Mother’s Day Weekend is here and with it lots of fun things to do, some to celebrate Mom and some just for fun! Check out the Weekend Events Page which was just updated for this coming weekend. Take a moment to be thankful for the Moms, Aunties and Tutus in your life and have a great weekend!
Note: This past weekend my family and I went kayaking on Kaneohe Bay and it reminded me of this post, originally published in November 2009. Now that our kids are 8 and 5 they try paddling more often and they both like to jump in the water for a swim from time to time, but we still take snacks with us to help keep everyone happy.
A few weeks ago, when the trade winds were absent and it was miserably hot, some friends and I decided to make the most of the weather and we spent a morning on Kaneohe Bay. With no wind, the water was incredibly calm – perfect for kayaking.
My husband and I enjoyed kayaking in our pre-kid days and have been happy to discover that kayaking with kids is very doable. I have yet to try taking both kids with me at once but one of these days I’ll give that a shot. When I take them individually though, I always make sure they wear a life jacket and I do the same. They sit in front of me and I do the paddling. My boy likes taking a little paddle along and sometimes he helps but mostly he enjoys dragging it along in the water. He also likes jumping overboard and swimming or being towed. This was actually my girl’s first kayaking adventure and although I can’t say it was her favorite activity ever, she cooperated really well and didn’t try to climb out of the boat or anything. When I let her drag her feet in the water she really liked that, but it’s hard (impossible) to paddle and hold a child on the edge of the boat so I didn’t do that for long.
There are lots of reefs in the bay and on calm days you don’t need a mask and snorkel to see the coral and fish – a perfect way to introduce kids to the undersea world. My boy and I like to watch the feather duster worms pull back into their base when we put a paddle near them. Here’s a picture of just how clear the water can be.
I love kayaking in KBay. Even on windier days it is more protected than the open ocean and usually it’s an onshore wind so there are no worries about getting blown out to sea. It’s fun to paddle along the waterfront and see the houses and boats, or to paddle around Coconut Island which sits in the middle of the bay (and which was used for the opening sequence of Gilligan’s Island). Every time we go out I see something new and get in a good workout at the same time.
Photos taken by my friend JS. Thank you!
Do it yourself on Oahu:
We are fortunate enough to have friends who live on the bay and let us use their kayaks, but rentals are available (a google search will give you several options) and there are public access areas along the bay. For military members, the marina at the marine corp base rents kayaks and you can launch from there.
