I have always been interested in paddling the Welland  Recreational Waterway, (reffered to from here on out as WRW).  Today was super hot and I was in town, strangely not off camping somewhere, so I decided it would be a good day to check it out. I put my kayak on my car, packed a tonne of water, and headed to Welland using the directions in Jamie Bingham’s book which can be found HERE.

IMG_0110IMG_0109 IMG_0112

It was pretty busy when I arrived, being almost 1pm on a very hot Sunday of the Labor Day weekend, but only near the dock. The waterway otherwise was fairly quiet and I looked forward to getting out on it and exploring the area!

IMG_0114 IMG_0115

In front of me were three bridges, to my left were apartment buildings and to my right there was a fence which had been covered in  graffitti but it looked like it fit right into the scene, not in a bad way though.

IIMG_0116 IMG_0118 IMG_0119 IMG_0120 IMG_0121 IMG_0122

IMG_0123 IMG_0125

As I neared the next bridge my face broke into a huge smile.  I heard the sound of kids playing and quickly noticed serval boys jumping off the bridge, into the river.  It was awesome! Seeing it brought me back to my childhood.  I remember doing the exact same thing once upon a time and it elated me that kids were still doing it, and not sitting at home in front of some type of video game or iPad that they’ve been raised on.

IMG_0126 IMG_0127 IMG_0128

I asked them if I could take some pictures and they were pretty jazzed about it.  They all quickly ran to the top to take their turns jumping into the water and getting their photo taken.  Then they all went up together, spaced out exact distances apart to avoid crashing into each other in the air, and did a group jump!  I’m hoping they get a chance to see these pictures and grab copies so they can use them one day to recall a perfect summer day with their buddies.  I would’ve cherished a memory like this and wish I’d had one from my youth.

IMG_0129 IMG_0131 IMG_0132

I did ask their names in order to give them some type of credit here on my blog, but I believe some of them may have been there without their parents permission and therefore, requested to be kept anonymous.  LOL.  I pulled my boat over underneath the bridge, showed the boys the photos, told them how to find them online and continued on my way down the canal, giggling a little.  It was so nice to see kids #getoutside and play like they used to and it honestly made my day to see it and capture some of it.  It reminded me of that movie, Stand By Me and that made me love the moment even more.

IMG_0134 IMG_0136 IMG_0138 IMG_0142

Shortly after the boys on the bridge, I came across the area where the WRCC hosts the Illuminaqua series of concerts.  Presently, the apparatus was being used as bird beds. They looked like they were really enjoying them!

IMG_0143 IMG_0144 IMG_0149 IMG_0152 IMG_0154

I managed to scoop up an empty juice bottle in my travels, one more photo for #CleanUpOurParks !

IMG_0158 IMG_0165 IMG_0167 IMG_0171 IMG_0173 IMG_0175

I hated to admit it but it looks like fall is starting to show it’s face, just a bit. Fall does make things look beautiful, and I do enjoy the season,  it’s the one that follows it, that I don’t really care for. Guess we can’t have it all!

IMG_0180

I had to paddle quite hard on my return back to the parking lot on Lincoln Street where my car was waiting for me.  It was windy and the current was pretty strong here, but it was a fantastic workout!

I really enjoyed the paddle here today and would recommend it to anyone looking for some unique views and a possible challenge depending on the weather.

Thanks so much for reading my blog!  If you have any questions, comments, criticisms, etc, please give me a shout!

Happy Paddling!

Camper Christina