Ghost Lake - May 29, 2008

As you can see from the photo, I actually got the boat into the water (finally!). This is Ghost Lake, a lake that is about 15 minutes from my house but is close to where I work so I can head over when things are slow.

When I got to the lake, there was a couple guys in a fishing boat already on the lake so I headed north (as they had gone south). I really didn't go too far as my back has been bothering me. I have a knot in my back the size of a baseball I swear.

As you can see in the photo the lake was like glass when I started out. By the time I got over to the far shore (in the photo), a light breeze started. It wasn't too bad, it kept me nice and cool while I paddled around. I even found a school of fingerling's.

I only stayed out for about 45 minutes to an hour before I pulled the boat out of the water and headed home. With that knot in my back, it causes some pain in my neck as well so I didn't want to aggravate the condition.

All in all, it was a good paddle. The water is cold enough to numb you so I'm glad I didn't end up flipping the kayak.

As you can see - I had my camera with me in a new 'Storm Case'. The camera was safe and dry the whole time. A great investment.

Ghost Lake - June 8, 2008

Woke up today and the winds where very light. I got the roof rack installed pretty quick, up went the boat, and I was off like a herd of turtles.

Just after I arrived at the boat launch at Ghost Lake, another boater arrived. I let him back his truck down to the waters edge as I could always just carry the kayak down.

The water was incredibly calm as I set out. I went the opposite direction from the last time I paddled Ghost Lake. Although I've been on Ghost Lake several times with the kayak, I wanted a bit of a change of scenery (compared to going the same direction as last time).

I went over to the small island I like to visit, to check up on any fish but I didn't see any this time. I did see a few logs floating around in the general area so I grabbed onto them and dragged them to shore. No point in letting some fisherman's boat hitting them.

I paddled along the shore towards the opposite end of the lake (as compared to the shore with the boat launch), cutting across near the bottom so I wouldn't disturb the family I met earlier. By this time the wind started up a bit so I thought I might as well start heading back.

I was paddling quite hard wanting to get some exercise on my way back. I did stop a few times earlier to get a few photos but now I wanted to work hard. Turns out I was on the lake for an hour and a half. Not bad - the last trip I was out for less than an hour.

As it turns out, my arms where not as tired as I thought they might have been: I was able to load up the kayak easily enough so I returned home for the day.

It was a nice day for a paddle. It was also nice and quiet on the lake. I was able to get several photos, and some exercise. It's suppose to rain for the next few days, complete with thunderstorms so it might be a while before I get out again.

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© 2008 Derek Kennedy

Nugget Creek - September 12, 2008

This is the map of my hour long paddle on Nugget Creek (Wabigoon, Ontario). I didn't know it just ended the way it did, and I didn't realize how many twists and turns it had. This map does not due the twist and turns justice.

I finally decided to get the boat into the water even considering that my arm is still bothering me. I've been waiting to allow it to get better as I didn't want to get stuck out on a lake somewhere on my own and not be able to paddle back - or have troubles getting the kayak back on the Jeep.

I worked today but I brought the kayak so I could go out between flights. I 'thought' I was going to Wabigoon River (west of Dryden), but I ended up on Nugget Creek (east of Dryden, but located at Wabigoon - so you can see just how easy it was to make that mistake!). Bad thing was - I told people I was going on the Wabigoon River if I didn't make it back by 11am so I would have been hooped if I got into trouble!

When I arrived, the water was as calm as it could be. I got lucky on my timing, I saw some trains go by and due to the calm water, I got some really nice photos of the trains with their reflections.

As it turns out, this creek is no longer navigable by boat about a mile and a half up the creek. At that point it turns in to rapids (well, depending on the amount of water at any given time). I have no idea what is above that spot as there was a house there (another surprise to me) so I turned around and headed back to the dock.

Half way back to the dock the wind picked up which was not too bad at first but it would get a little stronger depending on what part of the creek I was on (depending on how open I was to the wind). All in all, it was a good paddle. My arm did not bother me at all, I got some nice photos, and I got out of work for a couple hours :)

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© 2008 Derek Kennedy