Last of the Year.

 Back on the sea:

During the long and hot summer(very hot and very long), with crowded beaches, roads and car parks, I had avoided the coast.  Embalse de Negratin had been a more pleasant place for my type of quiet kayaking. My first trip back to the sea, since May 4th., was on Tuesday November 28th. when I took The Smart One to Villaricos:

There are four places at Villaricos where I can get on the water fairly easily with a kayak.   Because of a not entirely favourable weather forecast I opted for the one close to Chiringuito (beach bar) Las Brisas, where a reef of rocks, about 25 metres out from the shore, creates a calm patch between shore and reef in most sea conditions.  It doesn't take much of a 'lift' in the water to make getting afloat on a 'steep-to' beach a bit tricky, without getting wet.  Also, at this particular spot, it's only a short distance across sand from car park to shore.  The Smart One is light enough to carry that far without faffing around with a kayak trolley,

It wasn't a perfect morning.  I got on the water at 10:15 a.m., when just a light breeze, off the land, barely ruffled the water, but that wind soon picked up a little and backed to blow off the sea. A plan for a longish distance paddle, south along the coast, was abandoned in favour of a bit of dodging backwards and forwards between the two marinas at Villaricos. Running one way, with following wind and waves was very pleasant, punching back again, against those elements, was harder work.

Time on the water was 2 hrs. and distance paddled was 6.6 km.

To Isla Negra and beyond:

Next trip to the sea, again with The Smart One, was on December 23rd.  Another commitment kept me home on the Winter Solstice but I was on the water, at Punta Parda, the following day – the first full day of winter.  Nothing untoward in the weather forecast that day and sea condition near perfect for a long paddle.  Got on the water at 11:00 a.m. and conditions looked so good that I decided on a repeat of my paddle to Isla Negra (blog post 29/4/23) and, if all went well, to continue to the headland (Punta Cañón) a bit further on.  The town of San Juan de los Terreros is just around that headland.

Approaching Isla Negra.  The island on the horizon is Islote de San Juan de los Terreros – a long name for a little island!  A circumnavigation of that island is a future possibility, in the right conditions.

A view of the old part of San Juan de los Terreros as round Punta Cañón. Conditions were still very favourable when I reached Isla Negra, and it hadn't taken as long to get there as I had anticipated, so I had pressed on.

A nice vista of San Juan opened up when I cleared Punta Cañón.  The old part of the town on the right of the picture with the sprawl of more recent urbanization, along the shore, on the left.  It was now time to turn back.

Looking back from Punta Cañón. Conditions still very good, although a breeze did start to ruffle the water later, when Isla Negra (that dark lump) was well astern of me.

Back at Punta Parda, at the entrance to the bay. Not many people on the beach now, but hidden from view is a motor-home and camper-van city! Vehicles of all shapes, sizes, ages and conditions, owned by a variety of nationalities, mainly Northern Europeans, gathered here in Spain for the winter sun.

Time on the water this time was 2¼ hrs. and distance paddled was 7.8 km.

It's been a pretty good year for my quiet kayaking. A record year of 14 trips plus a new kayak, the Neris Smart 1, to play with. I'm still at two kayaks. That new kayak, and the possibilities that go with it, made my little Gumotex Twist 1 redundant – but it has a new good home, with family, in the U.K. The Twist  served me well, for 37 trips over 6 years.  .

End of Summer Time

 Sunday October 29th. and I reached Playa del Freila, at Embalse de Negratin, at 8:30 am. It would have been 9:30 am if Summer Time hadn't come to an end much earlier that morning. The water level in the reservoir is still going steadily down, so Playa del Freila is the only place where access to the water is still reasonably easy. Now the water doesn't reach the other two places towards the top end of the reservoir, where the Castril and Guardal rivers flow in (when they aren't dry). On 25/10/23 it was recorded that the reservoir was down to 19.26% of capacity. Fortunately, even at that capacity, there is still a more than adequate area of water a good morning of quiet paddling.

