Apr 13, 2015 - BASHA KILL LAKE kayaking, near Wurtsboro. Basha Kill WMA. The lake is a widening of the Basha (aka Basher) Kill; the Long Path passes along its SE shore following an old rr bed. The Shawangunks rise up to its E & hills rise to the W. Best place to launch is on the SE shore. While I ate lunch & got ready, several birders were enjoying the sights; an LLBean kayak landed - the occupant was wearing a PFD (good) but his cotton jeans (bad) were wet up to his knees. Paddled around the lake clockwise with some poking around the islands. Soon saw an eagles' nest in a tall pine. Lots of Canada geese, some nesting already. Painted turtles basked in the sun (temp got up into the low 70s) on logs & hummocks. Noticeable current near the outlet. Saw an immature eagle on a tree branch & 3 mature eagles flew by. Some marshy & brushy areas, water clear & mostly about 2' deep. A muskrat swam across in front of me, got out next to a tree stump & munched on something then casually slid back into the water & swam away. Lots of maple hardwoods along shoreline but also areas of white pines. Not enough room to get under the Haven Rd bridge so did not explore the NE section (would only be a 20' carry across the road). Great blue heron, wood ducks, mergansers, ring-necked ducks, bluebirds, red-winged blackbirds, tree swallows; the sounds of spring peepers. Motors - only electric allowed. 8.4 miles, 4 hours on the water.
Oct 31, 2004 - BASHER KILL canoeing. Southern NY Wildlife Management Area (aka Bashakill). Put-in at gravel launch area half way down E shore. The Basher Kill winds thru a large marshy area which most maps show as a lake - one can easily paddle 10+ miles roundtrip especially if one explores away from the main channel once in a while. Ridges (the Shawangunks or "Gunks") rise 1,000' on both sides - their slopes painted with the yellow, gold, bronze of oaks. Surprised not to see any ducks or geese but did see painted turtles, ladybugs, red-tailed hawks - have seen bald eagles (supposed to be a nest on one of the islands) & ospreys here in spring. Took a long lunch - was so sunny & warm (60s) I had to strip to shorts & t-shirt. Visually there is little devlopment but some gunshots & Rt.209 traffic noise reminded us we were not far from "civilization". Bell Northwind , a 17'6" tandem Kevlar canoe - very good speed, primary stability, maneuverability, tracking; excellent secondary stability - a great all-around canoe. Very windy at times - canoeing in wind has a lot more to do with trim & paddler ability than canoe design but certain design elements like a little bow rocker can help (especially if the bow paddler knows how to take advantage of it).
Apr. 23, 2001 - Bashakill Wildlife Management Area, Sullivan County canoeing. Another warm, humid day in the 80s. From Kingston, take Rt. 209 past Wardsboro. I launched onto the Basher Kill flow from a parking area about half way down the east shore. Headed south & basically did a clockwise tour near shoreline with some detours. Super spot for wildlife: black & wood ducks, fish, frogs, painted & huge snapping turtles, C geese, g b herons & 2 pairs of ospreys (one stayed on nest, figured it sat on eggs). Paddled the Wildfire RX again, good speed when I needed it; its low primary stability not best for looking thru binoculars but I got better as day wore on.
Mar. 26, 2000 - Bashakill Wildlife Management Area, Sullivan County. Paddled the Basher Kill which in this area is a shallow marshy lake about 4 miles long & is the largest freshwater wetland in southeastern NY. The only thing the weatherpeople were right about this day was the wind - ended up being mostly sunny & in the upper 50s. Boat of choice was the Bell Canoe Works Rob Roy - basically a 15' kayak with large cockpit based on a canoe hull - not quite the speed of a sea kayak, but quite fast, roomy, good stability, excellent secondary stability, great tracking, slightly hard to turn, gets blown around a little by the wind & much better looking than most plastic kayaks. Paddled from the southern end, central Shawangunks to the east, could see the cliffs of northern 'Gunks to the north. Marshy areas keep you from going too far in a straight line. Mostly oaks on hillsides, saw some reddish buds appearring on lower elevation trees. Only motors allowed are electric so lake stays quiet, saw a few of these & a few kayakers & canoeists - some noise from nearby roads but not too bad. Saw geese, mallards, wood ducks, black ducks, a swan, a snake swimming, a bald eagle flying overhead & an osprey on its nest - also heard spring peepers for the first time this year. Along eastern shoreline runs the Long Path & also a nice waterfall can be found (from the road). Felt real mellllowwwwwwwww at the end of the trip.
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