Birding the Carolinas by Canoe and Kayak
From CBCWiki
[edit] What’s the advantage?
Canoes and kayaks get us into birdy habitat that’s difficult or impossible to reach on foot: salt marshes and undeveloped barrier islands at the coast, mysterious bay lakes on the coastal plain, the medium to large manmade lakes of the piedmont, and even small mountain lakes. It’s a thrill to drift so close to a wintering sharp-tailed sparrow that you can pretty much tell the species with your naked eye. It’s a thrill to round a bend on an eastern creek and spot the huge stick nest of a Bald Eagle in the top of a pine. In the piedmont, willows along lake margins are excellent habitat for Yellow Warblers (in migration) and summer-resident Eastern Kingbirds, Yellow-billed Cuckoos, and Green Herons. Dead trees on the shoreline can harbor breeding Prothonotary Warblers. Ash trees sprouting on old beaver dams are favorite singing-spots for Orchard Orioles. And beaver impoundments anywhere are terrific bird magnets. If you can get into an impoundment you’ll find cavity-nesting birds, which could include Red-headed Woodpeckers and Tree Swallows. Out in the middle of a big lake you could find yourself paddling through a flock of Bonaparte’s Gulls (winter) or near a family group of Ospreys (summer).
Canoes and kayaks also allow us to get much closer to birds than we can on foot. When we float along with our legs tucked out of sight, we cease to look like predators. It’s possible to drift to within 8 or 10 feet of some passerines. But the one species that never seems to allow a close approach is the Great Blue Heron. Can’t fool ’em!
Perhaps the greatest advantage of birding by canoe or kayak is the complete relaxation it offers. A boat transports a person straight out of everyday life – out of stress, out of worry – and into a state of calm in the natural world. There’s nothing like it.
[edit] What should you paddle?
You can bird from anything that floats. If your local waters are calm and protected, it almost doesn’t matter what you paddle. Short, plastic recreational kayaks (10 to 12 feet) are fine. So are inflatables and sit-on-tops. Short boats have an advantage in tight quarters such as a narrow, twisty swamp creek. Canoes will work on sheltered waters almost as well as kayaks. But for crossing wide-open water on large inland lakes or coastal sounds you need a boat that lies low to the wind (a kayak rather than a canoe) and is controllable (tracks pretty well, doesn’t weathercock too badly). The ocean is a different deal – not a place for beginners. Inlets are particularly dangerous places. If you plan to paddle out an inlet and onto the ocean for any distance, you need a real sea kayak, a couple of competent paddling buddies, plenty of good judgment, and a measure of experience. But most birders, most of the time, are likely to paddle in protected waters, even at the coast. You don’t need a fancy, expensive boat to do this.
One way to figure out what kind of canoe or kayak suits you is to attend demo days put on by canoe and kayak retailers. Retailers bring a lot of boats, put them out on shore, and invite you to hop in and out of as many as you like. Many of the people attending demo days are beginners, so there’s no reason to be self-conscious.
Another way to try out boats is to sign up for a guided excursion. Wings Over Water is a birding festival that almost always offers several half-day kayak trips in the marshes behind the Outer Banks. Although not centered on birding, the annual East Coast Canoe and Kayak Festival in Charleston in April probably offers a chance to try out more boats than does any festival in the Southeast. Local outfitters offer their own trips and lessons. These can be highly worthwhile as an introduction. Some city recreation departments offer trips and lessons. Finally, you can simply rent a canoe or kayak and take it out on your own.
It’s important to try before you buy for a couple of reasons. The obvious one is to judge whether a particular canoe or kayak will work well for birding for you – does it feel stable, is it comfortable, can you maneuver it with little effort? Another important question: Can you lift it? If you can’t pick up your boat, you probably won’t use it often. A boat’s weight is not a problem for strong young guys. But for an older paddler or a small woman paddler, boat-weight can be the most difficult thing to deal with. You don’t have to be able to carry a boat on your shoulder for a long distance (although it’s helpful). But you’ve certainly got to be able to pick up one end and slide it up onto your car’s roof rack, or drag the boat across the lawn to the water, or lift it into the bed of a pickup truck. You can always make or buy a little set of wheels to get your boat from the car to the water’s edge. But you’ve got to be able to manage the logistics of transport by yourself or else the boat will sit sadly at home. And so will you.
