Apr 8-14, 2007 - kayaking NC Outer Banks. Spent most of the week camped in the dunes at Oregon Inlet Campground (Frisco, on Hatteras Isl., is the nicest of the National Seashore campgrounds, Oregon Inlet is more convenient to restaurants, etc. like the Outer Banks Brewing Station which had very good beer & food) - windy; refreshing cold showers. Windy most of the week - 15-25 knots range. The sounds are generally shallow & we saw little boat traffic of any kind. P & H Quest, a 17'7" sea kayak.
Apr 14 - Croatan Sound. W side of Roanoke Island from boat ramp on California St. Temp in 60s. Mix of some development & wild sand beaches. More beaches on Roanoke Island than on the sound side of the National Seashore. Lots of wildlife: osprey on nest, pelican, ibis, C geese nesting.
Apr 13 - Kitty Hawk Woods. From boat ramp on Bob Perry Rd. Jean Guite Creek (covered bridge), Stone Island, Currituck & Kitty Hawk Bays. Temp in 60s. Osprey, egrets, muskrat, nutria - no cottonmouths (darn!).
Apr 12 - Pamlico Sound from Ocracoke Island. Took the ferry over to 18-mile-long Ocracoke Island - interesting village of Ocracoke, most of the island is undeveloped National Seashore. Temp in 70s. Put in at Molasses Creek & headed NE to wild pony corral. Several coves & creeks along the way can be explored if one can find the deeper water. Clear water - very shallow, tho.
Apr 11 - Milltail Creek, Aligator River NWR. From Buffalo City Rd. The creek is wide at first but soon narrows to 40'. Alligator, owl, little blue heron; osprey nest between 2 trees on Alligator River which is over 4 miles wide.
Apr 10 - Pamlico Sound from Salvo Day-Use Area, Hatteras Island. No Ache Island.
Apr 9 - Roanoke Sound along Bodie Island. Headquarters & Bells Islands & south. Mostly marshy islands & shore, found a small island with a beach to land on. Ibis.
Apr 8 - Merchants Millpond, Bennett's Creek, Lassiter Swamp. Absolutely cool place - a maze of bald cypress trees. Alligator, egrets, bald eagle, turtles.
Apr 18, 2003 - CORKERS CREEK & POCOMOKE RIVER. Immature bald eagle, wood duck, prothonotary warblers, american redstarts. From campground, 1.5 miles around island then about a mile upstream on Corkers Creek almost to Rt.113. Mostly bald cypress swamp.
Apr 17 - Leifer Trail(Furnace Town/Upper Nassawango Creek), Milburn Landing (Pocomoke River), Cypress Park (Pocomoke City) walks. Too windy & cold to paddle. Trails took us by bald cypress swamps & thru what they call "upland forests" which are a few feet higher in elevation than the swamps & are comprised of mountain laurel, holly, red maple, pitch & loblolly pines, white, red & water oaks.
Apr 16 - POCOMOKE RIVER & NASSAWANGO CREEK, near Snow Hill, MD. Put-in at Shad Landing. Ospreys, cormorants, pair of bald eagles, Carolina chickadee, painted turtles. Lightly developed, mostly bald cypress swamp. 12 miles, 6 hrs. Skipped the wet suit today due to 80 degree temps. Drove to Chincoteague for dinner & awesome pink/purple full moonrise over the Atlantic.
Apr 15 - JANES ISLAND, CHESAPEAKE BAY near Crisfield, MD. Dolphins. Surfed some waves at N end of island. Remote sandy beaches. Got into some pretty good 2' wind waves as we crossed the mouth of Rock Hole Cove - Kaboose led the way in a Dagger Callisto w/rudder. Green trail, Ward Creek, Blue trail, surfed back up Dougherty Creek Canal to put-in after passing an osprey on man-made raised platform. Still woreAquaShell wet suit despite temp in 70s - water temp around 50 (~60 in shallows near shore) - Oblivia decided to go for a short swim during a break on the W shore & reported it wasn't too bad.
Apr 14 - CHINCOTEAGUE BAY & ASSATEAGUE ISLAND near Ocean City, MD. Dolphins in the Atlantic Ocean. Wild horses & sika deer on the bay side. Catbirds & grackles near the put-in. Arsonis scares up a cloud of geese in one of the bays. Enjnir covered with ticks at lunchstop in the pines (most of us found a tick or 2 on body during the week, look too big to be deer ticks, tho) - hard to find a good place to land esp. at low tide. Water shallow in the bay so you won't see too many motorboats around. Rounded Tingles Island. Watched loon diving behind island near put-in at Ferry Landing. Camped at Pocomoke River SP - Shad Landing Area for rest of week - road traffic too close - would probably choose Milburn Landing campground across the river next time.
Apr 13 - PRIME HOOK CREEK near Lewes, DE. Prime Hook NWR. From refuge HQ we paddle down a channel, then L down another channel, then L again & upstream on the creek. Early part of trip is thru marsh with tall grasses. Shores eventually become treed with red maple, holly & sweet bay magnolia. Mistletoe grows in bunches up on the leafless branches. Banks swampy & only chance of a good dry landing is up side-trail to launch at end of Little Neck Rd. Many side-channels lead to duck blinds, signs at most junctions thankfully point us back to HQ. See large box turtle. 12 miles. Craft-brewed beer lovers should not miss Dogfish Head Brewings & Eats - Nehasane most enjoyed the Indian Brown Ale & the 60 Minute IPA. Camped at Cape Henlopen SP (expensive @ $26, some light industrial type noise at night!) - walked to Atlantic ocean thru old WWII fort area with bunkers still set into the dunes (3 miles RT) - weird! Fish crows common in camping area.
General comments: Spring in evidence here on the Delmarva Peninsula with blossoms & buds on trees, green grass. Lots of chicken farms & turkey vultures. Great egrets fairly common, rarely saw great blue herons. Good beer & restaurants hard to find in Eastern Maryland. Had a tough time deciding which kayak to bring - wanted something that is easy to get in & out of on rough river/creek shore, is not too heavy (up to 55lbs.), has reasonable speed/efficiency but didn't need any speed demon, good for "lite" sea kayaking in small waves, good maneuverability in creeks, can hold a course in moderate winds & is playful (good on edge). Wished I could bring a canoe & a couple of kayaks but didn't have the room. Dagger Charleston 15 (the only plastic boat under consideration has all the prerequisites) - good boat for surfing, used the skeg in most open water situations, skeg up in the creeks for maneuverability - lots of room in cockpit (able to tuck spare paddle between seat & hull, Nalgene drink bottle tucked firmly on opposite side) - able to make it turn just by putting it on edge - lots of primary stability for photography & peering thru binos - great value for the beginner/intermediate touring kayaker (lot of boat for under $900) - plenty of storage room for overnights. Paddles: Liked the Werner Kalliste Carbon Fiber Bent Shaft 230cm paddle as time progressed easy on the arms & wrists. Used Werner Rec Sport 220cm for surfing where a higher angle (more-aggressive) stroke is employed, did not like it anywhere near as much as the Kalliste while cruising. PFD: Stohlquist mOCEAN - comfort is key. SealLine Baja deck bag stayed dry - even when I left the zipper open in the 2' waves (lucky) - able to keep it far enough away from me so as not to hit it while paddling.
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