Elkhorn Slough Kayaking

August 4, 2007

Location
Elkhorn Slough and Monterey Bay Kayaks are located in Moss Landing. Moss Landing is northwest of Castroville via Hwy 1.

Review
Kayaking in Elkhorn Slough is a must if you're ever in the Monterey area. It's a great way to watch sea otters, seals (or is it sea lions) and pelicans in their natural habitat. And it's a great first-time kayaking experience. This is the place where I first learned to kayak. I feel it is very safe!

If you don't own a kayak and the necessary equipment like a wetsuit and PFD, you may rent them from Monterey Bay Kayaks. Everyone at Monterey Bay Kayaks is very knowledgeable about kayaking and the slough; and they are always very helpful. If you plan to rent a kayak from them, it is wise to make rental reservations. Since we needed to rent wetsuits (which is a must at Elkhorn Slough because of the cold), we decided to leave our kayak at home and rent all of the equipment from them. The rental is inexpensive at $30 per person for a full-day's use of a kayak (single, double or triple), paddle, wetsuit, paddling jacket and PFD.

We were kayaking with my dad Marty and step-mom Anna Marie. We rented a tandem kayak as well as a triple seat kayak; both were sit-on-tops. Marty and Anna Marie were paddling an Ocean Kayak Malibu Two XL which is the type of kayak we own. Jude, Sam and I were paddling a Cobra Triple. We had enough room in the triple to also carry two small coolers. (Note: You cannot get out of your kayak while in Elkhorn Slough unless you have paddled up to the landing at Kirby Park 4.5 miles away. So you must eat any food you bring in the kayak and it is imperative that you pack any and all trash out with you).

After a brief orientation about our kayaks and the slough, we headed out kayaking. As you enter the slough, you are most likely going to be greeted by sea otters. The NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ) recommends that you do not get within 100 yards of any marine wildlife like the sea otter and sea lions. This recommendation can be difficult to heed considering the sea otters don't follow this guideline. You can be paddling along and a sea otter will come out of the water just 10 feet away. We usually stop paddling in order to not scare or hurt them and allow the current to take us away. But they are beautiful creatures to observe and great for children to see them in their natural habitat. You may even hear the otters hitting their lunch (usually a crab) with a rock. It's an amazing sound.

Usually (but not always) paddling into the slough is easy since you have the current and wind pushing you into the slough. Be careful because the current can easily push you further than you might be able to paddle back. Just be sure to give yourself ample time to paddle back to Monterey Bay Kayaks. A good marker is if you wish to be out for only 2-3 hours, turn around once you reach the Horizon Organic dairy farm (approximately two miles up the slough on your right). They also have maps available (see map at right) that indicate the distances you can go up the slough.

As you turn around to paddle back to Monterey Bay Kayaks, you'll notice it's harder to paddle. In our instance, if we stopped paddling, the current was quickly pushing us back up the slough. The Cobra Triple turned out to paddle like a tank. It was fitting that it's color was gun-metal gray. This kayak was so heavy that it made paddling back to the launching area a chore. Marty and Anna Marie looked to be easily coasting along in the Malibu Two (I'm sure they might say otherwise).

The weather was beautiful and the wildlife abundant. The sea otters definitely keep towards the entrance to the slough, but there were plenty of seals along the banks up the slough. We also saw a few seagull nests with their babies huddle keeping warm.

This was our first time taking our five-year-old son Sam kayaking at Elkhorn Slough. We weren't sure if he would enjoy it since we knew it would be cold. Monterey Bay Kayaks gave him a full-body wetsuit and he just looked adorable and it kept him warm for most of the trip. As we headed back in for the day, he did start to get cold because we were paddling into the strong wind. But he loved seeing the sea otters and other wildlife, and of course, loved putting his hand in the water.

Another great feature of the slough is that you'll often come upon volunteers from the National Marine Sanctuary in their kayaks. These volunteers are out there to make sure people don't get too close to the wildlife but also to answer any questions you might have about the slough and its wildlife. Gerry from the Sanctuary gave us some nice information about the Cormorants flying and nesting along the slough. Although he never asked for one, I felt that the volunteers might have also been out there to request donations for the sanctuary. Maybe that's just me being jaded from my years in fundraising, but I couldn't help feel bad that we didn't give a donation (who has cash readily available when kayaking?).

When you get back to Monterey Bay Kayaks, you'll be surprised how wet you've gotten while paddling and how cold you'll feel. My hair was soaked from the mist and wind (next time I'll wear a hat). Please be sure to take your kayak off the beach and back to the Monterey Bay Kayak staging area. Monterey Bay Kayaks provides free hot chocolate to paddlers and it is a welcome treat after a hard day of paddling.