It is day four of being held captive aboard the MV Abyssinia, floating somewhere in the middle of the southeast Alaska coast. We are in for another night of seafood, followed by Hoyt again trying to entice the ship’s dog George into humping his leg. Evening entertainment at sea typically consists of filtering through endless quantities of, “Oh, wow, that is a good picture, too!” as we recount the day’s whales, bear sightings, and blue icebergs. This is usually quickly followed by a heavy encore of sleep, with no regards for the fact that the sun only sets for about three hours this time of year.

Our mothership adventure has us cruising from Juneau to Petersburg, Alaska over a seven day period. Our small group touring includes me, four others from Oklahoma, and our two captains Eric and Kim. It is a very intimate way to see the best of Alaska via the kayak, as our floating hotel drops us in a new location each day. Hot showers at night and a bed for us to sleep, are a true departure from some of our more rustic adventures.

Everything about the trip is classic southeast Alaska except for the weather. For the first darn time, we finally tested out our fancy anoraks today. Good thing we spent the first half of it under the porch of the boat bringing aboard monstrous flat, flat fish with two eyeballs on one side of their face. “You BAAASTTard,” was followed by many other expletives. Despite struggling for nearly a half hour to bring in her corvette sized halibut, today was not Meredith’s day, as the fish broke loose right as we were about the back the 65 foot fishing trawler over it to disable it. She would soothe her sorrows by bringing aboard every other species of fish the salty sea could offer except for a halibut. Dori landed her first fish ever, a lunker of a fish, which she insisted on filleting herself for our dinner. She noted that her father would be proud of today’s fishing escapades.

Since even before the trip had begun, Dori has been saying, “I just can’t understand why nobody else is out here. The five of us are in fact, the only people in all of southeast enjoying the immeasurable beauty Alaska has to offer. We practically do have the whole place to ourselves, which suits us just fine. While I don’t pretend to know the true stats, far too many folks see Alaska without ever venturing off the cruise ship or tour bus. I always laugh when I see them pull up to the Mendenhall glacier in Juneau, take a few pics, and reboard the bus ten minutes later. The tragedy is the fact that from the visitors’ center, the glacier basically appears to be just merely is big dirty piece of ice.

Our view in contrast was aided by kayaks, which allowed us to visit the bright blue and white spires of ice while paddling Mendenhall Lake. The waterfalls streaming off the mountains and spewing from the glacier were larger than life. A short hike took us to the place where the mountain meets this giant, seven mile long ice cube that was slowly flowing down the hill. Within minutes, Hoyt had become like Alice in Wonderland, disappearing down a small, blue hole in the ice. This tiny crevice proved to be the deceptive entrance to a mystical ice cave the size of a grand hotel ballroom. This was complete with sculpted blue walls and a piece of whitish clear ice hanging from the ceiling. The sunlight illuminated this just enough for it to appear electric. The cave’s subglacial river made music at our feet, bettering a five piece band ensemble. Don’t tell Dori’s children, but she clearly exclaimed, “This is the best day of my life!” Her husband Hoyt also said that this was the best trip he had ever been on, even though it had not even officially begun yet.

More grins would follow in the subsequent days, with each and every Orca breach or Humpback blow. We rarely power up the generator on the ship, because Dori’s camera has been working so hard and fast it provides enough heat for the whole boat, hours after each whale sighting.

Our mornings start with a cup of coffee and other breakfast goodies, as one by one, we make our way upstairs to watch for whales, bears, and other wildlife from the pilot room atop the ship. Today the routine varied just a bit, as we had to pull our pots from the sea to see if we had caught any crab. We had baited these with the heads of the halibut from yesterday’s fishing expedition. The word on the sea is that crabs really like fish heads. Beautiful Dungeness crab and some of the biggest sea stars (starfish) I have ever seen made their way to our crab pot feast. We gave the sea stars a reprieve, and saved the live crustaceans for tonight’s seafood buffet.

Each day we find ourselves once again trapped in a scene straight out of a 5000 piece jigsaw puzzle. On Tuesday, we walked an estuary at low tide, and found it to be quite tough to get more than about five feet without stopping to observe the ever expanding array of creatures at our feet. This low tide would bring sea stars, limpets, and crabs in every variety, including one large spider crab my traveling companions coerced me into taking a swim for to capture. Imagine my disappointment when Captain Eric informed me that I could not eat this behemoth.

We plan our days around the tidal currents we hope will push our kayaks one way or another as we ride the flow to and from our destinations. One day, our overzealous attempts to get a little closer to a group of humpbacks, caused us to miss the slack tide. We would pay dearly for this, as it took a lot of work for every little amount of progress. The current was running counter to the breeze, which was further complicated by the fact that the large inlet of the Tracy Arm was trying to all drain out one small opening. The resultant sea consisted of three foot rollers which were hitting our kayaks abeam. The look on Hoyt’s face was pretty intense, as I am certain he had never kayaked in conditions such as these. I could hear him thinking, “Help me Jesus, HELP ME!!!”

