Sometimes I come back from a trip and I'm just glad to be home. Maybe the weather was bad or the trip dynamics didn't work out. Or I didn't click with my travel companions. And other times I come home and can't stop thinking about all the cool things we saw and did. Last weekend was the latter. It was the perfect trip, with perfect weather, and perfect companions. Special thanks to Rick who invited the four of us to scout this trip out with him. Rick is a kayak instructor for Kayak Training as well as a kayak adventure guide for REI Adventures. The trip we did this weekend will be offered as a paid adventure through REI later in the summer. But you get to read about it here ... first.

The itinerary for our trip was as follows. Meet Friday morning at 9:15 at the dock in Crisfield, Md. Drive all the cars to the take-out point at Saxis and all drive back to Crisfield in one car. Then take the ferry from Crisfield to Smith Island with the kayaks. From Smith Island we would kayak south through mostly protected waters to Tangier. Spend the night in Hilda Crockett's B&B on Tangier Island. Saturday kayak from Tangier to Watts Island, then camp on a remote uninhabited island. Sunday we would paddle from the island to the takeout at Saxis stopping at various islands along the way.

I left the house around 5:30 Friday morning for the three hour drive. The weather forecast had been messing with our plans and we had spent most of Thursday exchanging emails about alternative kayaking routes. I had toyed with the idea of driving to Janes Island Thursday night and camping, but not sure what the final plan would be I opted to stay connected to the internet Thursday night and drive down early Friday morning like everyone else. Along the way a truck passed me on Rt 13 south with two kayaks. I didn't get a look at the driver but the passenger of the truck contorted his face in the window and waved to me. It was the ugliest face in the world. And I'm thinking, I hope those ugly kayakers aren't paddling where I'm going.

Imagine my surprise when 5 minutes after I pull into the dock next to Gina's car at Crisfield the truck with the kayaks pulls up next to my car. It's those ugly kayakers! No ... it was just Bob and Bob laughing their heads off.

Having two Bob's on the trip was going to be confusing so we decided one of the Bob's needed a new name. Bob, from Baltimore, had done a 70 mile race the previous weekend so someone suggested we call him the energizer bunny, or bunny Bob. Neither names fit so we dubbed him Uber Bob. According to the Urban Dictionary of Slang, uber means the ultimate, above all, the best, top, something that nothing is better than. Anyone who can run 70 miles in 15 hours without stopping deserves to be called Uber Bob.

We unloaded the kayaks and gear onto the dock and left Bob to guard our gear while Uber Bob, Gina, Rick and I drove the cars to Saxis. We had just dropped the cars off at Saxis and begun the drive back to Crisfield when Gina realized she left her wallet in the car with all her money and credit cards. Instead of wasting time driving back to Saxis for the wallet we decided to stop at an ATM and get extra cash to share. I took out $100 and asked Gina if she just wanted to take the money and pay me back. "No," she said. "It would feel more special if you just paid for things along the way." Ok, then. Gina was to be my "date" for the weekend.

The ferry from Crisfield to Smith Island cost $10 per person and $10 per kayak. We loaded the kayaks on the roof of the ferry. The ferry ride from Crisfield to Smith Island was short and uneventful. We applied sunscreen lotion and bug spray and watched the weather. The ferry stopped at the town of Ewell on Smith Island around 1:15. We unloaded the kayaks and looked around for a place to launch. The best launch spot we could find was a small drop off the main road with no beach and plenty of rocks.

But first ... crab cakes. My food supply was stocked with energy bars, dried fruit and peanut butter crackers. There were two restaurants at the dock. We all agreed that a crab cake sandwich would be the perfect way to start the trip. The energy bars could be saved for later. After lunch we went back to the launch spot and discussed how to get the kayaks and gear in the water. We decided to lower the kayaks down first then load the gear once the kayaks were in the water. We launched from Smith around 3:00.

The trip from Smith Island to Tangier was approximately 11.5 nautical miles. The first part was uneventful, although it's always good to be out on the water. I was still focused on my speed and racing so I would ask Rick what we were aiming for on the horizon then try to race to it. We paddled south through the main part of the island and came out to a small chain of sandbar type islands filled with ... birds. Hundreds of them. Startled by the presence of these strange intruders they exited the sandbars in droves filling the sky above us and around us. It was remimnescent of a scene out of a Hitchcock movie. Gina got a really cool shot of me in my kayak surrounded by birds. She has a Pentax Optio with a zoom. My Sony waterproof Cyber-Shot didn't have a zoom. My bird photos came out looking like dots in the sky.



After the birds we had about a 2 hour paddle till we reached Tangier. So we stopped on a sandbar to snack and stretch our legs. Once we were back in the boats and left the area with the sandbars the waves picked up a little but still the weather was much better than the forecast. The forecast had predicted waves 1-2 feet. The waves were one foot at most.



