Kayaking Tampa Bay

Before I begin this particular blog post, I want to acknowledge that it’s been some time since I’ve made a post. Typing out blogs has been more time-consuming than I thought, and I’ve focused most of my social media work on my YouTube channel. But I love sharing photos of my outdoor adventures, and I want to continue these through this blog. I imagine that many of my blogs will be a bit more photo-centric, as this one will be. Now on to this post…

This past year my wife and I have experienced a new phenomenon in our lives…for the first time in 22 years our kids are out of the house. Both of them are away for the summer. My daughter has been away at college in Orlando, and my son has been in West Virginia as a counselor and coach at Camp Royal (an action sports camp that focuses on mountain biking, scooter, skateboard and BMX). However this past Fourth of July, we all came together, at my mother’s house in Safety Harbor, Florida. My daughter drove in from college and my son flew into the Tampa airport from West Virginia

One of our favorite family activities that we all do together is kayaking. So when my wife and I packed for the two and a half hour drive to Safety Harbor, we decided to bring our trailer loaded with four kayaks. Up until now we had never brought our kayaks to this area. There’s a boat ramp in Philippe Park in Safety Harbor with direct access to upper Tampa Bay where I’ve always wanted to launch a kayak.

The morning of our kayak began as many of our family activities do. I rose early, spent some time reading, and worked hard to get the family up and moving. Going from faces barely sticking out of the covers to actually in the car and moving is no easy task. It involves me making coffee, oatmeal and getting the kayak gear loaded. I’m a morning person and that is the time of day where I have the most energy, so this effort and coordination is quite enjoyable for me. Seeing the family together and enjoying the outdoors is worth it.

Getting the family up and moving…the challenge is real

Making breakfast for the family…oatmeal is my specialty

Watching the Tour de France as we get ready…a classic summer activity

We made the 5 minute drive from my mom’s house to Philippe Park and unloaded our four sea kayaks. We arrived around 9:30am, and the boat ramp was not too crowded yet (despite it being a Saturday on a holiday weekend). We decided to head straight across the bay. Paddling in open water is actually not something we do very often. Because we live in north central Florida, we most often paddle in rivers. We all enjoyed this change of scenery! When we made it across the bay, we spent some time looking at the houses on the water. My son and I paddled back out in the deep to practice some rolls–a great way to cool off in the 85 degree weather. My son even got to practice his self-rescue technique, as he failed to make his 2nd roll. As he was pumping water out of his cockpit, he was quick to remind me that he was the first to actually successfully make a roll when we were learning. After a few hours we made it back to the boat ramp a few hours later after great family time paddling in the Florida sun. Enjoy the photos!

Annual Pilgrimage to Fall Leaf Country

Racing the 12 Hours of Santos