I had just cancelled my 80th birthday paddle when Chuck Hart called me at 11:00 am. He said, yep going to rain on Sunday, but today is sunny, and warm (47?). And with wind only 6-8 mph, let’s do a paddle! I was not quite as excited as Chuck, but thought might be nice to get on lake before the next rain.

I loaded my kayak and winter gear and met Chuck at Vista Park Lake Wildwood and we launched at 1:30 into a southwest wind over the dam. We enjoyed a down-wind assisted paddle on the north side of lake  🙂

We paddled into Hideaway Bay with little to no wind and to Deer Creek Bridge. Given recent rains, the current at the bridge was flowing. As we entered back into Hideaway, there were nice reflections so took some photos.

We paddled back on the south side of lake protected from the wind by the hills, but the temperature was dropping. The southwest wind over the dam met us as we returned to Vista Park… maybe 8-9 mph, but no problem. We decided to do a fast reverse loop around Pine Island to add some miles.

We quickly loaded our kayaks at the takeout as it was now chilly. Chuck said to me, “Nice early Happy Birthday paddle.”  🙂  Thanks, Chuck, for taking me away from my leaf cleaning chores and getting me on the lake.

Peter Johnson
12/02/2022