A New Approach To An Old Pastime

Wanting to escape the humidity of the city, a change of scenery, and spend some quality time with my Dad, I decided to migrate to the family cottage for the summer. Working from home as a medical transcriptionist made this an easy move as it only meant packing a computer and purchasing a data plan to access the internet. With recent humidex values reaching the low 40s in most of Southwestern, Ontario, I know I made the right decision. Temperatures are much more comfortable at the cottage with shade from a large willow tree and a cool south breeze off the lake. Humidity is virtually nonexistent making time outside actually enjoyable. 

Great birding exists at the cottage with plenty of birds on and around the lake, so in order to approach some of them in a different manner, I recently purchased a 14′ Prospector Pack Boat from Swift Canoe and Kayak.  This boat is essentially a hybrid between and canoe and kayak. I plan on writing a follow-up post with more about the boat, why I chose it, and how I have it set up for photography. Until then, all I will say is I absolutely love this boat and am incredibly happy with my purchase.   

With this pack boat, I can explore areas not accessible by foot or larger vessel resulting in some great photo opportunities. I made sure I was comfortable with the boat before taking my camera along and quickly realized how incredibly stable this boat is and I am not nervous at all about bringing my camera onboard.

For my first paddling adventure with my camera, I decided to head to an area on the lake where my dad used to take me and my two sisters as kids in a 16′ aluminum boat for one of his famous nature cruises. Back then, Dad would raise the outboard motor out of the water and we would paddle and push our way through the shallow water following the shoreline observing fish, turtles, ducks, herons, and a variety of other wildlife. This was always one of the highlights of my summer and helped spark my interest in nature at a young age. 

Paddling this area in my pack boat was certainly much easier than it was back then and allowed me to get even closer to shore as I was able to better navigate the shallow water maneuvering over and around rocks, fallen logs, and stumps. With only the sound of the water dripping from my paddle, I was able to sneak up on wildlife with a stealth-like approach.  Paddling so close to shore allowed me to see subjects that would otherwise go unnoticed in a larger powerboat.

The particular stretch of shoreline on Lake Couchiching I paddled is uninhabited as it is low lying and swampy consisting of a mix of cedar, white pine, and a variety of deciduous trees. As I made my way along, I was treated to up-close views of some interesting species. As usual, I was in search of birds but happy to photograph any wildlife that came into view. An American Mink was the only mammal seen as it foraged along the water’s edge. 

One of the things I like most about birding at the cottage is the opportunity to see and photograph birds not regularly found back home. Around the lake, Caspians Terns are readily observed in flight or diving into the water attempting to capture a meal. As I made my way along, one of these birds approached directly off my bow. Raising my camera and adjusting my exposure to compensate for the bright sky I obtained focus.

What I thought was going to be just a typical flight shot quickly changed as the bird went into a full dive heading for the water at a high rate of speed. Keeping focus on the tern, I fired off as many frames as my Canon 7D is capable of as the bird plunged into the lake.

After a large splash, the tern emerged with a small fish, which after a closer look at the image was identified as a Yellow Perch. Seeing this unfold only a few metres away was quite spectacular and a view I could not achieve with any other approach but from the water. 

All in all, I was completely satisfied with my maiden voyage. Not only did me and my camera stay above water, great views were achieved of several species in areas otherwise inaccessible. I am excited about this new approach to photography and am eager to get out paddling more in this and other areas around the lake. With several more weeks at the cottage this summer, including the beginning of fall migration, the birding opportunities seem almost endless and I look forward to capturing plenty of images with this new approach. 

Good birding,
Paul