kayaking – Page 11 – The MoHo and Other Traveling Tales

Lake Talawa and the coast at Crescent City

Today was the day! We did a bit of internet searching last night to check local tides and possible put-in sites for a trip on an inland lake north of Crescent City. On Google Maps, the two lakes looked accessible but sometimes it’s hard to find a launch site where there is a lot of private land surrounding the lake or where there are wildlife refuges. Lake Talawa and Lake Earl have both.

I found an old website for a kayaking group that is no longer active, but they decided to keep the site up so people could use the information. I’m sure glad they did! We drove north around Earl Lake wandering off towards the west until we came to an extensive area of old roads that weren’t maintained any longer. According to the web site, there was a subdivision planned here that never made it. The roads were cracked and full of potholes, and as we approached the lake it was apparent that we were the only people around for miles.

Another possible deterrent could be that the lake was too low and too muddy to launch there. Instead, we found tules and sedges, with ground underfoot that was firm enough to support not only us, but the Tracker. We parked just feet from the water and launched effortlessly.

With a new boat it is always a bit thrilling to try it for the first time. This boat is so stable and comfortable there wasn’t a moment of wobble or concern. It felt great. Surprisingly, the cockpit is really quite big and the boat is about as wide as my old boat. The keel seems smoother, but Mo didn’t think they tracked any better than our old less expensive boats. However, lifting them to the racks is the deciding factor here, not speed or agility. We aren’t racers at all, and just want to get around easily, have a boat that tracks well, and is roomy and comfortable, and we can lift overhead without groaning. Check on all counts!

I it was still quite foggy, with only filtered sun coming through so the landscape all around us looked surreal. I knew the lake shape from the phone and could see where we were on the lake, but the distances and the changes in water levels made for some interesting moments. Accompanying our paddle was the incredible sound of huge crashing surf just beyond the dunes. With the fog it was hard to discern just where we were, and thinking we were at the dunes I checked on the iPhone to find we were still in the middle of the lake with some islands that didn’t show up on Google Earth.

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We paddled on to the ever increasing crash of the surf, and I wondered if the lake was perhaps breaching the dunes as it sometimes does when the water is high. Suddenly we were surrounded by white floating sea foam that looked for all the world like small icebergs. As we approached the beach we could see really huge waves that were breaking over the dunes and felt the surges of the incoming water. The tide was supposed to be receding and this definitely wasn’t feeling like receding at all! I read something on the weather page last night about a huge ocean swell that was coming this direction, with high surf warnings and waves to 25 feet. Sure made me nervous to see that water cresting over the dunes toward me! I turned and ran and Mo laughed at me, but we felt the swell again and didn’t have to paddle much at all to go back inland fairly quickly.

On the way back to our launch site we saw some otters playing, and a huge flock of snow geese flew overhead. We saw a lot of blue and white herons along the marshy shores. In the fog, everything looked much bigger and yet farther away than it actually was. There was no way to get a feel for where we were at all. I was really glad for the IPhone GPS and map, believe me!

Once back to the car, we loaded up effortlessly, excited about how easy our maiden voyage was. We decided to go back toward Crescent City and explore the other side of the lakes toward the ocean along Pebble Beach Road. Once we got there, we could see a lot of viewing activity along the headlands, with cars parked and people hiking out to high places and watching the surf. Once we did the same we discovered why. The waves were HUGE. It is impossible to take any kind of photos that actually show the scale of these waves coming into the shore. There are headlands and sea stacks in this vicinity that are at least 100 feet high and the waves were breaking completely over them. The waves were at least 30 feet tall, and breaking very far out from shore. There were all kinds of warnings out about staying away from the breakwater and not turning your back on the ocean, se we paid attention to all that and stayed up high.

It was truly exciting. The power of the ocean is so huge, and sometimes with just normal waves it is easy to forget how she can be in a storm. The part that was even more amazing is that there was no storm going on here at all, in fact there wasn’t even any wind. What an exciting thing to see. Mo lived on the ocean near Half Moon Bay for more than 30 years and I spent a considerable amount of time at the ocean as well. Neither of us have ever seen waves like those we saw today.

As always, there are many more photos on my Picasa website for this day linked here.

September 6 Killarney to Toronto

I have only a few photos of this day, and most of them are somewhat gloomy, but I did put them up on Picasa and they are linked here.

