Annapolis-Digby-Clare-Yarmouth
With the last full month of Winter upon us, Visions of Spring and Summer dance in my head.
In order to get us excited for this years adventures, I’m putting together some Top 5 lists!
Some things to consider for a safe adventure:
Wear life Jackets, knowing the tides+ wind+ marine forecasts should be a priority, tying an inexperienced persons craft to a experienced persons craft is a good measure for safety while assessing skill & strength, bring sun protection, food, water, & Bug Spray!
Remember to leave no trace behind!
To kick things off, here are our Top 5 favorite paddling locations (in our area.)
1. Bear River
This is a tidal river and needs to be planned accordingly, attention to the tides and wind is a must!
A fun adventure to plan is to leave from under the bridge, paddle up river into the town of Bear River to get a coffee from Sissiboo Coffee Roaster or some eats, then paddle back out!
If you time it correctly with the tides, the adventure is roughly 2-3 hours up river and 2-3 hours or so back out (depending on your skill level).
You do not want to be working against the tides!
We usually plan to set off from under the bridge when the tide is rising, giving ourselves enough time to paddle up river, enjoy a break and then leave during high water & the tide going out.
That way we are never fighting to paddle the tide and we flow with it instead.
2. Sissiboo River
This is a tidal river and needs to be planned accordingly, attention to the tides and wind is a must! (We have experienced some chop on breezier days.)
Leaving from under the bridge you can paddle up river into Weymouth and beyond, we usually go through Weymouth and continue up to the next bridge where you can start to run out of water when the tide is going out. This is where we like to have a break and a swim if we please before heading back down River. On one of our trips back we actually got to witness a deer swimming across the river right in front of us. It was such a magical moment that was just for us because we happened to be there alone in nature.
If you time it correctly with the tides, the adventure is roughly 2-3 hours up river and 2-3 hours or so back out (depending on your skill level).
You DO NOT want to be working against the tides!
We usually plan to set off from under the bridge when the tide is rising, giving ourselves enough time to paddle up river, enjoy a break and then leave during high water & the tide going out.
That way we are never fighting to paddle the tide and we flow with it instead.
3. Gilberts Cove
Go when St. Mary’s Bay is calm & the tide is within a few hours of being all the way up!
When the tide is dropping there can be a stronger flow out from the tidal creek which pulls away from the cove, so beginner paddlers & swimmers should use extra caution around the flow out. We first tested our children’s abilities with a very long rope tied securely to their paddle boards just incase.
This spot is going to be in several of our Top 5 lists, but for the sake of paddling we love that our whole family is capable (unless the tide is too low) of paddling under the bridge & up the tidal creek. There is so much to study and learn about there, from abundance of little crabs, the minnows and other organisms gathering in the warmth and sunlight up the creek, to the eagle nest that can be viewed in the trees to the right while paddling up the creek. This is a Hot Spot for learning and fun, even if you don’t go up the creek it’s fun to just paddle around the whole cove area.
4. Bear Island
Be sure to check out the wind / water forecasts up to & the day of. Changes in the state of the water and wind can occur fast (especially during tidal changes.)
We had our two older children with us for this one! We had one child in the back part of the kayak with my husband and the other in her own kids kayak that was tied to mine. We departed from the shore at the end of Beachcomber Ln and headed for Bear Island while the tide was up. There was little to no wind so it was a great trip both ways, while we were there we had a little look around, a swim and a nutritional break before heading back.
This paddle was on both my girls top 5 lists.
5. Kejimkujik National park
Whether you like to paddle in a calm flowing river or a vast lake Keji has you covered.
Keji is just one of the wondrously versatile places and will also appear on several of our Top 5 lists.
We sometimes explore the Mersey River by dropping in at Jakes Landing. There is endless wildlife to see around every bend, make sure you take your time to look around! Keji’s abundant Wildlife is one of the reasons it’s in our Top five paddling locations. On just one of our tips exploring the Mersey River we seen minnows, numerous turtles, a snake crossing the river, deer, birds, and even an otter!
Our other most frequented paddling location in Keji is Merrymakedge.
While Merry is notorious for its beauty and dark warm waters, there’s nothing better than paddling out to jump off your paddle board over and over again. It is such a fun way to get wet, swim and avoid the leaches that hang close to shore!
You may not think lakes can get wavy but Merrymakedge is capable of being pretty wavy and harder to navigate on windy days, so please keep that in mind.
I would love to know your favorite places to paddle & why!
We are always looking for new adventures.
