A-kayaking I will go

Yesterday I joined the Canton Kayak Club. This club has kayaks at six different docking stations with paddles and life vests. Members can use these kayaks at any of the stations at any time, after being trained.

Here’s one of the stations I am likely to use.

It’s easy to park there, not far away, and not in the crowded Inner Harbor. There are lovely inlets and branches to explore from here.

You may remember that last August son Michael took me kayaking. Here’s Michael unloading his two-person kayak.

It was around 7:40 on a perfect morning and not another person to be seen. This is what we saw from the kayak.

You can see how still the water was. The only sounds were birds and insects and our paddling. It was wonderful.

Shortly after that experience I woke up with the conviction that I had to own a kayak. I couldn’t just wait for Michael to take me out once in a while. I wanted to be able to be on the water whenever I wanted to. I began researching kayaks online. There are inflatable kayaks that I could keep in the trunk of my car. After Michael firmly nixed that idea, I began thinking about how and where I could keep a real kayak.

I called our Director of General Services and asked him, “Joe, where could I keep my kayak at Charlestown?” (I’m sure he’s never had that question before.) He said he’d have to think about that and get back to me, and by the way, what was the size of my kayak? I told him I didn’t know because I hadn’t bought it yet. He did call back in a few days and said he couldn’t think of a safe place for me to leave the kayak at Charlestown. (Later I learned that Joe owns a kayak.)

Back online I went, not sure what I was looking for, as there didn’t seem to be a way for me to own a kayak. This time my search showed me the Canton Kayak Club site. By then it was September, close to the end of the season. I’d have to wait until the 2011 season to learn more and decide whether to join. But I did drive to each of their docking sites to see whether I’d want to be there.

Watching their website, I saw that they were having a season opening event on April 21st, interested people welcome. Even though I was scared and nervous, unsure I really wanted to do this or that it was a good idea, that’s where I was last night.  As I drove through downtown from the West side to the East side at 5:30 p.m. in rush hour traffic (no rushing, mostly sitting and waiting), I calmed myself by imagining telling people that I belong to the Canton Kayak Club.

It’s the first time I’ve been in this  kind of bar setting since 1991.

It was packed with people, two bars, lots of little stand-at tables, and NOISY. Described in a review as

Vibe‎: Bustling/Boisterous‎, Locals‎

Noise Level‎: Bustling (emphasis mine)

Dress Code‎: Casual Chic

It’s right on the waterfront, with lots of outdoor seating, too.

I almost fled: the bustling crowd of young people, with the deafening noise even after I lowered the volume of my hearing aids, was overwhelming. I wasn’t even sure how to get a drink. Another of my “firsts” since recovery.

As I stepped up to the bar with my ticket for a free drink as a new member, a man seated there told me I’d better have my ID ready. ID? Did I need a membership card to show? Then I got it–he was saying I should expect to be carded–little old lady that I am! I should have told him I didn’t know I looked THAT young!

Although I didn’t want to stay, I couldn’t leave. I’d told too many people-who-matter that I was going to be there. I had to stay and decide whether to join.

Fortunately, I saw a small, slender woman with a little gray in her hair. I introduced myself and asked if she was a member. “Oh, yes, for many years.” “Can you get the kayak off the rack, into the water, and back on the rack by yourself?” I asked her. She said she usually goes with a partner, but that she can handle the kayaks by herself. That was key information for me, as I want to be able to kayak by myself, early in the morning. I decided to join.

Upstairs where they were serving a buffet of finger food, I signed up for training–tomorrow! And then I saw a really gray-haired woman, about my age. After commenting that there weren’t many of us here, I asked if I could talk with her. “Please do!” she said. “I was afraid there would be only 20-somethings here.” Turns out she has kayaked all her life, including at Tierra del Fuego. And she kayaks alone. Ah, if she can do it, so can I. We exchanged contact information.

The closest docking station is about 12 minutes from here. And I was told that there are small kayaks there and that it is easy to get them into the water from this dock.

All the stations are co-located with eating/drinking places. This one is at Nick’s Fish House, where there’s plenty of parking and probably no one in the parking lot at 7:00 a.m. This will most-likely be my “home” dock.

Weather permitting (a thunder storm is forecast) I’ll get training tomorrow, my membership card, and the key code to access the kayaks. Then, a-kayaking I will go.

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