Kayaking in Lucaya

If you tuned in yesterday, you found out I’m enjoying a Fascination cruise, not to be confused with a Fantasy cruise which may or may not require being onboard a seagoing vessel. As it turned out, a respite to Freeport would engage me in a different kind of cruise – it was fascinating but not onboard the Fascination. Today I cruised the mangrove waterways of the Lucaya National Park on Grand Bahama Island. I did so in style – in a two-person kayak. The Lucaya National Park is so named for the alleged first “settlers” of the island known as Lucayans and also because it supports 6 distinct eco-systems which happen to include four different types of mangroves. Mangroves are important to sea life replenishment because numerous fish and crustacean creatures, not to mention a variety of fowl, use the mangroves as a safe haven for their off-spring who will grow up there until they graduate to the open ocean reef. The creek we kayaked was a mixture of both sea and fresh water and had nice gentle turns and both open and narrow spaces. I love to kayak but hadn't done it for a while. My enthusiasm has been renewed. Our kayak guide, Sam, gave us a brief instruction and off we went. My rust showed but I was able to shake it off and have some fun as we (the group of 14 I was with) cruised the waterway, occasionally playing bumper cars with each other and frequently getting up close and personal with the mangroves we ran into as we tried to stay on course. With only one rest stop in the 2 ½ mile course, it was both laborious and exhilarating! The good news is that even if you’re bad, you won’t get paddled! Instead, you come away with a greater appreciation for nature and your own ability to have a wonderful adventure. I may not make it back to Lucaya National Park in the near future but I definitely know I will be kayaking again at my first opportunity.