This time I thought I'd meander down the Freila side of the reservoir to the dam. Hadn't been as far as that since May 2017. Hardly a breath of wind when I got on the water but a fresh wind, from the direction of the dam, was forecast for later in the morning: a wind which would be behind me on my return journey.

Approaching the dam.

Near enough for me. Getting too close to a dam makes me nervous!

A few facts about the Embalse del Negratin. The dam was constructed in 1984 and opened by the previous king of Spain (King Juan Carlos) in 1985. The max. surface area of the reservoir behind the dam is 2170 hectares and the maximum capacity is 567 cubic hectometres (which, if converted to litres or gallons gives a mind boggling figure). It is the fourth largest reservoir in Andalucia and the largest in the province of Granada. According to tourist information the length of the reservoir is 22 km, but on our maps it scales 16 km. Maybe the 22 km. includes the length of a very long, large inlet at the upper end of the reservoir. Since late 2016 I've paddled the entire perimeter of Negratin – some stretches of shoreline several times.

And about turn – my starting point is several kilometres past that headland on the right hand side.

Nearly back to Playa del Freila. Autumn colours are starting to appear among the vegetation. That's the Jabalcón mountain in the background – and reflected in the water. The fresher wind that was forecast never did amount to anything, so it was a good morning for reflections, and a nice morning for another quiet paddle.

Time on the water was 2¼ hours and distance paddled was 9.0 kilometres. Mornings are much cooler now. In fact it was quite chilly when I first got on the water – after such a long hot summer, and a warm start to autumn, I'd nearly forgotten what 'chilly' felt like!

Another Equinox Paddle

I couldn't let the Autumn Equinox pass without doing a bit of kayaking somewhere. The weather forecasts for any coastal kayaking looked a bit iffy, so I opted for the Embalse de Negratin, which I still haven't tired of. Even for there the forecast wasn't perfect – light easterly breeze in the early part of the morning but getting much stronger towards mid-day. So I took The Smart One, a better kayak for windy conditions, and planned to start early from Playa del Freila, follow the east shore into any wind at that time, then return with the wind behind me if it did get a bit strong.

New for today was this piece of wood decking I've made. Somewhere to keep a map case within easy reach, with a small waterproof bag on the back edge to keep snacks and bits & bobs in. It will also keep the sun off my ankles. One of the drawbacks of kayaking in a hot climate is getting sunburnt legs if you don't keep them covered. So I've taken to wearing very lightweight trousers, but I've sometimes ended the day with sunburn on exposed ankles. I've been looking forward to trying this deck out.

Water in the reservoir has got quite low during this unusually hot summer. It's currently at about quite 20%. At this level, particularly close to the shore, the tops of many small trees and woody shrubs are exposed, and sometimes extending quite a way out from the edge. Sometimes it is possible to pick a way through them.

And sometimes you can't!

The exposed bits are pretty harmless, generally quite soft (waterlogged) and bendy. Thinnest bits break off easily. It's the thicker bits hidden below the surface you have to watch out for.

The next hazard, a couple of hours into the trip, was mud! I'd reached a little bay, with what looked (from a distance) like a gently shelving sandy beach. A good place to stop and get out for a leg stretch, I thought. When I reached shallow enough water, I swung my legs over the side of the kayak, and started to stand up – only to discover I was about to step out into deep, sticky, soft mud! Retracted feet very quickly before my Crocs could get left behind in this gooey stuff. Didn't want feet, very heavy with mud, in the kayak so I backed away with both legs dangling over the side. It took a lot of rubbing and rinsing before feet and Crocs were clean enough to come aboard again.

But there was a good side to this mishap. I discovered that sitting sideways in this kayak, with both legs dangling in the water, doesn't make it  heel much nor feel unstable, even when reaching over to wash feet. Wouldn't like to try it in choppy water, but in calm water it is just fine – and surprisingly comfortable. And the new bit of deck was an ideal place to dry those Crocs.

