Pedaling and Paddling

Possibly the one thing that can make pedaling better is to add some paddling.  At lunch today, Robert and I were discussing our afternoon plans.  When he said that it would be a great day for kayaking, I knew exactly what we needed to do.  I had already planned to ride my bicycle to Allison Lake in the Piedmont Wildlife Refuge, a pleasant ride that takes about two hours round trip.  Allison Lake is also the perfect place to go kayaking.  I rode to Allison Lake, where Robert met me with the kayaks - and our beagle Shelly!

Shelly really seemed to enjoy riding in the kayak today.

I took her out for some more dog paddling while Robert tooled around on his mountain bike.  Because of all my RAAM training earlier this year, this was the first time I had been kayaking all year.  I definitely won't go so long again before my next kayak outing.  Gently gliding on the water on a beautiful August afternoon - nothing else in the world is so peaceful and relaxing.

I saw and heard all kinds of wonderful wildlife both on my bicycle and in the kayak: wild turkeys, fish, cricket frogs, dragonflies, egrets, cranes, and even a bobcat!  I saw several wasp nests like this on submerged trees out in the water:

I was careful not to get too close or disturb the wasps, using the zoom feature on my phone camera.  Note the fishing line and lure near the nest; I'll bet some fisherman got out of there in a hurry!

After I rode home, I made us a homemade pizza.  We also had some sparkling wine because every day is a reason to celebrate.  It was a happy day for humans and hounds alike.