Category: kayaking

Mendocino Tunnel Vision

Seven of us gathered on the beach at Russian Gulch to explore the coast north to Point Cabrillo. When paddling around rocks we wear helmets and prefer plastic boats that are more forgiving when banging into rocks. We also wear wetsuits or drysuits should we end up going for a swim. We were on the water about 9 am. After a few days of rough water, we had calm conditions, with little wind and little wave action which afforded us to opportunity to explore just about every cave and arch between Russian Gulch Beach and Point Cabrillo.

We did have one person go for a swim early in our paddle. A good opportunity to practice a T-rescue.

We paddled north along the coast noodling into every feature we could find. I had a GoPro camera attached to my helmet and was able to record much of our cave exploration.

We did find a couple of channels that offered some dynamic water. A few members of our pod opted to avoid the surging and sloshing water by paddling outside the rocks where conditions were calmer. Those of us that paddled inside the rocks had some fun bracing and practicing boat control.

We arrived at Point Cabrillo just before noon and found a very protected beach on which to land for lunch. After lunch we noodled our way back down the coast, once again taking advantage of the conditions to paddle in and out of the many caves and tunnels.

We were back on the beach a little after 3 pm, having logged 7.7 miles. You can see the track of our paddle on the map. An excellent day on the water with some good paddling friends.

Big River Paddle

The Big River offers a spectacular opportunity to for a calm water paddle in Mendocino. This is a favorite paddle for a number of our BASK club members, and an option when conditions on the coast are a bit challenging.

Today we had quite a group of paddlers launching from the beach. Both well seasoned and experienced paddlers and a few people that are new to kayaking. Paddling here feels like being in a canyon between the towering redwoods and fir trees lining the river.

We split into two pods, with the faster paddlers in the lead and the slower paddlers poking along behind. This worked until we happened on a family of otters that were feeding along the bank and seemed to be oblivious to us. We watched for quite awhile before continuing on up the river. Trying to photograph the otters was a challenge. I did not capture anything of interest.

Along about noon we found a spot where we could land for lunch. There are not many places up the river where one can land easily. After lunch we continued up the river until several paddlers decided it was time to turn back. Three of us split off from the main pod and paddled back.

It seems that a logging company had none some work maintaining logging roads and we explored a couple of culverts they had installed and poked our noses into a little waterfall that was flowing down the bank. We logged a little over nine miles by my recollection. My phone battery died before we got back to our landing and hence I lost part of my GPS track.

Albion River Paddle

This was our first full day in Mendocino, having arrived the evening before to join our fellow BASK members (Bay Area Sea Kayakers) at Van Damne State Park. The fog was just starting to clear as we launched from the boat ramp at the Albion River Campground. This is a private campground and there is a $10 fee to launch a kayak here.

There were 11 of us and we were on the water at 10:20. What makes this paddle fun is following the meandering river through the coastal forest and passing houseboats that have untold stories to tell. There are also plenty of pilings and remnants from logging days. Along about noon it was time to find a landing spot for lunch.

Three paddlers opted to land early at a convenient spot on the bank. The rest of us paddled on until we found the waterway blocked by a downed tree. With no convenient spot to land we paddled back down the river to join the fellow paddlers that had stopped earlier.

We were back at our launch site at 3 pm having logged nine miles. You can see more photos in an online gallery. You can also read about previous adventures here.

Rock Creek

Our granddaughter’s fifth birthday was reason enough to join family at Rock Creek. So here we are at the East Fork Campground on Rock Creek in the Eastern Sierra, our granddaughter, her parents and two sets of grandparents.

We spent two nights here at 9000 feet of elevation, a cool retreat from the heat of the Owens Valley. For breakfast we fired up the Dutch Oven and cooked up a mushroom and brie breakfast strata, one of our favorite breakfast recipes. The hot coals provided heat to warm hands on the chilly morning. With two days to explore, our adventures included hiking around part of Rock Creek Lake and also paddling on the lake.

The trails were linked with wildflowers including Sulphur buckwheat, paintbrush, Lupine, and penstemon and a host of other flowers.

Between us we had three boats, two canoes and one kayak. We even managed to get our dog Carson into a canoe and were pleased to discover that he was a mellow pooch in the boat.

It’s such a lovely experience to paddle a boat on a quiet High Sierra Lake. It’s not a big lake. I logged 1.4 miles paddling around the perimeter. A peaceful and relaxing paddle. At one point we poked our boats up into the creek that feeds the lake and got a sense of white-water paddling. We were here mid-week arriving on Wednesday and leaving on Friday and we were surprised at how many people were here. This is a popular place for fishing, hiking and other outdoor activities. I would imagine the weekend would find the campgrounds full and parking for fishing and hiking scarce.

