After a day of training on a freshwater lake, it's time to do a weekender and earn the Old Salty Rat
patch at Mission Bay! That's a 14-mile canoe trek, with a stop for a hot lunch along the way. The water's
flat, so no tricks, right? Not quite. There are lots of twisty currents that make it constant work
to keep the canoe pointed in the right direction. After the Salty Rat, the canoe-ers are ready for the
Colorado River and Northern Tier.
This page is also a perfect example of the pictures one must get on a high-adventure
outing. The photographer, David Dopps, was generous to take these pictures, and share them with the HAT. The
webmaster's comments will appear in this font.
Don't just pile into the canoes! Get the latest from the leader, and make sure the gear is proper. Get that camera clicking right from the beginning. If you do that, your pictures will tell a story.
Where's this go? Get far-back shots and close-up shots.
All of 'em.Gotta have one cheese picture ("Say cheeeeez!"), but then, keep on pushing that button. This shot has a great foreground.
Ahh. Moving. The water falling off the paddle makes this shot a winner. It's a good idea to take lots of shots, so moments like this get captured.
Here we go!
Put some oomph into those paddles.
Here, we see that Mr. Dopps is shooting from a kayak. He's close to the water,
so lots of neat reflections show up.
Nowadays, it's easy to find small digital cameras with
waterproof cases strong enough for snorkeling. Our photographer must have had such equipment.
The whole flotilla! Nice idea: Get the whole group, but not in a straight row.
Caroline Quintanilla, having fun already.
The lunch-break is near a tiny lake, where one often hears the diminutive roar of model hydroplanes. On this day, it was model sailboats. Sidelights like this make a trip memorable. Keep that camera going!
Leaning with the breeze. Do some artsy shots. Foreground stuff makes it interesting.
Kickin'. Those relaxing lunchtimes are a goal of high adventure. Capture the moment.
Cooool enough fer ya?
Lunch is done, back in the boats. Just enough time for another composition - foreground stuff, shoreline curve, subject in the background (this is a neat trick), sky reflected in the water.
Smooth water and sailboats.
Don't laugh. This heron is a dignified bird. Always get any wildlife you can.
Pelican taking a gull's place on the beach.
Canoeing is great, because you get to meet the nicest people... Note the water in the foreground and the wake of the canoes.
...uh-oh.
It's a whole lot easier to paddle a canoe downhill.
OR
What the photographer got just before the kayak rolled.
Winning features - sky and water. This could have been leveled with Photoshop, but the picture was
too nice to fiddle with. Great as is.
That was some 14 miles! Now, some fire and some Dutch ovens.
Director and student crack a puzzle.
The next morning, we are visited by the next wave of high adventurers.
Won't be a Tiger Cub soon enough.
Stay low and hang on with both hands!
This young lady will be back, in the Venturer's uniform.
See you at the next HAT Canoeing class! D'ya think the photog was having fun, too?