Lake Geneva is one of my favorite places to paddle, and Sunday's trip was another great one. Seven paddlers met me at Linn Pier with surprisingly good weather. Based on the forecast in the days preceding the paddle, I wasn't sure what was going to happen but the only chance of rain was in the morning and it was sunny. The winds could have picked up in the afternoon, so we chose to cross to the north shore and enjoy a tail wind into town, followed by a sheltered return along the south shore.
We were on the water at 10:00, and after crossing to the north shore we headed east through The Narrows. At around noon we stopped at Big Foot State Park for lunch. Surprisingly the bathrooms weren't open for the season yet, and there were no facilities at the launch site either. I don't remember that being the case before and this paddle has been the first Sunday in May for the last few years. After the science lesson (Joe teaching us how to move a cloud of gnats over someone's head), the fashion show (Sarah's new storm cag) and my sad attempt at a dessert to share (I had to _buy_ cookies this time), we headed back along the south shore but not before paddling under some of the docks along the way. Our good deed for the day happened when we rescued a racquet ball from drowning, several times…
Plans involving spring weather are usually not much more than a guess, especially if expecting the wind strength and direction to follow the forecast. However, this time it all worked out and we not only got the benefit of a tailwind but hardly had much of a headwind on the return trip. Most of us were off the water by 1:30, but Sarah and Joe did another lap around the lake and joined us on shore about a half hour later. We will repeat this trip again in October and also have the fall colors to see. Thanks to everyone who joined me for a great day!
Steve
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