Sandykayak_at_aol.com wrote: > > Since I absolutely prefer tropical beaches with palm trees to concrete > canyons, it was out of a sense of motherly guilty that I went up for a > five-day visit. After four years in New York, my son felt it was mother's > turn to visit him. > > Fortunately, I had arranged to call Ralph Diaz the day after arrival which I > did, and we made plans to meet at the now-famous Downtown Boathouse. It was great having Sandy and her son Steven drop by for a bit of paddling in the embayment area of the Downtown Boathouse. I am only sorry that she didn't take me up on my offer to paddle out into the harbor and around the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island which she visited by tour boat instead. You can't land by kayak (or any other private craft except by autorized tour ferries) on either of this national landmarks. The views of the city skyline are fabulous. You can get them from the tour ferry but there is nothing like bouncing around in the harbors choppy waters and seeing all that grandeur with eyeballs just two feet above the waters' surface. Sandy also missed out on the wedding that was taking place just an hour or so after she and Steven left. Two people who had met at the Downtown Boathouse's free public kayak program last year decided to get hitched and to do so in kayaks in the embayment. They were a lovely couple sitting in a double kayak while friends read parts of the marriage ceremony from the fantail of a small sailboat. The bride and groom were in paddling top clothes but most of the guests were in their finery, which looked pretty much out of place in the wet sitting wells of the sit-on-top kayaks. My wife and I witnessed the event in singles (hmmm, what does that say about married life! :-)). A final image was at the end of it all when the boats had all been put away in their slots in the Boathouse. From the grimy back area that doubles as a changing room, emerged the bride now dressed in a lovely wedding gown and off for the more formal event. Again it was fun meeting Sandy. Steven also seems to have gotten in the swing of things. While his mom was out in the K-Light and he was waiting for a single SOT to become available, he pitched in as a volunteer helping others of the public in and out of the free kayaks. I have a hunch that he and his friends will be back to enjoy this great opportunity and to help out. The experience is contagious. ralph diaz -- ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Ralph Diaz . . . Folding Kayaker newsletter PO Box 0754, New York, NY 10024 Tel: 212-724-5069; E-mail: rdiaz_at_ix.netcom.com "Where's your sea kayak?"----"It's in the bag." ----------------------------------------------------------------------- *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************Received on Wed Sep 08 1999 - 15:17:06 PDT
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