Kayaking for Dummies

We took a short trip up to Whidbey Island this weekend to visit our friends Fred and Laurie. Included in the trip were kayaking lessons courtesy of Fred and all the fresh goat milk we could drink courtesy of Laurie and her goats Sugar, Kimmy and Soleil. She makes a lot of stuff from the goat juice such as Feta Cheese, creamy goat cheese, yogurt and.....whey. All were pretty good, particularly the Feta. The whey left a little something to be desired......it sends chills down my spine to think of the taste. Laurie insists it is an acquired taste and Fred drinks the stuff like it is iced tea, I couldn't quite share in their enjoyment of it. It is the liquid left over after milk curdles during the cheese making process. Fred and Laurie whipped us up some pretty gourmet meals though, bbq'ed salmon and chicken, fresh eggs for breakfast....very delicious!!

It was a little chilly this weekend but that didn't stop us from going out for a paddle. It was my first time in a kayak and Fred was a very patient instructor. First lesson, getting into the kayak, I guess it never occurred to me that I would have to learn the proper way to get into the thing....Second lesson, escaping the kayak when it turns upside down. This lesson consumed the bulk of my kayaking excursion, not because I wanted to become very good at it but because the first kayak I tried seemed to prefer being bottom up. I think it's because I'm a little top heavy, I must have almost twice the weight in my upper body than the lean mean kayaking machine Fred. Either way, after perfecting the egress technique and slipping into a new boat I managed to shakily paddle all the way around Deer Lake without flipping at all. I was very happy about this and am shopping around for my own kayak now, one that is suited for the heavier paddler.....

This year I will be making my first visit to Sparks Lake. Rachel's family and friends go every year and many of them stay for over two weeks. This weekend we will be going for four days to join about thirty other sparkophiles for camping, swimming, paddling and hammocking....I can't wait!!