We reached Tangier about 6:30. Our original plan was to leave the kayaks at the dock and carry some gear to the B&B. But we couldn't find a launching ramp at the dock and we didn't want to drag the kayaks, which were loaded down with gear, up several feet to the docks. So we paddled inland through a narrow waterway that took us close to the center of town. We spent about 45 minutes looking for a beach to land but finding none we disembarked near one of the pedestrian bridges and left the kayaks by the side of the "road". There are few cars on the island of Tangier. The residents get around by electric golf carts or bikes. The road was really a large walkway. We unloaded some clothes and toiletries from the kayaks and left the rest of the gear with the boats. It was around 7:30 before we made it to the B&B.

As it turns out Hilda Crockett's B&B was only a short walk up the road. And the Crockett's were actually looking for us. We were quickly ushered to our rooms and told to meet in the dining room for dinner in about half an hour. Gina and I took the more feminine looking room and Rick, Uber Bob and Bob took the other room. Two beds in each room. I'm not sure how the three guys negotiated their sleeping arrangements. But I gave Gina the double bed and I took the single. After all ... she was my "date" for the weekend.

I was expecting the B&B to drag out a few leftovers for our dinner. Oh was I wrong! She brought a feast. There were crabcakes, ham, potato salad, coleslaw, corn pudding, homemade bread, pound cake, green beans and more. It had been a long day. We were tired and famished. We left some food on the table. But not much.

After dinner someone brought out some wine and the group went for a walk around the island. I went to bed. I showed Gina a trick we used in college when one roommate was staying out late. We left a lamp on and draped some t-shirts over the top. Unfortunately, the B&B had put 100 watt bulbs in the lamp. The next morning we noticed that we had melted the lampshade. Oh well ...

Saturday morning we paddled out of Tangier around 11 am. The first part of the trip was still protected by a sandbar on the right so the waves were small. After we passed the sandbar the waves got more interesting, up to 2 feet. It was about a 4 mile crossing to Watts Island. My initial thought was to race over and wait for the others. I was still thinking speed and racing. So I started paddling hard. I hadn't gotten very far when Uber Bob sped up beside me. He gave me a kind lecture about the dangers of doing an open water crossing alone and suggested I stick with the group. It was a good move. I slowed down and let the group catch up. Occasionally I would do a few sprints just to see how my speed was in the Mirage but I didn't let myself get too far ahead.



We had an early lunch on Watts then headed out to the other island where we would camp for the night. The uninhabited island was nothing but a large sandbar with a few trees and shrubs. No birds or other animal life was visible. Unless you count biting flies.

Gina and Bob went for a walk around the island while Uber Bob and Rick went back out kayaking. I settled down in my kayak on the beach and just enjoyed the sound of the waves lapping against the shore. Later Gina and Bob came back and we sat on the kayaks. Gina covered herself in sand to escape the biting flies and Bob scanned his GPS for signs of our island. According to the GPS we were still in the water! Since noone had claimed this island Bob stuck his greenland paddle in the sand and put out a flag. The island was now ours!



Later we all set up our tents and started meal preparations. Everyone had some version of a camping meal in a bag. Gina and I both brought Pad Thai although hers was better. Uber Bob had sweet and sour shrimp. And Bob had some creole rice meal. We rarely saw Rick eat. He later told us that he used to be much heavier (hard to believe) and had to watch his weight (even harder to believe).

No trip to the beach is complete without pictures of the sunset. Here is mine ....



Saturday was also Rick's birthday. After dinner we made a small campfire, broke open Gina's bottle of scotch and presented Rick with a gift. A loud tie-died t-shirt from Tangier and a hat. Gina also had an apple cobbler in a bag that she passed around. The fire didn't last long and neither did the scotch.



We stayed up for a while telling stories. None of which I remember. But all of which were very funny (or maybe it was the scotch). Pretty soon people were drifting back to their tents for the evening. I fell asleep pretty fast.

Rick must be an early riser because he was up long before anyone else. Gina was probably the last to get up. But when she did she was greeted by a chorus of "Good morning, Sunshine." Gina is our sunshine girl.



And the sun was shining. It was to be another perfect day.

Sunday we left our unnamed island around 9:30. We had an 11 mile paddle to the take-out at Saxis. For the first part of the trip the wind was almost dead calm and the water was flat. We stopped on Half-moon island for about 30 minutes to snack and stretch our legs but most of the day was spent paddling. The wind started to pick up later and so did the waves. I pinched a nerve in my wrist so I decided to switch from the wing paddle to the greenland paddle. For nonkayakers reading this ... a wing paddle is like high gear on your bike and a greenland paddle is like low gear. It made the return trip a lot easier on my arms but I never made it much over 4.5 mph unless I was surfing.



We made it to the take-out at Saxis around 1:30. It took us another hour or so to get organized and load the cars. Uber Bob and Bob surprised us all by quickly changing into clean dry clothes. Gina and I were still wearing the same paddling clothes we started out in two days ago.



Some people have higher standards of cleanliness I guess. Rick still had his car back in Crisfield so I drove him back and the others followed. We ended the trip with a farewell seafood dinner in Crisfield.


Thanks to everyone for a truly memorable weekend. And especially thanks to Rick for putting it all together and inviting us along.

- Susanita