After a couple of recent river trips, my kayaks displayed evidence of our tough exits up muddy banks. Hardened dirt caked the bottoms and streaked the sides. While we wiped down the kayaks as best as we could before loading them on the trailer for the ride home, they were due for a good cleaning.... Continue Reading →
It’s Monday morning and I’ve got the day off. It feels odd driving away from the city rather than inbound with the others on their morning commutes, yet it also feels refreshing mixed with a touch of relief. I’m on my own timeline today, nothing to do but what I want to do, and that... Continue Reading →
“I hear voices,” I called out to our leader, Bill. “You might want to seek professional help,” he responded with a smile. A bit of a jokester, Bill was making fun of my answer to his inquiry on whether the rest of our kayaking group was catching up to us on the river. Together, we... Continue Reading →
I strongly believe Sunday afternoons are meant for relaxing. A calm Sunday puts me in a positive mindset to start yet another hectic work week. Without this weekend time to pause, I feel like I’m going into the week already tired and yearning for Friday instead of enjoying each day as it occurs. Therefore, I... Continue Reading →
It’s all fun and games until somebody falls in—and even then, we couldn’t help but smile and clap. Our friend Bill and his wife, Maggie, helped to coordinate a day trip on the Baraboo River on Sunday, September 1. With everyone else in the water, carefully slid one by one down a steep embankment, Bill... Continue Reading →
This summer I’ve had the opportunity to explore many new bodies of water in my two orange kayaks. There’s certainly no shortage of lakes to choose from in Wisconsin. In fact, my home state boasts over 15,000 freshwater lakes—of which I’ve paddled 20 or just over .001% so far. In addition, Wisconsin has 12,600 rivers... Continue Reading →
Darkness surrounded us, our path illuminated only by the moon in the eastern sky and the glowsticks adorning our kayaks. The bluffs of Devil’s Head State Park shadowed the lake as we skirted its edge. Stars decorated the sky, Jupiter and Saturn appearing first, followed by the Big Dipper, then thousands of tiny distant twinkles.... Continue Reading →
The first weekend in August, I visited friends in Comstock, Wisconsin, a small community in Barron County in the far northwest part of the state. Less than three weeks before my visit, a line of strong thunderstorms rolled through the area with tornados and straight-line winds, ravaging trees and property in its path. My heart... Continue Reading →
Bumper cars on the water: that’s what it felt like as my friends and I strategically paddled our way between dozens of other kayaks, canoes and inner tubes, carefully making our way down the Kickapoo River on a hot Saturday in July. Today was an adventure, all new kayaking territory for the four of us.... Continue Reading →
Beads of sweat trickled down the side of my face, down my arms and chest. My daughter and I sat atop our kayaks in our bikinis and baseball caps, paddling slowly across the water, baking in the sun. The lake was quiet this sultry summer day, the hottest day of the year, a day almost... Continue Reading →
