Sunday, March 22, 2009

Badin Lake Kayaking

This past Saturday the weather here was beautiful! So I had the kayak loaded up the night before and all ready to go on Saturday. I ended up not leaving the house until almost 10:00 but it worked out well because it's still getting down in the 30's at night here. The closest place for me to put in is about 30-40min up Hwy 49 near the Uwharrie Nation Forest. The flat water that makes up Badin Lake is caused by several dams along the Yadkin River, which is just to the north east of Charlotte, N.C. I really enjoy going up here because it is real hilly, almost like small mountains, and there is not as much boat traffic as many of the other lakes around here. It was so peaceful and relaxing to get out and be on the water again. (I must say that I've been looking forward to warmer weather this year like a kid looks forward to getting out of school for the summer.) I paddled up stream for a few hours until it was about time to stop and eat some peanut butter and jelly sandwiches I brought. So I wedged myself up against a tree limb so I wouldn't float away and propped my feet up on top of the boat. The whole time I was on the water I was constantly surrounded by Great Blue Herons, Osprey, and Anhingas. I don't think I could have had a much better day to go.


More Pics - http://s307.photobucket.com/albums/nn288/nathanhouse82/badin%20lake/


























5 comments:

Melissa said...

LIFE VEST, LIFE VEST, LIFE VEST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You take precautions with your cycling gear - do the same with kayaking...PLEASE!!!!!!!!

Alright, I'm done being a bossy big sister for now! xoxo

Unknown said...

Don't worry there is always a life vest right in front of me on the top of the boat, you can see it in some of the pictures.

Melissa said...

$*!+?#

Dan said...

Nice pics, Badin Lake looks like a good place to paddle from you description. Thanks, I'll have to check it out.
Dan

Unknown said...

Dan- There is a lot of good water to paddle @ Badin Lake. There are several dams up and down the river so take a quick look at the map and see where you want to put in. One of the things I like about it as well is that during the longer days in the summer you can run up there for a few hours after work in the evening since it's only a few minutes up the road from Concord. Happy paddling