FYI...... as one with uncountable days in the “out of doors” i would inform you that my current foray is in a kayak where there are no polar bears, grizzly bears, wolves, wolvererines, coyotes, etc.
One can paddle close enough to the shore to touch it with the paddle.
Herons and other fishers pay little attention until you are right on them. Sunning turtles are more wary but one can drift close enough to see their eyes, red ear and carapace markings. I once watched for ten minutes a pileated wood pecker tear up a rotting log from 30 feet away. As I was fishing with my trusty fly rod, a mink came trotting by at the waters edge paying me no mind about 30 feet away in a bright yellow kayak.
the kayak is for exercise. The fishing is for resting between episodes of paddling. Last week I made my 102nd voyage
[[FYI...... as one with uncountable days in the “out of doors” i would inform you that my current foray is in a kayak where there are no polar bears, grizzly bears, wolves, wolvererines, coyotes, etc.]]
Lol, watch out for sea lions, great whites, hammer heads, makos, killer whales, angry pelicans, etc (just kidding)
[[One can paddle close enough to the shore to touch it with the paddle.
Herons and other fishers pay little attention until you are right on them. Sunning turtles are more wary but one can drift close enough to see their eyes, red ear and carapace markings.]]
I always wanted to get a kayak for this reason alone- I do photography, and have read people get incredibly close to animals in kayaks- there’s just something ‘unthreatening’ to the animals about the kayak- perhaps it’s the horizontal look to it- perhaps they feel it’s a seal or something-
There’s so much beaty and amazing creatures out there-
I still wander through the woods and will just sit and observe animals just doing hwat they do- it’s quite comical sometimes- and I’ve gotten some pretty cool photos from tiem to time-
I used to hunt, but really it was more about just beign out in the wilds than it was about harvesting meat- and the thrill of sneaking up on animals to within bow distance- Sometimes I’d just do that and not even take the animal- just see how close I could get before animal took off- I once had a deer almost run me over- it saw me at the last second (I was sitting at the base of a tree) and leapt sideways- That was defiantly worth the price of admission (my hunting license cost)- Never did get venison that year- but didn’t care- had a great time out in the wildrness
That sounds lovely! Have you ever read this book? It is wonderful. I thimk you’d enjoy it!
http://www.amazon.com/Canoeing-Cree-Eric-Severeid/dp/0873515331
This is a true adventure story written by a great American icon. It was 1930 and in their late teens, Eric Sevareid and his good friend Walter Port, embark on an amazing canoe journey through much of Minnesota and a remote region of Canada. The story takes you back to an era when life was simple but abundant; to a time when the north woods was truly a brutal frontier and men were really men. They fight mosquitoes, flies, boredom, mud, rain, cold, gigantic waves on Lake Winnepeg and being lost in areas where there is no chance of being saved. There is no modern technology. They are often times very much alone against the elements that had no mercy. As you read the book you cannot help visit the thought that these events actually happened, they really did this and they lived to tell about it. The people they encounter, towns they visit and, of course, the rivers and lakes they traverse are all generously given to people like me who toil at computers all day but shamelessly dream impossible dreams of living in a time and place that is now slipping into the oblivion of modern life.
I’m sure many critics would complain about the simplicity of Eric’s writing and the lack of visual development in some segments. But take this book for what it is and just enjoy it. Makes a good gift, especially for Nintendo bound teenagers who need to see a bigger world.