June 19 - Have You Ever Tried It?
Jun 19, 0020
Never did this until I was 66 years old – kayaking that is. My wife, Connie got me into it. At first I thought it was going to be one of those wild ideas she has from time to time, and that I go along with to keep the peace. “Happy wife, happy life” right? But I found out quickly that I enjoyed it and was pretty good at it. Decent balance, rarely got myself wet, could get in and out OK. Fortunately I was strong enough to go at a pretty good clip, and when I got cocky, I could even paddle it backwards. I know, it doesn’t sound like a big deal, but I thought it was kind of cool.
So after we rented kayaks locally a couple of times, we took the plunge and purchased a couple of used, sit-on-top kayaks.
Then for the real basics. How do you transport these things. One was 12 feet long and the other was 14 feet long and weighed about 60 lbs. Luckily, the guy who sold them to us had a T bar that attaches to the trailer hitch on our Ranger. They hung over but ratchet tie-downs secured them nicely. Well that worked for the local trips to near by lakes. However, we wanted to take them with us on extended trips with our RV. By this time we were experienced enough RVers that we towed a Jeep Wrangler with us.
The biggest issue we had was trying to come up with a way to carry the kayaks, since the Jeep was a convertible. We finally found a rack that would extend over the top that we could strap the kayaks to. That was a process in itself. Getting the two kayaks on top was a little
tricky as the both of them used the whole span of the roof, and their fiberglass structure would slide around a bit (and they were heavy!). Then just hook the straps on one side and throw the other end over the top. Sounds easy enough. Although I’m not 6’5” so I needed a step ladder to attend to this. Attach the ropes on the front end to the grill and put a chain with a lock through the scuppers on the back and we’re ready to go. Boy, it sure felt like more effort than that, but it worked.
The first of our epic journeys was the Lake Superior Circle Tour three years ago. The scenery just kept getting better all the time. The kayaks came out at various places all around the lake. Starting with Old Woman’s Bay south of Wawa on the east end of lake. As you paddle out there are 600 ft cliffs to the south that are supposed to look like an old woman, um...ok.
Then a no-name lake near Marathon, Ontario. Actually did some fishing from the kayaks here. Connie caught one, not me. I’d like to say a thunderstorm chased us out of the lake before I caught one – yeah, let’s leave it at that.
Going further counterclockwise around Lake Superior we spent some time on the Sibley Peninsula in Sleeping Giant Provincial Park. Got the kayaks out for Marie Louise Lake there. The next time for kayaking was Grand Marais, MN. Several places here. Lake Superior was one. One day we kayaked outside the jetty. The next day there were 5-6 foot waves crashing on the rocky shore. What a difference a day makes.
Took a trip to Ball Club Lake from Grand Marais. Kayaks offered the opportunity to see a couple of moose getting a drink. Would never have seen this without the kayak.
Further around the lake I took the kayak out in Siskiwit Bay near Cornucopia, WI. The reward here were up close and personal photographs of sea caves. Can’t get these hiking, or even from a boat since the rocks would ruin your day. Nope, kayak (ok, or canoe) is the only way to get these photos.
Finally, there’s Pictured Rocks National Seashore near Munising, MI. Breathtaking cliffs of all kinds of colors. They have a boat tour for this, but again, you can’t get close enough to touch them without a kayak. Too cool!
By the way, you don’t need great sights to kayak. Just getting out on the water is a very relaxing way to spend a couple of hours. If you are considering whether or not to go kayaking, stop hemming and hawing. Go for it! You’ll be glad you did.
If you got all the way here, you can go see all of the Lake Superior Circle Tour photos. Click here