Another milestone, a dip in leech river

After our kayaking and swimming adventure the day before, the girls were itching to swim again. We planned to visit a small nearby beach on a lake but the parking lot was packed and since none of us are keen on crowds, we decided to swing by the river to see if people were swimming there.

This would be the same river that we ran in to leeches last year so it was a big step that they even agreed to take a look-sy there.

There were quite a few people swimming in the river but we found a quiet spot to dip our feet and contemplate a quick jump-in, jump-out to cool off.

We were standing in ankle-deep water debating the merits of this idea when a woman who had just been swimming further down the river stopped by and asked us if it was muddy where we were standing.

I replied that yes it was a little muddy.

She replied that there were probably leeches there (at which point my kids walked out of the water) because she'd had a run in with them in the area and suggested we try the sand bar where she had just been for a swim.

The kids took her suggestion (our research on leeches last year confirmed that leeches do NOT like sandy areas, mud is where they hang out) and after discovering the sand bar was quite large, decided they were so hot that taking a quick dip would "probably be OK."

I guess if it takes a 90-degree day to get over your fear of leeches because you're hot (and desperate) enough and want to get cool, then so be it.

I did debate telling the girls a little while later about the young boy with a leech on him (he was not at the sand bar and I watched his mom pulled off the sucker without fuss which led me to believe they'd been to this swimming spot before) but they were playing in the water and I didn't want to ruin their fun.

And I'm happy to report the Almeida kids did NOT encounter any leeches after about a 1/2 hour swimming around the sand bar.

This short visit turned out to be a great life lesson about overcoming fear. The girls had a bad experience in this river but they proved to themselves that they could get past that fear and not let it stop them from doing something they wanted to do.

Although none of us are keen on swimming in a river known to have leeches, we're now open to the idea of a quick dip to cool off when we can't swim anywhere else.

On the sand bar of course. I have no desire to re-live/re-teach this particular lesson.

Kayaking ... third time charmed

We went kayaking this weekend on Tricky Pond in Naples and believe we've put to rest our rocky history with the sport. We had a fabulous time.

It took a little fast-talking on my part to convince L. to take another kayaking adventure after her ill-fated (and front page news) day on the Saco River in New Hampshire last summer. But she was willing to try the sport again if I agreed to a tandem kayak (so she could be in the same boat as me).

After chatting with my friend Shannon about her Kayaking experience in Naples, I opted to call an outfitter there to inquire about tandem boats and calm water possibilities.




Sebago Kayak Company on the causeway had both traditional tandem kayaks as well as the sit on top kind. I assured L. she could choose which one she felt most comfortable with once we got to the outfitters.

Brian at Sebago Kayak Co. was very helpful in explaining the different kayak options as well as locations he thought we'd like based on our preferred conditions of "calm waters" and "a nice place to swim."

L. decided the sit on top tandem kayak was the best choice (as did G. for her single) after it was explained they were the most stable and easy to get in and out of. We also decided Tricky Pond was our best destination option. We were told there was some boat traffic but much less than Sebago (and calmer water). Then after hearing about the rope swing on the shore that we might like to try, the deal was almost sealed.


"But there aren't gonna be any leeches there right mom?" L. asked.

(Last summer really was a rough one for L. and she has yet to step a foot in the Saco River since the leech incident).

Based on the description of the pond being a popular swimming place, I assured her it was highly unlikely.

The outfitters delivered our kayaks to the portage on the pond, which was included in the rental fee, and a big plus in my book.

It took L. and I a few minutes to get our paddling in-sync as that is key to tandem kayaking (it's easy to cross paddles sitting in such close proximity). But we found a rhythm and flowed across the water fairly effortlessly. Well, until I had to scratch my knee and L. lamented that I was "messing her up" by stopping my paddling without warning.

G. did great in her single kayak but L. and I had to stop a few times to wait for her to catch up.

G. was sure L. and I were paddling faster because there were two of us. But after explaining that she didn't need to dig so deep with her paddle (she learned to paddle a canoe when she was younger and the principles are different), she was able to keep a steadier pace closer to us.

We spotted a rope swing on the shoreline but the girls thought it was too high. I wanted to give it a whirl but chickened-out after a closer inspection (it was about 10 feet above the water and require a second rope to reach out to grab the swinging rope above a rocky area).

We paddled close to shore for about an hour and managed to cover half the pond before we turned around to head back to the little islands we had seen earlier.

There were a few motor boats pulling wake boarders and tubers during our paddle (I was envious as I LOVE to water ski but haven't had a chance to do it in years) but the wake waves we experienced close to shore were manageable and, enjoyable (after the first couple of wake waves L. even agreed the rocking motion was fun).

We circled each small island and spotted another rope swing. This one was closer to the water and looked a lot less intimidating.

We tied up our kayaks and spent a half hour laughing, swinging and jumping in to the pond from the rope before some other kids from a motor boat swam over to play on it.


After eating lunch and seeing more kids from boats swimming toward the swing, we decided to leave the island and head back to shore.

On the short paddle back to the portage, L. asked G. to switch kayaks so she could do a solo paddle. It was then I knew L. was feeling confident about kayaking and I deemed the day a big success.

The "third time's a charm" saying was apropos with kayaking for us as we truly had a fabulous day on Tricky Pond and both girls are eager visit again.

The summer of 2009 will be remembered as a short and wet one but in some ways it has been much better than our 2008, at least for fresh water sports.