Mendo Madness: Van Damme

Saturday, September 26. This is our last full day in Mendocino, and many people hoping to get on the water at Van Damme Beach. I managed to join a group of six paddlers. There were several pods of paddlers, totaling about 30 club members launching from the beach. The seven of us were on the water about 9:45. We explored the north end of the inlet, poking around the rocks and going through some tunnels.

The we paddled across the inlet, staying clear of the breaking waves on the rocks. One wave nearly caught me by surprise. I looked to my right and saw a breaking wave coming my way. I used my paddle to brace on the wave and was surprised to say upright. We paddled to the Disney pour over. I decided to give it a try. Our group leader, Mark, suggested I follow him so he could demonstrate. His timing was off and he went over sideways, managing to keep his boat upright. My timing was off a bit too, although I managed to ride a wave over, before turning into a submarine and going for a swim.

After our Disney adventures we found a protected beach where we could land safely and have lunch.

After lunch we continued paddling south, through a pair of tunnels called The Nostrils. From there we headed out around Stillwell Point into some open water feeling the full effect of the six foot swell.

Then it was time to return and we followed the coast keeping an eye out for rocks and boomers. We were back on the beach at 2:45 having logged 5.6 miles. I had a blast being tossed about in the dynamic water and experiencing the power of the wind and waves. More photos are available in an online gallery.

Mendo Madness: Albion River

September 25. With conditions on the ocean predicted to be a bit spicy, we opted to paddle on the Albion River. Fourteen of us were on the boat ramp for a briefing and safety check before we slipped into the water at 8:45.

We paddled up the river about four and a half miles. The river narrows at this point and with brush and debris blocking further progress we turned around looking for a spot to land for lunch. We managed to find a grassy spot on the bank where we could haul our boats out of the water.

After lunch we continued back down the river. We rafted up in the lagoon, which is a couple of miles upstream near one of the houseboats. One of our club members wanted to capture some drone footage of kayakers, so we accommodated him. We followed directions relayed by radio.

We stopping to explore some of the houseboats. Tom managed to get his kayak inside to octagon house, which is pretty dilapidated. We were back at the boat ramp at 1:45 having logged 9.5 miles after a very pretty paddle. You can view more photos in an online gallery.

Mendo Madness: Big River

Wednesday. September 25. Today we paddled on the Big River. Quite a contrast to paddling on the coast. Flat calm water. Peaceful and Quiet. The Redwood Trees stand majestically on the steep banks of the river. We were a little slow getting on the water. A pod of about eight kayakers were launching as we were getting ready. Three of us were on the water at 9:40.

We paddled up the river until noon keeping an eye out for a good landing spot for lunch. The steep banks of the river do not provide many spots to land. At noon we found a shallow sandy spot among a few fallen logs and ate lunch sitting on a log with our feet dangling in the water. We didn’t dally long. With the water level dropping with the ebbing current, we were back on the water at 12:20 after a 20 minute lunch stop.

We had crossed over a fallen log going up the river and on the return trip the water level had dropped enough that getting our boats through the tangle of branches and over the log proved to be a bit of a challenge.

We saw quite a few cormorants and a couple of water ouzels on the river. Paddling back down the river with the current pushing us made for a fast trip. We were back at our launch site at 2:25 having logged 11.6 miles. More photos are available in an online gallery.

Mendo Madness: Russian Gulch

On the afternoon of September 21 we parked our camper at site 67 in the Van Damme State Park campground. We were here for the annual kayaking club (BASK, Bay Area Sea Kayakers) event we refer to as Mendo Madness; a week of kayaking and comradery. Over the week we had over 70 people from the club come and go.

Our first paddle was Tuesday, September 22. We joined a pod of kayakers launching from Russian Gulch, a popular place to launch, particularly when conditions on the coast get a bit spicy. Eight of us were on the water shortly after 9:00 launching under overcast skies.

With the conditions what they were, we managed to paddle around some of the rocks to the north, and through the big arch.

After exploring to the north as far as the conditions would allow, we headed to the south end of the inlet where we practiced a few rescues.

We were back on the beach at 11:30 under sunny skies, You can see a map that shows our track. It’s quite exciting being in dynamic water, with the surge of the waves washing this way and that.

You can view more photos in an online gallery.

