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.
