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Archives: September 2003

Tue Sep 30, 2003

it's a conspiracy

and that it was, between me and dad, to buy mom the kayak she wanted and keep it a secret from her. and it was a very successful conspiracy!

we rented one kayak for dad and told mom that we'd rented hers, too. so we paddled around the lake all day, had a great time, and packed up the boats at the end of the day to, allegedly, take the two rentals back to the shop. everyone at the shop was in on the conspiracy as well, so we unloaded the two "rentals" once there and talked for a while with the shop tenders. finally, i asked mom, "so, should i load this one up or do you want to?" she was confused, and dad and i grinned broadly.

when she finally realized it was actually her boat to take home, she nearly cried. she's very happy with her boat. on sunday, we went out again, her boat's maiden voyage after finding that it was really HER boat. all in all, we paddled about 20 miles over the weekend, and it was certainly worth it. now we're just waiting for the semi-decent weather to come back so we can go out again.

Posted by: mock turtle on 30 Sep, 03 | 06:51

Mon Sep 22, 2003

it's been a while

right, i know it's been a while since i've written here, but i've been so busy on the weekends, i've barely turned on my computer. so here i am on my lunch break at work trying to write a blurb about the last couple weekends. suffice it to say that i've kidnapped mom the last two weekends and gone kayaking both days as well as a few days after work during the week.

this last weekend was great. on saturday we went with a group down the north santiam river in oregon and blazed through some class 2 rapids. it was mom's first time on anything besides still water, and it was my first time with my cobra explorer through anything more than class 1+. i spent more time in the water than i'd planned, but the water was clear and the river was absolutely beautiful. it was well worth the trip. mom had a great time, but she's still mostly a still-water kayaker.

on sunday, we went to the coast with the intentions of bringing home some dungeness crabs. that was pretty much a bust, since all we caught were small crabs and a couple large females, all of which had to be thrown back. it was fun, though, and we plan on doing it again as soon as we can. it wasn't that bad hauling up the small crab trap we have from the kayak, but the water was a bit choppy, the wind picked up, and the motor boats were kicking up annoying wakes. after a wonderful lunch at a picnic table in the sand, i went to do laundry and mom went with the dog to the beach. after laundry, i met mom and dog at the beach and we brought the cobra down to the water to paddle around in the afternoon. it was pretty windy at the time we put the boat in, so we decided not to inflate the sevylor. we took turns in the light waves and moderate wind, and then the wind died down. as a surfer (or my mom, who grew up in souther california) would say, it "glassed off" and became incredibly calm. i let mom paddle around in my boat for a few hours until the sun went down. it was a perfect evening.

upon arriving home, we unloaded the truck and rinsed off the kayaks before finally thinking about getting some sleep. amazingly enough, i made it to work on time today after not getting near enough sleep, and i'm ready to go out again this afternoon. i'll have to see if i can convince mom that she wants to go, too.

everyone should be on the water!

Posted by: mock turtle on 22 Sep, 03 | 12:37

Mon Sep 08, 2003

another one gone

so mum and i went to the last kayak demo day of the year, and mum got to try several different boats. we had a lot of fun, and luckily the weather was beautiful. only about twenty miles away from the lake we were on, it was cloudy and cold, but on the lake it was clear, sunny, and warm. it couldn't have been a better day to go kayaking.

mum picked out the boat she wants, and surprise surprise it's a cobra. she picked out the cobra fish 'n dive boat; it's a little wider and longer than the explorer that i have, and hence a little more stable. it also has more storage space so she can kayak with the dog.

the dog, by the way, also has his own life jacket now so we won't worry so much if he falls off the boat in the middle of a lake somewhere. he's got a beautiful red canine float coat from ruff wear in bend, oregon, and he loves to wear it.

on sunday, dog and i went to do laundry and a little shopping. he got to pick out a bunch of different cookies for his cookie jar. he's not spoiled at all, right?

Posted by: mock turtle on 08 Sep, 03 | 07:04

Mon Sep 01, 2003

no labour on labour day

what a wonderful weekend it was. i twisted mum's arm until she consented to go kayaking with me (though it didn't take much twisting, really), and we went all three days. she loved it!

the first day, saturday, we had a leisurely paddle up a local creek (about 60 miles from our place). it's a very marshy area with no drop at all. though it was cloudy/foggy and windy, it was a great locale for mum to learn the wiles of the inflatable kayak. we ended up spending nearly four hours on the water and had a great dinner at a previously unknown (by us) place in the local coastal town. it was just a wonderful day all together.

the second day, sunday, we drove to the coast again and headed south instead of north. we stopped at the first lake with a boat ramp and paddled for about two hours. the wind had picked up, but the sky was amazingly blue. there were whitecaps on the lake, and we both got pretty soaked from the spray. mum took the dog in the inflatable, and he had loads of fun, too. after we got out of the water, we stopped at a local watersports shop and picked up some miscellaneous supplies (like a wetsuit for me for use later in the year and a boaters' whistle for mum's life jacket). whilst at the shop, we found a brochure for a local river that's supposed to be a great class 1 paddle, so we drove to the lake from whence the river comes. we met some kayakers coming out of the lake and talked to them about the paddle, and they all recommended it highly (though on a day that wasn't quite as windy).

today, monday, mum and i somehow convinced dad that he needed to come kayaking with us, so we went down to the river here. there's a nice swimming hole with a boat ramp about eight miles from our place, so we made a family outing of it. dad tried the inflatable first and rather enjoyed it whilst mum got to paddle my cobra and loved the way it cuts through the water. after about half an hour or so, they switched, and dad loved the cobra, too. all in all it was another good day.

next weekend one of the local watersports shops is having a demo day, and the parents and i plan on going. it'll be good for them to try out some other boats besides the cobra, and maybe we'll eventually invest in a couple more boats! what a wonderful family sport. i'm looking forward to more days spent on the water with the parents. everybody should be kayaking!

Posted by: mock turtle on 01 Sep, 03 | 21:17

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quote of the moment:

Once, said the Mock Turtle at last, with a deep sigh, I was a real turtle.
-Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

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