Final thoughts at Utah Lake

Tuesday July 19, 2011
Utah Lake State Park
Lake Shore Campground Site 25

In a comment on the blog, Heyduke asked
about our kayaks so I thought I’d answer here
in case anyone else is interested as well.

I have had mine for nearly 10 years
and David his for slightly less.
We also have an inflatable Sea Eagle two man kayak.
Perhaps because we have had the hard sided ones
for so long, we prefer them.

I am a flat water (rivers and lakes) kayaker,
not a white water kayaker.
Thus I have 13.5 foot Wilderness Cape Lookout
with a rudder so I can steer
- not paddle Paul ;-) -
with my feet and use my binoculars with my hands
when there are cool things to see.
David has a 12’ Necky which is a great
light weight boat that is easy to maneuver.
Next boat I get, if there is one, will be a Necky
even though I LOVE my kayak.  It is harder to
maneuver than Neckys of the same length that I have tried.
Although I’ll have to save my pennies since a Necky
my length with a rudder is considerably more expensive
than my more than adequate Wilderness.

White water kayaks are much shorter and don’t track
as straight as longer ones. Touring kayaks,
for folks who want to kayak camp,
are even longer than mine although
I can do a couple of over nights  in mine.

I didn’t get a sit upon because they are most often used
in the ocean and I didn’t necessarily want to get wet
or sit in water when I kayak.
I like to be able to kayak in all seasons
but winter and in early spring that means the water is cold.
Sitting down inside, I can also carry more things with
me without possibly losing them and can put a skirt
over the “cockpit” to insure bigger waves don’t get
water inside.

Hope that answers the kayak questions,
but if not, keep them coming.

Tuesday was root canal day
and everything went very well.
David was very pleased with Dr. Pulsipher
and his assistant Brooke at Rocky Mountain Endodontics in Provo.
So, if you ever find yourself there
and in need of a root canal…….
well actually we hope not.

Anyway, David was also very happy
with the laughing gas they gave him
even though it had worn off by the time he left.

But still, He was so happy after his root canal
that he went grocery shopping
and spent an hour in the Utah ABC store
picking out 6 beers that he hadn’t tried before as his reward.
These are two of his favorite activities.

In Utah they sell anything above 3.2 alcohol content beer
in the ABC store and by the bottle. So
you can mix and match your six
since they aren’t necessarily sold in a six pack
the way they seem to be everywhere else.

Since Tuesday was our last night in Utah Lake State Park,
we wanted to get in one last Sunset.
It had rained again in the early evening so
again there were lots of clouds.
This 5:00 rain show is becoming a daily thing,
you’d think we were in Florida.

 

 

I’ve enjoyed our quiet week here
but this evening, it was clear it was time to move on.
We biked home from the marina after the sunset
and when we got off the bikes we were inundated
with mosquitoes.
We rushed inside, slammed the door
and spent the next minutes with the fly swatter
eliminating every one who followed us inside.
And believe me that was a lot.

They were all over every window and door screen.
Swarms!
Can you see what David is looking at?

How about now?

REALLY glad they are on the outside.
Time to turn out the lights so they will go away.

My advice?
Do come to Utah Lake State Park
but perhaps earlier or later in the year.
:-)