I Can't Take Your Call Right Now ...

Mason Neck is one of my perennial favorites for kayaking. It's a low stress launch - easy carry, plenty of parking, real bathrooms. The scenery is beautiful and varied, and there's always wildlife - eagles in particular. I launched there Saturday with the intention of doing a ten mile paddle out into the river.

There was no disappointment when it came to bird life - ospreys, herons, and probably half a dozen eagles. I got to watch a pair of eagles arguing with an osprey. Good stuff overall.

After a bit of paddling I decided to take a break. I paddled up to the beach and pulled out my phone to see how far I had gone (I was running Strava). Well, at 4.1 miles I was short of my five mile target. I noticed that I had a new voice mail from an area code I didn't recognize - ahh, it was a call back from a kayaking outfitter in Maine I had called about renting during my upcoming trip.

"Hey, this is Dan at Duck Trap Kayak ... let me know how many days you need and do you need a real sea kayak, y'know, a longer boat where you sit in it and don't see your legs, or do you need a recreational kayak, the shorter, wider boats with the bigger opening where when you're sitting in it you can see your legs?" It makes sense for the guy to assume that the random customer doesn't know the difference between a sea kayak and a rec boat, but it was funny hearing this message as I was sitting in my kayak in the middle of a paddle.

Taking a Break

Anyway, not much else to report. I decided to turn back since it was getting quite hot. I swung a little wider out into the river on the way back and stopped to practice a few rolls near some anchored power boaters - two rolls successful, then I blew the third one! - and so my total was about 8.7 miles. Not bad for a hot summer day.

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An Urban Boychick Takes on the Outdoors

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