My turning back point was this pylon, which was also my turning back point when I came this way on the Autumn Equinox last year. More of it was sticking out of the water that time, so this must have been a slightly better year for the capacity of this reservoir.

The reservoir might only be at about 20% of capacity – but there's still plenty of water for kayaking! My starting point, at 9:30 am yesterday morning, was way, way down there on the left hand side.

Rocks can be quite sculptural.

1:30 pm and I'm back at Playa del Freila. That easterly wind never did get anywhere near as strong as the weather forecast suggested, so my return to here, with just a gentle easterly breeze behind me, was a lot quicker and easier than the outward leg. Here I had another little mishap – a dip into the water as I landed! Swung my legs out when reaching very shallow water, was very unsteady on my feet after 4 hours sat down, tripped on a rock and fell over. Floundered around in the water until I could stand up! Fortunately I fell backwards into deeper water, the water was quite warm – and the only two people on the shore were too far away to see a very wet kayaker dragging his craft up the shore.

Kayak back on the trolley ready for the last lap.

Pushing it, still very wet, back up that slipway! Some people do bring vehicles down to the shore (as you can see), despite prohibited notices, but I wouldn't like to risk getting bogged down on it myself!

It turned out to be a very nice day, apart from the involuntary swim, for a paddle. Got a bit hot just after mid-day but was pleasantly cool to start with. Time on the water was 4 hours and distance paddled was 11.0 kilometres. Another Equinox suitably celebrated – and the deck worked perfectly. No more very red feet or ankles.

Mad Dogs and Englishmen ..............

 I don't often go kayaking in August.  Partly because, even with a dawn start, it's too hot here to stay out on the water for very long and partly because of the heat induced lethargy of mid-summer.  However, yesterday morning, enticed out by a couple of cooler days than normal, I took my Neris Smart -1 to the Negratin reservoir for a quiet paddle.  Hoping to rid myself of a bit of that lethargy!

Didn't manage to get there at dawn, but did get afloat at Playa de Freila before the sun got too high in the sky.  Water was ruffled by a gentle breeze which made it quite a pleasant start.  No great plan for the day – just some gentle paddling along the shoreline.  Water level has dropped by at least 1½ metres since I was here in June, so it all looked a bit different.  Some bays have disappeared and new little islands have emerged.

Back at my starting point as mid-day approached.

The earlier breeze had long gone and the day was rapidly heating up.  It was a relief to get back to the shade of the trees in the car park and pack everything away again.  But I'm glad I made the effort.  Lethargy defeated – if only for a few days!

This was the first time I had used The Smart One on fresh water.  Being lighter and narrower than my Gumotex Halibut, which I usually use on Negratin, it takes less effort to keep it moving.  The Halibut is a bit of a barge – but a very comfortable one!  Time on the water was 2¼ hours and distance paddled was 7 kilometres.

Welcoming the Summer Solstice

It was the summer solstice yesterday, I marked the occasion with an excursion to the Embalse de Negratin with my Gumotex Halibut kayak.  The plan for the day was to re-trace the route of a paddle on the 'badlands' side of the reservoir, which I did with my Neris Valkure folding kayak in June 2017, blog post June 6th. 2017.  I affectionately refer to the side of the reservoir, opposite to Playa de Freila, as the 'badlands', because it's a remote, wilderness-like area with scenery reminding me of old western films.  Got into a nice steady paddling rhythm and covered 11 kilometres in 3¼ hours.  It's getting pretty hot here now, but the weather was on my side yesterday - overcast, threatening rain (which never came) and very light winds to start with.  Sun kept trying to break through the clouds - and I kept willing it not to!  Didn't feel like a Summer Solstice day, but it suited me just fine.

Didn't take any photos this time but I've attached a couple from the 2017 trip – the sort of scenery where, with a little imagination, you might expect to see eagles soaring, coyotes skulking around, smoke signals in the sky, Apaches on horseback silhouetted on the skyline and Clint Eastwood (or John Wayne) riding through the canyons – but, of course, I didn't see any of that!  In fact I didn't see or hear any movement, wildlife or otherwise, at all.

