Cooler today, but the sun was out. Water very calm, a few people out on the beach. One boat was toodling along, fishing, with a couple of people sunning. I paddled close enough to them to say hi.
I’m going to start doing some timing, from the first buoy closest to the Heron Cove boat ramp, out around the next two buoys, far enough North to sight down the side of the foundation of an unfinished building on the West shore, and back.
Today’s time: 42 min.
Friday’s paddle was cut short by thunder. I didn’t see any lightning, but hearing thunder is enough for me. I cut back to about a 30 min. paddle instead of my usual 40 min. Was out of the water while the sun was still shining, but clouds and rain took over very quickly after I drove out the parking lot.
Last Tuesday was as busy as I’ve seen it at the Heron Cove boat ramp, there were 8-10 jet-skis and a few boats. Everyone was courteous, going out of their way to not leave big wakes when I was nearby, I’ve been impressed by my fellow water-sporters at Boyd.
The water level’s been going up the last few times I’ve been out. There’s a pipe feeding Boyd from Horseshoe on the other side of the road, it’s been going every time I’ve driven in. One side effect is the sandbar sticking out right near the no-wake boundary on the North has been submerged, so there are no Herons sitting around. It makes it a bit easier for me to pass, but I miss the birds.
Friday was smooth as glass, very nice. Was just as calm as Tuesday, but not nearly the Walleye feeding activity, I wonder what triggers it?
Been thinking about when to do some re-entry practice. Thought I might do it at the Marina area where I could just tie on to the dock there if it’s not very busy. But it’s shallower and so I might get more gunk into the cockpit if I try to submerge the boat. Got my pump and paddle float, just need some rope.
Okay, there’s a sign near the entrance to Boyd Lake indicating the type of fish you’re likely to see. I’m pretty sure the ones I’ve been seeing on the North side are Walleye, by the tall dorsal fins they had. This past Tuesday things were very calm, and near the shoreline they were swimming so close to the edge that they’d appear to “beach” themselves, chasing after prey. It was quiet, so I could hear their attacks, and they were going at the rate of two or three per second, so I just sat and listened for a little while before making my way back.
Super clear day paddling on the 15th, this past Tue. Return to the weekday lunch time calm, nice. Seeing as my usual pre-kayak exercise was jogging around Donath Lake, watching for cars and trucks with wide mirrors while dancing on the edge of the non-shoulder on CR13, the past weekend paddling seemed pretty peaceful.
I’ve got a bilge pump and a paddle float now. Need to find some time to practice dumping out and re-entering. Then I’ll feel better about heading toward the middle of the lake. These both stash right behind my seat pretty nicely.
Entry for Sunday, 6/13: I went out the day after the lightening, which happened to take out my wireless connection and so it’s been up only sporadically since.
Lots of sailboats out on Boyd today, very colorful! Interesting that even though it was quite a bit more crowded (weekend), more of the motor boats and jetskis were not headed into the North area, maybe partly because there was a parks ranger cruising around.
Ooo, lightning. Time to paddle back. If I’d gotten out an hour earlier like I’d originally planned, I would’ve been fine and out of the water before the lightning started.
First try on a Saturday. More people, of course. Stopped at the Marina, got a parking spot pretty close to the ramp, and just walked past a half-dozen boats maneuvering their way in/out. The area is wakeless, so it’s not as bad getting out of there as I thought it might be, boaters were courteous and waved.
But then the storm moved in, so paddled like mad to get out. Try again another time.
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