Paddling on the Oakland Estuary

The email invitation suggested that this was a “fitness paddle.” I wasn’t sure I was up for a strenuous ten mile paddle, but stretching my endurance a bit and paddling with good friends sounded inviting. Given the prediction of high winds on the Bay, the plan was to explore parts of the Oakland Estuary which would be protected from the predicted wind. Five of us launched from the MKL Junior Shoreline Boat Ramp. We were on the water at 10:00 on calm water, paddling north towards the Oakland Estuary. As we crossed San Leandro Bay We marveled at the pelicans and geese flying overhead.

We paddled under the High Street Bridge, the Fruitvale Bridge and the Park Street Bridge landing at the Grand Street Boat ramp where we stopped for a quick lunch. After lunch we continued paddling north for about another mile or so before turning around.

On the return trip we stopped to paddle through the rigging of a sunken square rigged barkentine, the The SV Kaisei, which sank on May 25, 2025. Ironically, the ships last mission was to study and clean up plastic pollution in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Now it sits on the bottom, a potential source of pollution. Protective booms are in place to contain any leak. We also stopped to watch the Park Street Bridge open to allow a boat to pass.

Finding a cooler on a dock that was offering free beer was tempting, but a beer would have ended my fitness paddle, so I continued on. Crossing back across San Leandro Bay we did have a bit of wind for a few minutes, perhaps 12 knots of wind. We were back on our launch site at 2:30 having logged 10.5 miles. I’m happy to say that I ended the paddle with more reserve energy than I expected, but that said, I did feel like I got some exercise. More photos are available in an online gallery.

Exploring Richardson Bay by Kayak

The plan was to launch from Dunphy Park in Sausalito and paddle around the Tiburon Peninsula. I like to arrive at the launch site an hour before the launch time to give me plenty of time to get my gear together. Traffic was much heavier than I had anticipated across the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge, so it was close to 9:30 when I arrived for a 10:00 launch. I was not the only one struggling with traffic though. I was the first to arrive.

The wind was a bit stronger than predicted, but committed to paddling, I took my boat off the car and put it on the wheels to roll it down the dock. Just then a strong gust of wind hit. It took my boat and wheels for a ride and it was then that we decided an alternative plan was in order. The prospect of a return paddle against a strong wind was a risk. We opted to paddle up Richardson Bay.

We used the non-motorized boat slips to launch. There has been some discussion in our club (BASK) as to the suitability of this launch. I’ve launched here several times without issue. Three of us were on the water at 10:20. We passed by a number of houseboats, and had an audience of harbor seals watching us from a dock. We continued up the bay passing under the the highway 101 bridge.

We made it as far as the pier at Bayfront Field. At that point we consulted the tide tables and decided to head back to avoid getting stranded with the ebbing tide. Richardson Bay is quite shallow. We found a little beach in the cove just west of the Highway 101 bridge where we stopped for lunch.

Note to self: don’t park your boat under trees with birds. My boat looked like it had been spattered with white paint when we got back on the water.

From our lunch spot it was a leisurely paddle back to our launch site.

We were back on the dock 1:30 having logged 7 3/4 miles. More photos are available in an online gallery.

Exploring Onancock Creek: A Kayaking Adventure

While visiting the Eastern Shore of Virginia we had signed up to paddle the Barrier Islands. A few days ahead of our scheduled tour the outfitter, Burnham Guides Paddling Adventures, advised us that high winds might be an issue and they suggested an alternate tour, paddling on Onancock Creek where we would have some protection from the wind.

With that in mind we made our way to the outfitters facility in Onancock.

Onancock Creek is a tidal estuary that drains into Chesapeake Bay. As we left the dock we passed a tug boat and a barge loaded with gravel. It seems that with most of the eastern shore being sand, there is a need for aggregate. Our guide, Bill, explained how the the business of importing gravel was an important part of the local economy.

Our track led us along the shore and up into a tributary, passing a number of houses and estates. Many of the homeowners have docks and we noted that it was common to store boats on boat lifts with the boats out of the water.

When we reached a little beach near Bailey Point we landed and Bill broke out lunch. We ate lunch and explored the local beach and marsh with periwinkle snails and fiddler crabs scurrying away as we approached. Over the course of the day we saw a number of birds including eagles, osprey, and a number of other shore birds.

On the return trip we passed some oyster castles, structures made from interlocking concrete blocks. These structures are designed to provide a substrate for oysters and to protect the shoreline from erosion. We did have a bit of wind on our return trip so we where happy to be on protected waters rather than out on the outer banks. We logged seven miles.

More photos are available in an online gallery.

