10th Anniversary Blog Paddle

 

 

 

Today was a special paddle on a special day.  Mom and I did a combination Bay - Bayou - Sound - Channel paddle to experience much of what Graveline has to offer.  Not all, of course -- there is always more!  But we paddled the whole main channel of the bayou, fortunately before 7am before the holiday traffic.  Then we went out into the sound at the mouth of the bayou.  Instantly the water changes beneath the kayak when you feel the first ocean waves.  A gentle toss, today.  We went along Graveline beach to a spot where we knew we could portage across to the channel.  A good selection of birds out today, and one tiny gator spotted in the channel.  Other than that, a quiet day with a gentle breeze... the water is nice... warmer than cool, but cooler than warm. 

 



So what is special about today?  10 years ago today, I started this blog.  It became a way to chronicle my kayak adventures and share them.  I've described somewhere in these chronicles how kayaking was the first time I really learned how to follow a passion.  There have been many since, but this was the first.  Not born of responsibility, or someone else's interest -- purely mine, and I fed it.  I rode that wave of initial interest past the hard part of learning, letting the excitement pull me deeper into exploration of all it had to offer.  My family supported me in this and I've often appreciated that.  Isn't it true that we sometimes consciously or unconsciously dampen the enthusiasm of those around us when they find a new "thing"?  Don't.  It is a precious commodity.  Particularly when the interest sparks on something that can become a healthy habit, like exercise.  Nurture it!  In yourselves and those you love.  It is a great gift, and wonderful things can come from it. 

 

Kayaking is still important to me, though I don't do it as often.  It brings a really nice "combination" experience in a natural setting.  You can pay attention to the sky, the weather, the wind.  Or, focus on the land nearby; the swampgrass, the trees, the beach.  Then there's the water: currents, tides, waves, patterns, ripples, sounds.  Dangle your hands or feet in it as you go along.  That makes you think about what's IN the water... fish, gators, jellyfish, crabs, oysters, and more.  And finally, you can go inward, focusing on what is happening in your body as you paddle, easy or more energetically, or your mind, letting it wander or generating a kind of meditation-like focus, then seeing what comes up.  It's a way to allow your mind the time to bubble up what it wants to, in its own way.  Somehow out there, it's safer.  It's expansive.  It can come back with you, or it can be left out there.  Either way, you will retun to the rest of your life with a greater peace, after your time on the water. 

Here's to another 10 years!

 

August Bathwater

The water is rediculously warm this time of year. The fish can't turn on the A/C, either. I wonder if they like it? It feels good to just let you hands or feet swim around in it. I've been swimming laps at the pool lately and I'd love to get out there and swim in Graveline, but it's so muddy and shallow, not to mention full of crabs, shrimp, gar, redfish, oysters, and alligators. So yeah... maybe not.

Coming back across the bay we had a big headwind, but it died down as soon as we got back. Got a lapful of a wave! And a pretty good workout.

That's me in the bottom picture (Mom took that one). We wandered around in the swampgrass just south of the boat ramp today -- about a 4 mile paddle. Would have been a nice one to have on GPS track.

Swim training?

A pleasant surprise! I got in the boat just because I was out there, the sun was setting, and the water was calm. Why not? I was pretty tired from a 70 mile bike ride this morning. But of course it's legs that do the work on a bike, so my arms were ready to go. The surprise was that despite hardly kayaking at all lately, my arms felt loose and strong. Could it be the swimming I've been doing lately? I guess that's a lot of the same muscles. It's amazing how tight the shoulders can get when you don't use them through their range of motion... but once a week swimming lately seems to help.

Clouds blocked tonight's sunset, but there was this neat cloud top that put up a nice show.

And, a mullet jumped by, as they do... I caught him on jump #3.

Evening Peace

I'm really just posting this to see if I still remember how to blog. This paddle was this past Sunday evening with Mom, just a quick trip out to the middle of Graveline Bay to see the artistry painted on the sky for this one day. Somehow, it has gotten to be almost the end of July and I don't know how the summer has flown by so quickly. At least I know the water is there no matter what the season, and the skies are just as pretty. When I think about being out there, I feel all the wrinkles in my forehead relax, my eyes relax, my breathing become deep and soothing. It is magical, that water, and the kayak puts me right there on it.

When you are seeking peace, steer yourself to the water.

Saturday exploring

February 19, 2011

Just me and Mom... bottom picture, went up towards Shell Landing and explored a few new waterways. It was a foggy morning as it has been a lot recently. The top picture was from earlier in the day, riding bikes down to Gulf Islands National Seashore. I still would love to kayak in the fog, but have yet to catch it at a good time. Need to remember the GPS or some navigational device, though! But wouldn't it be nice to be lost in the middle of the bay, for example (not fearing boat traffic), in the quiet, blanketed by fog all around?

Testing kayaks

February 12, 2011

Another group paddle, this one inspired by a fellow paddler's interest in trying different boats to see if a sea kayak would be more suited to his type of paddling than the ocean kayak (sit-on-top) that he has been in.

A 7 mile paddle to the gulf and back. This spit of sand is Graveline Beach at the mouth of the bayou. Nice weather for February...

Group paddle

Borrowing from the group bike ride routine, I set up a group paddle and a bunch of folks came out to enjoy the sunny (but cold) day. We had a good time and got in a 6 mile paddle or so. A great variety of boats -- one of them a hand made kayak on its maiden voyage -- the one that looks white in the middle of this picture. A fun day!

