On Monday January 21 I joined my fellow BASK members for a paddle on Elkhorn Slough. Elkhorn Slough is one of the largest tidal estuaries in California. It’s about 90 miles south of San Francisco and a popular spot for hiking, bird watching and kayaking. Tidal marshes make up a significant part of the slough, and more often than not the marshes are off limits because they are too shallow to paddle or exposed. We had an extremely high tide on Monday, with a high of 6.4 feet at 9:44 AM. We launched from Moss Landing North Harbor. Just off the launch site we saw dozens of Sea Otters. We then paddled south and under the highway bridge, past harbor seals and more sea otters. With the incoming current we had a bit of a boost paddling up the slough. We took a detour up a creek that’s normally not accessible. Paddling under oak trees and through fences, looking out for the occasional barbed wire. We saw plenty of Harbor seals as well as sea otters, and towards out lunch site at Kirby Park we saw Osprey. We paddled 10 miles over the course of the day. You can view a track of our route here
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