Bryant Austin’s work is quite beautiful and moving.

Humpback dorsal

We saw blues (endangered), humpbacks (endangered), and Risso’s dolphins. We saw a mola mola who came right up to the the boat and then under it. We also saw many birds including black-footed albatross, shearwaters, and murre mother/chick pairs. The murres who had filled up on krill had a hard time flying as we approached; their full tummies caused them to kind of skip like a rock on the water’s surface, their bellies bouncing on the water, blup blup, blup.

We saw a lot more humpbacks than blues because they were lunge-feeding in which they scoop the krill at the surface. They were usually in pairs, engaging in cooperative feeding. The blues were singular and pretty shy; we generally saw them briefly and far off. There was one that surfaced relatively close and as it dove it was coming directly at our boat so we saw pretty much the whole length. Incredible! Never thought we’d see a blue, always thought they kept far out from shore. You always knew you’d had your last glimpse of a whale when you saw the fluke rising up as they took a deeper dive.

Humpback fluke

Of course, the whales are generally difficult  to photograph as they are mostly underwater. But at the end of the outing we did encounter the humpback that the whale watching community has dubbed Propeller, so named for the propeller scars on his back. He has a fondness or curiosity for boats and came very close.

Our weekends have been taken up with family,  friends, illness, travel, and house chores. Though we love to see family and friends, we hope that house chores and illness will let up so we can get out for a paddle. However, our front yard is looking less like a dump with John’s new fence, our new experience laying pavers for the bin corral (the humongous recycle bin fits through the new gate opening), and gracious and multitudinous donations of prunings from our friend Christy and the Arizona garden. I think we may have ended up planting too much, but we’ll see what survives our drab thumbs.

They always seem to be in synch!

This time we asked Mike to join us. He was assigned to a different kind of kayak than usual, the one they assign to tall paddlers. Sadly it had no rudder, but he did just fine.

 Is it the joy of their teamwork or the sight of the raft of water rabbits?

This jelly was our final wildlife sighting while the other returned to Kayak Connection, taking advantage of our waterproof camera.

We had a hearty lunch at Central Texan BBQ in Castroville. Mmm-mmm. We even took a doggie bag and made a very nice hash with the meat and onion later. Will definitely do that again; never knew what to do with that slice of raw onion they put on the plate, plus this way we’ll have incentive not to overeat at the bbq.

Mike asked a lot of questions about gear. He might even be crazy enough to get his own boat.

After I attended the Western Roundup  (joint meeting of SCA, NWA, CIMA, and SRMA), John and my parents joined me and we took a trip to British Columbia. Driving from Seattle in a rental car, we took the ferry from Tsawwassen to Vancouver Island where we based ourselves for a few days in Victoria. Then we ferried back and were based in Vancouver for a few days. During our time in Vancouver, we went to Deep Cove for a paddle. The rentals were yellow, red, and Kraft noodle colored. Sadly, we do not remember the color of the kayak with which we cheated on the purple kayak. I remember one boat being Kraft noodle colored, but I cannot remember if it was ours or my parents’ boat. I do remember that the boat was not as comfortable as our purple gem. I couldn’t get my footpegs spaced quite right and the seats were designed differently so I had a lot of problems with my legs going to sleep, particularly my right leg.

We paddled up the cove on largely glassy water. Once out of the marina area, the water got a little more choppy (plus a few wakes from motorized craft), but not too much. We paddled up the shore and checked out the variety of homes built along the water, saw or heard a couple of waterfalls, and bird highlights included a loon and an eagle.

We had some mishaps with the cameras for each boat; ours was misplaced and theirs took a little dip. So only one picture for this paddle and it was taken afterwards with a phone.

We found the river through one of our paddle books. In the description were warnings about floods in the winter and spring and low water in the summer and the directions, once on the water, seemed very complicated. Not wanting to get lost in the Delta in unfamiliar water conditions, we were happy to find the activity calendar for the Cosumnes River Preserve included a monthly guided paddle. The first one of the year was on Saturday (our preferred day for paddling) March 20. The catch was getting there for the 8:30 a.m. put-in. At practically the last minute we decided to head out the evening before and stay in a hotel nearby.

The drive took us through parts of California we had not been to before. During the first half of the drive Laura recognized a number of exit names from traffic reports which means we were still in the greater Bay Area as defined by commutes. The second half of the drive was done in late twilight and darkness. We could tell we were following along a river, actually crossing back and forth across it, but we could tell little about the landscape around us. As we approached the last bridge along our planned route, we learned that the bridge was closed. The detour continued along the river in a big loop until we finally hit Interstate 5. Unfortunately we had no sense of whether we were north or south of the communities for which we had identified hotels. After some wanderings we settled on heading north and found a hotel in Elk Grove which we figured was about 15 minutes away from the Preserve. Taking the risk that no one with an empty boat carrier would happen along to steal our boat, we checked in.

