We launched our boats close to home in Dungeness Bay, bordered by the Dungeness Spit, the longest natural spit in the world, held together by 10 miles of driftwood, and guarded by the Dungeness Lighthouse and a wide assortment of birds, seals, and even an occasional coyote and sea lion. My husband built our boats: his, a Pygmy Coho, and mine, a Pygmy Arctic Tern14.

Rather uneventful, as kayak paddles go, but exhilarating to get back on the water, feel the wind on our faces, and listen to the gentle swishing of the paddles through the water. We compensated for a slightly sideways drift with the current of a strong outgoing tide and took our time getting to the spit. We could hear the surf on the other side, sometimes glimpsing the spray of a wave that splashed above the height of drifted logs. The lighthouse blinked at us in the distance.

Not many birds out today, but we did see numerous buffleheads, a few merganzers, a cormorant or two, some scoters, and several others. A gull sat watch on a sign declaring the area protected. People are still allowed to hike the beach to the lighthouse, but few were out wandering on this monotone gray day that threatened to quickly change into something blustery.

As the heavy clouds moved in, we headed back. A couple of seals watched us leave, ducking out of the viewfinder of my camera. All in all, a low-impact, easy-going paddle that made us appreciate how fortunate we are to live where we do.