A Saturday Spent Exploring Nanjemoy Creek

Saturday I went to a launch I had never been before, Friendship Landing on Nanjemoy Creek. I had been lucky to score a spot on this trip and was excited to paddle somewhere new. There were 30 CKA paddlers signed up, quite a crowd. 

We went to the left from the launch and went out into the large creek. We paddled first into the large creek but then turned left until we entered Burgess Creek. While the colors are peaking and it is quite lovely, I was a bit disappointed as there was not as much bird life as expected.

Still, a good day on the water, one of the last "wet suit" days. The dry suit will be a must starting this week due to falling temperatures.

Paddling around Jug Bay on the Patuxent

Over the last few years I have developed a theory. It seems that the paddlers who host often have themes they follow. Maybe they prefer quiet paddles on gentle waters. Others prefer long trips, or the wind-swept waters of the Chesapeake Bay. I have also noticed hosts sometimes have a "signature" paddle. It might be a trip that they run every year, often a highlight of the season.

DJ comes to mind with respect to a signature paddle. He first introduced me and a bunch of other paddlers to the lotus blossoms on the Mattawoman. Since that time, every year, he has run one or several events around the same annual appearance of these spectacular blooms.

I tend to think my own "signature" event is paddling Jug Bay on the Pax in the autumn. This lovely natural wetland is largely untouched by neighboring development. This means there are large swaths of wetland without houses pressing in on the sides. There are several different authorities overseeing the area, but for us it is one large wet wander-land. There are many creeks meandering into Jug Bay, giving us the open door to explore and generally poke around. The area changes dramatically with each season but autumn tends to be my favorite.

I hosted a Saturday trip, trying to catch the leaves at a color peak. I missed the peak by a bit but we had a wonderful time poking up into the Western Branch, going as far as possible. Then we stopped at the Mt Calvert House and ate lunch on the lawn before touring the house. Lastly we paddled down to Mattaponi Creek before pulling out at Selby Landing. By all accounts, a lovely day.

I enjoy the social aspect of our club. I really love visiting with Aht!

Thanks Dennis!

Wye Island Circuit

Thursday morning found me up and out the door early with my boat and equipment in tow. We are now in the last few weeks of (for me) "wetsuit season" and I plan to make the most of them. I will paddle whenever and wherever I can, hopefully not alone.

I carried the Romany across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge to Wye Island on the Eastern Shore.
DNR Wye Island Description
I was meeting a group we call CKA (Chesapeake Kayak Adventures). It is both a large group of friendly like-minded paddlers and a commercial venture for its "owner." It is a brilliant bit of hybrid social media, adventure outfitting, and truly friendly people. My kind of people, and I enjoy being able to paddle with them very much.

We planned and completed a "Wye Island Circuit." Starting and ending at the same location, we circled the island counter-clockwise. At 14 miles this is not a terribly long paddle but it is one with a ton of natural beauty. It was cool and overcast most of the day but there were moments when the sun shone and the blue sky sparkled off the water. A very good day to be paddling.

At the launch

Ed in his Impex Assateague

Chocolate kisses!!

Dennis snaps another amazing photo

Thanks to Dennis there is evidence I made the trip

The day ended with blue skies and a mild breeze. These pretty autumn days will hold me over, through the bleak months, until I see the Keys or spring again.

An Albatross! OMFG...

Have you ever noticed sea birds drafting over cars on large bridges? I have.

I have also seen their dead bodies on the side of said bridges and wondered what exactly happened to cause such a thing?

And now I have a very exact answer.

There I was, driving on to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. Minding my own business, I promise. I watched a large sea gull draft over the car in front of me in the left lane and then enter my lane. He tilted his leading wing towards my car, seemingly planning to draft over it. Just before he crossed my hood I thought of the large boat on the roof and its ropes. "He's awfully close, I hope" BANG! Thumping coming from the roof, and then out the rearview mirror I catch a glimpse of the fellow driving behind me, and his horrified face. An instant later I see a ball of white and grey feathers tumble to the side of the road, off the back of my car.

I did not swerve, nor step on the brakes. The bridge scares me enough. I knew I was going to hit him. I guess I hoped I would not but the loud bang confirmed his demise. I hope he was a young, unmarried bird. Hopefully I did not just orphan a whole family or leave a tearful bird widow.

I felt horrible driving home. I wanted to cry and maybe even wail a little. I kept thinking about that poem and the albatross. Bad juju, that. I tried to console myself with thoughts of Darwinism, maybe. I kept thinking "please don't let there be half a bird on my roof, caught up in the ropes," as my brain played out possible gory bird dissections.

When I stopped for gas I reluctantly looked over the car and the Romany. The boat is ivory, and was splattered in, well, bird blood and feathers. Lots of splatter, lots of feathers. Now the scientist in me comes out and I stand there wondering how there is blood on both sides of the boat? All the way from the front to the back, in an interesting spray pattern. The physics of the whole thing surprised me.

Then I got home and lowered the boat down on the Hullavator. There is more splatter, all over the top deck. HOW THE F**K DID THAT HAPPEN? I imagine the bird somersaulting over the boat, or maybe spinning. The husband suggested that the front rope cut him in half? Ugh. Gory bird dissections, indeed.