When you’ve tried out some boats, a good strategy for buying your first one is to get something used. Retailers and outfitters often sell off their rental fleets at the end of the summer. And there are used boats advertised on craigslist, ebay, and paddling.net.
Warning: Some canoes and kayaks are incredibly seductive, and it’s not uncommon for paddlers to buy much more boat than they need. If you’re going to use your boat for birding, try to avoid the pitfall of buying with your eyes. This is easy to say but hard to do if you have a pocketful of money and you see a gorgeous wooden canoe or a sleek sea kayak that begs you to take it home. Do you really need an 18-foot long, 20-inch wide sea kayak to poke around the salt marsh or drag over beaver dams? Probably not. At least for starters, get a boat that you can manage on and off the water, a boat that you can beat up on submerged logs and oyster banks, and a boat that you can cheerfully sell when you’re ready for something better. Just a good old birding boat.
[edit] Weight versus $$$$$
Kayaks can be made of plastics – rotomolded or thermoformed – or of fiberglass or kevlar. There are also inflatable boats and folding boats – handy for use if you’re flying to a remote location. Another option: You can make your own kayak from a kit; the kit-boats usually consist of very thin okoume plywood that you cover with fiberglass cloth and epoxy. There are even custom-made and do-it-yourself interpretations of Arctic skin-on-frame boats. These are generally made with wood frames and nylon or canvas skins sealed with polyurethane or paint. You can make one yourself (cheap) or have someone make it for you (expensive).
The least expensive but heaviest kayaks are made of rotomolded plastic – say, starting as low as $350 and running up to $600 or $700 for a new 10 to 12-foot boat and more than twice that for a 16 to 17-foot touring kayak. Thermoformed plastic is a little more expensive than rotomolded, is significantly lighter, and is gaining in popularity. Fiberglass is next in expense. Kevlar is generally the most expensive but lightest of all. Fiberglass and kevlar usually are reserved for sea kayaks in the 16 to 18-foot range, although there are a few exceptions in 12 and 14-foot boats. (The price for fiberglass and kevlar touring kayaks, new, runs about $2,700 to $3,300.) Fiberglass and kevlar boats are not always stronger than plastic – it depends on how thick or thin they are. If you drop a very light fiberglass or kevlar boat off the top of your car, you can crack it. (The damage is repairable – but you might want to cry.)
The universe of canoes and kayaks is huge. However, what’s offered locally in the Carolinas is just a small fraction of that universe. If you want to see virtually all of the boats available somewhere in the U.S. and Canada, check out the annual buying guide produced by Canoe & Kayak magazine. You also can find reviews by owners of scores of different canoe and kayak models on Paddling.net.
Brand names for plastic kayaks that you’re likely to find in the Carolinas include Wilderness Systems, Dagger, Perception, Old Town and Hurricane, among others. Retailers may also carry the more expensive fiberglass and kevlar sea kayaks made by Epic, Impex, Current Designs, Valley, and NDK, among others. Folders are generally ordered from the manufacturer; brands include Feathercraft, Klepper, Folbot, Pakboats, and Long Haul. Inflatables can be ordered, too; the online retailer NRS carries a couple. Check your local paddle shop for others.
If you’re patient and handy, you might want to build your own kayak. Pygmyboats and Chesapeake Light Craft are two big names in kit-boats. Do-it-yourself skin-on-frame boats can turn out to be extraordinarily light. Google “skin-on-frame kayaks” to find sites containing do-it-yourself boatbuilding advice and workshops. Also check the photo albums at QajaqUSA to see skinboats made by modern Greenlanders as well as Americans.
[edit] A Boat, a Paddle, a Life Jacket, a Whistle
Those are the basics – all you need to go paddling. Just add binoculars, and you’re in business. (The life jacket and “an audible signaling device” are required by the Coast Guard. Most paddlers attach the whistle to their life jacket.)
If you buy an inexpensive boat as your birding vessel, no problem. But you should probably spend some money to buy a decent kayak or canoe paddle – one with a shaft made of a something other than aluminum. You can get a decent kayak paddle for between $100 to $200. You don’t need the fanciest $400 crank-shaft paddle made of carbon fiber and weighing next to nothing. But you do need something that feels good in your hands, is well-balanced, and is not terribly heavy. Acceptable straight-shaft kayak paddles are made of wood, fiberglass, carbon, and plastic.
It’s very important that your life jacket fit you properly – for safety as well as comfort. Whatever you buy, whether in a store or online, you should try it on and adjust the fit. You might have someone yank upward on the shoulder straps to see if the jacket rides up past your ears. If it does, it’s too large.
