Tag: kayaking

Kayaking and Caves in Lucayan National Park

Posted on By Tom No Comments on Kayaking and Caves in Lucayan National Park
Paddling, Photography, Travel

For our last full day in the Bahamas I had booked a kayaking tour and trip to the Lucayan National Park. Laura had been fighting a bad cough all week and didn’t feel like going, so I was on my own. After watching another stunning Bahamian sunrise, I began gathering my gear and headed down to meet the group.

I was the only one from our resort going on the tour, but there were nine others that had already been picked up, and we stopped for four more on the way out. Along with our guide, we had a party of fifteen.

Read More “Kayaking and Caves in Lucayan National Park” »

More Florida Wildlife Encounters

Posted on By Tom 1 Comment on More Florida Wildlife Encounters
Paddling, Photography, Travel

Today the plan was to head up toward the Sebastian area, have lunch, and visit the Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge. We headed north on US 1, stopped at Hale’s Groves for some citrus, then stopped at Rock City Gardens to look at the plants. Lunch was at the Sand Bar at Captain Hiram’s. It … Read More “More Florida Wildlife Encounters” »

Oh Blackwater, Keep On Rolling…

Posted on By Tom 3 Comments on Oh Blackwater, Keep On Rolling…
Paddling

John N paddles downstream

Saturday morning I got up at 4:00 am, loaded the kayak into the truck and headed south once more to the Edisto River. Last month we had originally planned to kayak the entire 20.3 mile stretch from Colleton State Park to Givhan’s Ferry State Park. We wound up breaking the trip into sections, running only the portion from Mars Old Field to Givhan’s Ferry last time. This time we were going to do the section from Colleton State Park to Stokes Bridge Landing – 8 miles, about the same length as our last trip.

This time there were seven in our group. Matt, John N., Rob D., and Chris J. returned. James B. couldn’t make it, but we were joined by John R. and his son Kevin. Matt’s dog, Cotton rounded out our entourage. We unloaded all the boats, then ran a shuttle down to Stokes Bridge.

As we got underway we observed a huge group of canoes and kayaks getting started on the opposite bank. This was a mixed group of all ages. As they passed I noticed several unusual seating arrangements. Several of the canoes had a man in the back paddling, and a woman up front just along for the ride – no paddle in hand whatsoever. Strange.

Read More “Oh Blackwater, Keep On Rolling…” »

Paddling Resume’

Posted on By Tom No Comments on Paddling Resume’
Geocaching and Maps, Paddling, Uncategorized

Tom Kayak OOB

In case you haven’t noticed, I love to paddle. My preference is for moving water, but a nice flatwater paddle on a river or lake can be fun, too. I started this obsession when I was about fifteen, running the Enoree River with my high school buddies in an army surplus inflatable raft that had more patches than original material. College years were more adventurous trips in large whitewater rafts, or lazy floats in inner tubes. When I started teaching I could afford a cheap Coleman canoe (which I still have), and now I paddle a Perception Torrent sit-in-top whitewater kayak. This being said, I have now put together my paddling resume’ in Google Earth KMZ format.

Read More “Paddling Resume’” »