Meditation by Kayak
The greatest “escape”
Sometimes all you need are a few pieces of gear and a rugged landscape to escape and sometimes all you need is a sea kayak on the open water. Some of the most beautiful places on Earth are best seen from the quiet solitude of a kayak.
Whether it’s discovering a hidden cove, a secluded trailhead, or a secret river canyon, exploring by paddle can take you into areas that are often times inaccessible by land, and can offer you a true calmness that one finds only after a few disconnected days in the great outdoors.
Imagine yourself here…
You’ve just flown into some remote part of the world, or perhaps one of the most impressive national parks known to man. You packed up everything you’d bring on a backpacking trip, but instead of throwing everything on your back and heading out on foot, you toss the gear into a boat so you can make your mileage by water.
Day one on the open water is spent unwinding. Yes, your arms have to work to move you along, but each stroke of the paddle takes you further and further into a meditative place where the burn doesn’t exist. Your arms quickly become a part of the boat and your mind begins to escape to the place where your body has already arrived. You’re finally away from it all.
By day two, the sunrise is on your mind, not the to-do list you left behind. As you sip your morning coffee, or maybe tea, and stare out at those pristine waters watching the sun rise, you realize that you’re finally ready to take in everything that this trip has to offer—the spectacular scenery, the quietness, the wildlife. You’re determined to access that deep place you haven’t been able to get to lately while living on auto-pilot. You come out of your thoughts for a moment. Is that a moose off in the distance? Or perhaps it was a whale? (Depends on where you are.)
Three days in and your mind is wandering. You just pulled the kayak onto shore for a hike to a vantage point that very few people experience each year. When you reach the top, you can see a hundred miles around in every direction. Now you start to daydream about leaving the rat race and finding your roots again. Remember when you had time on the weekends to go for hikes? You need that back. But for now, you need to remember this moment and this amazing vista that you feel lucky to be seeing.
On day four, you’re feeling like a changed person. Your body is stronger, and paddling takes little effort. You could do this forever. And that’s not all, your head is clear too. This was exactly what was needed—deep meditation by kayak.
Unfortunately, it’s time to head back to reality. But not before seeing a few more rare birds and dipping into one more remote cove. The past few days will stick with you longer than you can imagine. And as you unload the kayak, you begin to start thinking about where you’ll head next time.
