The Kayaks Got Wet!

Paxson Lake was a beautiful place to go kayaking. Carol, Dennis, Don and I went out about 10 this morning. Pat Livingston took all the pictures below and kindly shared them with me, since the camera I usually take in the kayak had a dead battery and I forgot to charge it in advance. Thanks, Pat!

We launched at the boat ramp near our BLM campground. Hills are on the left, we’re on the right.

I was the first one in the water (and the last one out).

Don and I were out in the water.

Soon we were joined by Dennis and Carol.

It felt great to be floating again!

The water was like glass, it was so smooth. You can see the Alaska Range of mountains in the distance.

We saw a Golden Eagle – in fact, got up close and personal with it – and lots of Arctic Terns. Dennis got pictures and they are on his blog, along with a lot of other pictures of our day. He also went to the far side of the lake and spotted some Grizzly tracks. We saw tiny fish swimming just below the surface, and the water was so clear we could see the bottom of this shallow lake most of the time. The lake is probably fed by snow runoff because there was no glacier ‘muddy’ appearance. It’s linked to the Gulkana River that runs 47 miles from Paxson Lake to Sourdough.

Our paddling was almost effortless, and the environment was blissfully peaceful. We heard the birds chirping their own communication, and even heard the very recognizable sound of Loons in the distance, but didn’t see any up close.

Larry and Marilyn caught up with us tonight after getting a new refrigerator in Anchorage. Glad to have you two back with us! We decided to stay here another day to enjoy nature and the great weather.