I love water. I love being on the water, in the water, under the water. I've always had a fascination with the ocean and waterways and all the life underneath, as well as the peacefulness of floating out in the middle of it all. One activity I've always wanted to try was kayaking.
I've been canoeing and I've even rowed a boat at one time, but kayaking is very different. You're barely out of the water - and all you have to rely on is yourself. If you get tired, or can't keep going, you're stuck - and it's your fault, and there's no one else to get you back ashore. These are the things that've kept me away from trying it since I have little faith in my own level of fitness. When I use the rowing machine at the gym, I can barely go for very long - so how am I supposed to keep up such a demanding activity as kayaking? Plus, it seems like it would leave me feeling somewhat vulnerable; I hardly like taking my shirt off - the awkward process of getting in, navigating, not-tipping-over, and getting out of the thing, all on show for any to see, is terrifying.
So as a goal for my fitness journey, I want to take up kayaking. It probably won't be this summer but maybe next year. I want to join those groups of people I see out my window gliding up the East River. I want to float and enjoy nature from out in the middle of the sea.
Updated March 21, 2008