Getting up the next morning we found the hotel had a nice complimentary breakfast including hot items such as eggs, bacon, and biscuits in addition to the usual cereal and English muffins.  After fortifying ourselves we headed out to find the Preserve. It was pretty easy to find several exits down I-5, arriving just as the guides were giving instructions. We had time to slather on the last bit of sunscreen and hit the pit toilets before borrowing a set of wheels to get the boat down the 200-yard paved path to the launch dock. The wheels were a great boon! Why haven’t we bought a set before?

Putting in we quickly paddled out, not realizing that everyone was simply gathering just around the bend. As we waited for the final boats, one of our guides spotted a great horned owl in a tree across the way. John saw it, but says it was very well camouflaged. We would never have seen it if the guide hadn’t seen it fly in, presumably after a night of hunting. Once everyone had gathered, the guides introduced themselves and explained the planned route. Our guides were Jeff, one of the few Preserve staff, and volunteers Jim, Tricia, Linda, and Lee. The group was a mix of kayaks and canoes with one to three people per boat ranging from kids to seniors.

We started in Middle Slough. If we had gone west we would have passed under a bridge into a tule marsh; bats live under the bridge. However our destination was Tihuechemne Slough and the riparian forest habitat, so we turned east. Despite being so far inland, the water is still influenced by the tide which was either coming in or slack so we were not trying to paddle against both the current and the tide.

Partway up the river to the next slough we passed under a railroad bridge. As we paddled up the next slough we startled a few large birds, but were unable to definitively identify them. We also saw numerous nest boxes which we later learned were for wood ducks, compensating for the lack of natural snags. At least one was probably an egret while the others may have been night herons or green herons. At the end of the slough the guides told us about the volunteer activities at the slough and the preservation activities as well as the agricultural uses of the area. Coming out of the Tihuechemne Slough we continued up river toward Tall Forest. The river narrows at this point so we had to paddle against the current. The guides recommended checking the river flow before heading out. We encountered about 500 cubic feet per secon; they recommended against anything over 1000. They said to use the measurement at Michigan Bar. We were to cautioned to keep the boat straight in the current and not get turned sideways and pushed into the strainers.

Tall Forest is one of two places you can pull out (the first being at the point at the entry to Tihuechemne Slough). None of the pull outs have facilities, they are simply places to stretch your legs and get a closer look at the variety of habitats. Rather than pull out with the group, we chose to turn around and head back to the dock and the facilities.

We had some moments of anxiety as we would turn a bend and not find the expected dock, but eventually we reached it. We did not have use of the wheels for the return portage as they had been locked up. When we got back to the parking lot we found a lot more people visiting both by car and bike, but the bathrooms were not too busy. After loading the boat and gear we went over to the visitors’ center where we picked up the paddling guide for our next visit and learned about the seasons at the preserve. In other seasons there are sand hill cranes. In the winter the preserve is allowed to flood, an aerial photo showed the visitors center and parking lot surrounded by floodwaters. One of the guides had mentioned paddling in the forest during the winter

On our return home we took a couple of detours to drive through the communities of Locke and Walnut Grove, historic communities of the Delta. We also learned that the night before we had driven between the river and orchards. We do not know what the trees were, but they were in bloom and very beautiful.

• Lesson learned: On the way home, we stopped at West Marine in Antioch and picked up a set of wheels.

We didn’t see any seals last time and we didn’t see any this time, just the odd rocks that masquerade as basking seals. We did get a closer look at the rocks on the shore as well as one still embedded in the cliffside. Apparently they are suspended in the land and as the cliff erodes they tumble to the beach.

This time there were many fewer birds. We saw a few small flocks in the distance or overhead, but not the numerous groups of January. There was a large group of white pelicans in Home Bay.

Coming back was against some wind and would have been better if we could have steered tightly enough to stay close to shore to use the bluffs as wind breakers, but we powered through. Maybe next time we’ll get down to Limantour or go to the picnic haul out near the mouth.

As promised we saw many water rabbits as well as sea lions, pelicans, egrets, and other birds. The variation this time was we tried to go through Rubis Creek. However we lost our way and after many wrong turns going an and retreating, we eventually made our way back to the main channel.

Despite the unfruitful detour, we’ve got another pair of converts.

We still have a punch list on the bathroom (cosmetics) and a smaller one for the guest room (need a nightstand and lamp), but they are both usable and have even accommodated guests already.

The Aggies and some other kayakers who had launched from the ramp headed straight across to the other side, we headed up the shore on the west side. The water was pretty shallow so we were pretty far off the shore, but we still saw the usual complement of herons and egrets stalking their prey. We also shared the water with quite a few cormorants and later the perennial grebes and seals keeping an eye on us. At one point we heard the Aggies get excited about something pretty far off. A bit later we saw the tips of the wings of a bat ray, maybe that was what the Aggies got excited about, but they were finally far enough off that we couldn’t hear even a whisper of their constant chatter. A bit later we saw more bat ray wingtips, but we weren’t sure if it was another one or the same one. Off in the distance, near the entrance to Walker Creek we could see a large group of white things. At first we weren’t sure whether they were natural or man made, living or inert, but as we got close enough for the binoculars to help we could see that they were white pelicans. White pelicans are surface feeders and they were bob-bob-bobbing along, scooping up water and presumably food. We drifted along observing them for a while, occasionally distracted by the flipping of another pair of bat ray wings, settling the question of whether those first two were flukes. Eventually we picked up our paddles and continued on our way.

