(Hullo world.
Funny, I always said I was going to be one of those people who “kept up” with
their blog. Famous last words, Amanda. Not to mention a lesson in humility
about how when you say you won’t be that person, you are destined to become
that person.
Obviously, I am woefully behind, and, just as obviously, I am still
alive. I have no excuses beyond being uninspired, and transitioning into a new
job role post-injury that has left me both more appreciative of how much my
body actually does and reluctant to spend yet more hours behind the computer.
Bad combo.
The back injury took time to mend…and - in the grand scheme of back
injuries - wasn’t honestly all that bad. Still, it left me with a
new appreciation for pain and how incapacitating back *stuff* can be- and mine
was strictly related to severe muscle strain-
I didn’t even venture into the realm of spinal injury or nerve damage. So,
my hat is off to all of you who suffer from chronic back pain. It's awful.)
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Andy and I have been in the process of rediscovering the Oregon Coast
for some time now after an extended hiatus…kayaking clearly has something to do
with it, but it’s been a joy to remember what an incredible area we live in.
(My wonderful father, who lives in Ohio, and constantly teases/harasses
me to move back closer to family, one time asked me, “What does Oregon have
that Ohio doesn’t? [a few years later, my adorable brother asked me something
similar, however, he lives in the South. Yup, family spread out all over the
place.] I replied (to both questions): “Topography.” [GRIN])
Never good at sports, my Super Bowl Sunday looked something like this:
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| pretty little Nestucca |
Kayaking. Island Life. Sunshine. Next to no one else around. Pretty much perfect.
Andy and I decided to explore Nestucca Bay near Pacific City. It’s a
fairly sheltered bay that is part of the Nestucca River flowing thru the
coastal flats between the towns of Pacific City and Neskowin. Its personality
is variable- pastoral in the upper reaches, flowing thru flats and pasture
land, increasingly tidal and coastal towards the inlet, with quite the wind
chop as Andy and I discovered soon after launch.
We’re still new to bays- as such, we exercise caution. We launched
during the change in tide, so we were careful to steer clear of the mouth,
which we could see in the distance, breaking white and wide and frothy- not
smart for novice newbies like ourselves. No loss, however. We played in the
current and chop, practicing strokes and maneuvers, and watched wary seals
follow us around, poking their heads in and out of the waves.
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| sea glass and barnacles |
We made landfall on an island. Andy crabbed. One of the wonderful aspects about dry suits
is they are insulating- so I took a nap in the February sunshine on an island on
the Oregon Coast in FEBRUARY.
It was glorious.
3 comments:
Good to see you pop up again. I really miss ocean kayaking. That area looks beautiful.
I was once one of those folks that said something along the same line.....yep...that would be me....good to see your alive and still enjoying the great outdoors.
Thank you both! It was a rough winter, so it just got to the point where catching up seemed impossible...
and Mary, we are very much still *learning* and at the ocean's mercy. I hope to someday be...proficient.
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