I took pictures, evidence of my bird-murdering Romany. I had recently given the boat a name. I named it Fenriss, after the wolf. Now I am thinking I should have named the boat Daisy. Superstitious and silly, I know.

And now, the photos? Nope. You do not want to see them. Although they do detail the odd spray pattern. Nope. Here instead, is a picture of our cat, Hobbe-zilla. Why the cat? Why not? Indeed.

Some thoughts on the water

Lake Michigan crossing fails

Much debate in paddling community about whether the fellow (in the link above) attempting a 90 mile crossing of Lake Michigan should have had his own support boat following him, instead of relying on the Coasties to save his butt. He does sound rather well prepared to me. I give him a "pass."

Great-White-Shark-Attacks-Kayakers-off-Massachusetts-Coast!

These gals mentioned above were crying their eyes out during an interview about their encounter with nature. I feel little sympathy for them, however. If you can't stand the sharks, don't go out in the ocean! 

Another article about the shark. How did both chicks end up in the water??

Oh. This is how they both ended up in the water:

sharkwatch/sharks-vs-kayakers-massachusetts-attack

The above article points out the number of kayakers is increasing. However, I understand from several industry pros that the number of participants in classes and symposia are dropping. Cynthia, from Sweetwater in Florida, told me that her local pros blame Meetup.com for the dropping number of student in their metro area.

I told her I do not believe the same to be true in the very active Washington DC paddling community. Yes, our paddling clubs use Meetup to schedule trips but a quick perusal of
Washington Kayak Club  will net the viewer at least a half dozen classes and featured symposia.

WKC was founded in 2006. I captained the group from Oct 2009 to Oct 2011, and have continued with an active role in the club. We have always offered professionals a chance to post classes or have them featured as events. However, another pro recently told me he thinks the WDC metro area is different from other areas. Statistically, we are more affluent, more educated, and more mobile. We are a transient community with many intelligent and well-employed people moving in and moving out all the time.

So I guess I can't hold our area up as a shining example against the argument that Meetup is detrimental to kayaking schools in the long run. This is a thought I will return to in the future.

cops-say-kayaker-lied-shot-himself-twice (what!?)

Either there's a bunch of paddlers who are nuts...or...the nutty are taking to kayaking. Hmm...

My husband has pointed out many times that when a hiker falls off a set of rocks at Great Falls, the news will always say "rock climber dies at Great Falls." This infuriates the Lorax! He fumes "that was NOT a rock climber! That was just some hapless fool!"

So I leave you with this thought:
Are the gals who had the shark encounter "kayakers" or are they "Kayakers?" Shit, Jesse, look what you started! Reflection is in order.

As Brian B says "clubs happen"

Yeah.

This past winter saw members of the Bay's established paddlers' club taking pot shots at our young local club as well as several well established paddlers' Meetup groups. It was not very pretty. Nor did it foster kind feeling towards the older club. As I am a local leader it made it unlikely that I will join that club any time soon. Maybe later, certainly possible.

But just recently our own club had a shake up. One paddler said something to another and before we knew it, cause and effect, yada yada. For myself I can say I tried to stay out of it but unwittingly wandered into the tail-end of the mess. Some people asked me to re-post a canceled trip, I did so, and placed myself straight in the target zone.

I like to think I am pretty good at foreseeing consequences, but sometimes I fail to take human behavior in to account. I, too, have tender feelings and don't like being a target. I get it. Next time I'll say something like, "No, YOU re-post that trip." Lesson learned there.

I heard later that I have become some sort of lightning rod for a bunch of hate...because I re-posted a canceled event... Does this seem reasonable or adult to you? Well, it certainly does not seem adult to me. Another question is "where did all this hate come from?" Hate? If kayaking generates feelings of hate in a person, they are probably in the wrong sport. Jus' sayin.'

And lastly, the two individuals are also adults. If they have a problem with each other I think we should drop them in a cage for a death match. This will neatly solve their problems with each other, putting the focus back on them, not me, plus generate potential income for the club as we sell tickets to the event. (just kidding, no, really, um...)

Ugh.

At some point Brian B, a local pro, told me a brief story in commiseration that hit the spot. Yup, like he said "clubs happen." And so they do.

Meantime, we eventually got on the water and paddled 19 or so miles. This wasn't my longest day on the water, but the pace was quicker than I normally hold on a long trip. I tend to go slower when there is more than 12 miles on the table. When I say slower I mean 3 miles per hour. Walking pace is also a nice steady paddling pace.

And it rained, and then rained again, and then the sky really opened up and it RAINED. At least it wasn't cold....

First break, @5 miles, Bull Run Marina. The floating dock has quite the garden growing on it. It's been a fairly wet summer.

Marsh mallows where quite abundant

Passing under the Old Yates Ford Road bridge. Hmm, did not realize that shirt would be so see-through when wet.
Both of us, credit Denise P 2014

The Lorax, credit Dan L 2014

Rain rain rain...My camera had rain droplets on the lens in almost every shot I took. This one, in the lower left corner, has a large droplet on it.

My favorite subject

The last few miles were wet, really wet. The rain picked up tempo the closer we got to the take out.