In late May, Janet Smith and Bob Laney paddled our kayaks in Greenfield Park Lake. In times past, we were bothered by excessive algae plant growth in the water, which clung to our paddles and hindered our strokes. Today, the water was clear of plants. The lake is a miniature swamp, with trees in the middle, which makes navigation a little bit difficult. It is easy to go through or around the trees, but you can’t see past them to discern where you are on the lake, relative to the put-in and take-out. To keep us oriented, we paddled in a big circle around the shore of the lake.
We have seen alligators here before, but not nearly so many as today. We encountered about a half dozen of the scaly denizens, including a big on about five feet long sunning on a log at a small island in the middle of the lake. On one occasion, Janet was next to the shore exploring a small inlet, when a gator launched from the bank next to her and swam right by her boat. Yes, she yelled!
My goal is to return here and paddle through the middle of the lake a couple times, to learn the topography, and prevent getting lost on future trips. I also need to test to Terry Rich’s solid wood, one piece, Euro blade, 90 degree feather kayak paddle, and see if I want to keep it.
