Guides

One of the things I've already noticed about boating in general, and kayaking/canoeing in particular, is that there is a welcoming mentality to the participants, much like that of the shooting sports. When you pass another boater on the water, a wave, smile, and, "Howyadoin'?" is the custom, not the exception.

I expect I'll soon toss an advert up on the local craigslist looking for a paddling partner (and I mean that in the entirely platonic, boating-related way), and will probably get a few takers (along with a few suggesting the other kind).

Kayaking is not a hard skill to learn, although mastery is another process entirely; wet exits, eskimo rolls, etc. The tricky part is knowing WHERE to go to paddle. There are plenty of guidebooks out there - and I grabbed one yesterday, Take a Paddle: Western New York Quiet Water for Canoes & Kayaks. Some of these can be one-person trips, others need a car parked at each end of a river.

Even though these are well-published routes, there is still an air of adventure as you float down a quiet creek or river. When I went a few hundred yards up the inlet of the small lake I saw a beaver mound, plenty of birds, and lots of sign of land animals coming down for a drink... it's all there, you just have to look for it.

I guess I've got a list of places to check off now.