Yolo boards

Thanksgiving weekend in Georgia I got to try a Yolo board. "You only live once" = YOLO. It's basically a stand up kayak, but you paddle it more like a canoe. Seems about as steady as a kayak - a little iffy for a beginner, but not bad at all once you get the feel for it. Might get a litte trickier in the wind or current, but probably would be fun in a river. I guess this is getting to be a big thing in the ocean too - I saw boards like these at Ocean Isle in NC last summer.

Tempting... to see over the swamp grass in the bayou!

November Evening

Like sunsets? Double the view by adding in the reflection on the water.

Jazz and Molly watch from the dock as we head out. Mom and I went over to Bayou Trois to see what we could see, but the gators were not showing themselves today.

Improvisation

We all get so caught up in getting the best equipment we can get for the given activity. Want a better kayak, better bike, better vehicle, mixer, vacuum cleaner, musical instrument, computer, camera, clothes, sunglasses, electronic devices. I've always admired people that can take the different pleasure from another angle. Putting a higher priority on tradition, or beauty, or frugality than going for the best as far as function. I do it occasionally, but more often I want what I can get - onward and upward. Not that I’m purely materialistic. My stuff has a purpose. I’m not into showy stuff like jewelry or fancy clothes, expensive cars or furnishings. But I like my toys.

So this is a lesson in improvisation, as my new friend David says, "An old windsurf board pulled from a trash heap, a paddle made from a 2x4 and two scraps of plywood and a $10 seat from Walmart. Look Ma, no duct tape." It paddles quite well.

On Sunday we paddled the 7.5 miles or so to the gulf and back. Beautiful day. Sunny and the water was very calm. Had a nice trip and picked up a few edible passengers who were unable to run away, brought them back and fried them for lunch after a little laboring... what I call “part 2 of the upper body workout.”

David’s even more interesting story was the previous weekend, paddling this thing to Horn Island and back in one day. And on that trip he actually used the 2x4/plywood paddle shown in the bottom picture. Walter Anderson would be proud!

So don’t let a lack of the “right equipment” hold you back from life’s experiences. Sometimes it’s a lot more fun and rewarding to improvise.