East Coast Kayaking

Yesterday my husband and I headed out on an afternoon date to Lower Prospect, Nova Scotia to do some sea kayaking with East Coast Outfitters (ECO).  We booked a four-hour kayaking excursion that turned out to be absolutely fabulous.  Our tour guide was friendly and energetic.  Her knowledge about the area and all things ocean was impressive!  She taught us about the lesser-known SS Atlantic, a ship that struck Golden Rule Rock in Lower Prospect, and as a result, 532 lives were lost, the worst marine disaster of that time, until the Titanic sank in 1912.  Interestingly, both ocean-liners were built by the White Star Line.  We also learned that there is no such thing as seagulls (just gulls, and despite common misconception, there is more than one kind) and she shared tons of information about the local fishery and wildlife.  We thoroughly enjoyed our time with her - she made the excursion educational and tailored the trip to our taste.

Despite the questionable weather when leaving Halifax, it became hot and sunny out on the water.  As we launched the water was so calm we almost thought we were on a lake - until a droplet of salt water came our way!



The water remained calm until we ventured further out into the open Atlantic to catch a few waves.  We were absolutely exhausted by the time we had a snack break on Ryan Island.  When we reached the beach we climbed up a cliff in order to check out the water and cove below from a better vantage point.  The view did not disappoint.

After a short break we headed back into the ocean for the second half of our trip.  We hit the water just as the fog really rolled in, which made for a completely different experience.  There was so much fog we could not see past our little group, which made for a decidedly eerie atmosphere.
 

Upon return to ECO, we pretty much collapsed into the car.  We were both so exhausted we could barely raise our arms.  As we walked back into our apartment I promptly hauled out the ice packs as a proactive measure to treat my shoulder (lingering rotator cuff injury - skiing), knee (running) and neck/back (life).  After this, I continued my preventative treatment with an epsom salt bath, tiger balm, heat pack, ice pack and muscle relaxants.  Man, I am high maintenance!  When I woke up this morning I had that "I am afraid to move" moment, where you are hesitant to find out just how much you can/cannot move your body.  I have to say, Dr. Runs knows what she is doing!  I am still sore (particularly neck/shoulder), but, for the first time in a long time, I was not incapacitated after a challenging physical experience.  And the runs, you ask?  The only real drawback of the whole day.  Like the true priss that I am, I scoffed at the idea of having to use the port-a-pottie ... twice!  My husband enjoyed watching my look of dismay as I realized there were no proper facilities.  I also had a serious moment upon realizing that there was no hand sanitizer available - he quickly responded that it would do me some good!  Luckily, I am learning to be flexible, so a meltdown was averted.

Overall the day was a complete success, perhaps owing to the fact that we did not choose to go out in what they call in the biz the "divorce kayak" (a double).