While we were apparently wasting our time on a sailboat this summer, everyone else was kayaking--and having a terrific time.
It started back in June, when David Kocieniewski wrote about his adventure paddling around Venice, dodging vaporetti and startling gondolieri in an inflatable kayak. He didn't even get a ticket for it, an impressive feat in the fine-happy city.]]>
Unless you're really famous, it's tough to make a living as a musician. It takes nearly constant touring just to keep up with the bills, playing night after night at bars, clubs, and coffeehouses all over the country. And now that it costs a small fortune to fill up a car with gas, some musicians are deciding that it's just not worth the trouble and expense any more.
Christopher Bell didn't want to stop touring just because he couldn't afford to fuel up his Corolla, so he got creative. As the New York Times points out in an inspiring story, Bell traded his car for a canoe and embarked on an ambitious quest to paddle the length of the Erie Canal, starting in Buffalo and playing gigs at venues along the way until he arrives in New York City on September 4. ]]>
So you're done with kayaking Manhattan and ready for an edgier boat trip? If you've got your basic boat skills down, one of the world's most picturesque kayak trails is just a few miles from the states, in Mexico's Baja California.
The sparsely populated coastline along the Sea of Cortez is one of North America's most remote waterways. Paddling through aquamarine seas surrounded by desert, rocky caves and the towering volcanic Sierra Giganta mountains, you'll catch sight of humpback whales, California grey whales, dolphins and, if you're extremely lucky, leatherback sea turtles.
GORP has an excellent guide for how to get going on the Sea of Cortez, or for less loner types, Sea Kayak Adventures offers six- to eight-day guided kayak tours through the sea.
Related Stories:
· Kayaking the Sea of Cortez [Gorp]
· Sea Kayak Adventures [Official Site]
· Kayaking Travel coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo: Vox Efx]]]>
The last month of summer is just around the corner, and that means that it's time to get cracking when it comes to planning your last warm weather trip. If you're felling a little rushed and don't think you can get it together before the first frost, then you should probably plan on Florida where the warm weather is a little more extended--to say the least.
Every evening of the full moon (your next opportunity is August 16) through the end of the year is the Full Moon Paddle offered by Adventures in Florida. Just pack some clothes, a glow stick or two, and bring a bottle of wine to share with others. You'll paddle around and enjoy the sunset along the Winter Park chain of lakes with the moon lighting your path after dark.
You'll likely be entertained by the sounds of the water, including some unique animal noises that may or may not frighten some in your party. If you're pretty fearless, the tour offers some ghost stories that might shake up your evening a little more. The tour is only $40 per person, or less if you BYOBoat, so you can definitely afford this even after you emptied your summer vacation piggy bank shortly after Memorial Day.
Related Stories:
· Adventures in Florida [Official Site]
· Active Travel coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo: memotions]]]>
If you read our post about kayaking in Manhattan and thought, I'd like that, but with a greater chance of falling in the Hudson, then kayak polo is for you.
The sport is just what it sounds like--a take on water polo where players paddle around on boats instead of swimming. You can use your paddles to take a hold of the ball, and while bumper car-style attacks are frowned upon, there are plenty of grade-A crashes. It's popular throughout much of Europe, but is only just taking off in the United States.
On July 2 and 8, New York Kayak Polo is offering introductory classes to the sport, held at the Pier 66 Boathouse at the Hudson River and 26th Street. Classes are free, but there's a $5 insurance fee.
Related Stories:
· New York Kayak Polo [Official Site]
· Kayaking Travel coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo: ethanlindsey]]]>
Since NYC is turning into a summer destination, we sent Victor Ozols to check out the West Side kayak scene.
When I tell people about the free, walk-up kayaking program on the Hudson River in Manhattan, I'm generally greeted with incredulous stares. And who can blame them? In this town--where it costs twenty bucks just to walk out your front door--who in their right mind would provide kayak rentals for nothing?
The New York City Downtown Boathouse, that's who. The all-volunteer organization has been introducing New Yorkers to the joys of Hudson River kayaking for years, and it's as simple as showing up, signing a paper indicating that you know how to swim, slipping on a life jacket and hitting the water.]]>
When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie is not what you'll be singing, our mother warned us. "The gondolas in Venice are dirty and unromantic!" But the New York Times offers a sporting alternative: kayaking Venice, where you're your own gondolier.
Motorized boating for nonresidents is technically illegal, but as far as writer David Kocieniewski could tell, people-powered skiffs are free to cruise the canals even with a foreign tourist at the helm. (Given all the rules in Venice, we're sort of amazed.)
Sure, you have to check an inflatable boat (or rent one there) and spend a few days practicing on back canals, but exploring the city by kayak gives you a resident's glimpse of Venice. And after the gondolas are moored for the night, the waterways are all yours.
Related Stories:
· On Venice's Grand Canal in a Kayak [NYT]
· It's the Summer of the Kayak [Jaunted]
· Get Your Row on in Venice [Jaunted]
· Free and Fun in NYC: Kayak the Hudson [Jaunted]
[Photo: jehr]]]>