Shacks and Kayaking
Along with the 1/72 Germans I painted a week or so ago, I picked up and completed these gorgeous Russian farmhouses, courtesy of Pegasus models. The kits went together very easily and are quite robust. They were easy to paint and should look great on the game table. I'm tempted to pick up more but since storage is already an issue, perhaps it's best if I hold off.
I hope all my fellow American readers had a fine 4th - mine was great. Heck, the third was great too! My sister rolled into town and recruited my wife and I to join her on a geocaching expedition on Little Tybee Island. My sister Angela is big into geocaching and has visited thousands all over the world. I never join her so when she asked I figured "what the heck?"
It should be said that neither my wife nor I have ever kayaked before. We've both captained canoes on a river in Tennessee about five years ago, but that's not the same as a kayak + currents + motorboat wakes. Sis on the other hand is a pro. Caroline and I chose the tandem boat, or as Angela describes it, "The Divorcer."
Roughly 20 yards out, we capsized. The crowd on the shore got quite a show. My wife panicked momentarily then swam back to shore. A swimmer who was knowledgeable in things kayak helped me flip the boat over and coached me a bit. I re-boarded with some help from Angela. We set back out, wetter and wiser. The channel crossing was a lot less dramatic the second time although I was attacked by a horsefly which was turned out to be a very stressful situation because I could freely swat at it without tipping the boat. Before long, we made it to our target, an exposed spit of sand. It was about an hour before low tide and there was a lot of temporary beach.
We hiked what felt like miles across the tidal sludge, sand and fast-running water. It was closer to 1/3 of a mile in reality. Angela located the cache and quickly realized she'd left her camera on the boat. She wandered back to get it which Caroline and I goofed around looking for shells and other crippus and crappus.
With no sign of Angela after about 20 minutes, we decided to head back, assuming she'd been eaten by a shark or alligator. Over the course of that 45 minutes, the area we'd been walked through had changed considerably so there was a little guesswork involved but we found the boats no problem.The float back to the other side of the channel was uneventful except for having to ride out the wake from a passing motorboat.
We had a terrific time and once we got the boats back to the rental place, we had dinner at the restaurant right next door. That was probably the best half-day of work ever. Be well! I'm on vacation next week - we're off to the Carolinas to goof off and get a change of scenery.
I hope all my fellow American readers had a fine 4th - mine was great. Heck, the third was great too! My sister rolled into town and recruited my wife and I to join her on a geocaching expedition on Little Tybee Island. My sister Angela is big into geocaching and has visited thousands all over the world. I never join her so when she asked I figured "what the heck?"
It should be said that neither my wife nor I have ever kayaked before. We've both captained canoes on a river in Tennessee about five years ago, but that's not the same as a kayak + currents + motorboat wakes. Sis on the other hand is a pro. Caroline and I chose the tandem boat, or as Angela describes it, "The Divorcer."
Roughly 20 yards out, we capsized. The crowd on the shore got quite a show. My wife panicked momentarily then swam back to shore. A swimmer who was knowledgeable in things kayak helped me flip the boat over and coached me a bit. I re-boarded with some help from Angela. We set back out, wetter and wiser. The channel crossing was a lot less dramatic the second time although I was attacked by a horsefly which was turned out to be a very stressful situation because I could freely swat at it without tipping the boat. Before long, we made it to our target, an exposed spit of sand. It was about an hour before low tide and there was a lot of temporary beach.
We hiked what felt like miles across the tidal sludge, sand and fast-running water. It was closer to 1/3 of a mile in reality. Angela located the cache and quickly realized she'd left her camera on the boat. She wandered back to get it which Caroline and I goofed around looking for shells and other crippus and crappus.
With no sign of Angela after about 20 minutes, we decided to head back, assuming she'd been eaten by a shark or alligator. Over the course of that 45 minutes, the area we'd been walked through had changed considerably so there was a little guesswork involved but we found the boats no problem.The float back to the other side of the channel was uneventful except for having to ride out the wake from a passing motorboat.
There's a map of our travels, starting in the upper right. The red circle indicates where the SS Banana went down. The yellow circle indicates the location of the cache.
Our boats pulled up on the sandbar.
My bride and I hiking back to the boats. We're a long way off.
There we are!
We three.
We had a terrific time and once we got the boats back to the rental place, we had dinner at the restaurant right next door. That was probably the best half-day of work ever. Be well! I'm on vacation next week - we're off to the Carolinas to goof off and get a change of scenery.
WOW that's a memorable 4th! Capsizing is one of the reasons I stick to lake kayaking on small lakes with no motorboats! Nicely done, sir!
ReplyDeleteThe russian cabins look great, too. Perfect little village for some eastern front skirmish action!