After the gorgeous day we enjoyed yesterday, this morning we woke again to gloomy rainy weather. Deciding to skip the morning hikes in the pouring rain, we packed up the MoHo and headed for Toronto. On the way, we happened to stop at a roadside information kiosk where the attendant told us about the Muskoga Lake Region. She also was incredibly helpful and made phone calls for us to the Swift Kayak and Canoe Company where we planned to visit.

On the way, we visited the charming little town of Muskoka Lake, and stopped at an area dominated by huge exposures of the Pre-Cambrian Shield. This is some of the oldest rock in the world, covering a large portion of Ontario and where much of the wealth of the province is derived.

Thanks to her information, we re-routed back north and through the lake district, and went to the main store selling the Swift Adirondack kayaks that I have been admiring on the internet for a time now. These kayaks are sleek and gorgeous, weighing only 34 pounds, with a cockpit that can accommodate Abby, and sealed bulkheads that will keep our gear dry. The owner just happened to be in the store, and offered to ship to the US, saving us the 13 percent provincial tax. It was an exciting day, and our boats will arrive in Oregon when we return after October 1st.

Even though we were traveling the beautiful lake district, with all the forests we didn’t see very much of the lakes and didn’t want to take more time to stop and visit. It is a beautiful area, however, and I would have loved to spend more time. The rest of the day was uneventful, as we navigated into the eastern part of the city of Toronto where we planned to camp at the city owned Glen Rouge Park.

September 5 Sault Ste Marie to Killarney and a bear!

The rest of the photos for this day of travels are linked here

Our day turned out to be wonderfully exciting and beautiful as we crossed the border into Canada. The weather was gloomy at first, but cleared as the day progressed. Originally, our plan for this trip included several days in the provincial parks along the northern shore of Lake Superior where we planned to kayak the lakes and rivers of this part of Ontario. We changed our plans a few days ago, and it turned out to be a good idea. The storms and rain would have kept us from doing any kayaking and the drives were long and featureless with the lake hidden by miles and miles of trees. In addition, the cost of gasoline in Canada ran as high as 4.00 per US gallon, so those many miles would have been expensive.

Instead, our only day camping in Ontario parks was today, at Killarney Provincial Park. Once over the border, which was completely uneventful, we stopped at the Ontario visitors center for information. The guide there was knowledgeable and helpful, and told us in her opinion Killarney was the loveliest park to see.

On the way through the park we stopped for a roadside rest along a lovely lake and hiked around a bit with the dog before continuing. Arriving at the campground around 2 in the afternoon, we set up our camp and thrilled at the brilliant sunshine. The park brochure listed several excellent hikes that were accessible to us, in addition to visiting the small coastal town of Killarney and kayaking either a lake or a river. After perusing the map and the weather we opted for a chance to actually take our boats down and get in the water for the first time on this trip! The skies were gorgeous and the winds were high, but the launching point on Chickanishing Creek was protected enough and had a good ramp. There were several people coming in to land, and the winds were a bit daunting, but we launched and headed for the “Big Water”.

We paddled through meandering water with very little current, among huge pink boulders of granite, smoothed by glaciers and dotted with pine, spruce, and fir. Once we emerged onto Lake Superior, there were granite islands all around us, but the wind was so high we were afraid to go very far into the waves. We don’t have skirts for our kayaks, and big winds make big waves, and we didn’t want to swamp in the extremely cold water so we turned back.

Gichee-Goomi, the Shining Big Sea Water

Paddling upstream was almost effortless, and back in the protected shelter of the creekside banks and cliffs the wind wasn’t as difficult to manage. While gliding along watching the bank, I suddenly realized that something was also watching me! I was eye to eye with a small black bear on the bank, just a few feet from my kayak. Wow! I was glad to be in my boat, even knowing that bears are great swimmers, I felt OK. I called out to Mo, backpaddled to get a better view and take some photos. Abby was sniffing like crazy trying to figure out what that thing was, and the bear was doing the same. We didn’t stay around long enough for him to get more interested in us, but he didn’t seem the least bit afraid of us either. It was the first bear I have seen up that close in ages, not since my mapping days in North Idaho in the 90’s. He was cute. From the safety of my boat, at least.

Our first bear of the trip, up close and personal!

The weather held up long enough for us to reload the boats and get settled into camp before starting to rain again. It was a perfectly wild and gorgeous day with a bear to top it off.

