Inflatable Kayak Blog

by Carole Ann Moleti

Ready for some more of the outdoor family bonding activities we discussed in the first installment of this series? (Posted June 22, 2010 – Play Together, Stay Together in the Great Outdoors). Try kayaking the salt marshes located in quaint seaside towns along the northeast coast of the United States.

These incredible saltwater ecosystems, home to a huge variety of sea, plant, animal and bird life, abound along the east coast from Maine to Florida. With some advance planning, they are perfect spots for kayakers of every ability, including children.

Our inflatable kayak Sea Eagle 370, which has room for two adults and gear (or one child), has the advantage of easy portability in case the tide goes out, if you want to travel beach-to-beach, or your car is loaded with bicycles (like mine).

If you’re unfamiliar with the area, and especially if you’re kayaking with kids, begin at The Cape Cod Museum-Natural History in Brewster, Massachusetts. It boasts many exhibits and a variety of programs for children and adults, including maps and guided walks/tours. Tidal flats adjacent to the Museum offer easy access to gentle, easy to navigate areas which are a great place to “test the waters.”

The beaches along Cape Cod Bay are ideal for the less intrepid, as long as a few precautions are taken. Wear life vests, for sure, and check the marine forecast for small craft and weather advisories. When the wind picks up, there are whitecaps and storm surges even deep within the marshes. Thunderstorms can be sudden and violent with hail and cloud to ground lightning.

Because of large areas of “the flats” along the mid-Cape, consulting a local tide chart is crucial. It is tempting to ride the strong outgoing current, but you’ll soon find yourself stranded over a mile from shore. It’s a long hike back unless you’ve got food, water, a hat, sunscreen, and time to kill until the tide runs back in. Better still, plan on it and tuck some gear into the kayak.

While waiting there is plenty to keep beachcombers of all ages busy in the diverse areas of the marsh: tide pools full of small fish, hermit, rock, green, horseshoe and fiddler crabs, mussels, clams, quahogs (and seagulls feasting on them).

My favorite spots are the nesting areas for moon snails, which stain the mud a light pink. Take a dip in Cape Cod Bay where the waves break over the tide line, fly a kite, cast a line, watch para-sailors, sail and motor boats, or ride a skim board to wile away the hours.

Remember to take only pictures and leave only footprints. Dune grass and the muddy berms are fragile. Treading through and upon them causes damage to the habitats and could harm the sea creatures themselves. Children and adults alike can learn a lot about sea life, ecology, and environmental preservation “on the job” in a salt marsh.

I rely on a combination sunscreen/insect repellant preparation against painful, annoying green flies and mosquitoes and take it along to re-apply after swimming. Poison ivy is ubiquitous. Showering with old-fashioned brown soap or new- fangled solutions that remove the oils from your skin are a must if you’ve been in or around any vegetation while packing into and out of launch areas.

I’ll have more for you in the third installment of my Family Bonding Activities Series: Beach to Beach Kayaking in Brewster Massachusetts. Watch for it later this month.

Here’s a few links and references for more information about the mid-Cape, including accommodations, activities, and the beaches.

Cape Cod Towns:
Brewster, Massachusetts

Dennis, Massachusetts

Orleans, Massachusetts

Books:

Walking the Shores of Cape Cod (Yarmouthport: On Cape Publications, 1997), by Elliott Carr, a local resident who has “walked the walk” offers advice easily adapted to kayakers including the topography of the beaches, and itineraries with hints on timing, current and surf conditions, access, and necessary precautions.

The Seaside Naturalist: A Guide to Study at the Seashore by Deborah A Coulombe, New York: Simon and Schuster, 1984. An excellent resource on the biology, ecology, flora and fauna of the Atlantic coastline.

The Author, Carole Ann Moleti spends her winters sliding down steep, icy Northeastern slopes and summers on the lakes, rivers, beaches, and bays of Long Island Sound, upstate New York, and Cape Cod. With her inflatable Sea Eagle 370, there’s no limit to the places she can go. For a fictional account of paddling the salt marshes, check out an excerpt from Carole’s novel Unfinished Business which was posted on the InflatableKayakBlog on 4-27-10.