Monday, April 14, 2008

April Kayak Adventure

April...the month of sun, then snow (and school "snow days"), then sun again, and then some more snow, and then a bit of sun. The month that can't decide whether to be winter or spring, impetuously changing from day to day. Today it decided to be quite spring-like (as opposed to last Friday when we had blizzard warnings and the big kids had a snow-day from school). The temperatures ranged into the 50s, the sun shone brightly in a beautiful, blue sky dotted with clouds, the snow melted with a steady stream of dripping, and the ice continued to break up on the local bodies of water, namely the Portage and the Pilgrim River. Which brings me to the reason for this post.

Our kayak had it's first venture into the water today for the 2008 kayak season. Crazy though it may seem, we were able to kayak while there is still snow on the ground, and even ice on most of the Portage. Steve and I put our tandem kayak in on the Pilgrim River, right near Steve's new office, and paddled downstream out into the Portage, and then back upstream, spending a solid 40 minutes on the water. We were blessed with the opportunity to enjoy a beautiful spring day sans kids, thanks to our good friends Kit & Julie, who had them over to play with Cameron & Olivia (they got to splash in puddles and go for a walk). And since we get to get out and "play" today, we though we'd show you how beautiful it is here in Hancock/Houghton!

Here we are pre-kayaking. The kayak is ready to be off-loaded from the Subaru and put in to the Pilgrim River. I'm wearing my life-vest already so that I don't have another thing to carry down the hillside while helping to haul the kayak down.
And here we are, having completed our kayak journey along the Pilgrim River. The kayak is waiting for a lift back to Hancok via the Subaru, and Steve and I are ready for a late dinner. It was a beautiful day! Hoping to have many more like it!