Now we turned our back to the shore and looked out across the water. We continued to see bat ray wingtips all around, but we were distracted by a cormorant splashing the water with its rear. We wondered whether it was being a dutiful parent and trying to lure us away from something, but we were a long way from anywhere there could be a nest or young. We went back to paddling and looking for bat rays. Then we noticed a commotion off to the left. It was a flock of cormorants all splashing the water with their rears, occasionally diving. Hmm, not a luring technique. Then we looked up and saw three ospreys circling. One dove, then another. The behavior of both types of birds continued. One of the osprey caught a fish and flew off. We realized that the cormorants must have been herding fish and the osprey were benefiting. So once again we stopped and drifted, observing. A brown pelican flew into the group, right at an osprey who had just caught something. The osprey lost its catch and flew off. The pelican splashed down, and the cormorant flock broke up. Party pooper pelican!

We continued paddling up the shore until we reached Tom’s Point where we had decided we would loop back. All along we had observed that the water was fairly shallow, but now, as we paddled away from shore, it seemed to get shallower. Suddenly we heard a loud boom. It was a motorboat running aground. The guys in the boat had to get out and push the boat for quite a ways, but eventually they were able to re-board and speed off. We congratulated ourselves that we had a shallow draft and paddled on, keeping one eye on the bottom and one on the channel marker off near the far shore. The water kept getting shallower so after scraping bottom, we turned up the bay and tried to get across at another location. Scraped bottom again. Finally we gave up and paddled back toward the shore we had come from until we reached a deep area. We paddled up this area for a while, well past the channel marker, studied the wave patterns to determine where there was a current and made a final attempt to get over to the other shore where the water was deeper.  Success. 

We turned and headed down the coast, hugging the shore, using the incoming tide to push along. This was the side that we had paddled on last fall though not the same stretch. Once again we saw a lot of jellies drifting in the tide though this time there were both moon jellies and larger brown jellies (possibly sea nettles). Once we drew near even with Hog Island, we found a current that looked to be going in the right direction and used it to get to the island. We made a quick stop on the west side of the island (the rest is not open for landing) and looked at the huge cormorant colony that has practically killed all the trees with their poop.

After the island we headed back to to Nick’s Cove. An overcast, misty day, but all in all a very successful paddle. We thought it was starting out badly because of the delays caused by the gaggle of Aggies. But those delays put us on the water at a particular point in the tide change. We believe that the bat rays and the cormorant/osprey hunt were tied to that particular point in the tide, that their prey lived on the edge of the change and so they were there for us to see

To begin our 6+ mile trip (longest paddle to date), we paddled up the channel with Bair Island on our left. Intrigued by the whiteness of the beaches, we pulled in to one as we neared the entrance to the bay. It was all shell, several feet high above the water and extending down under the water too. They continued all along the shore around the corner of the island and along the side facing the bay. We learned later that the shell beaches are the result of dredging. They dredge the channel and dump it on Bair Island, presumably it includes organic matter that gets washed away pretty quickly leaving the shells to build up.

The winds were a little stiffer on the bay side of the island, but not horrible. Eventually we came to a passage heading back into the island. We consulted our guide book map and the Google map and decided that this was the passage back through the island. Partway in the passage veered away from the power lines; we decided that this was not the passage we were looking for and turned around. It was nice to have had the little break from the wind. Back at the bay we paddled a little more in the wind until we came to the correct passage, which upon seeing, it was obvious that this was the right one, it was much wider than the first. This one continued straight through the center until it hit Corkscrew Slough.  Due to the favorable winds and tide, no paddling was required for this leg of the trip…just sit back and watch the birds.  We had a free ride to recharge after the strenuous open bay section!

At Corkscrew Slough we headed back towards the ship channel to head back to the ramp. We’ll return sometime when the tides are really high so we have the leeway to take the more twisty passages.

As we were loading up we were approached by a Coast Guard representative who quizzed us about safety gear and confimed that we had PFDs, a whistle, and a way to get water out of the boat. We should’ve gotten extra credit for our paddle floats (Thank you Lo!), but he was off to grill some other boaters. He did recommend getting some sort of waterproof flashlight for if we ever go out at night. Someday we do hope to join one of those moonlight paddles on the bay.

Later Laura spoke to a co-worker who lives on his boat in the area during the week. He says that many of the channels are not navigable unless the tide is high even the one that looked so big and wide. We lucked out with the tide that day.