Keuka Lake is Shaped Like a Y

Since it is such an interesting shape, we were determined to see all three ‘arms’ of the lake. The problem with this is that there are only a few public launches on the lake - all of which are at the two northern tips. We decided to paddle from the shorter of the two arms to the intersection to make sure we could check out the whole lake.

Ben making dinner plans with Rob (on a cell phone in a kayak…):

At first paddling felt really hard (we got up at 6am and had a 1.5 hour drive to get to the launch), but after a couple rolls in the frigid (yet still warmer than Cayuga) water, we were awake and energized!

We made good progress paddling with the wind on the way south. The shores of Keuka felt much less industrialized than Seneca (two salt mines) and Cayuga (power plant), which was a nice change. There are fewer developed areas on the hilltops too. The cottonwood trees shedding in the early morning light coated the surface of the water in a thin layer of fluffy snow (wish I’d taken a picture!).

Paddling with the Y-intersection in site (woops, some water droplets on the lens):

We had lunch on a little stony beach (which probably wasn’t public, but was at least hidden from view). The sun was really strong, and even with multiple coats of sunscreen and a baseball cap I still burned my ears and arms! I have also been informed that I now have a redneck tan line. Awesome.

Date: Thursday, May 27th, 2010
Distance: 13 miles

Skaneateles Lake, here we come!