26 Oct 2000, ralph diaz <rdiaz_at_ix.netcom.com> writes: [with a number of SNIPS] << Last week I drove the 570 miles from the Big Apple to the Outer Banks of North Carolina ... .. Me? I just paddle when down there. My favorite game has been to enter the extensive salt marshes where I try to follow all the leads to see how close I can get to the sand dunes separating the marsh from the sea (really Pamlico Sound). ... .. This is the quieter side of sea kayaking and illustrates just how large a universe this sport, really a calling, can be. As I was paddling the marshes over the weekend, I thought of my PaddleWise friend Doug Lloyd. I wondered what he would make of such sedate paddling that was not as challenging as the sea kayaking pursuits he follows in rough seas with many decisions to make in life threatening situations. My humble challenge was a simple one...find a lead within the marshes ... .. I can't remember who first said that "you make your own adventure." It was in answer to someone who was reading longingly about the exploits of some far off expedition. How true. ralph diaz -------------------------------------------------------- "Where's your sea kayak?"----"It's in the bag." -------------------------------------------------------- Hi, Ralph! Thanks for reminding me, through your account, of those happy youthful years I spent in a (folding) kayak paddling around a northern German "swamp", or rather what was left of it: Strictly speaking I was never more than a few hundred yards from "civilization" as I followed the few miles that were then left of the headwaters of a local river, which springs from an artesian well buried under said swamp. The rest of the river had been turned into a canal at least two generations before I was born and most of the swamp had been drained at that time to create pasture land. Apart from the odd car noise I might have been in some remote corner of the world when on those brown and still waters surrounded by reeds, musty smells and an incredible variety of animal life ... and in my mind I was. Dawn and dusk were the most mysterious times (the latter more threatening because of the dark :-). Summers were sometimes opressive (even that far north), fall and winters stark (when not sufficiently ice bound to stop me paddli ng) and springtime vibrant! My point? You already made it eloquently. And while I do enjoy putting my boats through their paces in more challenging conditions, I do also derive GREAT enjoyment from this aspect of the sport to this day ... and appear to be quietly successful in passing this quiet appreciation on to my two children. Thanks again, Ralph! "The Other Ralph" Ralph_at_PouchBoats.com www.PouchBoats.com *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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