Holiday paddle

Free day off courtesy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Thank you for your contribution to society, and thank you for this day!

A very nice paddle west to the causeway. For the first time, I went to one of the little islands. What creatures live here? How many people have been here? It's such a tiny island, but it could be a home.

Nutria were everywhere today. Ugly little beasts. I wish the gators were more active, to thin them out! Quit destroying our marsh grass.

Lucy's Revenge kickoff paddle

July 10, 2010

It was an honor to be a part of Keith and Sharon's kickoff of the Lucy's Revenge Paddling Project. The paddle was the same path as the Battle on the Bayou -- started at Gulf Hills Hotel and ended at the Shed. Doug and I did a shortened version of it, going up halfway and heading back, saving the logistical difficulties of a one-way trip.

I had some thoughts about this intriguing concept that Keith came up with, to embark on a physical journey involving fitness of the body, in order to connect with a mental/emotional/spiritual inspiration involving fitness of the mind. Alzheimer's... a particularly damaging disease of the brain, but just like the body -- can suffer devastating afflictions, or small deteriorizations. Mental fitness is so important. Those of us who get caught up in physical fitness sometimes forget to tend to the mind. Feed it, use it, care for it, nurture it... Your mind and your body need each other and make up YOU.

Related thoughts. Tyler was telling me about adrenaline and how it makes your mind work faster, explaining the slow-motion feeling when you're in the midst of a crisis. Makes me wonder if a lower level of adrenaline is kicking in when I ride my bike, fast pace ride in a paceline when you are so alert at all times. Just afterwards, things seem to move in slow motion. As I'm driving home, everyone is in my way. At home, I trip over the dog... somehow she isn't as quick as usual. I wait for D or T at the sink or refrigerator, why are they taking so long? Everything seems slow. Maybe my brain waves take a while to settle back into a normal pattern.

The mental and the physical. Keith put in his blog "Whatever mental filing or head-work needed to organize a persons hustle and bustle life, it has been my experience that out on the water is not the place to do it. I simply can't. There's too much else to think about. Being on the water strips things down to the bare, meaningful essentials. There is plenty of time for thought, plenty of time for discussion, plenty of time for prayer and meditation. But, no time for false worries, or self imposed problems. It's time for refocusing away from such things." I love this thought and how he expressed it. How true this is of paddling, bike riding, running, hiking... anything where you get away and your activity demands that you focus on it. It's a forced break from what normally weighs you down. I have so many thoughts to keep track of -- things to do at work, issues, lists of things I need to buy, appointments to make and things to arrange, needs of my family, groceries, home care, correspondence, etc. etc. So nice to take breaks from that load.

One more related thought. I haven't seen the movie "The Hurt Locker" but I saw the 60 minutes segment on it a few weeks ago. It's about how the EOD soldier becomes so addicted to the danger and rush of his job that it's the only way he can function. Is it a similar adrenaline-high addictive quality that leads us back to high intensity physical activities? Or is it the shifting of priorities that Keith talked about -- how it pushes the more trivial (but real) priorities and problems aside because it demands that you focus on HERE AND NOW?

Our minds drive our bodies. Experiences and memories are really what the fitness activities are about. The whole idea of the Alzheimer's Paddling Project sounded like a mismatch the first time I saw it.... but the more I think about it, the more sense it makes.

Hope to paddle again with Keith and Sharon as their journey continues.

Occasional Paddle

Yes, not too much blogging going on from Anna lately. I admit it -- the kayak suffers rejection at the hands of the bike. The blog is ignored in favor of Facebook.

But today -- I must blog today! It is the 5th anniversary of this blog. First entry was July 3, 2005. 5 years ago there was no Facebook, and I did not have a bike. 5 years ago was before Hurricane Katrina. 5 years ago I found kayaking, and through it I found... how do I say it? I found out how to make myself happy and do what I love to do. Really and truly, before that I did not know how to get into an activity and enjoy it. Dale was amazed at how I took to it, looked forward to it, planned to kayak, came back happy... he had never seen that before in me. Not saying I wasn't happy or didn't enjoy life, but the ability to recognize something you love and pursue it, with a combination of indulgence and intensity, enjoying the rewards and allowing it to propel you further into your passion... this is what I was missing, and what I first found through kayaking. It changed my life in such an important way. Like the saying goes, who gets to the end of their life and says "I wish I had spent more time at work"? It's the people in your life and the things you love to do that should fill your available time.

So tonight's paddle was a simple trip with mom across the bay. Not a spectacular sunset, but the evening breeze and the water were oh so nice.

Horn Island

May 15, 2010

It wasn't a paddle - no kayaks today - but what a place it is to kayak, I think it belongs here. We took the Blazer Bay out this morning to enjoy the island in case it is soon affected by the oil. Went out early and ended up leaving early too, with storms rolling in. Beautiful island, had this area towards the east tip to ourselves.

Stunt kite flying... easy breeze. Absolutely fun and relaxing.

Sunday paddle

May 9, 2010

Nick and Brent joined me for this paddle and recon mission to check out the boom at the mouth of Graveline Bayou. It is in place, though the oil remains offshore for now.

This trip was 6.5 miles though I always had in my mind that it was 8 miles to the gulf and back. Anyway, it seemed longer and gave me a bit of a workout! Easy for Nick, who had paddled 17 miles the day before.

Just paddling

April 18, 2010

Catch up blog...

Strange set of pictures, we paddled during the day April 18, yet I was there for the sunset too. I have not seen enough sunsets lately!