Bay Bulls - February 2014

Dean, Tony and I arrived at Bay Bulls around 9:30 on Saturday to see ice floating in parts of the harbour.   We made our way out along the north side of the harbour.   The photos below show the beauty of winter, where the water meets the shore.

 Tony - behind a curtain of ice

 Dean, taking in the view

Dean, where we stopped for lunch

 The track below shows our paddle for the day, about 18 km in total.

On the Water Again - St. Philips to Topsail Beach

It had been nearly fours months since I last paddled.  A couple of colds that lingered and the usual projects around the house and cabin kept me off the saltwater. This was the longest period that I have gone without paddling since 2009.  It was great to be back on the sea again, to feel the familiar swing of the paddle and the push of the water against the bow of the kayak.

Thanks to  Dean, Hazen, Neville and Tony for the company on my first paddle of the year.  It was a great day.

Unfortunately, there are few pictures because the camera battery did not like the cold temperatures.   Here are the few that I was able to capture:

                                                          Tony & Dean at the put in

                                                                         Dean

Bay Bulls on the long weekend in May

It's the 24th of May and we "likes to get away"...to go paddling at Bay Bulls.    Dean, Tobias and I had great paddle out of Bay Bulls.  I had not been on the water for a number of weeks so it was great to feel the water under my boat again.  The weather was much better than I had expected.  A few pics of the day.

Day One - Paddling Towards Ireland's Eye Island

It was my first trip to Random Island but it won't be my last!  I was absolutely captivated by the beauty of what I saw; it reminded me of western Newfoundland.  The four of us left Lower Lance on Random Island just before 1:00 p.m. on June 30.



As we prepared to leave Lower Lance Cove, some were very relaxed

We're underway; from left (Hazen, Dean, & Tobias)

Hazen

Dean

Going ashore for a break

Our campsite at Thoroughfare on the first night

 Overlooking our campsite

More Ice

 This photo illustrates the power of the waves created by the funnelling of water between two bergs. Gerard felt this power and harnessed it skillfully.

 Tony, although not on his first paddle among the ice this year, is perhaps just as much in awe as the rest of us were yesterday.

 Tony

A River Runs Through It?

Iceberg Paddle - April 7,2012

Yesterday, seven of us headed out of Quidi Vidi to take a close look at some icebergs we had been hearing about. We were not disappointed by the beauty of these large "chunks" of ice that travelled so far before reaching our shores. 

Paddlers rush for a look.  Since most of us had not paddled near icebergs for a few years, we were excited about getting there.

 Hazen

Dean & Tobias 

Tobias

On Saturday we headed to Cape Broyle to see what it would look like in the middle of winter.  The rain and mild temperatures of the week had taken away most of the ice that had been there..  It was a great paddle anyway, with three of us enjoying the day.

Anticipation for the day

Tony, at the Falls

Gerard

Tony and Gerard

Enjoying the day





St. Philips to Portugal Cove

Dean, Tony and I had a great time today as we paddled along the shore between St. Philips and Portugal Cove.   There were very few slots in the rocks that we did not paddle through today.  I keep going back to this area because it's close to home and especially interesting when the water rushes in and around the rocks, creating opportunities to practice bracing.  The day ended with coffee at the seaside restaurant.  Thanks guys for a great couple of hours on the water.