Kayak - Apostle Islands

 After some cold, windy days, we were happy to wake up to a calmer morning — still cold, but much more manageable. Since we didn’t have to check out until three, we decided to head back to Myers Beach for another kayak trip. We arrived around 8:15 and immediately unloaded the kayaks so we could be on the water by 8:40.

The fog was incredibly thick. I was nervous about going too far out onto the lake, so we stayed close to shore — maybe twenty feet away — and even then, the shoreline and trees disappeared into the mist. It had such an eerie feeling to it. The upside was that the water was perfectly calm.

Eventually, through the fog, we could make out the faint outline of a cliff directly ahead of us. But we couldn’t really see it clearly until we were only about twelve feet away. We stopped there in the water, hoping the fog would lift enough for us to see the formations, and slowly it began to clear. As we rounded the point, sunlight started streaming through the fog, and I’m so glad we decided to come back out that morning. The light was simply incredible.

This will easily be one of the paddles I remember most. It’s hard to fully describe how beautiful it was, but the photos tell the story better than words can. I took lots and lots and lots of pictures — and once you see them, I think you’ll understand why.

We paddled farther along the cliffs than we had the first time, weaving into grottos and caves. We even spotted several ice formations clinging to the cliff faces, a reminder of just how cold the water really was. There were plenty of safety warnings posted, and I remember reading that hypothermia could set in after only thirty minutes in the water. I definitely had no interest in testing that.

By the time we turned around, the first guided kayaking group was arriving, and on our way back to the launch we passed several more groups heading out. Back in the parking lot, kayak outfitters were everywhere, but for a little while that morning, we had the cliffs entirely to ourselves.

Once back at camp, we had lunch and packed everything up — something we’ve become pretty efficient at by now.

A four-hour drive brought us to our next campsite at Eau Pleine. Since it was Memorial Day weekend, the campground was completely full, and we pulled into the very last empty site.