Nuther kayaking question

mindehankins · Post by **mindehankins** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 10:34 am

We've done quite a bit of kayaking on the ICW West coast of Florida, around Sarasota's keys, and near Assateague, but I don't know how it will compare to kayaking at St. John. Is there any reason why we couldn't rent a kayak at Cinnamon Bay and kayak West to Jumbie, Gibney, Salomon, etc, and West to Waterlemon or even Brown Bay? As long as we just followed the coast?

Exit Zero · Post by **Exit Zero** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 11:06 am

The biggest differences from the ICW will likely be the sea state that day and the strength and direction of the prevailing wind.
On a typical day - E 12-15 kts - 2-4' swell, the paddle Back from Solomon would be long and strenuous but depending on your physical conditioning doable. It would be dead upwind and the only resting possibility would be to tie off to a mooring ball , maybe around Trunk [1/2 way].
The other route- turning the corner at Fungi Passage past Mary Point and heading up Drakes Passage - well, Personally I would call that an Olympic Training Route. This would be almost dead upwind against the current and swells for quite awhile - - - - and onward to Brown Bay? - only on the calmest of days!
There are certainly days when either of these would be fine workable paddles - and there are days when even attempting it would not occur to you just standing on shore - Pick your weather, plan your route accordingly, truthfully assess your physical stamina, take plenty of water!!, -- I would suggest a handheld VHF or cell phone in a waterproof bag as well.

Joshie · Post by **Joshie** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 11:27 am

mindehankins · Post by **mindehankins** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 6:10 pm

Thank you to both of you. I have a great deal of respect for the ocean and don't want to just take off helter skelter.
Having never been, I can't picture distances, and I have never had to deal with nor can I really grasp "reef."
Joshie, what you suggested is what I actually had in mind. Could we put in at Cinnamon Bay, and paddle beach to beach? Or does the reef prevent access to the beach? We'd be able to SEE the reef, right? So we could avoid it?
Sounds like we should paddle East going out so we'll have the wind at our backs on the way back in?
I just don't want to do something stupid that could hurt the reef or us.
And we'll have all KINDS of water. I only make a mistake ONCE. Made that one a LONG time ago.

sailorgirl · Post by **sailorgirl** » Fri Apr 10, 2009 8:17 pm

Have you thought about Arawak Expeditions Inc,?

seagrape · Post by **seagrape** » Sat Apr 11, 2009 1:33 am

I had to mention another choice - Coral Bay. You can put in right at Crabby's. You can get into Hurricane Hole and to the other beautiful coves of Coral Bay. There is virtually nobody around and it's mostly calm. The snorkeling in the mangroves is delightful. We went in March and we found a beautiful, deserted little beach to pull up. The depth dropped off very quickly, so it was very easy to get into the water without worrying about stepping on urchins! We saw lots of cool fish, anemone, conch, you name it. We only saw another couple kayaking - way off in the distance. What a great place for a romantic picnic. Too bad I was with my sister in law instead of my husband (Just kidding, Ginny!) Anyway, it would be something different, anyway. Have fun, no matter where you decide to go!

Seagrape

stjohnpete · Post by **stjohnpete** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 10:24 am

We have our own inflatable kayak and were wondering where the closest put-in would be to kayak out to Whistling Cay? Any other tips would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Joshie · Post by **Joshie** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 10:30 am

usvi-on-line