We almost made it. If we had started just a little bit sooner or spent a little less time at the waterfalls we would have made it to the car before the thunderstorm hit. But at least we made it past the steep part of the hike. We only had to hike through the rain for a little over a mile on relatively flat ground. There were a few streams to cross and the trail was pretty flooded. But my fear that we'd be stepping on wet, slippery rocks in the pouring rain never came to pass. Still by the time we got to the car we were soaked.

On Saturday, June 24th, I did the White Oak Canyon/Cedar Run hike in the Shenandoah National Forest with Marie and Dennis. Marie and Dennis are old friends that I met through Inner City Outings (ICO) several years ago where we were all volunteers. Marie and Dennis are still volunteering with ICO. I have since moved on to other activities, mainly kayaking. Ironically, the last time I hiked with them was about three years ago when the three of us (and Farimah) did this very same hike. It was a hike that none of us will ever forget. And throughout the day each of us kept remembering different things about that hike three years ago and where the hike went wrong. Needless to say when I was packing my backpack for today's hike I threw in a flashlight, extra clothes, and my first aid kit.
We met at a little after 8 am at the Vienna North Metro station to carpool. Marie surprised me by showing up on her bike with her backpack strapped to the back. Dennis showed up shortly after that in his Subaru rubbing the sleep from his eyes. Dennis always seems to give you the impression that he just woke up or he was out too late the night before. Since he looked like he was half-asleep I offered to drive. We loaded Marie's bike into Dennis's car and all the gear into my Honda CRV.

I hadn't seen them for almost three years. I think our last outing was the ski trip with Suzanne. So we had a lot of catching up to do. Marie filled me in on all the ICO gossip. Then we caught up on people. Michelle is in Florida. Eirik is in Atlanta. Ron is living down in Key West as a cabana boy. Peter and Joe both got married. No one has heard from Farimah or Suzanne. So much had happened in three years but when I saw them I felt like it had been just yesterday.

We got to the lower parking lot of the White Oak Canyon trail around 10 am. We got our passes from the guard and he asked us if we were familiar with the trail. We looked at each other. Yeah, we know this trail pretty well. I looked over to the start of the trail and saw my rock. Three years ago I sat on that rock for what seemed like an eternity, waiting alone in pitch black darkness for Dennis to come off the mountain.

The White Oak/Cedar Run Hike is actually two hikes combined into one to make a loop hike. There is a White Oak Trail and a Cedar Run Trail. The most spectacular waterfall views are on the White Oak Trail but it's more interesting to do the loop. The loop hike has five major falls and numerous smaller cascades and pools. There is a good description of the hike at http://www.hikingupward.com/SNP/WhiteOakCedarRun. According to the website the hike should take about 5 hours including a half hour for lunch. The total elevation gain is 2450 feet.

Three years ago Marie, Dennis, Farimah and I had done this same hike. We had started the hike a little later, maybe around 11 am but since the hike should only take 5 hours we weren't particularly worried about the time. I often think about that hike as a good example of why you should always bring along safety equipment even for a day hike, like a first aid kit, extra food or water, and especially flash lights. There are no lights on the trail. If for some reason you get injured or take too long on the hike on a cloudy or moonless night you could easily find yourself feeling your way down the mountain in pitch black darkness. Which is exactly what happened to us three years ago.

We had hiked up to White Oak Canyon to the visitor center and back down through the Cedar Run Trail. We had stopped too long at the waterfalls and some of us even went swimming. Farimah wouldn't pee in the woods so we had gone a mile out of our way to get her to a flush toilet at the Visitor Center. We had come back by way of the Cedar Run trail and had taken our time because we thought the hike down would be fast. But we had grossly miscalculated how long it would take to hike back down. By the time we had realized darkness was falling we were at least a mile from the car and the trail was steep and rocky. It was a moonless night and no one had a flashlight. But there was one back at the car. While there was still some light out Marie and Dennis had run ahead to get the flashlight while Farimah and I felt our way back in the darkness using the glow from Farimah's cell phone to light the footpath of the trail. Once they reached the car Marie had decided to stay at the car while Dennis went back up the trail searching for us. But there was a split in the trail. Dennis went to the left. Farimah and I were on the trail to the right. We had passed each other in the dark.



So ... back to Saturday. Marie, Dennis and I packed up our gear and headed out on our hike. But first we did a check. Flashlights everyone? Yep. We were going to hike up the Cedar Run Trail, take the short cut through the White Oak Road and come down through the White Oak Trail. The forecast had been for "widely scattered" thundershowers. But the sky was clear and it was a beautiful day. We stopped at several waterfalls to cool off. Marie and Dennis went swimming while I dangled my feet in the cool water.



We got to the road around noon. Dennis' cell phone had been beeping at us throughout the hike so he went up to the road to check for his messages. Dennis is addicted to his cell phone. As we headed down the White Oak Road the dang cell phone kept beeping. Marie and I issued an ultimatum. Turn it off or we'll throw it away.

We got to the top of the White Oak trail and stopped for lunch. Marie kept asking me, "Do you remember this part of the trail?" How could I forget. That's where I stopped to pee for the umpteenth time. Farimah and I had been hiking together most of that day and I had noticed that she never had to pee. But she was insistent that we "get to the top soon." It was only later that I realized that Farimah had never peed in the woods. She was holding it in waiting for the flush toilets.



