Classics at Sakonnet

The paddle today was a special event. Two old hats made appearances. Classic Tim was down from Maine taking a vacation from house construction woes. Bob H. was in town for the Newport Jazz festival.

This was the first time this year I had seen Classic Tim and I cannot remember when I last saw Bob.

The plan was to paddle out of Sakonnet Harbor, out the lighthouse, play along the rocks, and have lunch at a nice surf beach.

The conditions were pretty mild, so the chances of trouble were low as were the chances for good surfing.

The rocks were nice with the mellow conditions. Paddlers could get pretty close into the features without much danger of catastrophe.

Then we headed up the coast to find a nice surf beach.

The best surf we could find wasn’t much. There was some breaking swell, but it was infrequent and unpredictable.

Most people just headed in for lunch.

After lunch, the surf was slightly better and we all took tries getting runs.

I found it frustrating. I just couldn't seem to find any good waves.

Other paddlers had better luck than I.

Just because the surf wasn't great didn't mean there were not several people who went in the water. I was one of them...

I caught a decent wave that petered out in a shallow rocky spot and before I could get turned back out, a sneaky wave came in and knocked me right over. I started to set up for a roll but my hand scraped against a rock. I bailed and swam the kayak back into the beach.

The paddle back was very pleasant and relaxing. Things were pretty flat and we skipped most of the rock playing options.

Once we turned into the river, the group split into two. Classic Tim suggested sticking close to the shore to avoid fighting the current and the following seas and took his own advice. Most of the rest of the group decided to stay out in the middle of the river in the midst of the current for some reason.

I decided that Classic Tim knew what he was talking about and stayed inside the other paddlers, but the "good group" side of me made sure I split the distance just in case the main pod ran into trouble.

There was a small post paddle gathering at Coastal Roasters (the best coffee around). We sat chatting and looking out over the river.

Is there a better way to spend a day than paddling with old friends followed by sharing excellent coffee with an excellent view?