The Connetquot River

This past weekend I was invited to paddle with the Long Island Kayak Company on a trip they were outfitting for the local chapter of the Adirondack Mountain Club. I met up with the group from ADK, along with Sal, the owner of LI Kayak Co, at Timber Point County Park, on the southwestern side of the Connetquot River on a warm, sunny summer day, perfect for paddling the river.

It took a bit of time to get everyone situated and fitted into their rental boats (While waiting I helped another paddler get his canoe off his SUV. Amazingly, he turned out to be my 9th grade Earth Science teacher from many, many years ago!), but we finally hit the water and grouped up to hear the game plan. Ross, our intrepid guide from the Long Island Paddlers Club, wanted to head south a bit and poke his nose into the Great South Bay, assuming conditions were not too rough. As it turns out, the water was calm enough for us to head quite a bit into the bay, but not completely around the island he had hoped to circumnavigate. Quite an experienced paddler himself, Ross did not want to subject the group of novice paddlers to anything that might make them nervous.

So, with our trip south cut a bit short, we turned around and headed north, upstream on the Connetquot. The river is quite a busy place to paddle, especially on a sunny weekend. We stayed close to the left bank, though, and out of the powerboats' way. Although most of the group was new to paddling, they seemed to have no trouble keeping up with the rest of us, and everyone seemed to enjoy the scenery, especially when we reached the Bayard Cutting Arboretum. One member, complaining of a bad back, decided to call it quits here and rest on shore for a bit, while the rest of us continued exploring the banks of the arboretum and gazing at their magnificent manicured lawns and gardens. We soon met up with Sal, who was paddling up ahead of us with his 8 year old daughter (amazingly, she paddles better than most adult kayakers), and we stopped for lunch on the riverbank in front of Dowling College.

With an hour passed, and lunches eaten, we all headed back down to Timber Point Park. Despite some tired arms, sore backs, and a little sunburn here and there, I think the entire group had a blast. I certainly enjoyed tagging along with the group and had fun listening to all of their stories about hiking, camping, and paddling around New York. Kudos to Sal for organizing such a great day for us, and for Ross for leading the way!