Richmond ASR Blog

Marianne and I just finished a great kayak trip in Maine leaving from Seal Cove on the west side of Mount Desert (pronounced "dessert") Island. Bar Harbor is located on the east side of the island which is where we based our vacation. The kayak trip led by Mark Rice-Schoon , owner of "Carpe Diem Kayaking", http://www.carpediemkayaking.com/about.htm went for 3 days/2 nights. We arrived at Mark’s place first thing Wednesday morning…a little earlier than he requested but we had a chance to look over his coral of kayaks. As I was looking, I noticed there were no rudders on these classy, fiberglass boats; I began desperately searching for a boat with a rudder. Boats without rudders are for paddlers who are skilled in paddling and using edges and strokes to control the boat – all of which both Marianne and I are pretty much hacks! But, alas – not a ruddered boat was to be found!

We paddled about 5.5 miles the first day out to Tinker Island where we set up our base camp. We ran into a bit of wind and chop that gave us good opportunity to try some new skills that Mark had been teaching us. That night, we had baked cod and veggies as the main course with smoked salmon, crackers and cheese for appetizers (of course, I had to include some good Laguvulin single malt Scotch – which topped off the night). Since it was pretty cloudy, the stars weren’t visible so we turned in to our tents and sleeping bags. It was a bit chilly – probably 43 to 45 degrees.

The next day we woke up to a calm and cold but cloudy morning. Scrambled eggs and pancakes with hot coffee made breakfast as supplied and cooked by Mark! As we left, the water was pancake flat and we made pretty good time. We ran into a little wind and chop but not bad – great conditions for more skills practicing.

We stopped for lunch on Pond Island – coffee, sandwiches and snacks. We then continued on to the north side of Swan’s Island. There we found a large group of Harbor Seals who quickly found us very intriguing. It took them a while but they eventually began to come closer to the boats for a closer look. After a while, they started swimming around, diving, resurfacing and generally playing around with us. That was the coolest part of the whole trip! We then started the long paddle back to Tinker Island where we ran into some pretty good wind and chop. This was the most challenging section yet. It was at this point that I quickly learned how to use the skeg…and this made a big difference (not as good as a rudder – but better than nothing).

We made it back to camp just before sunset – and it was spectacular…but I almost missed it because once I got out of the kayak – the cold breeze hit me and not having a dry suit, I chilled quickly. So quickly we were a bit concerned about hypothermia. So I got out of my wet clothes and into the sleeping bag for about 10 minutes and I was fine. Got into some dry, warm clothes and built a campfire and all was good. Crackers & cheese, spaghetti with marinara and some good scotch topped it off. AND – tonight was clear as a bell with millions of stars, shooting stars and the occasional orbiting satellite.

After some campfire stories from Mark about his 1200 mile paddle around Sweden and Norway, we turned in for a chilly nights sleep inside our tents and sleeping bags.

(Read about Mark's adventures at his blog at http://carpediemkayaking.wordpress.com/ )

We woke to a cold morning and the weather report called for winds of 15 to 20 knots and gusts up to 25 knots. We had to get up early, eat a quick breakfast and head out with the idea we could get back to Seal Cove before the big winds hit. We made it most of the way back but ran into the worst wind we’d had the whole time. Mare and I were struggling but Mark was cruisin’ with his usual three fingered style making it look "oh-so-easy". I tried my best to emulate his style but it was kind of like playing basketball with Michael Jordan and trying emulate what he did.

Ironically, both Mare and I were figuring that once we got into the cove, the water would be calm due to the protected nature of the cove. Unfortunately, the wind was blowing directly into the cove creating 3 to 4 foot swells and cross currents; the conditions were the worst we had seen. Still – exciting but by this time both Mare and I were pretty tired with arms and shoulders almost completely fatigued. Damn – it felt good to get to the take out and stop paddling and DAMN – that beer tasted good!

Thanks to Mark of Carpe Diem Kayaking; if you’re planning a trip to Maine – you really should consider an adventure led by someone who knows the area, waters, tide and winds!