Most strenuous part of the trip was the crossing of open water back to Playa de Freila.  A wind, stronger than forecast, started gusting up from the dam end of the reservoir, creating uncomfortably choppy water.  My nice steady paddling rhythm increased in tempo!  Open water crossings of Negratin need to be treated with respect in fresh winds from either end of the reservoir.  The very same thing happened on that June 2017 trip, but on that occasion the wind was short lived and I sheltered in an inlet until it passed, before attempting the crossing.

Landing back at the beach was a bit ungainly.  With waves sweeping diagonally along the shore a nimble exit from the kayak, to pull it clear of the water, was needed – but my old legs, after being redundant for more than 3 hours, didn't feel like co-operating quickly enough!  Fortunately, it being such a grey morning, there were no witnesses – and I didn't actually fall over.

Negratin Again

 I was back at Embalse de Negratin again yesterday. Despite all the rain we've had these past couple of weeks, the water level hadn't changed much since I was here last month. Evidently water has been going out as fast as it was coming in.  A lot of water is now needed for agricultural irrigation after such a dry winter.

9:30 am at the bottom of the slipway at Playa de Freila, ready for a morning on the water. Only a gentle breeze to contend with this trip.

Nice new piece of kit for this outing: a heavy duty, tapered, zipped waterproof bag for all those bits and pieces normally in an assortment of bags. It's made by Grabner (Austria) to fit their own range of excellent, but expensive, inflatable kayaks – and it fits perfectly in the bow of my Gumotex Halibut and also just as well in the stern of my Neris Smart 1. Purchase was part assisted by the sale of a welding set, which I regret I never mastered using, to a neighbour with welding experience.

I followed the shore to the north-east. Within an hour the breeze had died away completely, leaving the water mirror-like near the edges. But it didn't last – when I turned back after 2 hours of quiet paddling, in and out of side inlets, I was surprised by a bit of a headwind to contend with when I was expecting (from the weather forecast) a gentle tailwind. However that didn't last long either, These gentle breezes were all over the place this morning.

On the way back I had to stop in this inlet for a leg-stretch. Even an inflatable seat pad feels pretty hard after a couple of hours of paddling, however gentle.

Time on the water was 3½ hrs. and total distance paddled was 9.5 kilometres.

Fresh Water Paddling, for a change.

Yesterday me and my Gumotex Halibut kayak went to the Negratin reservoir in Granada province. Hadn't been there since September 2022 (blog post 24/9/22), when the reservoir had got down to 19.75% of full capacity and the water no longer even reached the bottom of the slipway at Playa de Freila. According to the website of Spanish reservoirs, the capacity had crept back up during the winter to 25.22%. Hopefully launching and recovery was going to be easier than last time.

From a distance Negratin doesn't look much different at 25.22% to 19.75%. However, it was very different at the bottom of the slipway. Oh joy! - the water did now cover the bottom of the concrete slipway. The difficult bit this time was paddling into a stiff breeze, creating very choppy water, blowing up from the dam end of the reservoir. Had to paddle hard to make any headway until I could duck into the first of the many sheltered side inlets. Spent the morning dodging in and out of those inlets. Straight line return journey later, with wind and waves behind me, was a lot quicker.

Nice and calm in this first inlet. It was a lot different further out past that headland on the right. A low sun (it was about 10:00 am) accentuates the features of the 'badlands' side beautifully.

Even calmer in this inlet. The beauty of paddling Negratin is that nothing ever looks the same as the last time. Inlets appear, change size and shape, even disappear entirely with the change in water level. Even little islands come and go. Every trip here is a new little adventure.

The hazards of navigation on Negratin – you just never know what is lurking below the water! I've passed this way several times over the past few years and never seen the top of this tree exposed – and the water is quite deep here.

And there's worse in those side inlets. Like this:

Or like this beauty. Sometimes covered, sometimes fully exposed. But it's the ones lurking just below the surface you have to watch out for.

