Lake Siskiyou
MVP
The Aqua Xtreme X2 Packraft—Where we parked at Lake Siskiyou, the bank is steep and slippery. The packraft only weighs 6 lbs, so it was really easy to move it down to the lake.
Lake Review:
Lake Siskiyou is a wonderful, large lake with some prime views of Mount Shasta and surrounding forest landscape.
There were a few motorized boats, but they were moving very slowly, and so there weren’t too many wakes to contend with.
There were at least three dozen kayakers that I could see, but with the lake being so large, there was no traffic to speak of.
There is a bridge that you can paddle under, which is always really cool. It was a bit windy, which really pushed around the packraft, but it just meant more exercise for me.
What I Learned:
According to GaiaGPS, I moved the boat right at it’s max speed of 2 mph.
Surprisingly, I tracked pretty straight, even though this boat does not have a skeg. Still, if I’m going to use this boat for mainly lakes (instead of rivers), then I really should put a skeg on it. I won’t go any faster, but it’ll be easier to handle.
It was a trip talking to my brother on the phone while I was in the middle of the lake.
I had blown up the inflatable Kayak for my brother and sister-in-law, but the kayak turned out to be too unstable for them. As I’m writing this, I realized that I should have suggested that they take turns on the kayak.
I only paddled for 40 minutes, but man my body can feel those 40 minutes today (the day after)—my shoulders, my back, my arms, etc.
I wore long sleeves and a wide brim hat, and it protected me really well from the sun.
I took a quick dip in the lake right before I left and it was the right move. I felt so good cooling down in the not-too-cold water, and much cleaner the whole drive home.
What Happened?
1.2 miles, 58 min, 5 mph W (wind)
I got to Lake Siskiyou after lunch and inflated both the packraft and kayak and waited for my brother and sister-in-law. When they came, I took the packraft (it has no skeg, more delicate, and is much slower than the kayak) and launched from the shore. While I waited for them to launch the kayak, I took in the views of the surroundings. After about 15 minutes, I found out that I would be kayaking alone, so I started towards the bridge.
I had come to this lake 8 years ago and had taken a picture of a kayaker (see right) from the pedestrian bridge. Since then I’ve always wanted to be that kayaker, and accomplishing that was a real nice feeling.
Oh and the packraft definitely feels like a barge when I’m paddling. It’s awesome with the kids, as it can comfortably fit all three of us, but by myself, well, it’s not super fun. Still, I can’t wait to take this packraft out on a backpacking trip and boat on a lake that 99.999% of the population has never boated in.