Kayaking for Exercise
Kayaking is great fun, as you kayakers are well aware. However , the blessing of kayaking is that kayaking for fun and kayaking for exercise are one in the same.
For instance, on this day my wife and her visiting friend wanted to hike to Hardy Falls in Peachland. I thought that as the water was almost like glass, this would be a great opportunity to put the kayak in and spend an hour exploring a different coastline than I usually do. And the best part, was that it was WARM! I went out in a tshirt, and the sun was wonderful. Quite a departure from having on a marino wool undershirt and a fleece top, along with a toque and pair of kayaking gloves. One can forget easily enough just how glorious nice warm weather (today was 18 C) can feel! And absolutely no wind helps!
Is Kayaking Good Exercise
Is kayaking good exercise? You would assume it is, but there is a caveat involved here. If you go for a run or bike ride or even lift weights, there is a baseline of effort expended in order to achieve what we would call ‘good exercise’. If you can keep your kayaking moving for 20 minutes, and maintain a certain heart rate (an article coming on this important information), then you can burn up calories and that is a good thing. However, if you go for a run and take a break every minute, or paddle your kayak for 2 minutes and then drift for 5 , well then the answer to ‘is kayaking good exercise’ would be … maybe.
There is more to kayaking than exercise however, and the beauty of the activity cannot be denied whether or not you are meeting your exertion goals or not.
Kayaking for Seniors
Kayaking for seniors can be a great activity. There are issues of balance requirements, and of being able to enter and exit the kayak safely. Some seniors cannot accomplish these seemingly ordinary actions, and so require assistance in a timely manner.
Many seniors have no problems though, and one would say that kayaking for seniors is probably the least impact activity that they, or anyone for that matter, could undertake. If you can handle ingress and egress of your craft, then you are in business!
Kayaking Antler Beach
As mentioned, the day was gorgeous and I took full advantage of it. My wife chirped that I was taking too long in getting the kayak off the suv and onto the beach, as she and her friend wanted to drop me off and get after that Hardy Falls hike. I think that I was progressing well, but at any rate I managed to get the kayak and all related gear into place before the sun went down (ha!).
Gear included the seat, which in this kayak model is detachable and can be used a beach chair as well. The paddle, which you can see from the pictures is about 10 inches to a foot too long, but that was a covid purchase and the only paddle in stock so it was that or nothing. Also, I had my pdf of course, sunglasses, a water bottle, and my ball cap (very important on a sunny day for the follicaly challenged!).
You can see from the pictures that the water was so clear that all rocks were visible, and I would approximate that keep true to about 20 feet or more. That water clarity is common along Peachland’s shores , and for a fisherman like me it is fun to search for fish down below. I wasn’t disappointed. Most of the twenty or so fish I saw were pike minnows, but a couple of nice rainbows slid by as well. There were a couple of fisherman on the shore trying their luck, but I saw one of them leave with no catch, and the other guy gave me the hands out and to the side ‘meh’ shrug, so I guess I saw a lot more fish than those two guys did.
This is where the ‘kayaking for exercise’ question comes into play. I spent 45 minutes on the water, and did some spins to follow some fish, but otherwise I kept going. I wasn’t paddling hard, as I normally do in the mornings, but that is more of a workout activity. This afternoon was moderate in effort and time, and so how much exercise did I get ? Enough to feel a bit in my wrists when I was done, so I think the exercise component was just fine by me.
Kayaking along Cottage shoreline
I didn’t take any pics of the cottages along the shoreline, but there are some real beauty setups that people have developed. A favorite water pastime of mine is to cruise the shoreline and Lookey Lou at the structures. Docks, winding roadways down to the water, boat houses, and of course , homes. I don’t think the term ‘cottage’ would describe the homes just south of Antler Beach.
And it was quiet along the cottage front. One negative about Antler Beach is that HIghway 97 runs along it, and traffic can be quite noisy. When you are far enough away from the beach, the noise drops off considerably. Along the lakefront homes there is a significant drop in elevation from the highway, and hardly any noise. Just my paddle and some water swishing!
Overall, I would definitely recommend Antler Beach for kayaking. The beach is not steep, not a great distance from your parked vehicle, and the opportunities to paddle over to the occupied shoreline are terrific.
If you get out to Antler Beach, Peachland, let us know what you thought of it!