When I could see the dam from around this headland I turned back. From here to the dam, on this side of the reservoir,  there's nowhere to shelter from the wind. Fortunately the wind had eased considerably by this time.

Back at the car at Playa de Freila. That water looks placid from here.

Despite the wind it was an enjoyable paddle and good to find that The Halibut can handle such choppy water with ease. It was nice to get back to Negratin again. Launched at 9:30 am. Time on the water was 4 hrs. and I paddled a total of 10.5 kilometres.

Just a Play Day

 Thurs. 4th. May was a bit of a 'play day', play morning really, at Punta Parda with The Smart One.

Pushed off laden down with a selection of paddles, the Ecklar-Rolly trolley (see blog post 24/09/22) and all the bits of kit that I feel a lone, and elderly, paddler ought to have available when on the sea. I wanted to satisfy myself that I was using the right length paddle for this kayak, find out what the kayak felt like with the trolley secured on the back and check everything else was easy to reach if ever needed.

Most of my time on the water was spent in the calm water of the bay. Only after I had played around with different paddles and other stuff did I venture out into open water. I had confirmed that the main paddle I had been using, and the spare paddle I had been carrying, were definitely the best choice, and I was fine with the stowage of all that other stuff.

Bit of a long, lazy swell outside of the bay with a gentle southerly breeze adding a chop to the surface. The weight of the trolley on the back made no difference to the feel of the kayak. Forgot it was even there after a while.

All good now for further little adventures with the Neris Smart 1 kayak.

Time on the water was 2 hrs. and total distance paddled was 5.0 kilometres.

Longer Distances

 I managed to get on the sea at Punta Parda on Tuesday April 25th.  Although sea conditions had been against me for quite a while the weather forecast looked promising for that day:  very light wind off the land well into the morning, picking up a bit from the southeast later.

Although I always refer to this destination as Punta Parda, which is the headland at the entrance to the bay, beach goers know it as Playa de Los Cocedores.

I got on the water at 10:15 am. The water in the bay was glassy calm and outside of the bay, in open water, apart from a gentle swell, it was nearly as calm. It looked a good morning to try out my new Neris Smart 1 (The Smart One) kayak over longer distances. One of the reasons for buying it was for covering much longer distances than was comfortable in The Twist.

Approximately 2.5 km. southwest of Punta Parda is a small island, Isla Negra. It's that dark lump, in front of light coloured cliffs, directly above the bow of my kayak. For a first longer distance paddle it seemed a good place to aim for. The island to the left is Islote de San Juan de los Terreros. A much larger island, about another 1.4 kilometres further on. A future destination perhaps.

Getting closer now. The headland behind the island is Punta el Cañón and the structure on the top is an historical artillery battery.

Nearly there. I can see why the island is named Isla Negra (Black Island).

Couldn't come all this way without doing a circumnavigation of the island. From this southeast side it appears that the island is split in two by a rocky channel which opens out to a shallow lagoon in the middle of the island.  A bolder person, in an older kayak, might attempt paddling through there – but perhaps only when the sea is very calm.

Now halfway around the island.

Completed the circumnavigation by going through this inside passage, between the island and the mainland. Had to take great care paddling through there as it was very shallow. Fortunately the water was clear enough to spot and avoid rocks which came close to the surface. My starting point is way back there in the hazy distance.

Halfway back, the breeze, as forecast, picked up a little, creating a welcomed bit of a chop on the water to paddle into. Previously I had only tried this kayak on flat water, so I wanted to see how it performed in slightly rougher conditions. It performed just fine.

Including a bit of pootling around in the bay at the start of this trip, and more pootling around at the end, total distance paddled was 7.4 kilometres and time on the water was 3 hrs. I might have stayed on the water longer but it was getting uncomfortably hot by early afternoon. Summer seems to have come extra early this year. On days like this I need to get on the water a bit earlier and perhaps limit my time there, to not much more than a couple of hours.

