My Morning Kayak Tour at Algonkian Regional Park, VA

Our boats for today

Algonkian Regional Park is the only park in the area that doesn't have a boat rental at the moment. (They're working on the insurance and hope to have it next year. :) ) So for now you need your own boat or join their tour like I did this morning. :) I am sure once they have it set up it is going to be so popular. It is so close to the city.

I love the cloudy sky.

We couldn't even see the edge of the water.

This is why I love the cloudy sky.

This is a 4-hour tour starting from 8am-12pm. (I think I am getting better!) I was a bit anxious this morning if we were going to get lightening storm but we didn't! And the best part was the lovely cloud through out the trip.

After signing all the liability form and reviewing the basic (repeat...paddle with your torso. :)) we headed out onto the Potomac River. We had 7 people total. The youngest kayaker is 11-year-old boy. The paddle was too long for him but he handled the trip very very well.

The water here is so flat that I got scared. ha ha. Because it means everything depending on your paddling...only.

The impact of the heavy runoff. Notice the sharp cutoff bank.

Our tour guide, Rob (if I heard correctly), used to be on IT business and got tired of being a cube all day so here he is...on the wide open river. He led us to the creek, the polluted area and mentioned that he will try to set up a clean-up day. He also expressed his concern about the heavy runoff in the area. I read about a runoff for my LEED exam but never really witness the impact or the damage of the heavy runoff until now. 

A view from the island

Another great thing about paddling here is there are a bunch of islands you can hop on and off or have a long break. You can also get onto the trail on Maryland side without driving on the beltway. You also have creeks and coves along the river. I feel like a little explorer. (ok...The islands are not that big and I know we're still in a city.)

Some flowers on the island

And some froggy

He needs my ride. :)

Don't want to bore you all with my writing. Just try to paddle here if you can get a boat. Or just join the tour. (Please see the link below.) But you probably won't see me next month because I am going to see all the canoe and kayak celebrities at Deep Creek Open!

Until next paddling~

Check out more photos from the trip here. (Please note my photo sharing host is closing down their service. I am testing Photobucket and Shutterfly at the moment. Let me know what you think.)

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General Information about the tour:

Algonkian Regional Park Official Events Website: http://www.nvrpa.org/park/algonkian/events
Where to meet: Boat ramp (with Porta Potty Restrooms only)
How to register and make payment: Registration is required, over the phone only, accept only Visa and Master Card.
What are provided: Boats (single-person kayaks for sure. You may need to ask the staff over the phone about others.) paddle, PFD

What to bring: lots of water, snack, sunblock bug spray (I don't need one. :) )