Kayaking Keuka

Where does the time go?  It was two weeks ago the wife and I visited Keuka Lake in the Finger Lakes.  It was a great little vacation on the lake.  Besides kicking back and watching the water, I got a little time paddling on the 'crooked' lake.

I took the boat off the car and put in a short paddle when we arrived.  Keuka is a busy lake with a lot of summer cottages and boat traffic.  It felt good to be on the water.

After a short paddle, I pulled my kayak ashore.  It had a comfy resting place near the water.

I awoke around 5:00 AM and decided to head up the lake to the outlet.  It was still and quiet.  It is amazing how different the lake felt without boat traffic.

The outlet leads to a slow, winding river.  I could see a marshy area to the left worth exploring.

Off in the distance I could see something splashing about in the water.  It came closer and closer to me.  I've seen this before . . . carp chasing each other about!

After exploring the marshy area, I started to head downstream.  I came across this old boat shed.

Off in the distance I saw a group of waterfowl.  A mother and here ducklings.  Given the shape of the head, my first impression was that these were mergansers.  The sun was still low in the sky and Things were not well illuminated.

After I looked at the photos on the computer was I surprised to see that this was a wood duck and her family!  This is a sight I don't see very often!

Back to the B and B. Just a 5 mile paddle. Time for breakfast.

The wife and I went to the outlet the next day.

The water lilies and damsel flies were beautiful.

Off in the distance we could see a great blue heron. How close can I get?

I guess that was close enough.

I probed the edge of the cattails and found a narrow sliver of water.  I paddled into it and came across an eastern spiny soft shell turtle.  How fortunate.

I had to paddle backwards out of the sliver of water, and hen headed with the wife downstream.  We new it would not be a long paddle as the outlet encounters a series of waterfalls as the river flows into Seneca Lake.

We came across more turtles, this time a painted turtle.

As the river snakes its way through Penn Yan, NY, we would come across various building along the waterfront.  This one had a lot of character (and very little support)!

Any day on the water is better than a good day at work!  Safe paddling . . .