Up Buffalo Creek

After a day of recuperation, and on the last day of my week off, we took our new kayaks to Moss Lake. Here's Kathleen all ready to go at our neighborhood's access ramp:

The black thing around the cockpit is a splash skirt. While the big open cockpit was a big plus for the buying decision, dripping cold water onto oneself is a bummer. Splash skirts normally cinch around your waist and help minimize water intake during a roll. Kathleen was sold on this one - which leaves a big hole for her (normal) entry & exit, but should keep the drips from the paddle off her self. The orange doo-dad in front of her is a bilge pump for emptying water in the event of a capsize. Since she wants to go out on her own during the week, we decided she would be the official carrier at all times.

Here she is, in action, on the open water of the lake:


Out of our home cove, we turned up another cove to proceed to the headwater for Moss Lake - Buffalo Creek. It was a beautiful day with temperatures in the upper 60's in the afternoon. Here I am, at some point along the creek, when we did a camera swap:

It's amazing how quiet and peaceful this creek is. And it's practically in our backyard! There are stretches where you'd have no idea that residential development and a highway are nearby.

We went all the way up, under the bridges for NC150 and Airport Rd (SR1926), until we couldn't go any further:


The lake is full so we were able to get all the way up to this neat old stone dam. The water was really shallow in spots but there was no problem running aground. In the shallow water, it was really nifty to see great blue heron and, what I'm guessing, are some kind of snail tracks.

Here's a nice shot of Kathleen approaching Moss Lake with some colors in the trees on this steep high hill.


Note the trees that are hung up on the sand to the left of Kathleen. When I bought our vessel licenses at the Moss Lake office (yes! we have to buy a flippin' license to use the lake!), the lady said these trees, when floating out in the lake, create a bit of contention between the boaters and the fishermen. The trees are dangerous for the former, but the latter want them to get water logged and sink for fish habitat. A really big rain will wash these out into the deeper water. Rain from Hurricane Fay, last month, did just that. I described our rowing experience here. No collisions, but an interesting amount of stuff washed in.

We puttered about for almost 3.5 hours. It was a great, relaxing time. Kathleen had a ball. Flatwater kayaking can be either a great escape and stress reliever or a heck of a workout. It all depends upon the pace you choose.

Kathleen's Fingers

Maybe God doesn't want Kathleen to be paddling? Or maybe she should be less stubborn and listen to her husband?

Last night, I was trying to install the Yakima Q-posts onto our Dakota's cab. (Incidentally, our hope to paddle on Lake Hickory yesterday, after picking up Kathleen's Pungo, was washed out by a rainy forecast.) I'd gotten the two posts on each end of a 66" bar and asked her to help on one side and lift the bar up from resting across the bed to sitting on top of the cab. She didn't want to pick it up over her head and insisted on getting our short stepladder. As she was going into the house to retrieve it, somehow she managed to slam the door on her right middle & ring finger - pretty good too. She was in a semi-fetal position for a good 5-10 minutes. She says the middle finger feels fractured. We splinted it with a cut down wooden shim and scotch tape.

That pretty much wrecked the plan to paddle up Buffalo Creek on Saturday and go to Lake Lure on Sunday. Saturday became an off-day. The splint has been working okay - with some boosts from painkillers. Kathleen is hell bent to take her kayak out tomorrow.

In the meanwhile, Kathleen says our back porch is looking like "Kinarsy's garbage dump" (some New York Irish expression). I don't know what she's talking about:
You can't tell here but Kathleen's Pungo is a pretty lime green while my Manitou is a puky lime green. Hers is actually a mottled coloring so the white background gives it a lighter and brighter look.

Impetuous Purchases

Kathleen and I jumped into flatwater kayaking with both feet - purchasing brand new kayaks in a rush as the weather is turning to cold and I have a week off. I've chronicled the lead up in posts on my sculling blog. Here's the Pungo and then the Manitou:here and here. We bought a Pungo 120, by Wilderness Systems, for Kathleen, and a Manitou 13, by Necky, for me. We picked the ladies version of the Pungo so we couldn't walk out of the Outdoor Supply Company store. Great Outdoor Provision Company, in Charlotte, did have the one I wanted so we have it home already.


Not only is mine home, but I took it out for a first paddle already. I went out our cove, around the bend into the headwater cove, and went as far as I could up Buffalo Creek to the old stone dam, now broken. I'll get pictures next time. We are picking up Kathleen's on Friday. We are hoping the rain will hold off long enough for us to get both into a lake or river near the store in Hickory. Keep you posted!