Paddling Lake Harriet

Yesterday we chose to paddle on Lake Harriet instead of the Saint Croix so that we could rent paddle boards. When we got there the entire park was very crowded. Once able to park and unload my kayak we ate our lunches in the shade. After lunch we dragged my kayak down a big hill, up a big hill, and down another big hill to the lake. My two companions rented equipment and I was surprised to see they both got kayaks. We went clockwise around the lake trying to avoid colliding with the other canoes, kayaks, sail boats, and paddle boards. We picked a lovely day to do this. The sun was shining, the clouds were puffy cotton balls, and the wind was just a light breeze. We saw many mallards on this lake with baby ducklings in tow. We saw one turtle and one bald eagle. Although scenic this lake has one huge drawback. The airplanes fly over every two minutes drowning out all conversation. These huge jetliners are putting down their flaps and the noise is so loud you can't even hear your own thoughts. I know that in less than a month I will be  aboard one of these planes so I tried not to let it bother me too much but it did. I hated the noise of the airplanes. As we circled the lake this group of classic cars also toured around the lake. The first car had the motor mounted on top of the hood and it was extremely loud. The second was a Dodge challenger from the 1970's I think. The third was an old pick up truck all painted fancy in black and green. I can't remember the fourth car but it was loud too. I swear they went around ten or more times during the hour we went around the lake.  We got to the area where the sail boats are tied up. One sail boat was flipped upside down. Six ring billed gulls sat on top of the overturned sail boat. One person in our party wanted to turn her kayak in for a paddle board. We waited for her to make that transaction which took a long time because there were a line at the rental shack. We waited in the water for her to come out. She got on the paddle board while we took her belongings in our boats. She was a natural on the paddle board. She had excellent balance. She said it was easy but not as easy as kayaking. She felt the strain in her legs, arms and core. She paddled over to another dock and got off because we wanted to try it too. My other companion felt sea sick so she paddled back to get out of her kayak. I got out of the kayak and nervously mounted the paddle board. I just sat on the dock and cautiously moved my rear end from the surface of the dock to the surface of the paddle board. Immediately I had wet pants. No matter because I could still paddle with wet pants. Earlier I had seen a woman my age on a paddle board go from sitting to standing with what looked like no effort. Her younger companion, perhaps about 40 years old, struggled enormously to get from sitting to standing. I asked her if she was having fun and she said, "No. I am too  scared to have fun." So that is why I decided not to try and stand up on this paddle board. Since the other person was waiting for us I quickly got off the paddle board and back into my kayak. Once on shore we stopped to use the facilities, refill our water bottles, and drag that kayak back to my car. Someone parked too close to my car so I had to pull out into the street a little bit to fit it back in. As I tied my kayak down along came the group of classic cars again. We actually had a wonderful day on the lake and decided to treat ourselves with a DQ on the way home.