Goodbye Erieau

It has been a little rough out on Erie the last few days. Some of you have talked with me on the phone or chatted online and heard our struggles. Shannon and I had a very sobering experience on Saturday and learned to respect Lake Erie a lot more. Being one of the shallowest great lakes means that it can whip into a frenzy very fast. We witnessed this first hand coming into Erieau and having to struggle through 6 foot waves for 2 hours. Only a few times did I really think that we might be capsized or sunk and lose everything but that was more than enough to make me realize how careful we have to be.

We spent today toying with the idea of skipping out on part of Lake Erie and getting a ride of some sort further up the coast. Everyone that I called for advice thought we should stick it out seeing as how we have been able to make it a third of the way across the lake on only three half days of traveling. The most frustrating part for me is knowing how far we could be without all the weather issues. We knew there would be some issues going into this trip but from what we had heard from other kayakers we never expected Erie to be so brutal. Today was a good day to regroup and rethink some of our initial ideas. We are going to be starting earlier in the day to take advantage of the calmer morning weather and pulling off the lake sooner in the afternoon. We are also going to be listening to the NOAA weather reports a lot more thoroughly and finding a safe spot as soon a things get remotely uncomfortable. I know it sounds like some obvious stuff but its more like taking our alertness up a notch to code red.

One great thing that came about because our weather mishaps is that we came upon Bayside Camp in Erieau. We spent an hour or so paddling in Rondeau Bay looking for a place to rest after getting our clocks cleaned. We just so happened to wash up at the right place at the right time. All the friendly folks at the camp site had dinner cooking and invited us to join them for hamburgers, ribs, and beer! We rented a cabin and made ourselves at home, which wasn't hard due to the great hospitality. Later that night we were invited to join a big party at the local bar where a band was playing. Shannon stayed back to catch up on some sleep but I decided to take advantage of the great situation. I had a blast with my new Canadian friends. They really showed me a great time and I truly appreciate it. I met the band between sets and told them about our trip and they were so impressed that they announced it during the next set and had the bar chanting my name! It was really funny and something that I never expect will happen again but it was great.

It will be sad to leave Erieau early tomorrow morning but the weekend is over and we need to move. At some point I would love to come back when I have more time to stay. Thanks again to everyone at Bayside Camp for turning around a lousy situation and making it a great
experience that I will not forget!

-Jay