Door County Symposium

It felt somewhat self indulgent to be heading off to yet another symposium this weekend. I had hoped to leave around noon on Thursday, but we had an external consultant in the office for a new project I'm on, and I needed to be there, so didn't get underway until about 5:30.

Nice drive, though. I often see the shadow of the kayak on my roof on the side of the road and think of the rowing shell that I once carried, and how that passion has turned into a newfound love of kayaking.

Anyway, I got to the hotel in Rowley's Bay, Door County around 1:00 in the morning. As always, the many cars in the parking lot with kayak racks on top and the kayaks laid out on the lawn were a welcome sight.

The resort isn't staffed 24 hours, so when the desk closes at 11:00 at night, they leave an envelope with the room key and a map for any late arrivals they are expecting. I walked into the silent lodge, found my envelope and looked on the map to find my room. It was kind of fun to be wandering down the quiet, dimly lit halls, passing by the rooms of sleeping guests, and navigating the twists and turns from the map. After finding my room, I went back outside to find my car and move it closer to my room. This time I looked for any familiar kayaks, but didn’t recognize any.

Friday morning I worked on Forward Stroke (it's getting better!) followed by a boat control class. There was a seminar at lunch to talk about repair kits. In the evening we listened to a boat designer talk about various hull shapes and how they affect paddling. Very interesting talk, but I was tired enough after my late night (early morning?) arrival that after 5 minutes I had to resort to the "stand in the back of the room to stay awake" trick.

Saturday I had signed up for a tour … "The Tip of the Door." It was advertised as "We'll begin at Garrett Bay and paddle the Tip of the Door, all the way home to Symposium Headquarters at Rowleys Bay. Along the way we'll pass bluffs, sea caves, beaches and views of many islands. This trip covers ~ 14 miles. This all-day adventure is designed for the Intermediate to Advanced paddler who wants to refine skills in a real world environment. While underway, we'll incorporate rescue scenarios, towing skills, boat control and more. If you're interested in BCU 3 Star Assessment in the future, this class will help you prepare."

Turned out to be a lovely paddle, though not the skill development course that was advertised. Winds were 15 gusting to 20 or so. Varied from tail to quartering tail, then we had some protected water as we rounded the northeast corner of the peninsula and headed south. We ended with a paddle across Rowley's Bay into a 20 mph plus headwind. The forward stroke class really helped, as I felt as if I was moving the boat well without straining.

On the trip we saw an immature eagle with mottled gray plumage (it was huge!), and landed on beach made entirely of shells. We paddled across several shoals where the water was very shallow. You can really feel the boat react differently when the water becomes shallow. The boat slows down and the swells are different.

This was the first symposium where I stayed in a hotel, and I found it quite a treat. There was a thunderstorm Saturday night and I slept right through it.

On Sunday morning I signed up for a skills session. I wasn't sure what to expect, but it turned out to be one of the highlights of the symposium. We had 2 instructors and 3 students, and did a lot of sharpening and tuning of skills.

And then it was time to head home again, with friends and skills acquired and enjoyed.