Paddlewisers, A few recent posts about sea kayaking becoming too popular of a sport and becoming overcrowded have amused me. I live in Orange County California, which is connected to the LA area and is one huge mass of city right next to the Pacific Ocean. Millions of people live here. To get away from it all, I only have to paddle two or three miles offshore, and a boat, much less another kayaker, will rarely come by me. The ocean is big and finding solitude in it isn't difficult. Last year a couple of friends and I did a 24 NM crossing of Santa Monica Bay, which is as close to LA as you can get, and we barely saw any boats for most of our crossing, which we started at 7:00am. Most of the way all we could hear were our paddles dipping in the water and planes taking off over head from Los Angeles International Airport. The contrast between the peaceful ocean and the busy metropolis so nearby was amazing. I don't know why solitude is so important anyway. I like people! Camping in solitude in Southern California is rare, but I usually enjoy the company of others when I camp here. Other people are usually the most interesting aspect of my trips. If sea kayaking isn't spoiled in Southern California, I find it hard to imagine how it could be spoiled anywhere else. All we have to do is what nature does, which is to adapt. Duane Strosaker Irvine, California *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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