Archive for boating
Lazy Afternoon on the South Saskatchewan
The kids and I spent Sunday afternoon drifting down the South Saskatchewan river with a group of friends, a popular summer pasttime here in The Gas City.
We travelled from Redcliff to the boat launch in Strathcona park (a 10 km journey), and finished off the evening with a BBQ. The first part of the trip took us past Echo Dale Regional Park. These are the red cliffs on the far side of the river that are visible from the park.
This area had the roughest water, by far (which, as you can see below, wasn’t very rough at all).
We even picked up a straggler! Patrick wasn’t able to join us at the outset, as he was working. But he walked along the bank and met us about halfway through the trek.
The bridge on Highway #1 spanning the river marked the halfway point. We all stayed fairly grouped together .. chatting, splashing and generally goofing off.
We soon realized, however, that we needed to get a move on. The sun was starting to set, and we had another 3-4 kms of slow-moving water to travel before it got dark.
I spent the last part of the trip towing Adrienne (not an easy feat!), who had had her fill of paddling. We spotted a few deer along the banks, and a beaver swam alongside us for a little while. As we neared the boat launch, the fish-flies became so thick, it looked as though it was snowing!
All in all, a great time was had. The trip took over 4 hours to complete, and we were all exhausted by the end. I plan to do it at least once more before the summer is out. Below is a complete map of our route.
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The Maiden Voyage of the Dragonfly
My Advanced Elements Dragonfly XC kayak arrived safe and sound on Tuesday, and tonight was her maiden voyage. Bryan, Adrienne and I piled into the truck after work, and headed for Echo Dale Regional Park. We set up our picnic goodies at a spot near the water, and began the process of building the paddle and inflating the kayak.
After about 15 minutes of preparation, we were ready to hit the water. Unfortunately, no one was around to outfit the kids with a paddleboat, which was the original plan, so we all took turns in the kayak. I was a little worried at first, but I’m embarrassed to say, the kids caught on far faster than I did!
I made a few unintentional circles, but it didn’t take long before I had the technique figured out. I paddled out to the small island in the middle of the man-made lake, where I watched a Kingfisher survey the land from his perch in the bushes, and a muskrat puddle about in the evening sun. Of course, since I didn’t want to risk losing or damaging it, I didn’t bring my camera .. and the cheap disposable camera I bought for the occasion was back on the banks with the kids. *Sigh*
We have another trip out to Echo Dale planned for Saturday, and a group outing down the South Saskatchewan river planned for Sunday. My camera will make the trip this time ;)
Leah Andres
