Kayaking was something I have never tried before and something I wasn't sure I would be able to handle without capsizing but throughout the whole trip to Mazury, it didn't happen once. I spent a total of seven days cruising through beautiful canals and lakes with a group consisting of 3 Latvians, an American, an Irishman, 7 Poles and 'Homer' the Labrador, who loved teasing us with sticks which he held with a vice-like grip in his teeth.
The dangers we faced in the wild came from hissing swans who threatened us by arching their wings and swimming close by with their young ones. The other threat was the torrential rain which unfortunately made life difficult over the last three days. Glimmers of sunshine soon morphed into apocalyptic clouds which burst upon us at regular intervals. Sometimes we were able to find shelter under nearby trees but on a couple of occasions I remember feeling so wet that I lost the will to care about sheltering.
Mosquito's were plenty in this part of Poland and despite using 'OFF', I think we all struggled a little with bites and itches.
Despite being far from towns and cities, we weren't totally away from civilisation as there were many bars on the camping sites and many locals who sold cakes and other locally produced goods along the banks of the canals.
There was also a sense of normality by having a daily routine. The first most important thing upon arrival was to set up our tents and then to find firewood for the cooking of sausages or potatoes, toast and cheese for the vegetarians, of which there were surprisingly a high number.
When I came home from this trip, Asia insisted I have two showers to wash away the stench of the accumulation of sausage and smoke which covered my clothes. It was something I had become so used to that I couldn't smell it at all. So now it is back to civilisation and daily showers.
No comments:
Post a Comment