On May 27th, we had another group integration, this time going for kayaks. By car or by train and foot, people arrived in Budy Grabskie, where Emilia has a tiny self-assembled cottage. We left the provisions for the after-kayaks barbecue, and went to Samice to start our trip on the water. According to the maps and the rental company, the route from Samice to Budy Grabskie should take 3.5 hours, and Ela could probably make it at this speed. In double kayaks, teams Martyna-Krzysztof, Emilia-Jaś, Leandro-Dawid, and Karthika-Raul, needed time to adjust who does what and which rowing style is the best.
The weather was great, and no one could complain about getting bored as the route meandered between fallen trees that needed to be skilfully crossed in small openings on the side, under or above. There were also three places where the kayaks must be carried due to the water thresholds. Emilia’s kids had many questions about what would happen if we just went through it, and everyone had a chance to discover the answer. At the second threshold, when all of us were happy to put our kayaks in the water after a too long walk, a couple of tourists went rowing through the step. With astonished faces and some disbelief, they just sank in slow-motion a few meters after. We also had a chance to clear one of the kayaks of water as it toppled and later went under one of the fallen trees. Fortunately, noone got hurt, all shoes that were trying to sneak away with the current were found, and the adventure ended with just a runny nose of one of the passangers and one wet phone. Still, everyone got a bit more careful after that.
After 3 hours, everyone was searching for the signs that would indicate the finishing line. After 3.5, the smell of barbecue from the riverbanks made the bellies rumble. We finally arrived after 5! hours, with small adventures of digging up Dawid’s flip-flops that were sucked up by silt at the last portage.
Thanks to Martyna’s amazing vegetable quiche, we survived the waiting time needed to get the barbecue ready.
We survived. Everyone agreed that 3.5 hours would be enough. The route was picturesque, and the blue dragonflies were uncountable. As we didn’t have more strength to appreciate the barbecue part properly, the next group outing will be more static and include only the barbecue part. Just after the next, next time, we will go for some more sporty adventure. Maybe a bike trip?
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