Kayaking on Casco Bay

We set off on a long car ride up to Freeport, Maine on Friday morning. Freeport is on the coast, but the more southern half, so it's a little closer. We had signed up for the Fall Foliage Kayaking Tour with LLBean's Outdoor Discovery when we got back from Maine in July. Seeing the East Coast in Autumn was on my bucket list and we had all wanted to try kayaking, so this was perfect! Or it would have been if the hurricane had not kept the leaves from changing color yet! So I have to do this again ;) The leaves were still green for the most part. It also rained... not a hard rain, but soft and it did quit once we got out on the water. Like one LLBean employee at the kayak shop said, "There's never bad weather, only bad gear!" so we were set...

Caroline took the photos with Craig's camera... I thought under the circumstances she did an excellent job! Here's a look at pushing off into Casco Bay from the LLBean dock. The water was rough and there ended up being a lot of wind! It was hard paddling but still so much fun!

Here's Caroline... she had a blast!:

Craig loved it too... well, we all did! It is such great exercise and so nice to be in the fresh air!

Here is Nathaniel and I in our tandem kayak. I got to work the rudder with my foot pedals and Nathaniel determined the pace of the rowing. We were racing Caroline and Craig but they managed to beat us (until the very end!). There were 10 people in our group plus the two instructors. One of our instructors is a high school counselor during the week and does this for fun on the weekends. That's what I love about Maine-- people are active outside. It's just too beautiful and too much fun to stay indoors!

After going against the wind the whole way out, then the Bay turned calm and quiet and the water looked like glass again. We got to experience all the weather conditions!

If you notice that kayak way in the distance... that's me and Nathaniel! Yes... first ones in... thank you!

There were houses tucked into the coast line. Oh, to have a house right there, and be able to just push your kayak out for a morning row every day... heaven!

If you ever want to learn an outdoor sport, LLBean Outdoor Discovery is a great way to do it. They provide all of your gear-- even your water shoes!  Casco Bay is part of the Atlantic Ocean and has many, many islands throughout it. You should be prepared when you go out on a kayak trip because it could get easy to get lost. The water was warm when we went but it is the ocean, and temps can drop at other times of the year. Back at the LLBean Kayak and Bicycle Shop, we talked over an hour with John who told us so much more... he also said that there is a Paddlefest which happens in June so we might just head back there to try out some different kayaks. Kayaking is a sport for the young and the old... it is one of my favorite things to do now!  We headed back on Sunday and now are trying to get back to the busyness of life without losing that feeling of adventure!