"The King Island Eclipse"

What a day in Placentia Bay last Friday. Gave more meaning to the "Good Friday" as we come to know it. King Island is an Island in the Iona Group and though there was no astronomical eclipse of moons or suns there was mine, sharing the earthly beauty and tranquility this day provided and sense of connectedness you can only experience by being out there.

"My Eclipse"

My kayak, my old faithful, never seems to have a dry hatch anymore despite my re caulking efforts. She is getting her fair share of scratches and perhaps those alone would slow her down a bit. Perhaps my own engine is revving a bit lower. We have both shared many waters and kilometers together. Many muds, mucks, seaweeds and sands. However I am still captivated by the beauty of a kayak, the back-packing of the waters in many ways, not just a means to an end but a modem of companionship as the more you get to know her the better she'll perform and more responsive she will most likely be. Soon I'll have another but The Eclipse will always be that boat that turned me on to kayaking the most part of the family of paddles that has come to be her own.

"Long Harbour & Placentia Bay"

 

Tony and I decided to do a paddle out of Long Harbour today to take advantage of the good weather. Almost any place would have done you well today. It was a beautiful paddle which was in a spot we had never paddled before which always tweaks the curiosity and explorer mind in a kayaker. We were treated to some calm weather, some sea life and a good bunch of hours of paddle camaraderie. A bit more than 20kms, with slight overcast skies and virtually no wind.

"Long Harbour"

 

On our return from Placentia Bay today I did a little loosening up paddle around our take-out spot. Sometimes after a great paddle I find it hard to let go. Just when I feel I have kinks worked out, my mind set for paddling I get this ensuing feeling of loss knowing I have to leave something behind, especially if it was very enjoyable, like today. I know that I will take the experience with me and have it for ever like I do all my kayaking trips, short and long. So when I return it is sometimes as enjoyable to do a little round about to savor every last drop of all those natural endorphins and all natures beauty and smells knowing that there will always be another day. I can't imagine life without water. It's funny that I should say that because my Mother always said that, "if God made anything better than water, he kept it for himself." Today I believe her, as I always have.

"Long Harbour"

 

Long Harbour comes by it's name earnestly. It is in fact a long harbour. We put in at Mt. Arlington Heights which is a bit of a ways inside the harbour and we still had a nice paddle to get out. In the distance you can see the group of Iona Islands with Merchant Island and Burke Island being the predominant ones. To the west of this group of Islands in the distance is Argentia where the ferry from Newfoundland to Nova Scotia begins its' run in June to Sept. The ferry in Port Aux Basques runs year round.These bouys are marking some sort of fish farming perhaps mussels.

"Bit of a Reef"

 

Bit of a reef near Shag Rocks in Long Harbour.

"Shag Rocks"

 

As you pass Crawley Island on the way out of Long Harbour you come upon Shag Rocks...well if you aim for them. This is a bit of a shallow area with some hidden reef and gnarly waters around the head of the rock formation on the north side. We passed through the "reefy" side and the Shag Rock Head side and was met with a bit of turbulent water and this on a relatively calm day. This area would be treacherous in rough weather.

"KIng Island"

 

King Island was our lunch spot today as we paddled from Long Harbour about nine miles of calm water interspersed with gnarly headlands, reefs, shoals and interesting wave action between Islands. For the most part very calm paddling with little breaks just to take in the sounds of the water, waves, birds and two Minke Whales we observed along our route.

"Hole In The Wall Island"

 

From King Island you can glance over to Hole In The Wall Island which is a stone's throw away. These Islands are part of A group of Islands called the Iona Islands. Some have beaches and take out spots others like Burke Island, does not.

"Beachcomber?"

 

Yeah he was but not for long. Amazing the amount of drag. We cut Tony's booty free, so that he could be free.

"Sassy Little Burke Island"

 

When we departed King Island today we decided to paddle around the western side of Burke Island and the head back into Long Harbour. As you do this Little Burke is on it's northern shore. There is a fair bit of clearance between Big Burke and Little Burke but the water in between is just nasty. We decides to round the west side of Little Burke but made a mental note to come back and play in the summer.

"Dry Dock"

 

Well when we left this dock this morning at about 1030h it was obviously high tide as we slid directly into the water. On the way back we knew it would be max ebb when we docked. Not much of a problem really as we just lifted our boats on the dock. Excellent paddle today Tony. A good 20km or so on a Good Friday. Thanks my friend.