Ice Cream Paddle

The Lopez Island BASK (Bay Area Sea Kayakers) trip is a biennial event, with the exception of a break during the Covid pandemic. We spent a week camping at Spencer Spit Campground and over the course of the week we did a number of day paddles. One of the traditions is to paddle over to Blakely Island for ice cream. So today is our ice cream paddle. There were 11 of us on the beach at Spencer Spit ready to launch at 9 am. We had clear skies and no wind, a marvelous start for the day. We paddled out to Frost Island and then set a course for Bald Bluff with the intention of minimizing our time crossing the ferry route.

We kept a keen eye out for ferry traffic as well as other boating traffic as we made our crossing. Once we were across, we paddled just far enough offshore to stay out of any eddies and to take advantage of the current.

We landed on the beach at the Blakely Marina at 10:30, too early for lunch but not too early for ice cream.

We took our time eating ice cream and lunch and waiting for the current to change so that we could enjoy an easy paddle back. You can see the 11 of us in the photo below. Once we were back in the boats we poked our noses out into Peavine Pass, where the current was running strong, and made a quick turn to enter the “express” lane for a fast ride. On the return trip we held up for ferry traffic to pass with ferries going both directions.

We were back on the beach at Spencer Point a little after 2 pm. We logged 9.4 miles on the day’s paddle. An excellent outing with a fun group of friends.

Lopez Island: Makaye

This is day four for us on our Lopez Island adventure. Today we met with a few of our fellow kayaking club members (BASK, Bay Area Sea Kayakers) at the Makaye Harbor Boat ramp for a paddle around the southern points of the island.

From the boat ramp we headed south and around Iceberg Point, noodling along the coast, paddling through kelp beds and poking into caves. We conintued to noodle along the coast until we got to Blackie Brady County Park.

There we landed and broke out our lunches. After lunch we were back on the water retracing our route back to our launch site.

Over the course of the day, we logged 11.6 miles, on calm water with very little wind. It was a grand experience paddling along the rugged coast where one can imagine what the currents and water conditions might be like in less favorable conditions. We even saw a Bald Eagle sitting on a rock close to where we were paddling. Unfortunately, I wasn’t fast enough with my camera to capture the magnificent bird.

Rescue Practice

So here’s the scenario. You’re out paddling your kayak along with some of your buddies and one of your paddling buddies ends up unconscious floating face down in the water. And this happens under the Golden Gate Bridge in some lumpy water. What do you do?

This is one of the scenarios we acted out with members of our kayaking club, Bay Area Sea Kayakers (BASK) recently. We gathered in the morning at Horseshoe Bay, on the North side of the Golden Gate Bridge. We broke into two groups, those that wanted to practice basic rescue skills and those that wanted something more challenging including incident management.

I joined the more advanced group. We launched our boats and headed out to the Golden Gate Bridge. It was just off of Lime Point where we had our first execution of a T-rescue. With practice this is an efficient and quick way to get someone back in a boat. After the mornings practice sessions, we landed at Kirby Cove for lunch. As you can see it was a gorgeous day to be on the water.

After lunch we were back on the water. This is where we had a more complicated scenario. Just what do you do when you have an unconscious kayaker in the water? Someone needs to go in the water to assist the person, get them face up, and perhaps provide rescue breathing. Someone else needs to get on the radio to call for help. In our practice, we did get the person back in the kayak and upright, with some cooperation from our “unconscious” victim. The kayak was now full of water and unstable, so two kayakers came alongside to stabilize the boat and the paddler. Two other kayakers used an inline two to get the swamped boat and victim to safety. We were now surfing breaking waves with white caps. I can’t say our “victim” would have survived if this was a real situation, but we all agreed that practicing this scenario gave us a better understanding of what we would do in a real situation. And then messing about in boats with some good friends and well accomplished paddlers is always fun.

Out the Gate

10 of us, members of BASK (Bay Area Sea Kayakers), met at the boat ramp at Horseshoe Bay near the north end of the Golden Gate Bridge. The plan was to paddle out under the Golden Gate Bridge, along the shore and then to cross over to the south side for lunch at China Beach. Our adventure started with a safety talk where we reviewed our plan and checked our radios. We were on the water at 11 AM. There was a tongue of fog lingering under the bridge, but that just added to the sense of adventure.

As we passed Lime Point and headed under the bridge a swirl of water caught me and tried to spin me around, but I had been watching the water and corrected my course. The active water just adds to the fun. Then it was out along the shore towards Point Diablo.

Before crossing to the south side one of our members contacted Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) to make sure we would be clear of any shipping traffic. With no anticipated ship traffic, we gathered in a tight pod to cross the shipping channel. As we entered the more exposed water, we started to feel the swell moving us up and down. There was enough wave action to so that boats on the opposite side of a wave would disappear out of sight, and the waves seemed to be a bit steep, perhaps due to the wind and the current coming from opposing directions.

The current was apparently taking us further out the gate then we had planned, and we had a couple of paddlers experience some sea sickness. One has to temper the current predictions with the fact that this year there is a tremendous amount water coming down the river into San Francisco Bay. This accentuates the ebb. We put two boats on tow lines to move things along. It was a workout making way to China Beach. It was 2 PM when we landed on the beach for lunch.

