Jamestown Island Paddle 9/10/2019

On Tuesday, 10 Sep 2019, 12 Tuesday Groupers met at the Jamestown Marina in James City County with the intention of paddling around Jamestown Island. The weather was ideal—warm but not hot, a little breeze, and placid waters. We started out in the Back Bay and all was good. We crossed under the Jamestown Island overpass out to the James River and all was still good. As we paddled, we noted that the slight breeze was actually a bit more stiff than expected; and it began to affect the size of the waves—in a bad way. But the Tuesday Group looked at the larger waves in their typical optimism—it made the paddle more interesting. Well, that is my story and I’m sticking to it!! The tide was going out so the tide countered the breeze a bit, and the breeze kept our sweat from accumulating. Since we were still at high tide, the beach at Black Point on the far end of Jamestown Island was inaccessible. So we paddled a bit further to find a beach where we could pull in and have our lunch.

We then relaxed and viewed the new controversial power lines in the far distance and debated whether they were a nuisance or not. The general consensus is that they were no more of a problem for the Colonial “view shed” than the roller coasters in Busch Gardens. After spotting our bike route on shore up to the Williamsburg Winery and locating the nuclear plant in the distance (you can hardly see it when the leaves are out), we launched our boats again and finished the paddle. It seemed that everyone was a bit more tired after this paddle—it must have been the wind masquerading as a breeze and working up the waves. About half the paddlers then went to Brusters to have an ice cream. I went to watch Jack S try to finish a banana split—but he didn’t buy one. Despite this disappointment, it was a great day with good friends. Another great Tuesday.

Brian