May 26, 2002

Forbidden Coast

14.3 miles

The cuckoo bird outside my window is driving me crazy. Anyhow, somewhere around 5:30 am I got up and finished packing my gear. My goal today is to paddle the western side of lake Ogawara. I'll launch from the creek that leads out to the ocean on the northern tip, and paddle down the west side until I get tired.

The spot I had scouted in the winter is about 10 miles north of home, but it still takes me close to a half hour to get there. As I'm bumping down the dirt road to get to the launch those blasted gnats as attacking my car in swarms. I don't want to get out of the car, and the fishermen on the far side of the creek must have known about the gnats because not a single person is on this side of the creek.

The launch is not how I remember it. The water is way down and it would be a treacherous climb back up the hill if I make it down. So I head back to the main road with the goal of going to the other side of the creek. When I cross the bridge I decide instead to turn right, and head up the creek towards the ocean. Just to see what is up that way.

I can paddle back into the lake from the creek. At least this is the new plan that is changing by the moment. At the end of the road is a jetty lining both sides of the creek and extending out into the sea. The climb down the bank into the creek isn't too bad here. After putting everything in the boat and moving the car to the side of the road I can't help thinking how nice it would be to paddle on the ocean today. Nearly flat seas and almost no breakers on the beach. But this coast is forbidden. Off limits to me because some scuba diver years ago got hung up and drown. Rip tides we're told. It is a 2 hour drive south to the nearest safe beach.

As I head towards the lake I see a blue wall up ahead. Not sure what it is at first, but closer inspection tells me it is a dam. Damn.

I hadn't noticed it before. The bridge I crossed was a dam. I can't get back to the lake from here so I head back towards the car.

Then I noticed the current. It was running somewhere between .001 and 100 knots. In any event, I couldn't escape its pull. I was being sucked out into the pacific ocean.

I was a good 1/2 mile off shore when it finally released me. To play it safe I turned north to make sure I was clear of the current. I suspected it was only a temporary current that could be easily navigated when I returned.

As I headed north I paddled further and further out to sea. The wind was blowing stiffly out of the NW, and I was able to make pretty good time heading NE. But I was looking forward to the free trip back. Because of the wind I took out my tow belt and put it on, clipping the line into a deck line behind me. This far from shore would be a bad thing if I were to loose my kayak, as the wind would easily blow it out to sea faster than I could swim.

There were several distinguishing features to the north: Inland about 4 miles, were some large wind driven electric generators. They weren't moving today, but I thought it was cool I could see them this far out. Further north was what appeared to be a large jetty. I could see oil tanks on shore near there, so I assumed this was a port of some type. It didn't seem that far north so I picked that as my destination (err, I mean, I believed I would be safe from that evil creek current there).

Not much along shore and from 2 miles out about all I could see was an occasional car driving on the beach. The paddle north was a long one against this wind. 5 1/2 miles to the jetty. Mountains further to the north, I entertained the idea of paddling that far up if I felt ok by the time I got to the jetty. The sea was flat. No swells out this far at all. The only waves were wind blown and they were coming from shore at about 1 foot high. I finally turned and started heading more towards shore. There seemed to be a break in the middle of the jetty and I decided to head towards it.

The water was crystal clear with no sediment that I could see. But out here it looked deep. I moved in more towards shore and from no where I felt the first swell. It came from behind me and lifted me up a good 3 feet before setting me back down. A good reminder to keep an eye towards the sea.

At the jetty I now see the break in the middle is not a break at all. The jetty ends here and to the seaward side is a giant rectangular man made island. The island stretches across the port to another jetty, creating an artificial protected harbor. Cool. If you can picture this: Two jetties about a