Discover Lake Superior’s Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

Last year when we were paddling in the Apostle Islands we learned about Pictured Rocks. This year, since we had a reason to once again explore Lake Superior, we headed to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. We booked the Ultimate Kayak Tour with Pictured Rocks Kayaking out of Munising, MI. The tour starts with a 45 minute boat ride to a location that gives you easy access to the cliffs. These boats are especially equipped with kayak slips. To launch, the crew slide a kayak into the slips. You simply step into the kayak, grab a paddle and push off into the water. Quite a novel arrangement.

Many of the cliffs are streaked with color, the result of minerals leaching out of the rocks: yellow, brown, read, orange, ochre, and blue. There are also a few caves and arches to explore and the color of the water is astounding.

We were in a pod with several boats and our guide led us along the shore pointing out features and giving us some of the history of the area.

After exploring about five miles of the shore we returned to the mother boat for the ride back to Munising. I’ve included a map that shows the track of our trip, including the the portion we explored by kayak. More photos are available in an online gallery.

Paddling the River of Presidents

In 1928, President Calvin Coolidge set up a summer residence, known as the “Summer White House,” at the Cedar Island Lodge, on the Bois Brule River. The river, famous for trout fishing attracted other presidents as well. Those included Ulysses S. Grant, Grover Cleveland, Herbert Hoover and Dwight D. Eisenhower.

We were there to celebrate a family reunion, staying at a place called the Lake Superior Barn, not far away. On May 27 we engaged a local outfitter to get us on the river. Eleven of us launched from the Stone Bridge Canoe Landing and paddled down the river.

We had a gorgeous paddle winding through the woods and watching for wildlife. We saw a few bald eagles, some deer and a bob cat. For lunch we did not find a suitable spot to haul out so we simply ate lunch in our boats.

Continuing down the river we passed the Cedar Island Lodge and a few other stately properties. We encountered a few class 2 rapids which added to the excitement. Everybody managed to stay in their boats.

We hauled out at the Winneboujou Canoe Landing having logged nine miles. More photos are available in an online gallery.

Exploring Baja: A 21-Day Camping Adventure

Our Baja trip began in March 13 when we hopped in the camper and started our drive to Loreto. The highlights of the trip included spending a couple of days in the desert to photograph the cirios and cactus and a six day kayaking trip out of Loreto. Those events are covered in separate blog posts. For this post I’m going to describe some of the other highlights of the trip.

We spent our first night at Kern River Campground just east of
Bakersfield. The highlight here was breakfast. We fired up the Dutch oven and cooked up a mushroom and brie breakfast strata, one of our favorite camping meals. Needless to say, the leftovers provided us with breakfast on several days.

From the Kern River we moved on to Anza Borrego Desert State Park where we spent two nights in the Tamarisk Grove campground. Most of the spring wildflowers were gone, but we did find a few cactus in bloom.

From Anza Borrego we headed south and crossed the border at Tecate, an easy border crossing, although we did have to walk across the street to the bank to pay for our tourist cards (Forma Migratoria Multiple, FMM) since the credit card reader at the immigration office was out of order.

We passed through Guadalupe about noon so we stopped for lunch at Tacos del Valle for some delicious tacos, our first meal in Baja.

We reached Fidel’s Palapas, just south of San Quintin, about 5:00 PM, our intended stop for the night. Fidel promptly appeared to collect 300 pesos. Fidel’s has hot showers, running water and electrical hookups, although we didn’t make use of the water or electrical.

From Fidel’s we headed to Cataviña where we spent two nights in the Cactus Wonderland. From there it was on to San Ignacio where we spent one night at Paraiso Misional, our favorite place to camp in San Ignacio. It’s a lovely spot in the shade of palm trees, with hot showers. Then on to Loreto where we had two days to explore the town, having some fabulous food, dining with live music at Baja Haay and enjoying the vibe of the town.

From Loreto we embarked on our six day kayaking tour exploring some of the islands, poking along the coast, paddling, snorkeling and doing a bit of hiking. Before leaving Loreto on our return trip we made a stop at a water vendor to fill our water tank.

We were happy to find that one of our favorite restaurants, Nomadico’s, was open. We stopped for a delicious lunch. Joann had a yellowtail tostada and I had a scallop tostada with a pineapple coconut smoothie. On our last night in Baja we camped at Guadalupe RV park and took advantage of the hot showers. We crossed the boarder again at Tecate, camping at Sycamore Flat Campground in the Angeles National Forest. From there we checked out the Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve. The flower display was past its prime, but we did find a few clusters of flowers. Then it was on to Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park before making the final leg home. We were back home on the afternoon of April 2 having logged 2820 miles over the course of our 21 days.

More photos are available in an online gallery.