Around that time we heard the first crack of thunder. Dennis was sure it was several miles away, but I just felt a sense of dread. Rocks are slippery when they're wet and we were on the steep part of the descent. Dennis and Marie stopped at a few more waterfalls but I hung back near the trail. I just wanted to get off the rocky part of the trail before the rain came.

And my knees were hurting. I've never had a problem with my knees but with each step I felt my right knee groan with pain. Dennis searched the woods and came back with a walking stick. It made the hike a lot easier.

We had just exited the rocky part of the trail when the rain started. We stopped for a while near a tree to see if it would pass by quickly. Marie covered her head with my jacket while Dennis and I huddled near the tree. We were soaked and the trail was filling with water. When we were pretty sure the rain was not going to stop we continued on the hike. It was maybe a mile to the car. But it went by quickly. At least it was still light out.

We were back at the car by 6:00. It would be a long drive back to Vienna. It was raining. There were flash flood warnings throughout Northern Virginia. Rt-66 was closed in both directions. A car was on fire somewhere. We eventually made it back to the metro parking lot after 9:00. We said our good-byes and promised each other that we wouldn't let three years pass between hikes.

-Susanita

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

This Sunday I did my first real long distance race ... the Loyalsock Flatwater Challenge in Pennsylvania. The course was 12 miles long and while that is not a long distance for me to paddle I had never paddled 12 miles without stopping. I really had no idea what it would feel like or if I would even enjoy it. My first race was a real learning experience. First, I found out that racing can be lots of fun. And second I found out that there are very few women racing. As a female all you have to do is show up to get a medal. So for this race I was the only female in the racing class. The rest were all men. And I was sure I would come in last. Actually I came in not far from last. But I kept an incredible pace. I did the 12 mile course in 2:03:34. I was ecstatic. And it gets even better. It turns out that this was a State Championship Race. So now I'm the Women's PA State Kayak Champion for 2006! What a blast!

I love racing!

Saturday I drove half-way to Pennsylvania and spent the evening at Christine's house. Christine used to race competitively so I was honored when she invited me to stay at her house the day before the race. After cooing over her three adorable dogs and adoring her custom built pond and waterfall, we had dinner and discussed ... racing. (Oh, we also discussed regular girl stuff ... relationships and uggh MEN but I won't go into that here.) She helped me perfect my water system and told me stories about her racing career. Then we watched the Brent Reitz Forward stroke video before calling it a night. Originally Christine and I were to drive up to the race together but her daughters invited her to spend the day with them in Philly. One of them just turned 19! So we had our morning coffee and parted company.

I got to Williamsport around 9:30 ... way before the scheduled start of registration at 11:00. But I knew Christine's friend Ron K. would be there. He was one of the organizers and also a racer. I think he told me he finished first in the Nationals four times! In other words, he's fast. The first thing I noticed about Ron was his boat. He paddles a V10. And the boat next to him was a V10. Then the cars started rolling in ... and they were all topped with surfskis and racing kayaks. I knew this was a competitive race but Christine had told me there would be plenty of "plastic bathtubs". I wasn't seeing any plastic bathtubs so I started to get a little worried.



The race was split into two classes: the recreational class would do a 6 mile loop up and down the river and the racing class would do two loops for a 12 mile course. Ron put me in the racing class but I was worried that I would hold things up because these were serious racers. All men. And I knew I was going to come in last. That was a given. I just didn't want to come in too far behind because I knew they would wait for me before giving out the awards.



My friend Susan, from Philly, was also racing that day but in the recreational class. Susan was paddling a Solstice that has served her well in many, many races ... but she's also the proud new owner of a Mark 1 surfski by Custom Kayaks. I met Susan for the first time when we were both doing a training paddle around Kent Island. And we were surprised by our similar preferences in boats. Both Susan and I own purple kayaks. And both Susan and I had bought Fuschia (hot pink) surfskis. And of course, our names are both Susan, although I go by Susanita most of the time now.



Both Susan and I were in awe at the number of racing kayaks that were coming in. We kept looking for the plastic bathtubs but there weren't any. I think the total turnout for the race was somewhere near 40! We found out later that this race was a state championship race so it was well-attended by serious racers. I've never seen so many Epic kayaks in one place!

I usually carry two pieces of electronic equipment when I paddle the surfski: my GPS and my waterproof IPOD. I adjusted my IPOD and switched it on to a selection of fast kayak music I had selected specifically for the race ... mostly AC/DC with a little Bon Jovi thrown in. But the GPS had run out of juice. As it turns out I think that may have worked in my favor.

The racing class started first. The guys were quite impressed with my hot pink surfski and the hot pink bandana I wear around my neck. Several commented that I was the most color coordinated racer out there. If I had to come in last, at least I'd come in last in style.

The super serious racers bolted ahead of me right away. I found a slower pack at the rear and just tried to keep pace with them. The first three miles were probably the worst. I didn't warm up prior to the race so I had a lot of lactic acid burning in my forearms. By mile 5 the burn was gone and I started to settle into a comfortable pace. By mile 8 I was cooking. I had no idea how fast I was going I just kept paddling harder trying to keep pace with the last group of men. When I finally finished and heard my time I was floored. I did a 12 mile race in 2:03:34! This was an incredible time for me. It meant I was paddling at or above 6 mph for a good portion of the course. I was ecstatic!

And here's the best part. As I was chatting with the other racers after the course, Ron runs over to me and says, "How would you like to compete for the state championship?" So I said, "Sure, why not?" So now I'm the Women's PA State Kayak Champion for 2006!



How cool is that???

-Susanita