A Paddling/Rowing Adventure

Hi Chuck --

Thought you might get a kick out of this photo. We took my friend Ari's Mayfly and his 15' Piragua on a little paddling/rowing adventure with three kids, three adults, and a dog. To get them through the (all-pedestrian) streets of Ocean Beach, New York, we loaded them up on little red wagons and strolled through town to the beach. Rosie pulled the pirogue, with a little pushing help from dad at the stern.

(click to enlarge)

This adventure was mainly for seeking "treasure" on a nearby beach -- looking for old washed-up buckets and sand shovels, etc. We had a 20' seine net and pulled up all sort of sea creatures to amaze the kids. Other trips in Mayfly were for the sole purpose of sailing and clamming. We got 90 clams on one day, 120 on another -- and ate like kings.

The shallow draft of Mayfly is a dream. The whole of Great South Bay (mostly about three feet deep, but miles wide) was available to us, while all the big power and sail boats were confined to a narrow channel.

Hope all's well with you.

Best wishes,
Garth Battista