Third paddle in four days - in the third different vessel! In preparation for an upcoming kayak camping trip, I picked up a kayak (borrowed from Jen) in White River Junction after work today (1600) and (after also getting some dinner at Panera, 1620), headed to a paddling spot. I used I-91, VT-113 and VT-244 (through Thetford Center and Post Mills) to reach Lake Fairlee, a place I've long wanted to visit with a kayak. Arriving at 1700, I was able to quickly launch (after a brief conversation with the Lake Host) my borrowed boat (I’m calling her “Azure Dagger”) for a test drive on Lake Fairlee this afternoon. The weather was hot, muggy and overcast but these were initially good conditions for paddling. Visuals: there were pretty waterfront homes, kids jumping from floating docks, fancy cabins at summer camps (complete with dinner songs), loons and ducks, water skiers and pretty mountain profiles. Along the way, I tested out the moveable keel and watertight storage area - I also got used to maneuvering a longer (and less stable) boat. Will try some more test runs before departure but things look good so far! I managed to make a clockwise circuit of about 2/3 of the shoreline before I noticed a huge spiderweb of lightning to the west - in the end, I paddled two miles in an hour (done at 1800). Will need to come back to finish the rest of the lake! Afterwards, I drove home via back roads and US-5 - on the way, it started raining. Home by 1830, I felt pretty good about squeezing in another day on the water!