[edit] Other Sometimes-Useful Gear – Increasing the Margin of Safety
Float bags (for a kayak lacking bulkheads for flotation): When inflated and stuffed into the bow and stern, float bags reduce the amount of water that can enter your kayak if you capsize. (Floatbags are generally not used in canoes except for whitewater paddling.) While virtually all kayaks float – technically speaking – when full of water, unless they have the reserve buoyancy of air chambers they’ll have little or no freeboard when you reenter the flooded boat; thus, you may not be able to pump the boat out. Most kayaks have bulkheads to create air chambers; these chambers keep the kayak floating somewhat high even if it’s full of water. But short recreational kayaks often have only one bulkhead, usually in the stern. A few have none at all. So to increase your margin of safety while paddling, if you lack bulkheads you should stuff float bags in the bow and stern and inflate them. Don’t forget to let the air out of the bag when you return to land. (A float bag can expand in the heat and pop.) Also, even if your kayak does have bulkheads, it’s a good idea to test their waterproofness. If they leak really badly and you can’t keep them sealed, then just put float bags inside the bulkheaded air chambers and blow the bags up when you go paddling. Float bags are relatively cheap; they’re a good value.
A spray skirt: great in a kayak because it catches the drips from your paddle or keeps out the odd wave that sloshes over the coaming. It also keeps the tops of your legs from getting sunburned in the summer. Nylon skirts are light and probably the most comfortable. If your nylon skirt leaks through the seams, get the kind of seam sealer you use for tents and treat the seams.
A means to remove water from your boat: a bailer made of a plastic jug with the top on but the bottom cut out, a hand pump, a sponge.
A paddle float (inflatable or rigid foam) used to make your paddle into a temporary outrigger so you can reenter your kayak after a capsize and wet exit. Generally, paddle floats are carried by paddlers of narrower touring kayaks and less often by paddlers of short, wide, stable recreational kayaks. Paddle floats are of no use with a canoe paddle, so canoeists don’t carry them.
A water bottle.
A small drybag to carry food in – energy bars, hard candy, something in a can, a PB&J sandwich, fruit.
A medium drybag to carry a complete change of clothes in. You don't need this in summer in the Carolinas, but you would be very wise to carry it in spring, fall, and winter when getting wet from a capsize could induce hypothermia. Fleece and wool are the preferred materials for paddling clothes in cool weather. A fleece or wool hat can be a godsend during a lunch stop on a cloudy day.
A rain jacket and/or light fleece pullover for warmth.
Sunglasses. Sunscreen. Sun hat.
A charged cell phone in a waterproof plastic case (or a submersible VHF radio at the coast).
A flashlight. A compass (especially where it’s often foggy).
A line tied to the front of your canoe or kayak and maybe some additional line to tie items to your kayak decklines so they don’t wash away. (Note: If you don’t wear your binoculars on a strap or harness, then tie them with a cord to some part of your canoe or kayak. If you ever drop them overboard, you’ll be glad you tied them in!)
A deck bag clipped to the kayak’s deck lines in front of the cockpit or a bow bag or thwart bag in the canoe – not essential, but very nice for carrying binoculars, sunscreen, cell phone, a map, a notebook, a bird guide – you name it. If you’re a short person in a kayak, then wearing binoculars around your neck may allow them to rest in your lap in a pool of water that drips from your paddle and collects on top of your spray skirt. A deck bag is a handy place to put your binoculars and will keep them dry. Just make sure that you tie your binoculars to an attachment point on the bag or to a deckline.
A neoprene wetsuit or a drysuit (we’re getting serious now!) if you plan to paddle in the Carolinas in winter or in the Pacific Ocean or off the coast of Maine in just about any season. The rule of kayak survival: Dress for the water temperature, not the air.
And the kitchen sink. Just kidding! Well, actually, some serious paddlers on long trips carry a “ditch bag” attached to their person. This is a bag of emergency stuff in case they have to ditch their vessel and survive on shore. It can contain a signal mirror, fire-making tools, a space blanket, a small first-aid kit, water purification tablets, a small cup or can to boil water in, and various other items. Not a bad idea for winter paddling.
