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The Importance of Exploring the Shoreline

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As an avid kayaker and adventurer, I often find myself looking for what others might have passed by and look over. Let’s face it, in this day and age, you’re not planting a flag anywhere. The time of being the first human to discover one of nature’s gift is long gone, but that’s not to say that you the time of exploring is as well. For the explorer and the need for the soul to see and experience new things will never perish.

Traveling and kayaking throughout the country and the world, I have grown accustomed to staying close to the shoreline when I paddle as opposed to paddling out in the middle of whichever body of water I find myself in. Now, I do this for many reasons and those reasons usually are reflected by weather conditions, temperature, and the strength of the wind taking in to account it’s direction. But the number one reason why I stay close to the shore is because there’s more to explore.

In shoreline water it’s easier to see fish, turtles on logs, cypress tree knees, and water passages which are my favorite. I love finding tributaries with wild salmon spawning, or inlets, that might just lead up to a storm drain with some made made creation in a city. I continue to find very cool and interesting beauty even when kayaking sections of the dammed Colorado River that runs through the great city of Austin, Texas. Last week, I found a small inlet by Joe’s Crab Shack, the entrance hidden by a weeping willow, and one that I would have missed had I not been exploring the shoreline. It was exciting paddling back into the narrow corridors surrounded by rising walls on each side. At the end, I came across a storm drain system, covered with vibrant colors of local graffiti artists. I thought to myself how different this place would be during a huge downpour and how it would not be the right time to visit. All laughs aside, finding this gem was a prime example of why I explore the shorelines of all waterscapes. I encourage you to do the same and promise you that you will enjoy what you find.

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