My wife and I have really gotten into kayaking the last couple summers, and it occurred to me that, short of one or both of us dying, there’s no reason we can’t still do that together:
[ul]
[li]If social distancing is still a thing, it’s pretty easy to do in a kayak[/li][li]Even if we both lose our jobs and are broke, kayaking is basically free since we already have the kayaks and the equipment to haul them. Will just need a little gas money, and hopefully the Jeep stays in good working order.[/li][/ul]
We are lucky to have two nice rivers to kayak within easy driving distance here in the West Bloomfield area in SE Michigan, with plenty of free spots to park and launch.
Local access to the Clinton river is a 5 minute drive from us and is not at all crowded with kayakers, even on summer weekends. Many long stretches of the river, with wetlands on both sides, look like being in the deep woods, even though we’re in the suburbs.
It’s also a short drive to the closest launches of the Huron River, which is wider than the Clinton and more clear of debris, and goes through some really pretty State Park and wild areas. It goes on for 104 miles until it empties out into Lake Erie, so there’s a lot to explore if we get ambitious. But it’s quite a bit more crowded, especially on weekends.
How about you guys- what simple, enjoyable things in life is CV not going to take from you, no matter what?
The governor of Arkansas just requested the feds close the Buffalo Nat’l river system because of crowds.
I’m looking forward to getting my strength and health back in time for summer, regardless of the virus. As long as I can keep from getting it. Crossed fingers. We are on lock down around here.
I belong to two glider clubs in northern Ca. A bunch of the members of these two clubs have been organizing and doing multi-person sailplane cross-country races and similar events using a well-known (in the glider community) sailplane simulator that also does multi-person. Several members have been working on developing scenery and terrain features for the local areas.
Yeah, it’s ok to get out for exercise, walking, hiking, biking, etc., as long as we stay 6 feet apart. I don’t see why kayaking would be any different.
(@solost – I have a friend who’s been obsessively into kayaking for some years now. He’s put up an extensive blog of his adventures (mostly along the Pacific coast, but not entirely), including a lot of photography. If it interests you to read stuff like that, check out http://kayaker.net/index.php.)
Depends on the state but, in some places, you are only supposed to go for a walk/run from your home. No driving to any parks. And the kayak on the roof does give it away. It’s ok here in Illinois under the ‘for outdoor activity’ exemption with walking, biking , running or hiking which are explicitly allowed. Playgrounds are closed so no pullups on the monkey bars.
One of the guidelines I’ve been seeing (particularly in California) says you can go out doing stuff like that, but only near your home. “If you have to drive to get there, it’s too far.”
Went for a ride on my horse today (I ride a quarter mile to the trailhead, from my barn – no driving involved). Trails had just thawed and were plenty muddy. Horse was full of spizzerinktum from not being ridden much at all yet this year. It was a bit hard to hold her in. She was astonished at a pile of snow, a wheelbarrow full of branches, the log splitter covered with a tarp, and a number of totally invisible to me things. The woods were full of gurgling water, and from every pool came a chorus of frogs, singing their little frog hearts out for spring.
Seems that caring for an animal’s needs would definitely fall under “essential” tasks. Not a horseman, but needing to get the animal out of a stall and moving around seems as necessary as human exercise, if not more.
Me? I still go to the marina and take the boat out. It’s on a separate, access-controlled dock with its own parking area, and I can see if anyone’s there when I drive up. My only concern is the remote possibility of being challenged about my purpose while driving there or when pulling the dock cart across the lot. For that reason (go ahead, laugh) I used the raw water pump to bring a couple inches of lake water into the bilge, and keep a set of tools and sealing tape in the cart. I know it’s a reach, but allows me to claim a leak and a “must-repair” event to justify being out and about. Once I make it onto the dock and the gate locks behind me I figure I’m good to go and no one is likely to follow with pesky questions. Trust me, there’s plenty of social distance when I do this – it’s measured in miles.
Now in the second week of layoff and first really serious week of lockdown. After basically wanting to hibernate for the first week, I am getting back into my art and writing. Colours! Last night I mocked up a couple of covers for my book!
Thanks Telemark! That “travel as necessary” phrase leaves things in a bit of a gray area. I guess even if the shelter in place order actually continued through to kayak season, I would choose to interpret that as “ok to take a 5 minute drive with kayaks on my roof rack”.
My 16 year old, who I’ve been pretty worried about because he’s 16 and right in the time of life when he’s getting some freedom and hanging out with friends, declared, “Except for not being able to play soccer, quarantine is great!” He’s enjoying getting through his schoolwork in a few hours and being able to spend all sorts of time on art and projects he’s wanted to do. So it’s making my life a lot easier to have a kid who is making the best of a bad situation. My 14 year old, the more social of the two, is doing better than expected, also.