[edit] Paddling Safely – Good Judgment and More
Virtually every book or website about paddling starts with a disclaimer concerning the potential danger – which is, you can die – and asserts that the reader must assume responsibility for his/her own safety. In real life, it’s often hard to feel much risk when you’re floating around sheltered waters while looking for birds on a sunny day. But potential risks do exist, such as low water temperatures, sudden squalls, heavy powerboat traffic, sickness or injury to the paddler, and damaged or missing gear.
The single biggest factor in your safety on the water is good judgment. Birders call upon their judgment all the time on land. Do you go into that city park alone? Do you go into that state gameland on Saturday during deer-hunting season? Do you drive your two-wheel-drive car onto the beach? It works the same way with deciding whether the wind is too high for your comfort on the water and whether you really should go out with a cracked paddle and no spare – or, oops!, without that life jacket you left at home.
The second safety factor is a life jacket (or PFD – personal floatation device) that the Coast Guard requires you to carry. Not wear, just carry in the boat. Even if you’re not required to wear the thing, you ought to. It’s often said – because true – that it’s extremely hard to put on a life jacket once you’re in the water. So let’s say you capsize – first time ever, not your fault, maybe from a big boat wake on the Intracoastal Waterway. If you’re a good swimmer, if the water is warm, and if you’re near shore, then no big deal. But that’s a lot of ifs. In cold water (early spring in the Carolinas or Cape Cod in July) and far from shore, or if you’re suddenly taken ill or you hit your head and you’re alone, then a life jacket could keep you alive long enough for you to be rescued. Why not increase your margin of safety by wearing your PFD all the time? Accidents happen. We don’t get to choose a convenient time and place.
An often-recommended safety measure is to paddle with other people. You may read or be told: Never paddle alone. Actually, plenty of paddlers go out alone. Just be aware that paddling alone reduces your margin of safety. How much? In summer, on protected water without a lot of powerboat traffic, and if you’re a good swimmer in good health and you wear your PFD and carry a cell phone – then you’re not reducing your margin of safety by much. And maybe you recognize the risk and find it acceptable. But in winter and early spring, or on the ocean, the sound, or in the middle of a wide inland lake, in wind – then you’re reducing your margin of safety by a lot if you go out alone. There are times and places when you should not in any circumstances paddle alone. But see number one above: You need good judgment to be able to recognize those times. And if in doubt, don’t. (In fact, if you’re in doubt about the conditions when you’re supposed to go paddling with others, trust your judgment: don’t go. Don’t ever let yourself be cowed by other paddlers into exceeding your comfort level.) And one other thing: If you’re going to be paddling with others in potentially difficult conditions such as windy, open water, be sure your companions are competent. Safety in numbers does not exist if all paddlers are equally inexperienced.
If you enjoy being a boating birder, you should consider taking a class in canoe or kayak safety and self-rescue. Adds a lot to your confidence; might someday come in handy.
[edit] Transporting Your Boat
The most common way to carry a canoe or kayak is on the roof of a car – either on bars with saddles, or on foam saddles lying right on the roof (for short trips only), or (not recommended) on a piece of old carpet on the roof. Then the boat is strapped down to the bars or, if there are no bars, to the roof with the straps running through open windows and under the roof. It’s also prudent to tie the front and back of the canoe or kayak to the car. You may think that bow and stern tie-downs are overkill. But the buckles on old straps have been known to open up, and roof racks have been torn loose from cars at interstate speeds; in those cases, bow and stern tie-downs were the only things preventing boats from becoming unguided missiles. A proper rack with bars is a lot more secure than the alternatives, as well as more expensive. But this is a worthwhile expense, especially if you plan to take your boat with you on trips to the coast – or, basically, anywhere at highway speeds. It’s also possible to carry a very short recreational kayak inside a large vehicle such as an SUV. Likewise, an inflatable or folding kayak is easy to carry inside the car, for later inflation or assembly. Some paddlers carry a canoe or kayak strapped down in the bed of a pickup truck – with a flag on the end to make the boat highly visible to drivers behind. However, a boat protruding from a truck bed is not safe at night or in rush-hour traffic. Trucks can be fitted with racks, either purchased or homemade; a rack is a safer alternative. There are also very light trailers available for pulling a bunch of kayaks down the road.
[edit] Where to Paddle Your Boat and Look for Birds in the Carolinas (Everywhere!)
North and South Carolina are great states for paddlers. We have lots of calm water to paddle, even in the mountains. There should be a large lake or small reservoir not too far from where you live that offers the opportunity to go birding by boat.
