Sea Kayak - Fox Island

SIGHTED: CORMORANT, EAGLE, LOON, MERGANSER, BUFFLEHEAD, GREBE

Everything was covered with a thick coat of frost as I drove on the mercifully dry roads to Titlow Beach about 8:15.  Everybody was there and it didn’t take long to get my boat and gear unloaded and move my car to the parking area.  The sun was already shining we began carefully getting our boats down the eroding path to the beach. The problem was there wasn’t much beach left so we had to get in our boats a couple at a time before we could take off.  

After a brief huddle we launched on time at 0915.  I saw a seal just after the cormorants perched on the pilings as we headed out after the radio check yielded one dead battery leaving three of us with operational radios.  The water was quiet and we made it smoothly across the channel to land on Fox Island for a brief break.  New paddler James had to get rid of a layer under his drysuit; without little or no wind the constant activity can get you warm in a surprisingly short time even in the chilly conditions.

There was little current left as we proceeded on although it was a bit against us at times so we kept closer to the shore in the back eddy as we turned the corner and proceeded up the south side of Fox. I believe there is a family of eagles on the southeast corner of the island and they were certainly making themselves know along the shore, in the trees and over the water.  We found out why: Patrick spotted a dead deer on the shore which they were taking turns feeding on.

Nobody needed to get out and we continued on in the pleasant conditions.  Lots of seals peeped at us and we paddled along past the pretty shoreline with most of its houses with little or no activity around them. The NOAA building or whatever it is with its dock about a mile from the west end is under construction.  We couldn’t tell if the building is being remodeled or replaced with a house.    

We rounded the corner and arrived at the west side of the spit at 1145.  While the rocks and bulkhead are still intact the bathroom or whatever small building that was there is gone.  The picnic table and grassy area was all in a shade so we opted eat our lunch sitting on the beach among the driftwood in the sunshine.  There were a few people with dogs wandering around. It was easy to understand why; the view of the Olympics to the west were breathtaking.

After some pleasant conversation we packed up and buttoned back in our boats about an hour later.  The tide had shifted but there still wasn’t much current as we headed east down Hale Passage past the still dilapidated boat launch on the island and under the bridge with another stunning view of Mt Rainier.  We rafted up briefly and the vote was taken to head for Point Fosdick the north side of the channel.  While nobody needed to get out we paused briefly and I calculated a heading to ferry us the most efficient route east across the Narrows Channel’s dying ebb.  I also was amazed to see that there were absolutely no clouds as far as I could see.  All day we had seen surprisingly few boats of any kind and that didn’t change making our smooth crossing.

The pilings were easy to see as they towered above our heads and there was plenty of beach available when we landed at 1600.  Excellent teamwork was applied to get our boats and gear up to the staging area.  The area was a lot more lively than when we left it.  The grass was now green instead of white and while the sun didn’t have any warmth it still made a big difference.   Some of us moved our cars and others used wheels and it didn’t take long to get packed up. 

All paddlers had opted to come for a jumbalaya dinner at my house with many thanks and absolutely no complaints after our gorgeous day on the Salish Sea!