This is all relative dependent on where the take out is, what time of the day it is, how long I was convinced there where definitely fish in that hole, and lastly but not least let how much I under estimated the distance I would travel.
I have a passion for paddling just as many here do though our reasons for it may differ. I love the water and the woods they complete me. I think of paddling as equivalent to hiking. They put me out there relying on my own ability to physically go places I would otherwise not know.
Besides the paddle which gives us a direct connection to the water, the paddle craft is the magic carpet on which our passion is purveyed. What an amazing variety of carpets. Then there is the meditative and often thrilling aspects of the water on which we paddle.
Self-reliance is a big part of it, but the Zen/zone/focus/challenge of the action in the moment is perhaps the major component of my paddling passion. I have done my share of grunting That depends on how tired I am or how hard the conditions.
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Nice description.
Trick question with multiple choice answers, sooo…
“A, B, and C–All of the above.”
Depends on the water way, conditions and company I keep. Whether with others or going solo.
(Although your Zenner and Zoner terms seem, metaphysically speaking, very closely interrelated.)
One thing’s for sure though, I am never a “Stoner” or “Boozer” whilst paddling.
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D, none of the above. I mostly look around at the scenery, take pictures, sometimes focus on picking the path ahead, and don’t think much about paddling itself unless there is something unusual happening. For 20 mile days I’m pretty much a groaner toward the end and a napper when I’m done.
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Overall I think I’m trying to spend as much time as possible in a dream state where I still have some awareness of my surroundings. Some grunting or thinking about what the paddle and boat are doing usually doesn’t affect my mindset unless I run into something.
We’ve drifted in the middle of small lakes many times. We put our boats together and enjoy a sunset picnic on the water.
aah. A noticer! That is a worthy old age paddling frame of mind.
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ok try this again- format got screwed up
Thanks for sharing all the responses- for me there is some sort of healing quality or feeling of peace I get from just being outside. I think it was much the same for my father, a WWII vet but he rarely shared what was going on in his head.
As an 80% of the time ww person, I’m mostly surrounded by folks looking for a thrill but that’s not really what I’m into. I’m just trying to sort that out a bit.
I suspect in the ww realm “hitting your lines” is at least sometimes code for “narrowing your focus” and excluding fear from the equation. If you put your focus on just what you need to do and where you need to go, rather than what you are feeling (perhaps some anxiety, uncertainty), then your goal is better achieved (safely navigating through the rapid).
Yet there is still a fun factor to ww that I like- getting tossed or bounced in a wavetrain, feeling the boat plane while surfing a wave, feeling the crisp pull and change of speed on a good eddy turn or peel out. Those aren’t just visual sensations, you feel it. It’s fun! Current can make your life a lot easier, less time being a grunter.
In paddle instruction we tend to focus on the physical skills we can see- paddle strokes, posture, boat control etc. All of those skills help build proficiency and confidence…but if we just focus on just the skills we see, perhaps we’re missing something. Besides I suck at the physical stuff, might as well aim for the metaphysical.
Sometimes the physical and metaphysical collide. I spent several days with someone who was eager to learn to paddle ww. For some novices the learning curve is pretty rough. As a coach/mentor/friend, I try to manage expectations with reality (struggling with skills). Sharing is a key part of this process.
I worked with someone who was having trouble paddling a ww kayak straight even after a couple of days. I was running out of things to try, the student was getting frustrated. So I went “karate-kid” on him. I told him to close his eyes and just focus on feeling the boat. It was amazing to watch how much straighter he paddled with his eyes closed as opposed to being open. I’m not sure I’ll ever encounter that again. For this individual, I wanted to get them to “feel” the boat. He was completely focused (zenning) on visual information but to his own detriment. For this person, “kinestic awareness” is what they needed.
