course, pretending the air was the water). All three of the kids wanted to sit in the boat, so they took turns, the one- and two-year-old girls sitting together. I wish I'd had a camera, so everyone could see my tiny little kayak that barely fits me holding two people comfortably!
Exhausted, amused, and feeling much better, I toted my toys home, looking forward to Duluth in a week or so, where I can (hopefully!) put the darn thing to its intended use.
posted by Turtle at 4:10 PM
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