Showing posts with label Owsley Fork Lake. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Owsley Fork Lake. Show all posts

Thursday, July 20, 2023

Kayaking with the kids

 The kids have been kayaking for many years now, but for me I'm new to it and this was my 3rd time.  The first time that I ever kayaked was at Eastern Kentucky University in a class that I took prior to 1990 with my daughter Suzanne.  There we learned how to roll a kayak completely around, but it was in a swimming pool with an instructor looking on and keeping us from drowning.

Then in 2023 Suzanne and Ray asked me if I wanted to go kayaking with them and I agreed to go.  It was fun, but getting into and out of the kayak was very difficult for me because of my recent total hip replacement.  I let myself down so hard on the kayak that I bruised myself and after that for a while I just fished from the banks of Owsley Fork Lake and any other lake I could easily drive myself to.

Suzanne & Ray use their kayaks to fish out of and to observe nature and the beautiful peaceful surroundings.  They see deer, big fish swimming by, green turtles sunning themselves on downed trees and tree limbs, and of course they watch the sun come up in the early misty mornings and the sunset in the evenings. Suzanne & Ray's grandson Carson also goes kayaking with them at times, and so does Matt, Victoria and her boys.  Kayaking is a family affair.

My other daughter Sharon, kayaks with her children & grandchildren, among other activities.  She has so many outdoors interests and you just never know what Sharon is doing from week to week.  Sharon may be on her Razor 4wheeling, her dirt bike, kayak, boating or camping primitively somewhere out in the woods, or on her motorcycle riding around the countryside or to another state all by herself.  There isn't anything out-doorsey that Sharon can't do.  I failed to name cycling 60 miles before breakfast on her mountain bike, mountain climbing or running in a marathon.  Sharon and her kids can do about anything they can afford and put their mind to doing.   

I've been pretty much a couch potato since Jimmy died, but then Rick came along and we fished and boated for a little while, but his job got in the way and we stopped going anywhere until Suzanne got me interested in fishing again this year.  Below are some pictures of last weekend when both Suzanne & Sharon got together and we all went kayaking, even me.......

We got on the lake very early.  

Suzanne & Ray arrived there at around 5:00 a.m., I got there around 5:30 a.m. and Sharon & Zac arrived around 5:45 a.m.

We immediately launched our kayaks when Sharon & Zac arrived and started on our journey.  Everyone except Sharon & I fished.  I didn't fish because it was all that I could do was to paddle myself around. Zac, Suzanne & Ray fished, but mostly we observed our beautiful surroundings and visited a lot.  Suzanne spotted a 5 foot long carp and we all got to see it as it fed around the banks of the lake.  It looked like a shark with half of its tail fin  out of the water.  No one wanted to cast near that fish because we all knew that it was way too big and would easily turn a kayak over.  I'll try to put the video of the large carp up on a later post once I figure out how to do it.






I'll attach 5 more pictures of us kayaking in the next post.  And also,  if you look closely at the last picture you will see a towrope going from Zac's kayak to mine.  We were on the lake around 5 or 6 hours with two very brief stops, so the last hour Suzanne suggested that I get towed for the trip back to the docking area.  Sharon volunteered to tow me and then Zac took over.  In the picture above, Zac is towing my kayak.  Getting towed is great and allowed me to take pictures, but only pictures of everyone's backs.  I was extremely sore the next day, but an Aleve helped with the soreness for a day or two.  My kids and grandkids are so considerate and thoughtful.  I love my family so much!  Even the ones who weren't with us.  I have a great family!!!

 

Wednesday, May 17, 2023

Visiting small lakes

 I just wanted to share some pictures today of Lake Reba and Owsley Fork Reservoir.  I've been spending time watching people fish, kayak and boating.  You aren't allowed to have any boats in these two lakes that operate with gasoline motors.  Only trolling motors are allowed and of course you can paddle yourself around, which is very nice too.  I went kayaking with Suzanne & Ray at Owsley, and I have fished a lot at Lake Reba in the past.

Here are the pictures that I took of the lakes.  They are relatively small lakes, but they are easy to get to and nice and peaceful especially if you don't want to be bothered with crowds.






I won't tell you which pictures are of Lake Reba and which are of Owsley Fork.  I'll let you guess, but I'll give you a hint......there is only one of Lake Reba and it has a long arm jutting into the lake which makes it nice to walk way out into the lake, while staying on land.

Wednesday, October 12, 2022

More Kayaking pictures and a video: Fall is definitely here.


 

 






Kayaking with Suzanne & Ray

 On Monday I had the pleasure of being invited to go kayaking with Suzanne & Ray.  I hadn't been in a kayak in about 36 years, but I was extremely excited about going kayaking again.  It is so relaxing just floating around quietly in a lake.  You can see so much wildlife when you are quiet.  The green turtles don't even bother slithering off of their logs when you quietly glide by.  I really like that.  Suzanne even saw 3 deer coming to the water's edge to get a drink, not on this day, but the last time she went kayaking.  It is amazing what you can see while floating around on a lake.

Here are a couple of pictures and videos from my first time kayaking in 36 years.




By the end of the day I was tired, so my sweet daughter had a solution.



Thursday, April 28, 2022

Sunshiny Days

 It's another beautiful Spring day here in Kentucky full of sunshine, and the kids are getting out enjoying this beautiful weather.  Carson, Suzanne and Matthew went kayaking last weekend and Suzanne sent me these pictures of Carson that I'd like to share.  


I'm not really sure where they went, but I think this kind of looks like Owsley Fork Lake.  I guess I should have asked her, but I didn't.  It looks pretty and peaceful wherever they went kayaking tho.

Megan sent a couple of pictures of Myles, Lyv and herself eating and it appears that they are enjoying their meal out on the deck.  


Megan made a Mexican Pizza and it looks like Myles may have helped her put on some of the toppings.  

It looks good and right after I saw those pictures I had to go fix myself something to eat.  My food wasn't as good as theirs, but it did fill me up.

It sure would be nice if we all lived in the same town so that we could see each other in person more.  I miss all of my family more than they know.  I also wish that Brandon & Krystal lived closer too, but kids grow-up and they move away.  It sure would be nice to have those old time family gatherings like we used to have, but things are so expensive now.  Once Jimmy died all those family gatherings went by the wayside.  Grief played a big part in that because we all missed him so much and family gatherings just didn't feel right without him, but some of us still miss us getting all together with the whole family all at the same time.  Maybe some day we'll get back to all of us getting together at least once a year.......maybe we can call it a Family Reunion and meet at some park or something.