Meadowlands Trip Report
by Phil Brown
Sunday, June 7, 2015
We had 13 people, 8 kayaks , 2 tandem canoes and 1 solo canoe putting in at the Laurel Hill Park boat launch in southern Secaucus.
The dock that was originally there with a nice kayak launch was gone (from a storm?) so we just put in on the boat ramp. It was a very windy day although clear , maybe 15 mph from the south so a few people decided to hang on land. Getting started the wind slowed down a little and then when we got in the channel between the reeds it wasn't too bad. I was a little disappointed when I came to a small channel I wanted to go through was just mud because the tide was so low. After about an hour, though, the wind picked up again and then shifted to the east so decided to head back on the river as we would be in a direct head wind with waves about 6 inches high on the river. We didn't see too many egrets, but did see a blue heron and a lot of little sea birds on the mud flats and I think we heard the marsh wrens. Luckily no dinosaurs escaped from the dinosaur park.
After a one and half hour paddle we loaded up our boats and then found some bushes to sit by out of the wind and had our snacks and talked of our "adventure" while watching the sunset.
It wasn't quite the leisurely paddle that I like doing in the meadowlands , but such is with weather and tides.
Phil