Paddle Log #27 Newfound Lake

We took a day trip over to visit my wife's aunt and uncle on Newfound Lake.  As I mentioned in my last post, I didn't have my kayak since we flew across country. 

Conveniently enough, the NH Audubon Society rents kayaks at the Paradise Point Nature Center.  The staff there was very friendly and helpful.  The process of renting the kayak was very quick and painless, and the rates they charge are very reasonable - probably the least expensive kayak rental I've ever had (and I've rented kayaks at two places in Pearl Harbor, on Maui, in DC, and Lake Winnipesaukee before this).  Lemme tell ya it was money well spent, because I had a beautiful afternoon on the water!

The rental gear was in good condition.  They set me up in a single-seater Perception kayak.  Like the loaner Wilderness Systems Pamlico 100 I used a few days ago on Lake Winnipesaukee, it was a little on the small side for me, and my knees were sticking up out of the cockpit, but it wasn't bad. 

I paddled out onto the lake and it was pretty darn choppy.  There was 5-10 knots of wind coming out of the south, and the fetch was allowing the wind waves to build up to 2 feet or so.  I paddled south and then west, clockwise around Paradise Point and into the Charles L. Bean sanctuary.  In the picture above, my boys are speeding by in that boat crossing my bow on their way out tubing.  There's also a family of mergansers in the foreground on the left.

Once I entered the shelter of the sanctuary, it was absolutely peaceful and the water was like glass.  I almost felt guilty disturbing the peace as I glided through the lily pads.  I would have loved to just hang out there a while, quietly gliding along the shore.  Unfortunately, the only downside of renting a kayak from the NH Audubon Society is that they all have to be turned in by 4 p.m., and I still had to paddle up-wind to get back to the dock at Paradise Point.  As a result, you'll see in my trip stats that I was moving for 1 hour 11 minutes but only spent 32 seconds not moving.  Even so, it was still money well spent, good exercise, and a beautiful afternoon on the water. 

When I got back, I was pleasantly surprised to find that family of mergansers sitting on the rocks, and they actually cooperated with letting me try to take some pictures as I paddled by.

Stats for the paddle log:

• Date: Tuesday, 31 July 2012
• Time In: 2:36 p.m.
  
• Time Out: 4:00 p.m.
• Elapsed:  1 hrs 11 min
• Moving Time (GPS): 1 hours 11 min
• Stopped Time (GPS):  32 seconds
• Mileage (GPS): 2.87 miles
  
• Sea State: 1 on lake, 0 in sanctuary.  There were ~2 foot waves on the lake with a steady wind from the south and plenty of fetch.  Once I paddled into the sanctuary the water was like glass.
• Winds: 5-10 kts SE
• Air Temp:  81F
• Water Temp: 79.4F
• Current:  None.
• Gauge Height: 
• Avg Speed (GPS):  2.4 mph
  
• Max Speed by (GPS):  4.5 mph
• Rapids?  None. 
• Hazardes?  Not much.  Wake from an occasional passing boat.
  
• Kit: Perception rented from NH Audubon Society.  Flop hat, NRS paddling gloves, short sleeve swim shirt, swim trunks, Keen Newport sandals.
• Configuration:
• Route:  Put-in at the Paradise Point Nature Center run by the NH Audubon Society.  Paddled clockwise (south then west) around Paradise Point into the Charles L. Bean Sanctuary.  
• Other comments (such as wildlife spotted): 1 adult merganser with 4 juveniles in tow, many ducks, water bugs and water lilies.