The weather was perfect today. My only gripe was that there were some mosquitoes, but they left me alone as long as I kept moving and stayed out of the shade.

I recorded a video of about an hour of the trip. I will post it as soon as YouTube digests it.

This is the best picture I took:

From Kayaking at Stewarts Bridge Reservoir May 18, 2012

Running on pavement is the worst.

This is some data from my first and only time running outside so far this year.

I thought I had run 5k, but I didn't, and I hurt in new ways.

I went to Harriman Reservoir, hoping to do the perimeter, but it was way too windy. I still had a good time, and I had the lake almost entirely to myself, which is always nice.

The embarrassing part is that when I crossed the lake before turning around, I thought I was just going past a little outlet. I was pretty confused when I started seeing familiar landmarks on the wrong side, but in the end it was best that I turned around, as the wind only got worse.

The most notable thing from this visit was the storm damage. Numerous wooden garbage boxes were strewn around the edge of the lake. There was a crew of people cleaning up trees in one area.

I have been itching to go for a long kayak trip. I thought the weather wouldn't cooperate at all this weekend, but Sunday seemed good enough in the morning. It turned out to be perfect.

I parked at the state boat launch at the north end of Saratoga Lake. That was my first mistake. Parking was $8, collected by a machine that claimed to accept credit cards but just sat for minutes thinking about them. I ended up stuffing it with cash.

I headed north, against a light breeze, and didn't turn around until I hit the dam. I probably saw half a dozen other people in kayaks. Many locals seems to be out doing yard work.

From Fish Creek #2

I'm pretty sure I saw an otter on my way out, but I wasn't prepared with my camera. He dived as I approached. There were lots of birds and turtles as usual. I was surprised to see some quite gigantic fish. I tried taking some pictures, but this is the best I managed:

From Fish Creek #2

Just a chair I saw on my way back. I'm pretty sure this wasn't there when I went out. I think some fishermen found it and set it up there as a joke.

From Fish Creek #2

I just went kayaking for the first time this season. Friday had the best weather forecast of the weekend. In the morning, there were predicted 30mph gusts pretty much anywhere I was hoping to kayak, but by the afternoon, the wind looked much more manageable.

I went to Ballston Lake, which I had only done once before. It was a good size, in that I figured if I was feeling good and everything went well, I could do the whole perimeter on my first trip. That didn't happen.

There were a handful of people fishing at the dock when I launched. The wind one pretty strong, and one quipped that at least I knew I was coming back.

I set off anyway. I was able to make sufficient progress despite the wind that I didn't give up, and pretty soon I saw another kayaker heading back, so that gave me confidence that I wasn't crazy to be out on the water. "It's a struggle!," he said. It was.

The cold water frequently splashed me, and the wind was relentless. I paddled until I was starting to get tired, and planned on letting the wind carry me most of the way back. But when I turned around, it seemed like the wind had stopped. In retrospect, I believe the side of the lake I returned on was just more shielded from the wind. I probably should have gone around in the opposite direction.

It was fun, but I'm looking forward to more peaceful and relaxing trips the rest of the summer.

From Kayaking at Ballston Lake, April 20, 2012

From Kayaking at Ballston Lake, April 20, 2012

From Kayaking at Ballston Lake, April 20, 2012