Gem of the Cascades Waldo Lake

Tucked away in the Cascades, north of Highway 58, is a lake that is referred to as the “Gem of the Cascades”. Mo and I have thought often about traveling the three hours or so to this beautiful lake to camp, but for many different reasons, we never quite made it until now. Waldo Lake, although truly beautiful, is also very well known for it’s mosquito population. People who know Waldo warn that the only good time to camp there is in late summer and early fall. However, we thought that with a motorhome for protection, and our desire to be out on the water in the kayaks, it wouldn’t be too much for us to handle. Besides, it will give us some good practice for Minnesota and the northern Lake Superior region later this season.

We left by 9 this morning, and made it to the Diamond Lake Junction cafe just in time to savor another fabulous breakfast. The small tables are adorned with handwritten notes from diners all over the country, touting the wonderful food and friendly people who run this tiny, inconspicuous little restaurant. The cook laughed when we shared our “Bigfoot” breakfast and still needed a good sized to-go box for the part we couldn’t finish.

After breakfast, continuing north on HWY 97 to HWY 58 was uneventful, and in no time we were on the forest service road leading north to Waldo. After some internet research, and exploring Google Earth a bit, we determined that the Islet Campground would be our best bet. North Waldo Campground has a boat launching facility, and Shadow Bay at the southern end of the lake is much more thickly vegetated and as it says, shadowy. When we arrived at Islet, much to our surprise, there was only one campsite taken out of the 48 or so available. Some Forest Service workers laughed when we asked why, and told us that the mosquitoes kept most people away, and suggested that we take an open, sunny, and breezy site. This wasn’t a problem, since the campground was empty, and we had great fun picking our perfect spot. By the time we left the next day, there were still only 3 campers in Islet, and maybe a half dozen or so more north of us in the North Waldo Campground. Amazing.

Our site was adjacent to the bike trail along the lake, and just a few hundred feet down a gentle slope to our own little sandy beach. We set up camp, sprayed ourselves down with DEET, and checked out the surroundings. The sky was brilliant, the forest deep and rich. The trees were dominantly Western Hemlock and Shasta Fir, with an understory of dwarf huckleberry, a good indication of the cold moist climate at this high elevation. Our view of Waldo Lake was lovely and we took some time to settle in, relax under the trees in our comfy chairs and appreciate all the perfect amenities of our camp, including a really solid, big picnic table in just the right position by our awning, and a fire circle close by.

We unloaded the bikes, deciding that a bike ride would be better during the sunny afternoon when the mosquitoes would be a bit less aggravating. The trail circles most of the lake for several miles and is a favorite for mountain bikers. Mo and I have mountain bikes, but I don’t think we would qualify as mountain bikers. The first part of the trail was nice, but as it ascended to Taylor Mountain it got a lot rougher, with roots and rocks in the path, and some very winding twists among the huge trees. We rode a little bit beyond the Waldo Campground and then gave up and headed back to camp. Still, it was a nice ride.

The main reason for coming to this lake, of course, was the kayaking, and I was excited to get out on the legendary clear water. Waldo Lake is nestled into volcanic andesite rock, and is the second deepest lake in Oregon, second only to Crater Lake. It is pristine, with some of the purest water in the world, and a recent decision by the forest service to exclude gasoline engines from the lake will help to keep it that way. The lake has no natural inlets to bring in any kind of sediment or pollutants, and fish stocking ceased in 1990. There is very little plant growth, and no algae anywhere. As we paddled along the shore, the views were breathtaking, and the water was as clear as any I have ever seen. The colors reminded me of the Caribbean, with rich deep turquoise and cobalt blues that were nearly impossible to photograph. The wind came up as we headed back across the lake to our camp, and the sheer size of the lake was impressive. It was a truly amazing experience to have this huge lake and pristine forest almost entirely to ourselves.

We arrived back in camp to the mosquitoes waking up and getting busy and ready for dinner. We did the same, and Mo built a nice fire for our steaks, while I started up the generator to quickly bake the potatoes. I didn’t have to worry about disturbing anyone with the noise, at least. Supper was yummy, and we sat for a long time afterward waiting for sunset. Walking south along the trail to get a better view wasn’t such a good idea, since the mosquitoes were incredibly thick and bothersome out along the beach. We went back to camp where I sprayed down heavily and walked down to the beach to watch the sun set behind the mountains.

