Byrne's Lake II
Tuesday, August 31, 2004 brint.adams@us.army.mil
As I drove home across Mobile Bay and saw a pretty good wind and chop going on out in the bay, I decided to find a calmer place for an evening workout. So, I headed up Hwy. 225, about 6 miles past Buzbee's, to Byrne's Lake County Park. My last paddle there was a couple of months ago, so it was time to check it out again anyway. The dirt road off of Hwy. 225 was especially muddy at the start, due to the every afternoon showers, but with the new roadwork going on, it was much smoother than it used to be. I assume it will be paved, when finished.
When I arrived at the put-in at 5:50 PM, it was overcast, humid, 80 degrees, but no wind and water like glass. The tide was just starting to fall, so I took off in my new kayak to set a new standard for my 4.2 mile Byrne's Lake speed course. I first paddled up stream to the first Y, turned around and headed out to the Tensaw. The S-turns were obviously harder to negotiate, so I tried to take them wider and make up time on the straights. I made it out to the Tensaw River turnaround in 20:16, which was an eye opener, and took a short water break.
The trip back was just slightly slower, as I paddled up against the falling tide. I made it back to the pier and boat ramp in 41:26, setting a new benchmark to shoot for in the new kayak for future paddles. I doubt the two fishermen on the pier gave a hoot what I did, as they sat on their buckets, filling up with the bass they caught.
As I drove home across Mobile Bay and saw a pretty good wind and chop going on out in the bay, I decided to find a calmer place for an evening workout. So, I headed up Hwy. 225, about 6 miles past Buzbee's, to Byrne's Lake County Park. My last paddle there was a couple of months ago, so it was time to check it out again anyway. The dirt road off of Hwy. 225 was especially muddy at the start, due to the every afternoon showers, but with the new roadwork going on, it was much smoother than it used to be. I assume it will be paved, when finished.
When I arrived at the put-in at 5:50 PM, it was overcast, humid, 80 degrees, but no wind and water like glass. The tide was just starting to fall, so I took off in my new kayak to set a new standard for my 4.2 mile Byrne's Lake speed course. I first paddled up stream to the first Y, turned around and headed out to the Tensaw. The S-turns were obviously harder to negotiate, so I tried to take them wider and make up time on the straights. I made it out to the Tensaw River turnaround in 20:16, which was an eye opener, and took a short water break.
The trip back was just slightly slower, as I paddled up against the falling tide. I made it back to the pier and boat ramp in 41:26, setting a new benchmark to shoot for in the new kayak for future paddles. I doubt the two fishermen on the pier gave a hoot what I did, as they sat on their buckets, filling up with the bass they caught.
posted by brint @ 9:31 PM
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