“Happiness is a day spent in my kayak”

And that came true yesterday as I enjoyed a wonderful day on the water with friends.  The weatherman had called for cloudy skies, with some rain starting in the afternoon. Well, we were happy to prove him wrong. We had a bit of grey cloud in the morning, with a chill in the air, but by lunch we were under blue skies with white fluffy clouds, and sunshine.  What a treat, and a wonderful way to open November

The paddle to DeCourcy Island is one of my favourites and it did not disappoint today.  

As we made our way through Dodd Narrows on a gentle push of tidal current, we were treated to seeing lots of sea lions feeding on salmon.  They were noisy, and when they caught a fish, they would throw it up in the air a few times, to make sure it was good and stunned, before gulping it down.  These animals are big and bulky, but they are fast and streamlined in the water.    

Paddling at this time of year means there is a nip in the air,  and the water is cold, but with the right gear, it’s comfortable to paddle.  The upside is that the water,  is crystal clear, and with the sun shining you can see way down through the sparkling water to see the sea life, sand, and all other manner of goodies on the ocean floor. 

Fall also means higher than normal high tides, and landing for lunch can be a challenge.  Our normal lunch spot on the beach at Pirate’s Cove all but disappeared.  We had to carefully get out of our boats, with the assistance of the logs on the beach. We then hauled our boats up on the logs.  With the tide still coming in, we watched the logs slowly start to float, and our boats bob up and down.  We carefully got back in them after we enjoyed lunch in the warm sunshine!

The west side of DeCourcy is the spectacular side, with the sandstone cliffs and amazing erosion patterns.  It never gets old.  Today, with the high water, we could weave in and around the rocks where we usually cannot.  It was fun to explore.  

We crossed back to our put-in on mirror smooth water, where the paddlers, boats, and clouds provided spectacular reflections.  It was a magical time and we all had smiles on our face, especially because the day’s weather exceeded our expectations!

It was a great way to get a dose of paradise, and I will store these memories on my long flights to Europe and back.