The Tale of Three Paddles

Alex.

Our August in Nova Scotia has been a very pleasant one. We have filled our days visiting, walking, napping and (funnest of all) exploring with our kayaks. We’ve had no grand adventures – just sunny relaxing days of great company and great paddling. Following is a tale of three of those paddles.

Around the Big Island

Jim and I had one last goal for paddling the LaHave islands – we wanted to circumnavigate the largest island of the group. Cape LaHave Island is not only large; it’s also fairly exposed.

Our friend Kim agreed to join us, and she even agreed to our early start. The weather was pretty-well perfect. The water was glassy and smooth as we followed the western shore of the island. Seal Point (complete with a seal) was the first major feature we passed. The swell had now started to come in and the scattered shoals were throwing up areas of white water. We took a wide berth and headed down to Bantam Bay.

Bantam Bay is well known for its long stretch of white sand backed by large dunes. It also had surf. We paddled to the far corner looking for the easiest place to land. Jim went first. He then directed Kim and I in when the sets of waves looked the smallest. It was good to get out of the boats and stretch our legs.

After walking the beach, it was now time to leave. Kim and I had the advantage of getting a shove away from the beach. Jim had to fend for himself. From beyond the surf-line we watched as the bow of his boat sliced through a breaking wave – the bulk of which broke right over him.

“That was interesting,” Jim reported to us as he paddled up to Kim and I. Small strips of seaweed were strewn all over his deck. “I lost my water bottle.”

Halibut Bay had a smaller sandy beach. It also had a place to avoid a surf landing. We pulled up on shore for lunch - glad to be finally past the big swells of Cape LaHave itself. We lay down in the sun and had a short nap. It had been about 5 hours of absorbing paddling and we were getting tired.

The final stretch was completely sheltered from swells. A breeze was at our back and the sun was bright and hot. Soon the vehicles were in sight. After 7 ½ hours of paddling, we had circled the island.

Kim Paddles while Jim tries to launch

Food for the Soul

Theresa and Dave have been very generous to us. They have let us use their home, their washing machine, their kayaks - even their driveway for camping. We had only managed to paddle with them once before – accompanied by a mutual friend Kim and Jim’s cousins Verna & Garth. We wanted to go on one last paddle together.

After a very pleasant hour on the water, we pulled our boats on shore. We were at a pebbly beach tucked between two rocky points on ‘thrum cap’. A faint trail lead through a patch of bushes up to the islet’s high point. We admired the view, the sunshine and the perfectly clear water lapping well below us.

We spread our blanket on the rocks. Then the food was piled on. It was a little before eleven in the morning. We offered a nugget of smoked salmon to a friend Gail.

“No thanks, I’ve had breakfast,” she said.

“So have we,” was the reply as we began our feast of cheeses, fresh bread, artichoke dip, fruit, salmon, crackers and olives.

“This is what Kim was talking about after your last trip,” Gail stated.

“Yes, but if she were here we’d have muffins and home made toffee as well.”

Lunch Anyone

LaHave Islands

Prospect Prospective

It had taken a little sweet-talking at the kayak rental office to get a couple of boats for Garth (Jim’s cousin) and Alex (Garth’s son). The rental people were worried about the weather - fog at present and a potential of high winds later. We eventually convinced them that we knew how to stay out of trouble – but even so we were reminded that if we were overdue we’d be charged $100 per hour for a search.

Jim and I had paddled Lower Prospect Point before. We discussed our course, took our bearings and headed out. It was perfectly calm and the noise of the paddles in the water seemed to reverberate around us. We meandered in, out and around several smaller islands in the fog. Then we came to a channel that appeared to be plugged with rocks.

“I’ll go see if we can squeeze through,” said Jim as he paddled away. The three of us watched him as he paddled up to the boulders, lifted his paddle high over his head and turn it parallel with his boat. He then disappeared through a tiny gap. We followed.

“I’d like to see a sail boat do that,” Jim said as we joined him.

After a couple of hours the fog began to lift. We were constantly watching for the forecasted gales but couldn’t even find a breeze. We used our Cell phone to tell the outfitters that we’d be a bit longer.

Less than 15 minutes after lunch the sky was perfectly blue. We paddled to the outside of Shannon Island and the swell was less than six inches. The sun sparkled off the glassy water.

“Garth – I have to warn you of something,” Jim said in a serious tone. “If you think that paddling gets any better than this – I have to tell you – It doesn’t.”

Paddling Lower Prospect