The new North Carolina Birding Trail, coastal plain section, includes several sites that are also designated paddling trails. See either the printed or the Web-based version of the NC Birding Trail guidebook. In addition, North Carolina has a mapped paddle-trail system on the coastal plain; it extends from the Virginia line all the way down to South Carolina. The NC paddle-trail system comprises hundreds of miles of black- and brown-water rivers, creeks, sounds, marshes, swamps, and ocean. Slow-moving blackwater creeks and millponds are particularly enjoyable for birding and are well-suited to novice paddlers. There are several good ones on the north side of NC’s Albemarle Sound.
A good source of information for people new to the Carolinas is any local canoe and kayak retailer. An employee can probably recommend places to paddle on quiet waters and may also be able to put you in touch with a local paddling club. There are lots of paddling groups in the Carolinas – some that actually meet as a club and others that exist mainly as email lists. A few clubs are more oriented to whitewater than flatwater, but even those groups are likely to have people who do both kinds of paddling. (The Carolina Canoe Club is one example.) The Internet has led to a proliferation of interest groups including “meetups” by location and subject. At the time of this writing there are three different sea-kayak-related meetup groups in North Carolina’s Triangle area alone. So you might try Googling the name of your area plus “kayak meetup” or “canoe meetup” if you’re interested in finding such a group.
The Carolinas are thoroughly covered by paddling guidebooks. They include: Sea Kayaking the Carolinas by James Bannon and Morrison Giffen, Out There Press; Guide to Sea Kayaking in North Carolina: The Best Trips from Currituck to Cape Fear by Pam Malec, Globe Pequot Press; Paddling Eastern North Carolina by Paul Ferguson, Pocosin Press; Paddling South Carolina: A Guide to Palmetto State River Trails by Gene Able and Jack Horan, Sandlapper Publishing Co., Inc.; and Exploring Flatwater by Ed White, Flatwater Press.
[edit] Favorite Places (Add Yours Here)
Jordan Lake, NC (Triangle area, Delorme Atlas p. 39, C6-7): Launch at Farrington Point boat ramps (free, 24 hours) and paddle under the nearby SR 1008 bridge and head north. Bald Eagles can be extraordinarily abundant April to October in the north end of this lake arm. Look for spring breeders including Prothonotary Warblers, also Yellow-throated Warblers and Brown-headed Nuthatches in mature pine stands, and a lot of Great Egrets in July and August.
Jordan Lake, NC (Triangle area, Delorme Atlas p. 39, D5): Roberson Creek canoe launch where the Haw River enters Jordan Lake, off Gum Springs Rd.; spring warblers include Yellow-throated and Hooded; scenery is excellent. (Canoe launch area is not shown on all maps, but the turnoff is marked by a large sign. Don’t confuse the canoe launch area with boat ramps of the same name, Roberson Creek, a short distance farther south down Gum Springs Rd.)
Falls Lake, NC (Triangle area, Delorme Atlas p. 40, A1): In a dry summer (July to September) when the lake level is down, launch at Hickory Hills boat ramps and go northwest toward the I-85 bridge to explore mudflats where migrating shorebirds congregate.
Eno River/Falls Lake, NC (Triangle area, Delorme Atlas p. 40, A1): From I-85 take Red Mill Rd. north till it deadends at Teknika Parkway; take a right, then take the next right; the paved road turns to dirt and ends at the Wildlife Resources Commission’s Eno River boat ramp. Launch and go downstream (left) toward the lake. Look for passerines, woodpeckers, herons and egrets, and an occasional Bald Eagle, in addition to surprisingly wild scenery. Take a side trip up the Flat River; hawks on the Flat's open floodplain include Northern Harrier in late winter. It's easy to get lost on the return trip to the boat ramp; take note of landmarks on your way out. It’s also pleasant to paddle upstream from the ramp.
Warwick/Catherine Creek, NC (Gates/Chowan County line, west side of Cannon Ferry Rd., Delorme Atlas p. 25, C4): Park on the sandy road shoulder, west side of the road, south of the bridge. Put in next to the bridge. Beautiful blackwater creek. Many passerines; habitat possibly good for Swainson’s Warbler. This is a site on the NC Birding Trail. Merchants Millpond and Bennetts Millpond are nearby. They’re good too. Bennetts sometimes has Anhingas; Merchants is said to have alligators – both creatures are near their northern limits in these waters. No big deal for South Carolinians but a thrill for Tarheels.