Everyone made the crossing without incident, and a day spent chasing whales was capped by a pod of Orcas swimming right past us as we were resting on the beach. Go figure. This would not be our only close encounter with giant mammals. We also were treated with the Von Trapp family of humpbacks singing all afternoon, multiple whale breaches, lunge feedings, and another humpback whale that cruised right past us one day while we were kayaking. Overall, the number of whales spotted was in the hundreds, speaking to the great productivity of the cold waters of Southeast Alaska. Even the seals and sea lions were a treat to observe.

Not all the large mammal observations were at sea. We had a grizzly bear foraging one hundred yards away from us on shore at low tide one day.. A hike earlier this same day had brought evidence of his presence. The large clawed paws scraped craters in the stream bank, as this critter searched for grubs and other food stuffs. A fresh scat was further proof. “Hey Meredith, put your hand on this bread loaf sized poop so when we take a picture, we will have something to use as a size reference.” She didn’t bite on this offer.

The Baird glacier was another big highlight of the trip. We paddled over to it, and parked the boats above the high tide line. This required us to shuffle our weighted down kayaks over land. The trick was in the fact that the glacial till from the piece of ice consisted of giant rounded boulders. Despite the workout, we got all the yaks to high ground and tied them off to a bush for good measure.

Glacier hikes make one feel very, very miniscule. We made our way up the frozen valley of ice, stopping to check out some pockets that looked like craters on the moon. This glacier had lots and lots of deposits which had thawed from the ice to be left atop this big frozen ice cube. The Artic terns danced all around us in a ballet of diving gestures. We knew this meant that they were nesting on the frozen earth, so we made our visit brief so not disturb them. Again this was a naturalists dream in the making, as we watched the best that mother nature had to offer no matter which direction we looked.

Sadly, every trip has to come to a close. We docked the Abyssinia in the quaint town of Petersburg, where we would spend the day perusing the town before we would take the ferry back to Juneau overnight. Each of us had been brought much closer to each other during the last seven days, despite the fact that I was getting up in the middle of the night to eat all the seafood leftovers slated for lunches the next day. The friendships will surely last a lifetime, just like the memories. No wonder this trip always books immediately when we post it!

“Swamp Critters and the lies they weave…” Thursday, October 28th at 7 p.m. in the evening.

Come to the swamp themed party and eat some Cajun cooking (Catfish, Slaw, Red Beans and Rice, Hush Puppies.)  The survivors of our recent Cypress Swamp Tour will share tall tales and great photos from the amazing adventure. With any luck, we may even have a campfire and marshmallows

This will be at the home of Dave and Casey Lindo, located at 4700 W. Memorial Rd.  (You won’t find this place without calling for directions.

This is an open invite, so feel free to invite your friends and family.  …and for those of you who have yet to get involved, this is a great opportunity to meet some real nice folks.

There is no charge to attend and you need not bring a thing!  Please do RSVP by sending an email to dave@okckayak.com so we know how many we are cooking for.

See you soon!

Dave Lindo

OKC Kayak Paddlesport Superstore

220 N. Western Ave.

Oklahoma City, OK 73106

Have you ever honked at that little old lady who was taking just a wee bit too long at the intersection crosswalk? Tripped a small child then laughed? Gotten a little greedy and fished a five spot out of the collection basket at church? Sat beside the hungry homeless guy whom you just told you spent your last dime, while eating a juicy double quarter pound burger, pot belly overlapping your belt?

Of course you have not. Uh, uh, and neither have I.
Anyway, if you are just a darn nice person, or have some bad karma to repent for, we need your help. OKC Kayak sponsors the largest indoor kayaking pond in the universe each year at the Oklahoma Wildlife Expo. The expo is the state’s largest outdoor and recreational event with loads of free fun for all ages. Our part of this annual event, the kayaking booth, is held inside the Lazy E Arena, is free to the public, and is wildly popular. We will put about 15,000 kiddos in kayaks over a three day period. This will be held September 24, 25, 26th (Friday, Saturday, and Sunday). Hours are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day.
Here is how you can help. We put this on at no charge, but it takes a darn lot of volunteers (20 plus folks round the clock) to make this happen. It is extremely rewarding to see all the smiles kids have when trying kayaking for the first time. We need folks to help put on lifejackets and to corral kids on the water. No kayaking experience is necessary. You can sign up for a four hour (or less) block of time, all day or the entire weekend. We really need folks on Friday when the school kids come out if your schedule allows, or anytime the rest of the weekend.

I will feed you and provide plenty of hot coffee (if you still trust me) which will keep the folks wading in the pond warm. This is tons of fun! If you need another bribe. All non employees of OKC Kayak will be eligible to win loads of free lessons, rentals, gear, and even a kayak to be given away on-site all weekend long.

Let me know what time slot you are able to commit to. This is a great project for your church, school, scout, or corporate group needing some community volunteer hours.