After a quick lunch we were back on the water heading for the south tower of the bridge. We gathered up in the calm water of an eddy behind the tower. There we contacted VTS again and learned that a container ship was approaching the bridge. We held up for the ship to pass. Then we put our paddles in the water to get across the shipping channel. As the ship passed, we were met with the wake, a steep wave. Punching through the wake felt like punching through surf. Having crossed the bay again we headed for our launch site. Once we were back on the beach, we all agreed that it was an epic adventure. We logged 12.5 miles. More photos are available in an online gallery.

Bahía Concepción

Today we arrived at Playa Santipac. At the gate we paid 200 pesos for one night thinking we would move on the next day, but we ended up spending two nights. The campground was fairly busy, but we did find a suitable site with a palapa about 1/2 mile down the beach.

Playa Santipac is a popular spot for big rigs but also suitable for smaller rigs and tents. We had fun visiting with fellow campers that were walking along the beach, many of them from Canada and other northern locations that come down to Baja for several weeks or more. One of the joys of traveling is hearing people’s stories. Everybody on the road seems to be quite friendly and happy to share information.

There is no running water at the campsites, but vendors will drive along the beach in the morning and provide you with a blue barrel with as much water as you wish for a small fee. There are also vendors selling fresh fish, and a variety of other things. We bought water to use for washing since we wanted to conserve the water we had on board for drinking and cooking. We also bought some fresh halibut which served us for a couple of dinners as well as a hammock and some carrot cake.

We did manage to get our boats on the water, paddling out from the beach and around several islands. In one of the photos, you can see Joann in the little wooden boat with a line of RVs on the beach in the background. The beach at our campsite was quite shallow at low tide, so we ended up dragging the boats until we had enough water to paddle. If I had been paying attention, I would have given priority to a campsite further west where the beach wasn’t quite so shallow.

After a few days of dry camping it was nice to have a shower, even if it was just pouring a bucket of cold water over my head. For lunch we walked down the beach to Amando’s, a rustic shack on the beach with delicious seafood tacos.

After a couple of days at Playa Santipac we moved on the Playa Coyote. This is a popular spot. We pulled into the campground at 10:30 in the morning and found the last open site. We were surprised to discover that the campers next to us were kayakers, fellow members of BASK (Bay Area Sea Kayakers). We pooled our resources for dinner. I fired up the Dutch Oven and baked up some Halibut. In the morning we paddled together around Isle Coyote. It was a gorgeous day to be on the water and the flat calm gave us the opportunity to look below the surface. We saw many sting rays.

And talking about sting rays, I managed to step on one. Ouch! Before we launched our kayaks, I was tossing the ball for Carson and the ball went in the water. Carson wouldn’t go in the water to get it, and while the water was only six inches deep, I forgot to do the sting ray shuffle. Fortunately, I was wearing sandals and after a little first aid I was on the water paddling. I think I was quite lucky, since sting ray wounds can be very painful.

While we did have thoughts of driving further south to Loreto, Playa Coyote was such an idyllic spot we decided to spend time here rather add more miles to our trip.

More photos of Bahia Conception are available in an online gallery.

Baja Bound

Today is my birthday. Birthday number 73. We’re headed to Baja California, the three of us: my wife Joann, our dog Carson and myself. My birthday wish is to see a rainbow. So, as we are headed south on I5 near Firebaugh, there it is, a rainbow off to the east. That has to be a good omen for the start of our 23 day trip. Of course, we have to find an off ramp to get off the highway to take a photo.

We make our first overnight stop at Buena Vista Aquatic Recreational Area. Not a bad spot for an overnight given the lack of camp sites along our route. This time of year, finding a site in not a problem, but in summer this can be quite a popular spot.

The next morning, we broke camp and hit the road. We needed to stop in San Diego to renew our passports and since our appointment with the passport agency is on March 8 we discovered that we have an extra day. This gave us the opportunity check out the wildflowers at Anza Borrego. The campground at Borrego Palm Canyon was full, but we managed to boondock at Peg Leg Smith, a popular spot for boondocking, and this turned out to be quite close to some of the better flower displays.

Also enjoying the flowers was this painter Stephen Stauffer who spends his time traveling the country and painting.

From Anza Borrego it’s a two-hour drive to San Diego, where we had booked two nights at Campland on the Bay. Campland turned out to be quite a comfortable place to camp even though it is an RV park.

On the morning of March 8 it was an easy matter to break camp and head to downtown San Diego. We were at the San Diego Passport Authority well ahead of our 8:00 AM appointment, and already there was a line. With our applications submitted we drove over to Fiesta Island where we took Carson for a walk at the Fiesta Island Dog Park and then launched our kayaks for a paddle on Mission Bay. Later in the afternoon we returned to the passport agency to pick up our passports. Rather than go back to our campground for dinner we discovered the Pacific Beach Fish Shop that had excellent fresh fish. Then it was back to camp, to get an early start crossing the border.

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