Now shifting the topic…
So the other day I took a day hike and for a mile or so I just got lost in the moment (zoning). That’s something that only happens occaisonally when I paddle. Colin Fletcher was somebody who would write about what was going on in his head. He would share what he was feeling, his senses and observations, thoughts. In short, he would write about “getting lost” or “zoning” even if it was just in a “pocket wilderness” for just a few hours . Later, his writing shifted a bit and became more hyperfocused. He supplied details and observations but not so much about getting lost or zoning- his feelings. His book The Complete Walker, a how to book for backpacking, feels really dated. The equipment has all changed but his mantra of getting lost still holds relevance. Nessmuck might have been the paddling equivalent a century earlier.
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“Let us be thankful that there are still thousands of cool, green nooks beside crystal springs, where the weary soul may hide for a time, away from debts, duns and deviltries, and a while commune with nature in her undress.” Nessmuk (George. W. Sears)
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Man, was I, in a Zone,
grunting, like, some dog, with bone
to pick, apart, my weak-kneed paddle,
but Zen, again, need I pick battle
and so, I found, pleasure to labor,
where naturally, supporting neighbor,
water, the solvent, as problems flow,
reverses hole equation, in close, Zone O.
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I’m a zoner/grunter. As long as I’m feeling good, my ADD is full-on, and my brain might be anywhere and everywhere at once. I don’t tend to go out looking for challenges; but, I usually find a had a few by the time i get home. Part of my challenge is being a zoner with a 10-year old grunter looking for the next bit of entertainment. I want to be lost…But, if I get super tired, sore, injured or have a gear malfunction…I’m definitely a grunter. chopping up the way back into small bits to celebrate accomplishing.
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I never thought about it until you mentioned it. I never had a gear malfunction. Left things at home . . .
I did some grunting on an up and back day hike along the New River yesterday. I was walking from Thurmond WV to the coke ovens at Fire Creek and then back. After some quality zoning out time I approached the finish. The problem was that CSX parked a long coal train blocking my route back to the car. I was one tenth of mile from my car and being finished but had to cross active tracks to get there. 5.7 miles turned into 7.9 miles to get around the train. I supposed I could have climbed between cars but some railroad workers were out doing some maintenance and it is clearly posted where the trail crosses the tracks about trespassing.
The railroad takes trespassing pretty seriously and I understand it. I have a relative that is an engineer for CSX. My own son is the other kind of engineer, testing and troubleshooting train signalling systems- PRT in Morgantown, BART in San Francisco, New York Subway System.
Everybody who wants to hike or bike the Southside Junction-Brooklyn trail just ignores the trail closed sign and railroad trespassing signs and crosses. This typically is no problem. The thought is that the park service has the “trail closed” sign to limit their liability. The normal trains that use this side spur are JR Corman, very short in comparison to the parked CSX train. In fact. this was the first csx train I’ve seen since the railroad reopened the side spur. For many years the rail line that goes between Glen Jean and Thurmond was not in use at all. That’s when the Natl. Park Service established the trail on the long abandoned Southside Junction-Brooklyn (Cunard) spur.
With the New River going from National River Status to National Park and Preserve status I have noticed some more out of state visitors, even during the winter. The politicians who pushed for the change hope that it will bring prosperty to the region. We’ve already done a boyscout camp and a federal prison. Haven’t noticed much of a change. They halted the natural gas pipeline. It turns out that permits really are a neccessity if you want to do a pipeline. I think they got about 1/3 of the way finsihed before they halted. I guess the promise of “Clean Coal” can only get you so far.
Sounds like a great hike. I love walking trails in the snow, though I’ve done less of it in the last few years due to battered joint issues.
Trudge though it may have been to get around that train, you made the good choice. I have a friend who in a similar situation climbed between the cars. The train engaged while he was doing so. They amputated this leg just below the knee.
Planning on doing a scaled back version of our winter mountain backpacking hike soon. Looks like the lows will be in the teens. Milage will be kept to less than 2.5 with packs on due to the ravages of time.
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Those are some old mountains.
And after the Nile, the New River is (ironically for its name) generally considered to be the second oldest river in the world still flowing in its original location since it began by draining the Carboniferous swamps of the Paleozoic Period (which produced all the coal that the state is famous for).