The dawn broke on Sonoma County with perfect clarity. I woke early to get ready for a paddle on the Russian River at Jenner by the Sea. After packing a nice variety of greens, fruits, cheeses, meats and chocolate covered cheesecake I set out to pick up my gear for a simple private party trip. Just as I was about to walk out the door I went on the net to check tides and weather. Even though it was still outside my window the report warned of high winds along the coast. I quickly added a few paddle jackets to my gear bag and set off to the coast.

I got a call on my cell from Scott and Beth asking me for directions from the Carneros Inn. I thought to myself if they were just leaving southeast of Sonoma now they would never make the put in by 10 am. I gave them detailed directions to Jenner and relaxed a bit knowing there would be no need to hurry. I stopped at Peet’s for a cup coffee and a bearclaw, breakfast of champions (and slightly sleepy tour guides). I arrived at Jenner at about 10:15 and enjoyed the sunshine while I waited. As I sat the wind started to pick up, a nice catspaw about 10:15 was turning into a fresh breeze. You sailors know that a freshening breeze that early can be a sign of fun to come. We kayakers know that it is a sign of a very wet day to come.

Scott and Beth arrived about 11:00 and we quickly went over the equipment and safety talk. They were experienced kayakers but we did pay special attention to weather paddling. It was good that I had stowed extra gear as Beth didn’t have a shell and borrowed one of mine. We normally launch and paddle out towards the mouth of the river but the wind was now about 20 knots and we were having trouble making headway so we reversed course and headed east. I knew we could ride the wind east and then make it back in the lee of thee Jenner headlands. We paddled and got acquainted and the conversation while not quite at a scream was certainly above normal voice. My paddling partners were from Atlanta but had lived briefly in CA before. They hadn’t remembered this windy of a day in October. At that point I didn’t admit I had not had such an October experience like this as well and I have been paddling the coast for 27 years.

By the time we made our turn the white caps were aboil and the wind speed was over 25 knots. As I predicted we were able to hug the head and while the strokes were quite strenuous we made good time back to the launch point at the visitor’s center. The only problem was we now needed to traverse the estuary at about a 45 degree angle into the chop and wind. We all took a deep breath and off we went. The spray pelted our faces with each splash on the bow and was quite refreshing. The crossing took about 15 minutes and we were soaked to the bone upon arrival at take out. Although everyone was wet, cold and tired it was another perfect paddle on a perfect day.

-John