The Winchelseas

Since Eli and I arrived in Lantzville (just up island from Nanaimo), the winds at the Sebastion launch have mostly been from the north and strong enough that we did not venture out to the Winchelsea Islands on our own - just paddling into Nannoose Bay or else east along the shore. As neophyte kayakers, we are conservative. Today was relatively calm with moderate winds expected to develop from the east.

With such favorable conditions we launched at Sebastion at 9:10 AM and paddled west to the Benwaldun launch where Brian, Anna, and Dave joined us - with Dave as our leader. After waiting for another paddler, who never showed, we set out. It was indeed calm at this point (10:15 AM) and we paddled to South Winchelsea where we stopped to stretch our legs, stepping carefully among the bright purple starfish exposed by the low tide. We then continued our trip, rejecting Maude Island as a lunch stop and paddling on to 'seal bone' beach on Southey Island. There we had lunch, watched by an eagle perched in a tree high above.

During our trip, we skirted various small islands, seeing many seals sunning themselves. Although we tried to give them plenty of room, many waddled into the sea.

The afternoon wind picked up from the east, but was still quite moderate. We made our way back to Sebastion with the others accompanying us, landing at 2:35 PM. Dave, Brian, and Anna then headed west to their original launch site.

It was a great day on the water, starting with grey weather then giving way to sunny breaks. Kayaking, like the canoing I did when young, transports me into the moment and the rest of my life fades away - very restorative.

Richard
2007.09.26