[Paddlewise] How was 2004?

I had a great year paddling!

I moved from Deep Creek, MD to Corpus Christi, TX in late 2003 and ran into 
some exceptional kayakers like Ken Johnson and Mark Arnold who taught me 
more than I ever have expected to know about paddling.

In Corpus, I paddled daily with Ken until I met the woman of my dreams.  Too 
late, I realized that her regimen of television, smoking and eating didnt 
allow time for regular exercise and kayaking.  For a few months, I was lucky 
to be able to paddle on the weekends that I wasnt expected to go to 
shopping malls or slave around her house with desultorily assigned projects 
like painting porches, planting shrubs, mowing the lawn and washing the car.

One day in April, 2004, the love fog lifted and I packed the kayaks, a case 
of beer and a couple of Tshirts into my pickup (the early morning jailbreak 
took less than 2 hours with the assistance of my kayaking buddy, Ken) and I 
beat feet across the Mexican border.

Here in Veracruz, I have met a lot of wonderful people and the kayaking is 
great!  I live half a block from the beach and can carry my boat to the 
water. I paddle in the Gulf of Mexico from various beaches to nearby islands 
for workouts or relaxation or snorkeling and in the rivers (no whitewater) 
that feed into the Gulf.

I love the Mexican people and their culture. The wonders never cease here in 
Eastern Mexico for kayakers.   I have raced my kayak in a lake where there 
is an island populated with the only monkeys in the world that have adapted 
in order to dive to catch fish to eat. Cortez landed in the Veracruz area 
and found Malinche near here.  There are ancient Olmec and Mayan kayak 
routes to discover, and there were hundreds of 15th century shipwrecks in 
the area.  It seems that every day, thanks to kayaking, I learn something 
new about Mesoamerica, its descendants, and the Spanish Conquest.

2005 will be my last year in my 50s and I will be paddling at least 4 days 
a week and will continue to work on rolling, edging, rescues, strokes and 
take a BCU course.  In March, I am going with a couple of friends to paddle 
from the Pacific to the Atlantic in a kayak race through the Panama Canal.  
In May, I am planning a long weekend exploring Sumidero Canyon by kayak.  In 
June, I plan on camping for a week on the Carribean coast of Mexico just 
north of Belize.


Jeff Van Cott
http://messenger.msn.click-url.com/go/onm00200471ave/direct/01/
***************************************************************************
PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed
here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire
responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author.
Submissions:     PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net
Subscriptions:   PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net
Website:         http://www.paddlewise.net/
***************************************************************************