The First-Timer

This past Saturday, my father-in-law and I took my 10 year old cousin (he'll be 11 next month) out on the kayak for a 1/2 day fishing trip. He'd been after us for quite some time to take him and the excitement began to really build as the trip got closer.
Friday night, he and his younger brother stayed at out house so we could reach the water shortly after daybreak. The excitement dulled a little when I told him we'd be leaving around 6:30am, but I have to admit he was a trooper about it - and tried to get to bed early enough to be coherent the next morning.
I woke him up at 6am, we loaded the truck and met up with my father-in-law.
After a brief stop at the bait/breakfast shop, we headed to the water. Upon arrival, I put him through the "sea-legs" test - rocking the dock back and forth while he stood at the end with his feet together. I'm not sure this has any bearing or affect, but my dad did it to me, and his dad to him. It's a cherished memory and badge of honor; as well as a good laugh.
Once in the water, we tied him off to another kayak until he could get used to paddling and controlling his boat. After about 20 minutes, he was skilled enough to pilot it himself, & we cut him loose.

By then, we were all fishing - um, or at least had bait in the water. The quiet across the water was peaceful and serene. Then we heard, "Um, I think I got something! Yep, theres something on here!" I turned around and saw his rod bouncing up & down. I told him to hang on & I would come help him. As I got close, the fish decided to find deeper water & took him for a ride. The look on his face was priceless!

He fought it for a while & finally landed his first fish over 6" (he told me he had caught a sunfish once) - a decent sized catfish. The rest of the day, he paddled around with his head held high.

All in all, it was a good day on the water. I hope he enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed taking him out. Now, his younger brother wants to go. I can't wait...

Upper Catawba June 3rd

After working the last 20 days in a row, I was ready to hit the water! Today after church, my father-in-law and I wanted to do something a little different; a "distance trip", unlike my usual Lake Wylie (local) paddle.
We've been kicking it around a bit, and on a Sunday afternoon, there isn't a lot of time for road travel. I have been wanting to check out Bobby's place in Mount Holly and paddle down the river a while. Since I'm pretty familiar with "Dale's Place" in Belmont, we decided that would be our take out point. We dropped my father-in-law's truck off at Dale's place, and headed to Bobby's.
As soon as we pulled up, Bobby came out to greet us. He met all of the expectations I had - based on people in the kayak fishing community's circle. SUPER-nice guy, with the best of intentions. I introduced both of us and explained that we had several aquaintances in common - and of course paid our $2 each to put in.
By the time we were on the water, it was somewhere around 2pm and the temperature was in the mid 80's. I have to admit, at first glance, I was impressed with how clean the water looked. It reminded me of Mountain Island - except for the amount of boats in the water. I guess I can't complain... it is June.
Speaking of boats, and I've been around them most of my life - if you're reading this and own a boat, please use some common decency and sense; take the boating safety course. The "no wake" areas are there for a reason! Some moron in a ski-boat; pulling 4 kids on a tube - flipped over 2 poor guys in a jon boat... in a no wake zone (not at the beginning either; they were at the 3rd marker near Tailrace). I'd estimate they were moving about 40 when they swerved to miss the jon boat. The wake alone would have probably been enough to flip them, but the ski rope made sure of it. I wish we could've gotten close enough to read the numbers on their craft - especially since another family at Dale's complained that they almost had been flipped by the same boat. To all power boaters & jet skiers: If you're trying to be funny and see how close you can get to my kayak, don't expect to hear "that's ok" or even get a laugh from a shaking fist. I have a 6oz weight on stand-by with your name on it... and I'm pretty good with a 7' rod. I won't be trying for "close".
In all, we didn't catch anything (some say the bass have moved to the "summer pattern") but we had a great time.
Upper Catawba Pros: Clean water, good paddle, several "resting points" along the way, sand bars, overall friendly people, and you WILL see other kayaks near the Whitewater center & tailrace marina (both do kayak rentals).
Cons: TONS of power boats, jet-skis, lot of development, little nature.

 near Bobby's

 Father-in-law

best view on the water