Kayak Adventure

Did you ever really want to try something but didn’t want to do it alone? Ask a friend! That’s what I did with my friend Mary and she was bold enough to say yes! We had so much fun, we have a few more friends wanting to join in.

I have been wanting to get a kayak and paddle away into the sunset, explore, and take a step back into the past. Last winter I ordered my kayak and when it was delivered, there was plenty of snow and ice on the ground. But, I had a dream. Mary waited until this spring and picked hers out locally. Who knew there were so many different types of kayaks for all kinds of purposes; blow up kayaks, folding kayaks, racing kayaks, youth kayaks, fishing kayaks, open kayaks and closed kayaks.

I chose an open kayak because of my fear of drowning and Mary chose a closed kayak because she doesn’t like to get wet. Both work just fine. You simply need to do your research and pick what’s right for you.

Next, we both needed to get life preservers. That was the easy part. We just needed to get a preserver that kept us afloat and didn’t interfere with our arm movements… no chaffing.

For the first trip, I picked the spot; the Oconomowoc River which runs along the Ice Age Trail north to Loew Lake. It is a protected waterway that only allows rowing vessels. It is a beautiful step into the past. We paddled about 5 miles from our landing to Loew Lake and then back 5 miles against the wind. That was tough. I didn’t take as many pictures as I would like but the wind was pretty heavy and I didn’t want to scare some of the wildlife we saw. I feel so fortunate to have seen a pair of nesting Sandhill Cranes, an eagle, turtles, muskrat and a variety of fish along the way. Can you find the snail in one of the pictures below?

We worked pretty hard to get to Loew Lake and back. I think next time, we may go half the distance and have a kayak picnic and just float and enjoy the view, eat some cheese and crackers and drink glass of wine.