Another lurker heard from. My paddling started with the purchase of a house on the banks of the Chattahoochee River. I had long fantasized that when I hit the lottery, I would buy a house on the river and get a kayak. The lottery is still a fantasy, but when my three sons got out of college, my disposable income increased enough to get the house -- but not enough to get that long, skinny light-weight boat that is still ahead somewhen. My wife and I took a weekend course in sea kayaking in August '97 and I have paddled when I could since then, buying 3 used boats. We paddle together (sometimes in 2 boats, sometimes in a tandem) on the river and on Lake Lanier (north of Atlanta -- 20 minutes from my house); I paddle occasionally on local lakes with a loose-knit group called Atlanta Sea Kayakers; and I paddle alone on the river sometimes when I just have to be on the water again. The boats go to the beach for vacations, but my salt water paddling is limited to easy conditions. I know my skill level (still in the novice range) and exercise my judgment by staying within conditions I can handle. Last month my wife and I took the tandem and my old fiberglass Sea Otter to St. George Island, FL, for a weekend, the highlight of which for me was launching through very gentle surf at dawn, paddling hard for a while, then coasting back home along with several dolphins. I have dreams of paddling more, paddling better boats, building boats. Who knows? Non-paddling stats: age 51; lawyer whose career has been as a staff attorney for appellate courts in Georgia; married 30 years. Ron Johnson *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
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