Portage to Portage Paddling Project
  • Home
  • About Me
  • Blog
  • Where to from here?
  • Equipment List
  • Who's Following Jake?
  • Trip Log and Location
  • Where I'm going
  • Calendar
  • Links
  • Photos
  • Extras
  • Best of the Blog

Day 48 (At Peace With the Banana)

1/22/2010

5 Comments

 
Daily stats

Start: 8:15 AM - Pensacola Kayak and Sail, Pensacola FL
Finish: 4:09 PM - Fort Walton Beach, FL
Time: 7:52:49
Daily dist: 37 miles
Total dist: 1,396 miles
Plans had been made for me to stay at the kayak shop last night in order to get an early start today. However, after dinner I was just too sleepy and comfortable to re-locate all my gear and get settled into a whole other location for one night. So I stayed with the Blackingtons one more night and they gave me a ride over to the kayak shop bright and early this morning. Waiting for us at the marina was Tom whom I have been corresponding with ever since I put out the call to the Pensacola fishing forum looking for info on the local waters. I didn’t have the energy to visit with him last night so he made the trek down to the put in to see me off this morning.

Aside from providing me with some excellent information about the local waterways I believe this fortuitous connection with Tom may have come with it a higher meaning. You see… Tom’s on-line moniker is “Banana Tom.”
There was a thread of thought, from those who appreciate my observation of the superstition around bananas on boats, that it was bananas that may have caused the streak of bad luck that befell me on the first month of this trip. I had purged the dehydrated bananas from my food stores and thoroughly scrubbed the location where a prankster stashed a banana peel under my deck lines last fall. Yet I still felt a twinge of doubt that the banana curse had been completely exercised from my craft. This morning however, I think I finally removed all doubt that the bad luck of the banana has been neutralized by handling the curse on a more diplomatic level by inviting Banana Tom to sign my boat.
Picture
Making friends with 'Banana Tom' A diplomatic solution to the Banana curse.
Of course I asked him to sign it “Tom” not “Banana Tom”… there is no need to push my luck.
One noteable thing I saw today was another group of kayak campers.  They were set up on the far west end of the series of islands where I am camped now.  This was only the third group I've seen since the start of the trip.  The first was on an island jsut above Lake Wisconsin on the first day, the second was below Natchez MS on the Mississippi River.  I hope with the weather getting warmer this becomes a trend that continues for the rest of the trip. 
Picture
I'm not the only one... Other campers on the water.
5 Comments
Aaron Stachovak
1/22/2010 11:51:12 am

37 miles - not bad mileage considering you don't have the river pushing you anymore :) Dude it is looking warm down there!

Reply
Linda link
1/22/2010 10:45:08 pm

I have heard the banana story but I'm not sold on it. I have been actually trying to disprove this theory, I actually eat a banana while kayaking quite often =) I've only flipped once and lost all my gear lol. I wish we knew when you'd be paddeling by, we'd wave and cheer you on like the ironman that was held here a few months ago! You are welcome to stay here a night while in PCB, or if you decide to Camp at St andrews state park, it's right down the road from our house. I'd be honored to sign your yak!
Linda & Ernie in Panama City Beach

Reply
Alicia
1/23/2010 03:50:58 am

Hi Jake:

I spoke with Uncle Bob and he told me that you stayed the extra night, but fell asleep with the computer in your lap. You now have a huge fan in Uncle Bob and Aunt Mary. :-) I knew you both would have a memorable experience. Maybe you can meet Cousin Ruthie and Cliff in Naples ?? She is the top 100 chef's for a B & B in the USA. Note gourmet cooking is in our blood..

Hugs,
Alicia

Reply
lyn stachovak
1/24/2010 02:21:51 am

Looks like you are in for some really interesting weather. I hope you, your kayak and gear are in a nice safe and secure place so you can ride out the storms. Love you and please pay attention to all and any weather alerts.

Reply
Gene
1/24/2010 09:56:53 am

Bananas ARE bad luck on a boat. Our Alaska fishing trip ended a mile from launch when one of the engines died. Then we were nearly swamped by a passing cruise liner. When the skipper found our lunch sack with the bananas inside, he nearly through us overboard!

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Best of the Blog
    Freezing temps, theives, pepper spray, manatees,  gators, & tornados.
    Get up to date by reading blog highlights from the trip so far.

    Picture
    Photo by Michael Franklin

    Author

    Jake Stachovak
    The Portage to Portage Paddling Project guy
    .

    SPONSORS

    Aqua Adventures
     
    Seda Kayak

    Kokatat

    Werner

    North Face

    Snap Dragon

    Nigel Foster Designs

    Seal Line

    MSR

    .

    Need help with the lingo?  Click here to go to the Portage to Portage blog vocabulary site.

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

    Archives

    May 2012
    September 2010
    August 2010
    July 2010
    June 2010
    May 2010
    April 2010
    March 2010
    February 2010
    January 2010
    December 2009
    November 2009
    October 2009


Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.