We woke early to a morning chill, had some tea and little donuts before getting out on the glassy lake. Down on the beach it was a fight between us and the mosquitoes, and I think they could have carried our boats off if they wanted to. We launched and paddled like crazy to get away from them and for a bit I thought it was going to be a losing battle. Once we rounded the jetty, however, the winds picked up and we left the bothersome bugs behind. Again, our paddle was gorgeous, the water incredible, the views of the surrounding mountains magnificent. The pristine clarity comes with a price, however, and we noticed that there were no water birds around anywhere. The entire time we were there, we saw just a tiny little duck family by the boat launch. As much as I loved the clarity, I really missed the birds. Our murky Klamath Lake certainly isn’t as pristine, but it teems with life everywhere.

We decided to dock the boats in the sunny open boat launch area instead of our buggy little beach, so I walked back and got the car and we loaded the boats on top and went back to camp. With the sun up and the breezes rising, the mosquitoes dissipated a bit and we enjoyed a great campfire breakfast.

Our spot at Islet Campground, number 42, was probably the very best spot in the entire area. We hope to go back again sometime in the fall, but have also heard that these camps get very busy when the bug season lets up.

Packing up was a snap, and we left by noon to head for Mo’s brother’s home in LaPine, just a couple of hours away. It was time for the bi-annual family reunion, with kayaking, and bocci ball, golf and bar-b-ques. Our little Waldo Lake overnighter was a great way to start the weekend.

For more photos of Waldo Lake and Islet Campground, click here.

The Oregon Coast (the rest of the story)

As sometimes happens, I wrote many pages full of eloquent descriptions and exquisite details about the next few days that we spent on the Oregon coast, only to lose it all in the publish/review/draft/publish process. After a big sigh, I just gave up and continued on to the next adventure. The problem with that plan, however, is that the next few days on the coast were filled with incredible kayaking experiences. Now, instead of all the details (which I write for myself as much as anyone) this post will merely try to remember the best parts, the highlights of the rest of the week.

When we explored Pacific City, we saw the Little Nestucca River and Nestucca Bay, and made plans to return the next day for a kayak adventure. On the Little Nestucca River, we put in at a boat launch east of Highway 101, about 3 miles upriver from the bay. It was a bit exciting to put in on a new river, something unknown, and I was especially tickled to have five bars with 3G coverage on my iPhone. I could zoom in on the Google Maps and see our route as we cruised down the river. Fabulous.

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The river flowed through the Nestucca Bay Wildlife Refuge and into the bay. We chose our paddling time well, with the current and tide taking us down and the tide turning and again taking us back upstream, with only a little bit of effort required the last mile or so as we returned. Nestucca Bay was beautiful, with a long peninsula protecting it from the open ocean. Our route took us to the mouth of the bay, to the surf, and to a small beach almost completely empty of people. Across the river, a group of horsemen gathered on the beach, and some crabbers trolled the waters, but it was quiet and clean, and beautiful. A perfect kayak adventure for us.

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The day after that we returned to a park that we found on the Salmon River, near the Sitka Center for Art and Ecology south of the little community of Neskowin. We were surrounded on three sides by reserves, conservation centers, Nature Conservancy preserves, and beautiful wildlands. Even in the misty overcast, it was an amazing experience. On this day I discovered a completely different relationship with rain, I loved it.

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We kayaked downriver, not a long way, to the breakers, and found a tiny tidal island where we docked and cleaned out our boats. The island slowly disappeared with the rising tide as we stood there, and we pushed off again and headed upstream. Once again, we were very nearly alone on a gorgeous beach on the Oregon coast on a summer day. Not many places where this kind of beauty can be found in the midst of solitude. It was perfect.

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We moved our camp to Beachside State Park for a couple of days, spent some time in Florence, in the old town part of the city, enjoying cappuccino and shopping, and had another great seafood meal at a different Mo’s. Mo and Abby and I had a wonderful time walking the beach and I took way too many photos of the gorgeous Solstice sunset on the 21st.

When we left the coast on Wednesday to head back home, the skies were really gray and dreary, but sunshine and hot summer temperatures waited for us as we traveled inland.

I wish I hadn’t lost what I wrote, but hopefully the photos will remind me of the very best parts.

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A link to the photos of kayaking the estuaries is here, and a link to the photos of Beachside State Park and Florence is here.