TEN YEARS AS A PADDLER

Kayaking is my intimate relationship with water. I feel vulnerable and at the water's mercy. Sitting in a boat, only millimeters of carbon and fiberglass keeping me dry and protected, I am connected to the forces at play. I feel every ripple, every current and the slightest breezes. I am exposed to all elements and my inferiority is constantly being thrown at me.  For me, kayaking is a meditation of humility...Daniel Fox

We've all started our kayaking genesis for different reasons. For some, it's a fun and enjoyable low-impact activity, offering a great way to burn calories and tone those muscles. While others, like the camaraderie it builds on the water with other fellow enthusiasts. Others enjoy their escape into a stress-free world of relaxation and serenity of the peaceful lake. But for most, kayaking offers the ability to get closer to and interact with nature.

2010 Red River

Summer 2020, marks the tenth anniversary of my kayaking evolution. It has been an amazing journey. From Minnesota to California, I've paddled in some beautiful and amazing natural places over the years. I made some great friends, stayed in pretty good shape, and have enjoyed both the emotional and mental health benefits while on the water.
"It's my opinion," said Current Adventures Kayaking School & Trips' Dan Crandall, "That those who choose to get into kayaking are often subconsciously looking for that self-understanding and as their confidence builds, they become a better and happier version of themselves."

It feels almost like yesterday when I launched my first kayak ten springtimes ago. Minnesota offered clear and smooth rivers and lakes and plenty of sun dazzling days to begin my pilgrimage. June paddling meant exploring, camping, and family fun.

2011 Cuyuna Country

And the only reason, I can remember it so well is because that summer I began keeping a kayaking journal to keep track of my paddling experiences. throughout the day. Ever since I have chronicled every day in my life I have put a kayak in the water.

 June 16, 2010...It was a wonderful evening to nice to waste. We went on a short trip down the river to the First Avenue Bridge. It was the first day I kayaked in the sun for a long time.

June 16, 2011...After setting up camp we put in on Portsmouth Mine Lake. The weather is so calm today, hardly a breeze as we paddle across the lake. It's amazing. We saw ten loons all dancing, fishing, and calling to us out on the dark water. After the boys tired, I still needed more. I portaged over the highway and discover another endless line of lakes.

2012 lake Bemidji

June 16, 2012...The morning started out on the lake early off to the outlet for the Mississippi. Paddling is slow in the tandem. This boat is built for fun, not speed. I greeted a few loons couples along the way.




"When once a man is launched on such an adventure as this," wrote C. S. Lewis, He must bid farewell to hopes and fears, otherwise, death or deliverance will both come too late to save his honor and his reason."
Leaving my home of some 30 years behind in the midwest and loading up a van full of kayaks with my bride and heading to California was like going over a waterfall. But as Grand Canyon explorer John Wesley Powell said, "We have an unknown distance yet to run, an unknown river to explore... Ah, well! we may conjecture many things."
It was a homecoming of sorts, to the places I had always dreamed about being. I wanted to see natural places with tranquil clear cobalt lakes and rushing wild whitewater and mountain vistas.

2013 Lake Maria State Park, Minnesota

June 16, 2013...We enjoyed the sun on our bodies and the warm temperatures of summer. We paddled around the whole lake and even into the marsh area where it's so narrow we had trouble turning around.

2014 Folsom Lake

June 17, 2014...A peaceful night on Folsom Lake. A little breeze, but not much. Not a lot of boats, meaning not a lot of waves. Some sea kayakers were practicing rolls when Debbie and I put in at Granite Bay. Some clouds in the distance over the Sierra, but clear and bright over the lake.

2015 Negro Bar

June 19, 2015...Taylor is here this week. He flew in on Tuesday and has been having fun with us. It great to paddle with him again. We unloaded at Negro Bar and paddled up to the cable. He said the walls on the canyon remind him of Duluth when we ent there to visit. The sun was bright and there was just enough of a cooling breeze.

2016 Lake Natoma

June 16, 2016...with Current Adventures as we start our Eppies Flat Water training on Lake Natoma. Kim is good spirits as he teaches the group of five a paddling refresher course. Most have paddled before and will be all taking part in the eppies Iron Man. we worked on some paddling exercises and balance.

2017 Lake Natoma

June 16, 2017...Up the canyon and back through the slough and around the bend. That's what it's about on Lake Natoma at Negro bar. It's a party place today. One guy in a kayak was playing loud music, a group of kids was jumping off the cliffs and paddle boarders were relaxing with the flow.

"Canoes, too, are unobtrusive," writer John Graves observed, "They don't storm the natural world or ride over it, but drift in upon it as a part of its own silence."
Paddling offers outdoor enthusiasts a wide range of experience. While I will always enjoy the heart-stopping exhilaration of whitewater rapids, the rush of paddling a sea kayak on a distance trek across the bay or big lake, my roots in paddling will always be with the canoe.
Like a souvenir from my childhood memories, my time on idyllic California's Lake Jenkinson will always rekindle those feelings of nostalgia while on its waters.

2018 Lake Jenkinson

June 17, 2018...Father's Day at Sly Park. I loaded up and headed to the park to work in the boat rental boathouse. Dan and Current Adventures took it over this season and business is good. It has three canoes, seven paddleboards, and a bunch of kayaks. It's all fun stuff and one of the area's most beautiful lakes.

2019 Lake Jenkinson

June 16, 2019...Father's Day at Sly Park. It was a very pleasant day with little wind coming through the narrows. As I look back on those days in Fargo, I could never ever imagine I would be working in the Sierra foothills on a lakefront as good as this. I mean who would have ever thought back then all this would lead to me. Life is funny indeed.

June 16, 2020...John and I decided to run the river last week and kept to the plan. Meet at Rossmoor, dropped off a truck, and return to Sailor Bar for a trip downriver. It's a beautiful evening for a paddle. Not too hot, Not too cold. Just right with a mild breeze and cloudless skies.

2020 The American River Parkway

As one can see, my kayaking evolution has not been solitary. It has only progressed through the continued support of my wife, family, and friends only with the paddling community.
This ten-year span is not out of the ordinary for many who call the water home with the need to push off the shore to see what is around the next bend. As the
Chinook Blessing says, "We call upon the waters that rim the earth, horizon to horizon, that flow in our rivers and streams, that fall upon our gardens and fields, and we ask that they teach us and show us the way."

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