Kayaking report: It was fun.
This weekend I went up to Lake Superior Provincial Park to do some sea kayaking. The group was Todd & Linda, Kathleen, Dennis and myself. We left early evening Friday and drove up to the Gargantua Bay area of Lake Superior in Ontario. Stayed overnight in near Sault Ste Marie, then headed off to paddle in the morning.
The first day was nice and clear with a fair breeze toward shore and in the direction we were heading. We headed up the coast, going around and exploring several of the islands and a ship wreck in one of the harbors. I have some pictures from this time which I will likely post later.
Near the end of the first day, we found our camp spot in a small bay. It did cloud up and rain that evening, so we were all a little damp :-/, but no real issues. We did another small paddle out around some rock formations and a short hike up around the campsite, but all in all it was a rather calm night and we went to bed early, being rather tired from the previous night and to avoid bugs.
The second day we paddled back – duh. We made breakfast, packed up etc. It was quite foggy, and remained so for about half the trip back. We took a detour to around a large harbor and up the Gargantua River a little way. When we were almost back to our put in, we stopped off at a small island to climb up to the top and see the “lighthouse” there which was more of a light pole with a heli-pad near by for maintenance. (BTW flying helicopers around parks to change lightbulbs = awesome job) I have what I hope turns out to be a cool picture of the fog from atop this island.
At the end of the trip I couldn’t resist a swim, even though the water was f****** freezing. I claim it’s not so bad if you at least start out with neoprene warm gear on to dull the shock. Really though, the cold was worth it. I love kayaking, camping and other outdoor activities, but I also really like feeling clean (I had a bar of soap). Riding back would have been hellish if I had to do it all dirty and stinky.
The standout quote of the weekend, from me as the five of us were sitting on a log eating lunch: I turned to Denes and asked “Did you specifically choose the most obnoxiously colored Nalgene bottles available?” (They were magenta) Given standard lab interactions, this wouldn’t have qualified as anything special, but when with non lab people, it’s a little bit harsh I guess.
At this point I am more or less unpacked, and straightened away, which I heavily approve of since last season many trips lingered several days into the week which became very annoying. I didn’t really do anything today other than sleep, work and clean, but one recovery day is far better than a week full of living in piles of random unstowed gear.
