Category: Paddling

This was a very impressive trip I took with Troy on the Mississippi river just below one of the locks at Hastings.  On one side was the railroad where we watched a train go by and on the other side of the river we saw a tugboat bring six barges into the lock to go upstream.  To see them from the water surface makes them a heck of a lot bigger than what they seem like from the river’s banks.

We kept well clear of the barges – they have such a shallow draft that they are notorious for having the water suck you right under them with the flow of the river.

Kayak Trip Eight
August 23rd, 2003 – Lake Hariet & Chain of Lakes above Lake Calhoun

Lake Hariet was the first on our list and we hoped to do all the lakes from there, but there was no outlet from the lake and we had to pack up the kayak and drive to Lake Calhoun.

From there we could reach a number of lakes all linked by channels or streams.

The day turned out very good and I will specially remember our simultanious thought at the end of the trip that we would have loved to indulge in real South African “slap chips” – french fries made with vinegar and salt and wrapped in white and newspaper! And the two flies that bugged me on Lake Calhoun and kept biting me on the back (yes – we have few flies in Minnesota, but those we have, pack a visious bite!).

When we return home after a day like this, it is nice to see that kayak on the car roof – kind of a symbol of a activity that invigorated you and the fact that all is well and you are returning to your family.

Now our sights are set on the half-marathon we hope to do in two weeks time – down the Minnesota river – into the Missisippi river!

Kayak Trip Seven
August 9, 2003 – Lake Nokomis and Lake Minnetonka

Unlike many other places in the world, where we are here in the midwest of America, a lot of the original place names remain. Original, as in American Indian names. The state is named after the Minnesota river, so named by the Dakotah people – “minne” means water and “sota” means ‘that refelcts the sky’. So Minnesota is the water that reflects the sky.

I am sure they never dreamed how true this would one day be of this state when you fly in on an aeroplane – the almost 15,000 lakes all reflect the sunlight and sky.

Another Dakotah word, “tonka”, means great. You all know Tonak Toys! Great toys – made right here in Minnesota in the city of Minnetonka (Great Water) – have a look at their website at http://www.hasbropreschool.com/tonka/

Well, that is where Troy and myself (or I and Troy or Troy and I or myself and Troy – whatever grabs your fancy) went kayaking today. We went out very early and first hugged the shore of Lake Nokomis – a bit disappointing – the water was smelly and there was nothing really to the lake – I’ll put a few photos here when I get them from Troy.

We were done with that at nine, and so we decided to go to Lake Minnetonka and explore there.

We spent three and a half hours on this huge lake and only saw a tiny bit of it – it is Minnesota’s tenth largest lake – worthy of its name.

At last the kayak is back on the roof of the car and we are ready to head back home – with tired arms and a nice kayak sunburn: face and neck, shoulders and arms and then the part of your legs that are open to the sun!

Kayak Trip Six
August 3rd, 2003 – Lake Elmo

This lake is adjacent to “Stinky Lake”, Eagle Point Lake, where we did Trip One!

This time we had a deadline, the mommies at home wanted to get to bed early and we did not have a lot of time for rowing. We put to water around 7.00pm and made the best of it – less leisure and more workout was the theme of the evening. But the beauty was immediately there as you can see on this photo Troy took of some seagulls on a diving platform. He took the photo directly into the sun, but the digital camaras handle that without a problem! (OK, I know, the seagulls flew away just before he could take the photo, so you will have to imagine them on the platform!)

We do not just row for the exercise, but also to explore and see a part of the planet relatively few people people see – at least from the angle we view it. On one edge of Lake Elmo, we found this huge expanse of water lilies.

Most of the blooms had just reached above the water and was starting to open. We did not want to do any damage, but it was in any case not easy to row in these conditions. We do, however try to go into as many unique spots as we can find.

The difference between kayaking and canoeing is the splashing in a kayak – the canoeists seem to sit high and dry – like being in a sedan. We think of Kayaks as being the motorcycles of watersports – you are right there in the thick of things, getting wet, being fast and zipping in and out.

At the end of this trip we met people who were taking a large motorboat out of the water and they asked if we had tipped over. We said no, but it was only when we got home and realised the fronts of our shirts were wet through, that we knew where their questions came from.

