Sunday, 14 August 2011; King County, of course! --
As this motley crew (four generations!) prepared to launch near the mouth of the Cedar River, the body count was five, shown here in their full regalia. The two vessels, to act as safety/escort boats, are one(1) 17-foot Ranger canoe and one(1) 21-foot cedar-strip kayak.Oh, and a bit of nomenclature was agreed upon to prevent possible confusion during this trip: The Bliefer was to be addressed as "Dad"; BoPop was "Grandpa"; Great Grandpa was to be called "Grumpy"; the Mermaids remained "The Mermaids". The Mermaids especially seemed to enjoy using this terminology, particularly when wanting Great Grandpa's ear.
After a short paddle out of the mouth of the Cedar River and eastward to a suitable shoreline from which to begin his swim BoPop, with his own kayak in tow, dove into the lukewarm water of the lake. A modest wind from the South insured that the warm surface water would certainly be mixed to some extent by wave action further out in the lake with the much colder water three or four feet down.
The southerly wind also pushed the canoeing members along at a little less than one knot (6280 feet per hour). BoPop kept up a brisk rhythm as he averaged about 1.7 knot through the wind-chopped waves of the lake. The wind also eased the tug required by the swimmer to keep his kayak nearby. In fact, at one point, he stopped to check to make sure it was still there! The tug was so small, he thought it had come loose.As this little flotilla neared the distant shore (Clark's Beach on Mercer Island), the combination of the long exercise (about two hours), dehydration and possibly a shortage of electrolytes in his body, resulted in a violent attack of muscle cramps in BoPop's lower legs. Although relieved somewhat by prompt and knowledgeable action by the Bleifer, chills (a form of shock from the trauma of the leg cramps?) caused BoPop to wisely choose to abort the remainder of the swim.
After he made a deep-water entry into the kayak (a major-effort in itself!), he paddled himself to shore at Clark's Beach, and hauled his kayak out of the water. After helping the canoeists debark from their tipsy craft, he helped lift the canoe out of the water and deposit it on the grassy lawn above the concrete bulkhead. It was obvious that, had the leg cramps not disabled him, he definitely had the strength and endurance to have completed the entire 2.1 mile swim.
After a short sojourn on shore on Mercer Island, during which the Mermaids (true to form) changed into their swimsuits [ask the Bliefer about this part!] and ventured out into the waters of the swim beach. Mostly, though, instead of swimming they gathered small shells from a native mollusk that were found in the shallow water. Of course, they got wet and, when we arrived back at our initial departure point, they stood shivering with only their Grandpa's wet towel and someone's "Size Large" T-shirt to keep them from freezing!!
Once safely on shore beside the cold (I mean, really, REALLY cold) waters of the Cedar River, the survivors lined up once again; all who had embarked were accounted for, and they still looked as cheery as when we had started.
All told, it was good way to spend an early Sunday morning with two lively Great Granddaughters (aka, Mermaids!), a Philosophizing Grandson (the Bleifer), an Athletic Son (BoPop, himself a Grandfather!), and one old Grump (the Great Grandfather in this four generation exploit).The big question for next year: What will the adventure be for the third annual four-generation expedition? Some more members would be a welcome addition! Only potential members get to vote on what the adventure will be.
Well, maybe Mothers and Grandmothers get a vote, too!!
Sorry this post is so late being published; certain photos, necessary to complete the "picture", were located several thousand feet from the site of the editor of this BLOG. [Thanks Jim!!]
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