Raising Maine

Gear up carefully for river voyage with kids Though our family loves to hike, we decided it was time to expand our horizons. Now that the kids are older — they are 6 and 8 — we can explore more outdoors activities with them. My family decided our first adventure this spring should be a canoe trip. Since we had tried canoeing only once before, we made our plans to paddle the calm waters of the Presumpscot River in Windham.

Getting the boat and gear ready was a challenge for us. The canoe we used was fairly light, but it was still awkward to load onto our pickup truck. My husband, careful, safety-conscious individual that he is, used five tie-downs with ratchets to secure the boat to the truck. As he did his securing, I watched quietly from the sidelines. The best way, I thought, to get the day off to a good start.

Once the canoe was secure, I made sure to put the paddles into the truck. (Confession: Last summer, on our one and only canoe trip, we forgot the paddles and lost about an hour driving back home to get them. Not an auspicious beginning.)

There's a lot of other stuff to keep track of when a family of four decides to go canoeing: flotation devices for each family member (and trying them on ahead of time to make sure they fit properly), snacks and drinks, towels and bathing suits, bug spray and sunblock, a first-aid kit and various other items each family member insists must be brought.

LESSONS IN NAVIGATION

Once we were fully loaded and in the truck, we headed to the Presumpscot River launch off Windham Center Road in Windham. The launch's official name is the "Great Falls Boat Launch," but the sign doesn't say that yet. According to Mark Robinson, Windham Parks and Recreation director, the sign will be changed at the launch when funding is secured. At present the sign says that it is the "FPL (Florida Power and Light) Energy's North Gorham Project" boat launch.

The parking area at the launch accommodates only about eight cars and there's no parking on Windham Center Road's shoulder, so it's best to put your canoe in the water early in the day, before crowds arrive. According to the locals we met, during the summer the parking lot fills up fast.

Unloading our canoe from the truck and getting it into the water didn't take much time, but organizing our gear and deciding who was going to sit where was another story. It was a while before we left shore.

Teaching the kids to paddle was entertaining . . . and frustrating. I'd like to say the kids were "naturals," but that wouldn't be true. After I got hit in the head a couple of times, my calm, motherly voice turned reprimanding: "Don't switch sides. Just keep your paddle on one side of the canoe and your sister will keep hers on the other!"

Even with their bubbling enthusiasm, the kids soon realized that paddling in a straight line is a lot more difficult than they thought. They spent a lot of time moving in circles and got a bit seasick in the process.

According to Don Skofield, MaineToday.com's Getting Started canoeing expert, one of the most common mistakes beginners make is paddling on one side at the same time. We avoided that rookie mistake, but my husband's paddle stroke was stronger than mine, so it took extra effort on my part to get us moving in a straight line; I probably did two strokes for every one of his. This seemed the case with my daughters as well, since my 8-year-old is much taller and stronger than her younger sister.

I was sure we were going to tip over, but thanks to some quick balancing maneuvers by my husband, we didn't take an unscheduled swim.

It took about 15 minutes of paddling before both kids started complaining of tired arms. My husband and I took over the paddles, glad to forge ahead in a straight, rather than looping, ride to see more of the river.

A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE

I wasn't sure the kids would enjoy canoeing as much as they do our hiking trips once they were done paddling. They had to sit still and look at the scenery and they seem to prefer more active roles in our outdoor adventures. But they did enjoy looking around for a while, particularly when we agreed to let them tell us where to go. They saw trees that had fallen into the river and wanted a closer look. This proved interesting and in several places we could see the bottom of the river in the clear water. We didn't spot any fish but did see lots of plants, dead wood and rocks.

The kids asked lots of questions that my husband and I didn't have answers for and they weren't happy about that. Unlike many of the hiking trails we've been on, there aren't helpful brochures or kiosks floating in the water to explain the animal and plant life in the area.

We took our trip in mid-May before Dundee Park, a public beach on the river, was in operation. (The open season is June through September). Canoes can land at the side of the beach to visit but are expected to pay the day usage rate (for non-Windham residents it's $3 for adults, $1 for children) like all visitors to the park during open season. If you're looking at the beach from the water, the landingportage is on the left. Still, it looked like a good spot for us to relax and have a snack. Once on shore, the kids got out of the canoe, peeled off their flotation devices, ran freely around the beach and splashed in the water.

After another paddle lesson — on shore this time — we continued down the river. A strong wind picked up, so we didn't travel very far before we headed back. It was tough paddling against the wind and we struggled to stay on course. My arms were very sore by the end of the trip (and the next day).

If I had to do things differently, I'd have organized our gear ahead of time. It takes more time than you might think to load and unload the canoe, keep an eye on the kids and manage the gear. But it was worth it, even with a few whacks to the head with a paddle, to enjoy the river from the water, rather than the shore, with the kids.