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Outbound Diaries - Keeping a Journal of Your Kayaking Adventures

How to get started journaling you kayaking adventures

by Pamela Hennessy
Kayaking in new and exciting locations can be a rewarding pastime that builds meaningful memories. And, keeping a journal of your experiences helps you hold on to and share those memories for years to come. So, it makes great sense to document your trips in a personal journal.

A kayaking diary or journal can be as simple or complex as you make it. It’s also a great tool for parents to use when teaching kids creative writing skills or appreciation of nature. Whether you fill it with observations, doodles or photos, you’ll soon appreciate having a kayaking journal at your fingertips.

Getting started is as easy as picking up a pencil.

The Basics
If you’re unsure where to begin, start out by documenting the basics of your journeys. Try using a format like this:
  • Location
  • Time of Launch
  • Duration of Trip
  • Weather Conditions
  • Water Conditions
  • Wildlife, Bird or Plant Identification
  • Travel Highlights
  • Overall Impression

The Identification Challenge
Parents can use journaling as a tool to teach their children more about the world around them. From a kayak, one can observe and appreciate so much in nature, and spotting different flora and fauna is an exciting learning exercise for young minds.

Encourage your kids to document the new things they see and experience in their journal. This gives your kids a greater appreciation of your family adventures and helps promote positive learning habits. Since kayaking is already a fun, bonding activity for kids, adding a journal exercise to the mix allows your child to put their own unique signature on your outings together.

The Photo Safari
Nature photographers and amateur shutterbugs alike will enjoy the opportunities kayaking delivers. Keeping a photo journal of your excursions makes it easy to share your impressions with others. Whether through photo books, a personal blog or even social media, your friends and family will enjoy seeing the places you’ve been and the sights you’ve seen.

The Hopeless Romantic
Some of our experiences in nature can spark us creatively. Your journal is the perfect place to chart, sketch or write about where you are and what you see. This artistic exercise can be incredibly therapeutic and inspiring. The different places you explore will certainly move you in different ways, and exploring them through creative expression is the perfect way to release your inner artist.

The Nature Lover
So, you have an interest in ecology, birding or just the wonders of nature. Journaling was absolutely made for you.

Kayaking is the perfect setting for observing and cataloging different species of lake birds -- along with their feeding and nesting habits. Depending on your area (or your launch point), the time of year and the weather patterns, you can document behavior trends and the interactions of birds with the water and shorelines.

It’s also interesting to observe and notate how changes in the seasons impact shoreline flora.

The Take Away
You already know kayaking to be a fun and worthwhile pastime. By adding a journal to document your excursions, you’ll be creating lasting memories and a fun, interesting history of your adventures that you can look back on for years to come.

Oru has a full range of kayaks - for every experience level. Be sure to check out the entire lineup here.