July 22, 2024.
One of the items on our Alaska to-do list was to go on a kayaking trip. Without any kayaks or knowledge, we decided the best way to do this was to pay for a guided tour. And so, we arrived at True North Kayak Adventures mid-morning to go on a scheduled 3/4 day kayak tour.
All the kayakers assembled to put on rubber boots and get the orientation for the day. Then we boarded a small boat that shuttled us across to an island. There, a lineup of kayaks, paddles, dry bags and life vests awaited our arrival. Our guides split us up into two groups (some took the longer route and others the shorter route) and helped us assemble our gear. Then, another orientation and soon we were getting into our boats.
Aaron and I boarded a double kayak, something we hadn’t done since our trip to Hawaii in 2016. I took the front seat for the morning, then we switched after lunch. Three guides corralled our group, which seemed like a really good guide to client ratio! We were in good hands. They were all young people from all over the country, living the dream guiding in Alaska for the summer. Despite not being Alaskans, they’d really done their homework and were able to identify the birds and other sea creatures as well as discuss the local geology and name the peaks on the horizon.
We paddled among sea otters, lots of sea birds and kelp. I didn’t get a great look at anything because the critters kept a good distance between us and them. Of course, they were also much quicker at changing directions and getting away from those colorful plastic boats encroaching on their territory.
Despite having purchased a phone case on a lanyard for this trip, I hardly took any pictures. It was nearly impossible to see what I was taking a picture of, everything was far away and the case made it all blurry anyhow. It was also difficult to operate the phone while holding on to my paddle, rocking back and forth in the waves, etc. After a while I just sheathed my phone and let myself enjoy the experience.
We took a lunch break partway through. The guides led us to another island where the kayak company’s owner had some property. We beached the boats there and I quickly got my painting supplies out. I found a nice spot to sit among the smooth beach stones and made a sketch.
I quickly noticed that the waves were starting to break closer and closer to where I was sitting. I gathered my things, tossed them behind me and took a crab walk step or two back, then continued painting. Not five minutes later, the water was at my feet again. I must have repeated this nonsense five more times before I resigned to picking everything up and walking it well back from the water’s edge. The tidal exchanges here are really big!
The weather shifted over the hour from warm and partly sunny to cool and drizzly. I tucked away my sketchbook to complete my painting back in the van. I swallowed a cup of coffee that the guides provided right before we all loaded back into the boats.
The sea was much rougher now. We paddled along our course as planned, but I noticed a change in demeanor and tone among the guides. I heard one of them discussing an alternate plan on the radio. We weren’t going to be able to circumnavigate the island as described.
They redirected our rag-tag crew and we landed on another island. The whole way there, they paused to share more facts about the cool rocks we were seeing and to talk about the seabirds bobbing in large flotillas nearby. They were just as cheerful as ever, deftly bringing the unsuspecting tourists to our new destination.
We offloaded again and waited for a rescue boat to arrive. The first boat eventually came and took the kayaks away. They tied all the boats together like a string of Christmas lights and the boat towed them back to where they are stored. Meanwhile, another boat came and picked up all the humans to take us to where our day began on Homer Spit. It was all a grand adventure and I’m sure glad I brought plenty of layers to stay warm while waiting for the boat!
We’d been dreaming of fish and chips all day, so after we got dry and cleaned up we walked over to Fresh Catch Cafe. They were all booked up for the night, but we snagged two seats at the bar for dinner. Lucky us, because the halibut fish and chips was in my top three for our entire trip to Alaska (and I ate a LOT of fish and chips). With full bellies, we were ready to find a place to camp and settle in for a nice long sleep.
