Sea Kayaking — Trip Report

The trip report

Hey Guys, what a splendid sea kayaking trip at Ogunquit Maine on Sat. Sept 5 – see photo. We had perfect weather, warm water, and three hearty and eager new comers (Peter, Jim, and Shawn) to the sport who showed up on time and early, did not misrepresent their skill level, took responsibility by asking for advice and preparing, and they were in good physical shape. We experienced everything all the way from the pastoral to the thrilling.

We started with how to use a “feathered” paddle and how to adjust foot pedals for comfort and lean control of the boat. Our launch was on the grassy tidal flat that opens up to that wonderful panorama behind the dunes at Ogunquit – ripe red rose hips, tall sedge/grass, soft sand, and warm water. Two of the boats came without rudders (good because, with just a little instruction, one does not need a rudder or even a paddle to turn a kayak). So: “while paddling, lean the boat left to turn it right” was my call and before I knew it, all three were practicing how to turn their boats – even Peter whose boat had a rudder that he never put into the water. We took the tide in – first to the walkway just past the gay beach (I had to go body surf just one nice wave) and then we paddled all the way to the end of the Ogunquit River where it was so narrow I had to get out of my kayak to turn it around! Gorgeous scenery: the high grass on each side of the narrow oxbows and a couple of hot 20 something guys without shirts on the deck of one of the beach houses.

With the aesthetics of kayaking now fully absorbed, it was time to be a little serious on the safety side of things. As I came to expect, these guys were delightfully cautious and eager about my requirement that they do a “wet exit”. The opportunity came quickly when Jim, while practicing just how far he could lean the boat, flipped. A controlled wet exit with a forward summersault to prevent the paddler from just falling out of a capsized boat too quickly was now the subject of this “teaching moment”. With understandable skepticism, each took his turn: deep breath, flip the boat, hand up for a 1-2-3 count signal, then out of the boat. With Jim’s earlier comment that he wanted to go into the open ocean, their eagerness to wet exit, and each wanting to learn the wet exit while using a fully fastened spray skirt, I realized that we were on our way to a good time with soon-to-be competent beginners. They borrowed my spray skirt and boat to do the “advanced” wet exit and all got an A+. Peter did the exit twice!

However, the fire in Jim’s his belly for full-blown ocean kayaking may have been inappropriately fanned by the rental people telling him that with calm seas, one does not need a spray skirt on the boat – bad advice big time! So, the safe and fun way was to just get our boats wet in baby waves. It was time for “competent beginners” to go down to the mouth of the river with the outgoing tide and see what current and surf does to kayaks – even slow current and baby waves. We got stopped by the life guard because he did not want anybody to launch a kayak in the ocean without spray skirts but he allowed us to continue when I told him that this was instruction and we were just going no farther than the smaller breaking waves. Well . . . ., as with all boating, one must expect the unpredictable. The waves got a little steeper just as we were entering the shallow water tidal flat and I had to rescue a boat. Handling breaking surf requires a kayaker to lean the boat into the surf with a “high brace” paddle position – thrilling and fun but it only works if the boat has a spray skirt! Shawn did not flip, Peter did but was able to hang on to his boat and walk in to shore, but Jim’s boat got away.

We were in safe water so all three paddlers were OK but the current had taken Jim’s capsized boat a little bit too far out to sea. It was a rental boat not equipped with painter lines so retrieving it was both difficult and fun – and certainly thrilling for spectators Shawn, Jim, and Peter. The difficult part was trying to retrieve a kayak full of water in breaking surf but the fun part was that I was able to ride a few nice waves and show the guys just how to land a kayak in surf. What a nice trip!

From a delighted trip leader,

John

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About this event

Trip Difficulty: Moderate (easy for skilled kayakers)

If you have never kayaked Ogunquit, you are in for a real treat. The Ogunquit River is a beautiful tidal sand-dune river. The sandy beach is one of the finest in Maine with a large gay section somewhat beyond the crowds. The rocks on the Marginal Way and the Cliffs are spectacular. Perkins Cove drawbridge and the rest, from a kayak, is far nicer than by land, and right there by kayak is the beautiful grounds of the Ogunquit Museum of American Art. I will gear the trip to the skill level that we have but you must have paddled a real kayak before. Sit on top kayaks do not work for longer distances like this one and if we paddle out onto the Ocean, you will need a kayak with a spray skirt and you will have to have done a wet exit with spray skirt on as practice sometime before the trip (they are fun too).

Driving Directions: Plan for heavy traffic if the trip goes on Sat. From Massachusetts take I95 North into Maine and take the last exit before the Maine Turnpike Toll (exit 7), turn right at end of the ramp and go to the traffic light and turn left onto Route 1 North. Get into Ogunquit center after about 5 miles on Route 1 North then, at the awful intersection with no traffic light, take the second right onto Ocean St. (they may call it Beach St. now, it changes) and go down about a block and turn left on River St. where you will find the $20 all-day parking and the put-in.

Meet at the River Road all-day parking lot ($20) by 9 AM to make sure that we get a parking space on a holiday weekend, to get an early start on the incoming tide, and to have time to go get our lunch if we decide to eat on the river. If you are not there and parked by 10 AM, we will leave without you (the parking lot is often full by 10AM!!!!). We put-in right there at the parking lot. Paddle up the river to the gay beach, maybe have lunch on the water, maybe paddle out to Perkins Cove and have lunch there if the seas are 2 – 4 feet or less, and maybe paddle down to the 200 foot Cliffs below the Cliff house. Bring for in your kayak: plenty of water to drink, sun screen, money or credit card for a restaruant, extra clothing/towel/foot protection/booties, beach stuff, first aid stuff, etc.

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