Photography is tricky – Troy has a waterproof case for his camara, and so photo time means no paddling and splashing. And for one of us to appear in the photo, you stretch out a long arm with the camara at the end to put some distance between the camara and the person.

Sunday evening trips mean that we are still out on the water when the sun starts to go down after eight in the evening – tranquillety prevails.

All these wonderful photos of our trips are courtesy of Troy – you can see his own journal at http://www.dalldorf.com/adventures/ (Just do a search on ‘kayak’!)

Fourth Kayak Trip
July 20th, 2003 – Lake Alimagnet

In Burnsville, not far from us, I saw this stack of canoes, chained to a rack, next to the road. Upon investigation, I found there was a lake hidden just behind the line of trees. This is where I did my fourth kayak trip with Troy in his 16′ long double Old Town Loon kayak.

Photos to follow soon!

Kayak trip Three
July 13, 2003 – Lake Phalen

This lake is north of downtown Saint Paul where many Asian people spend their weekends next to the water. I did not realise that this lake was connected to another, but we soon found our way up a river to the next lake to the north.

The one drawback of these earlier trips, is the lack of a camara – photographs – Troy did not yet have a watertight case to transport his camara in.

You cannot click on these maps to enlarge them, but you can click on the satelite photograph at the bottom of this entry to see it in more detail, like most other photos on this journal.

Kayak trip One
6/22/2003 – Eagle Point Lake

It had been a busy week at work for us both, plus father’s day and both our birthdays, so by the end of Sunday, June the 22, we were both full of stress and I think the two wives just thought it better if they sent us off on our own with Troy’s new 16′ kayak.

For that trip Troy still only had one paddle, so we took turns to row, but it was soon clear that we were having a hard time steering the kayak. Because I am quite a heavy weight, we had decided that I should have the middle seat of the kayak with Troy behind me – to balance things out.

Thinking that trading places would make it easier to steer we rowed to the nearest side of the lake, but where we thought there would be grass on a beach, there were just reeds and dead, stinking, reeking algi! I threatened to kill Troy if he caused me in any way to touch that soup remember it is only nine inches below the kayak gunwale but I think he also needed little persuasion and we immediately headed back to the pier where we started. There we changed seats and the difference was remarkable.

The lake, for us, had a new name: Stinky Lake a bit unfair, for it was only on one shore that we saw the thick soup.

For the first time we experienced the thrill of gliding close to a white heron or a crane as they sit near their nests in the reeds.

The water, the physical exercise, the fresh air and nature in general were all tools in God’s hand to sooth our nerves and calm us down.

After more than an hour we got out very refreshed and renewed. With the kayak back on the minivan’s roof, we stopped at Culver’s for a frozen custard treat!

Our next trip would be on June the 28th!

Troy called me up: “Are you interested in joining as at Lake Calhoun to test out kayaks and canoes?” Why not! Always a new adventure!

They had the boats lined up on the shore and after signing that you will not blame them if you drown, you simply put on a life jacket and could take one of the boats onto the lake for ‘a spin’.

Look carefully at the next photo to see why Troy and Naomi are still ‘new’ at the game! :^)

The matter was soon rectified when Troy turned his back on his wife, and they were ready to go….!

Of course there were times that there were not enough life jackets available and then the boys amused themselves in the shallow water. Water always seem just as attractive as flame.

Wilhelm and Jacques took to rowing almost like pro’s and they really enjoyed the afternoon. It was difficult to get them to come back to shore! Here is Wilhelm in one of the kayaks he took out.

Megan’s trip with her dad had to be captured on ‘film’! She also enjoyed the close proximity of the water after Troy told her to look for fishes in the water!

If you want to force two guys to co-operate (not always natural in two brothers, it seems), put them together in one canoe!

There were even canoes and kayaks that could accomodate my size and I really enjoyed the experience. The canoe was very difficult to handle in the slight breeze that was blowing – I think I sat too far back.

The kayak was much more manouvrable (or however you spell that) and felt a lot more stable as well, as if it would not capsize as easy as the canoe.

This was a day I will not easily forget – we ended the outing with very special ice-creams in the nearby Haagen-Daz shop!