I was back at Punta Parda two days later, Thursday April 27th. Made an earlier start and was on the water at 09:00 am. Sea conditions, perhaps a tad more swell, were much the same as earlier in the week and weather forecast looked good.

Plan for this day was a slightly more ambitious paddle, a round trip to a marina (Puerto Deportivo Juan Montiel) on the outskirts of the city of Aguilas, about 4.0 kilometres to the northwest of Punta Parda.

Not long after leaving Punta Parda I passed quite close to Isla Cama de los Novios. An island I had visited last November (blog post 28/11/22) with The Twist. Still a long way to go to that marina!

A picture to prove that I did get to the marina! Half way, and half an hour into the trip, the distance still to paddle looked daunting but it had to be tried – and I'm glad I did. I now know what I can achieve in this new kayak. Would have liked time to go right into the marina and look at the yachts and boats but time was against me. Perhaps next time?

Halfway back. This is the point on the outward leg where I had those doubts! With the swell behind me, along with a breath of a breeze, this return journey was a bit quicker. Plus I took a more direct route back to Punta Parda – that lump nearly on the horizon on the far left. In The Twist I always felt vulnerable too far out in open water, however, now I know it's capabilities, I feel completely at ease out there in The Smart One.

Nearly back. Punta Parda as seen from well out at sea.  Distance covered this day was near enough 8.0 kilometres and time on the water was 2 hrs. The Smart One has met all expectations when it comes to longer distance sea paddling. There is scope to go further in cooler weather.

It's Here.

 On Thursday March 9th. a large box was delivered to me from the Ukraine - a Neris Smart-1 single-seat kayak.  Despite all the terrible things that are happening in their country the Neris factory has managed to maintain some production of kayaks.  The Ukrainians are very determined people. 

My kayak was already well travelled by the time it reached me.  From the factory near Kyiv it travelled to Prague (CZ).  After visiting a couple of delivery company depots near Prague it went to a depot in the Netherlands, then to a depot near Barcelona, then to a depot in Almeria and finally to me.  It may even have flown one leg of its journey - tracking showed only a few hours between the depots in the Netherlands and Barcelona, and both were near airports.

For more details of this kayak see the My Kayaks and My Kayaks Photo Gallery pages of this blog site.

First trial paddle was on Sunday March 12th. at Punta Parda, where the sheltered bay was ideal for getting used to a new kayak.  After a few circuits of the bay I felt comfortable enough in this kayak to venture to open water.  

Punta Parda, as seen from this new kayak.  It's going to take some time to get used to having a lot more space around me than in the little Twist I normally bring here.

Time on the water for this trial paddle was 1½ hrs. and distance covered was 5 kilometres.

Second trial paddle was on Saturday March 18th. at the same place.  This time it was a totally different trip for me.  Until now I had only ever paddled on my own but this time I had James with me.  He was in The Twist while I paddled The Smart One - father and son kayaking together.

Nearly ready to go afloat.

James at sea in The Twist.

Because I've always kayaked on my own, and I don't 'do' selfies, I've never seen what I might look like in this kayak.  It was reassuring to see that an adult in this little kayak looked O.K. - and not ridiculous!

In fact The Twist looks bigger than it feels.  It suited James - as did the hat!

And I thought my new kayak suited me - as did my matching hat.

James was able to confirm that I had the seat in the right position for a level trim on the water.  Without him I couldn't be certain I had got it right first time.       

Another rare picture (because I don't 'do' selfies) of me in one of my kayaks.

So far this new kayak has exceeded expectations.  It weighs less than expected - so I can carry it quite a way without needing a trolley.  It assembles quickly and easily, it handles well and it has a nice comfortable seat.  I anticipate being able to paddle much longer distances on the sea than was possible with The Twist.

Should The Twist eventually become redundant I think I know someone who would like it!

Nothing very adventurous about this trip.   After a few circuits of the bay, for both of us to get comfortable with our kayaks, we headed out to open water and visited both the other bays, on opposite sides of thew headland.  Time on the water was about 1½ hours.