(And/OR…..)– The Redman Triathlon is Saturday, September 25th from 6:30 a.m - 10 a.m. They need safety kayakers to be on the water in case a swimmer needs a little helping hand. Seeing 1000 swimmers thrashing about in the water at the crack of dawn always reminds me of salmon spawning. I may even bring my alder plank and some horseradish sauce this year. If you are game for seeing the sunrise while watching a bunch of motivated individuals live out their dreams to the tune of a Rocky soundtrack, register to volunteer at the Redman Triathlon website. Tell them you will be a safety kayaker, helping with the swim event.

No experience is needed for either event. Many thanks in advance!  Call or email me directly at the contact info below!)

Dave Lindo
OKC Kayak Paddlesport Superstore
220 N. Western Ave.
Oklahoma City, OK 73106

405.830.9689

dave@okckayak.com
www.okckayak.com

While, we all realize that our cities are strapped for cash, kayakers already
are hit pretty hard with licensing and other fees despite the fact that no
infrastructure such as sidewalks, boat ramps, etc. are needed to support this
recreation. Raising the fee will serve to further deter paddlesport activity on
our lakes and rivers. Several years back when the City of Oklahoma City
required a $25 permit for bicycles, the citizen spoke up and got this ordinance
revoked. This is your chance to be heard. The only way to speak at the meeting
is to request permission in advance from Jeff Murray in the Parks and Recreation
Department. His email is jeff.murray@… or his phone number is
405.297.2338 (Please be respectful in all your dealings with our city
officials, as their job is not an easy one) Jeff’s response will be that there
are no plans to raise the fee, but it is clearly on the meeting agenda as Item #
5. The Agenda is a public document.

I suggest we encourage participation in recreation by increasing the number of
parks and making it easier for folks to enjoy outdoor activities. We spend
plenty of marketing $$$ trying to convince the world that Oklahoma City is a
progressive town with abundant opportunities for recreation and other things
which add value to our quality of life. Let’s not make it harder for folks to
access our waters.

On another note, another proposal is already being considered for a recreational
paddle trail in Stinchcomb Wildlife Refuge. I am all for paddle trails as they
have done great things for recreational paddlesports and economies. My problem
with the current proposal is that it includes signage and docks within the
refuge. I go to Stinchcomb to get away from signs of civilization. Upstream
access to the docks would be provided only to those paying a fee to the local
boathouse. My other issues are the fact that the docks would serve to collect
floating garbage and debris coming down the river. This area floods regularly ,
which would annihilate any signage or other infrastructure. The bank access and
foot traffic would instigate erosion putting more silt in the river. I am in
favor of a paddle trail designation with signage at the put in, a small floating
dock or launch area open to the public just south of the NW 39th street bridge,
and a map of the area with tidbits about the local flora and fauna. This is my
personal opinion.

Sorry for the long post. Just a heads up on both of these items in case your
were not already aware of what is happening.

Respectfully submitted,

Dave Lindo– OKC Kayak 830-9689

The end of April is synonymous with all sorts of going green events in celebration of Earth Day.  The question I have for you is “Have you thanked a wetland lately?”  Yes, I said, “thanked a wetland!”  We owe these treasures a big thank you for many a thing, not the least of which is recreation.  What else you query?  Well how about a significant percentage of the world’s food supply?  How many of us like rice or have ever eaten a real marshmallow?
Whether it is habitat for animals, recreation, flood control, or clean water, wetlands have a vital role in our communities.  Now you can show your thanks by offering one of our local gems of a wetland a helping hand while doing some free kayaking at the same time.  Join us on Saturday, April 24th for the Fifth Annual Stinchcomb Wildlife Refuge and Lake Overholser Cleanup in northwest Oklahoma City (near NW 39th and Council—visit the www.okckayak.com home page for launch map links, Google Earth maps and detailed directions).  The event will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.  We will be meeting at the pavillion near the Lake Overholser Dam tennis courts to check in volunteers and hand out trash bags.
Please RSVP no later than April 20 by calling Rodney Boegel 405.802.3678 for more information and to reserve your free kayak, lifejacket, and paddle generously provided by OKC Kayak, Oklahoma’s only kayak shop.  OKC Kayak will even give you a mini safety and how-to briefing prior to putting you in a boat.

Participants will want to bring gloves, sturdy footwear that can get wet, eyeglass retainer straps, sunscreen, and a water bottle.  Lunch and drinks will be provided.  Rumor has it that there will even be great door prizes to be raffled off during lunch.
The best part of the day is the fact that you will get to meet great folks via the kayak while pulling some unusual stuff out of the refuge.  Last year I had my hands all over this mysterious reservoir, which I had the hardest time figuring out its purpose until two other kayaks showed up with the remaining parts of a portable toilet. If only you will be so lucky this year.  Come join us!!!!

The only way you can see these pics and video is to show up at tonights, “Where the heck do you kayak in Oklahoma?” slide show that I am presenting at the Backwoods in Norman.  This will start at 7 p.m.

See you there!