Travel Rogue

July 10, 2005

Day 2: Going in Tandem

Dave and I decide to take out the tandem kayak. "The test of a great relationship!" Brenda also teaches me how to use a feathered paddle. Basically, the right hand functions like a motorcycle throttle. I needed to switch up grips, because yesterday's chop rubbed nasty blisters into both my thumbs. Didn't realize how bad they were until one started bleeding in the morning. Guess the water numbed the pain? Anyway, easily fixed. Slapped on a band-aid and duck tape and was good as new. The camaraderie at the breakfast table is so much tighter after an evening of s'mores. The laughing is easier and moments of silence fewer. Down at the beach, Kathy, one of our fellow paddlers leads us in a sun salutation. All of us in a circle in the sand, stretching.

Then it's time to hit it. As I settle into the front of the tandem, I have this comical image in my head that his weight (he's 6'5" and pretty muscular) is going back-weight the kayak and I'll end up paddling air. I'm smirking as he pushes us off, and even though I am not elevated, I'm still amused because try as we might, we are certainly not traveling in a straight line. We meander our way over to Wendy, and Dave asks for rudder instruction. This makes everything much, much easier. After he gets the hang of it, Wendy calls out one last tip, "Be sure to raise it in shallow water!" Two minutes later, we look down and indeed, we are in shallow water. You can reach out and touch the rocks. Rudder up. However, we're in luck. We are at the mouth of the Mink River, so the current is pretty light and gives us the opportunity to get in synch. Well, gives Dave the opportunity to get in synch with my rhythm, because I can't really see what he's doing behind me. For all I know, he may not even be paddling! Once we get it together, we're booking along leaving the single kayaks behind. The tandem is unwieldy to steer, but on a straight course, this baby is fast! There's some kind of kayak festival going on, so we pass several other groups on the river and exchange friendly waves. In the middle, we all "raft up" and Brenda pulls out a huge bag of candy and trail mix. The guides demonstrate a series of rescues and maneuvers, and we all chat and take pictures. Really a lovely experience. On the way back, our last stretch of paddling with this group, Mick dumps out of his craft and stradles our tandem. Dave and I are just ripped with laughter. Stellar trip.

Posted by carolyn at July 10, 2005 09:06 AM

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