Road Trip Part Five: THE PROBLEM IS ALL INSIDE YOUR HEAD

Kayaks.  They’re those little one-man boats made out of whale bones and seal skin by Eskimos.  They’re the kind that rolls over so easily the occupant has to either know how to right the boat quickly or drown. 

At least that’s what I learned about kayaks in grade school.  I knew advances had been made in their design.  I’d seen the nut-case kayakers who bounced around in the white water rapids of the Snake and Salmon River.  Those people wore helmets.  Most activities that require a helmet, I consider a spectator sport.

I’ll admit I was once talked into trying an open inflatable kayak.  It was in shallow, quiet water, but I still managed to tip myself out as soon as I reached the middle of the river.  I got all kinds of instructions shouted at me from the bank as I struggled to scramble back aboard.  The whole experience was probably more for the entertainment of my friends than anything.

So when DH and I were invited to try the sea kayaks during our trip on the David B; DH shook his head and I was uncertain.  Christine, the boat’s naturalist and chef, said she would love to go with me and show me how. 

FINE.  It was a beautiful morning.  The sky was blue and the water was glossy—a good day to die.  I emptied my pockets, exchanged my prescription glasses for cheap shades and prepared to get wet.

Me wearing my new skirt and psyching myself for possible dunking in sea water.

 After I tightened on a life jacket, Jeffery handed me a “skirt” 

which he told me to fasten around my waist. 

Christine was already waiting in the double kayak.  I scrambled in the front seat, 

Forced grin while Captain Jeffrey fixes my skirt. Christine waits patiently.

and then Captain Jeffrey, always the gentleman, lifted my skirt and hooked it around the rim of the opening.  I watched Christine stash her cell phone in the pocket of her life vest.  “Is that a waterproof pocket? “ I asked.   She smiled and told me, no.  She wasn’t planning to go overboard.  The craft did seem surprisingly stable and I began to feel a bit less anxious. 

Trying to remember my left from my right.

I was handed a paddle and Christine gave me a few instructions on its use.  I’m a klutz through and through so I really had to focus on not soaking her with paddle splash as we slid out into the quiet cove.

Being so close to the water, I was able to see the long eel grass growing just below the surface, a home for all kinds of sea creatures. 

Christine spotted a flock of cormorants sunning themselves on a cliff as we circled a small island.  She also pointed out ravens, turkey vultures and other birds.

I hummed a little tune under my breath, the same one I use to keep up a semi-coordinated rhythm when I cross-country ski.  We glided out into the smooth water of a small bay.  Christine seemed to be enjoying the trip despite my flailing paddle, so I relaxed a little.

I did it and I didn't die!

An hour later we were back climbing on board the David B.  DH was waiting and happy for me and had even taken photos.  I was totally pleased with myself for being so brave.  It was only later that I learned that, in the hierarchy of boating, a sea kayak is considered a speed bump.

Road Trip part 1-Smoke on the Water Fire in the Sky
Road Trip Part 2-Smelled the Mountain Air Man
Road Trip Part 3-On the Ship David B
Road Trip Part 4-Pods of Orcas
Road Trip Part 5-The Problem is All Inside Your Head
Road Trip Part 6-Looking Down On Fishermen
Road Trip Part 7-The Cure for Anything Is Water
Road Trip Part 8-Lighthouses
Road Trip Part 9-Slow Down and Read the Signs
Road Trip Part 10-Fresh Crabs
Road Trip Part 11-Food
Road Trip Part 12-Giants
Road Trip Part 13-Crossing the Deadly Desert