We had an inch or so of snow this morning but it melted off & the temperature was in the upper 40s. Blue skies but the wind (as it has been this spring) was up a bit - probably upper Force 4. The forecast looks like rain & more wind in the future so I decided to load up the Arctic Tern and give it a try. I was in the parking lot of Lake Lansing (about a 460 acre lake & the nearest paddle-able lake) zipping up my paddling suit when a friend from our paddling club stopped by to chat & to check that I had done a proper risk assessment. I ended up paddling upwind for about 15 minutes & then surfed back in about 5 minutes. I spend another 15 - 20 minutes fooling around near the launch practicing turns, edging, and braces. all in all, a pretty good day for the first time in the kayak this year.
You southerners have all the good weather.
Visited my favorite launch yesterday to see what the beach looked like. Glad I didn’t bring a boat.
That wall of ice cubes is over seven feet tall.
Brrrr!
You need to move to the west side of the lake.
Note to self: As long as air conditioning exists never leave the South.
@Rex said:
Note to self: As long as air conditioning exists never leave the South.
Winter Climate Change is coming, my friend.
Hope to copy rival51’s excellent approach for the first paddle of the season with a bit of forward and backward stroke practice, then braces, draws, rudders, edging, and whatever else I can think of. Maybe Saturday on an inland lake, if the forecast is accurate.
I’m okay with waiting for the ice to break up on the big lake, into those enchanting mini-bergs that are so lovely to paddle around. 
What is funny about all this is that the snow birds…….er……“seasonals” that have been wintering in Florida are traveling back up north for about a month.
@Overstreet said:
What is funny about all this is that the snow birds…….er……“seasonals” that have been wintering in Florida are traveling back up north now.
If they got to areas of the Midwest this week, they were in for a cruel surprise as some places were hit with 12" of snow (or more) on April 14-15. Local snowplows were plowing on the 15th and in the town where I work, there’s still a mandated run-water order to prevent waterlines from freezing.
Getting my snow tires off tomorrow so hoping any more snowflakes are just the non-accumulating nuisance type.
Yep, it was good fun. Worthwhile to spend some time sitting broached to the chop (6 - 9" with a few whitecaps) and getting my waist wet on a low brace. The weather forecast for today looked like crap & I have a club meeting tonight where I’m the presenter (The Massasauga P.P.) so I didn’t plan on going out. Now it is looking like great paddling weather - low 60s, light breezes and a high overcast. I could have gone straight from work to the lake and then to the Pub. Oh well.
I committed to spring a couple of weeks ago & took the Blizzaks off.
My first paddle was Monday afternoon in the swamp at Santee State Park in SC. The park is on a major lake that was still feeling the effects of a cold front that roared through the night before. It was about 70°.
A short paddle took us up a creek and into the cypress swamp.
As we got deeper in the wind died . We spent a couple of hours navigating channels through the lilly pads and cypress knees. It was quiet as an empty church.
The foliage was all new and there wasn’t a bug to be seen.
Back on the lake, the Osprey were busily courting and fishing, when they weren’t wind surfing.
Always has; always will.
@Allan Olesen said:
@Sparky961 said:
WinterClimate Change is coming, my friend.A stark reply.
At least one person picked up on the reference.
He was ned the only one.
@Sparky961 said:
@Allan Olesen said:
@Sparky961 said:
WinterClimate Change is coming, my friend.A stark reply.
At least one person picked up on the reference.
I picked up only because of all the publicity. No HBO so I’ve never seen the show.
I suspect the snowbirds thought that Winterfell!
It will be awhile before we get out---- air and water is still way to cold for us. We are the non-adventurous, leisurely type of kayak people.
Hope to get out to see the ice pack/jams today, Been busy doing the final 2 rooms of demo in this old house. Its a tad cool in here as about 1/2 of the walls on the first floor are down to the exterior board.
@Rookie said:
You southerners have all the good weather.Visited my favorite launch yesterday to see what the beach looked like. Glad I didn’t bring a boat.
That wall of ice cubes is over seven feet tall.
Northerners have more fun