It’s been a long time since I mused from a kayak but here it goes. All I can say is that I missed it more than I even thought. There is something about being out across a mile of open water in harmony with everything-okay maybe not everything. The wind picked up and was pretty dramatic, a storm came through and the breeze was a welcome break from the heat we had endured.

You can see the bottom, stingrays, sea robins, crabs and other things I couldn’t quite identify. Fishing is almost a secondary process to the whole thing. I did something different on this vacation-if you focus all on one thing whether it be photography or fishing you lose sight of what is all around you. I spent some time on a pier and yet instead of stressing about bait and looking for fish, I just relaxed with a camera, not trying to capture anything special just out there for fun. 

I watched stingrays feeding close to shore, numerous turtles and a few redfish coming close to the surf where we as fishermen would have loved to find them but not at that moment. There is a beautiful thing about being an observer, you tend to notice smells of the ocean, people and their interactions and just how amazing it is to be near the ocean. 

As exhausting as it is  being in the extreme humidity and heat, my son wanted to go fishing before sunset and against my better judgement-I went down to the beach, no fishing rod, not even a camera which I later really regretted. I sat for several hours watching my son out there fishing, with a  bit of concern for his well being-he later mention there was a shark out in the surf as he was fishing. I swear a hurricane wouldn’t damper his enthusiasm for the sport of fishing. That period of time was just amazing-I watched two beautiful girls dance and pose on the beach as if they were young aspiring swimsuit models-don’t assume anything as they were pretty much just silhouettes by the bright sun that was going down behind them. I met a young Indian woman and her companion as she photographed, I watched and listened to the black skimmers that had made claim to the beach as their nesting sites and they were quite bold and aggressive. As I finally decided to call my son in due to a lack of light-I realized how much more you can focus and enjoy what’s around when you do nothing and just be present. I listened to the waves and watched them rise and fall and it was magical.

But back to Kayaking-we didn’t catch anything but we didn’t miss anything either, I stood in a  school of bait fish and just enjoyed being in the ocean, the water was a cool relief to the heat. Luckily for all of us the storm moved in and if it weren’t for the fear of being struck by lightning, the colors, the smell and most of all the incredible breeze was unforgettable. The ride home wasn’t as easy as the ride out though due to heat exhaustion and a cross wind that we had to fight with every paddle.

One more observation a bit off the subject, I like the ocean much better when your child feels a bit of fear, in one year we went from kids staying in the shallow surf to swimming out to the first sandbar. I liked it much better before-apprehension is a bad thing but a little bit of fear or caution is a good thing-I learned I still do not love treading water for any period of time but that is a story for another time.