Some Birds and Dolphins to Lighten My Reader's Monday!

The wild life around Southport is endlessly entertaining to me. It is not just the challenges of sea kayaking that draw me on to the water. It is the water world we live on that thrills me and entices me. I am not exactly a "birder," although I do sometimes exhibit the symptoms. Sometimes I am taking pictures when big waves break over me. I have risked a flip many times in order to get a dolphin or bird photo. What can I say? I am enchanted by nature.

There are these comical looking birds that "hang out" around Southport.  I believe they are American Oystercatchers. They have a vaguely Puffin-like appearance, or maybe I am thinking of Penguins? Either way, their long bills almost look like they are holding carrots in their mouths. Like all the wildlife around Southport, they are skittish, as any smart wild animal should be. So I was happy when I off-loaded my photos from last week this morning, and I had a few good shots.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_oystercatcher


Dolphins. What can I say? Show me someone who is not fascinated by dolphins. I admit that I would be curious and somewhat appalled by such a person. Dolphins represent intense intelligence that is not human. Just spending a few minutes with them close to my boat thrills me, and fills me with awe and appreciation. Coach feels the same way. We always pause and watch when they are near.

A chance encounter with fog

I have been scooting off to Southport NC to paddle with my coach whenever possible. His family has been quite accommodating. Southport is a lovely town. The water around there can be flat, or challenging, depending on where one paddles.

We got a good dose of fog last Wednesday. It was a total white out. I have very little experience with paddling in fog and am just learning navigation. The fog gave me its own peculiar challenge, trying to discern where waves were breaking or land might be.

Most of my photos from the day appear to be black and white. But I assure my dear reader that the color was missing due to conditions, rather than editing.

A break on the shore of Oak Island, not much to see in the fog

Lighthouse? Nah, wait, really? We could NOT see the light at all

Finally, after all this time I get a photo of a dolphin, kind of.

Then for a brief moment the fog lifted and everything turned blue

Another view of the lighthouse, before the fog descended to white out again

The weather man had told us that morning that the fog would burn off by 10 am. This did not happen. Instead, it hung around all day making our planned attempt on Frying Pan Shoals unsafe. We hand railed along a set of small islands until we made the tip of Oak Island out through the fog. After an abortive attempt on crossing to Bald Head Island we decided to stick near Oak Island. We had found good quality rollers on the ocean side of the island and we ended up playing in those as the fog wafted around us. Coach had me practicing turns and I had some challenges not getting knocked over broach by the waves.

When we get off the water there is a coffee shop with this incredible crumb cake just waiting for us. Hot decaf with cream and 1/2 a slice of crumb cake...nom...

The fog lifted as we were packing up at the marina. Rearing up behind the water front, the fog waits only a few minutes before descending again.

I can not express clearly enough how well Coach chose his locale. Dolphins, birds, wind, pop corn water, big big rollers...and somewhere in there flat calm water, all just waiting to be paddled.  This was yet another magical day in Southport. I think I am in love.