Birding by Kayak
An ocean wave heaves up, exposing an offshore rock, then crashes with a startling "ha-rump". Boomers. The coast swell is an undulating six feet; the wind is calm. Boomers serve as a warning to be wary, so we choose an inshore route, behind sea stacks and a shelf of rock that’s exposed at low tide. The air smells of salt and fetid plant matter.
I take stock of the morning’s birds. Already we’ve seen Common Murre, Marbled Murrelet, Sooty Shearwater, Surf and White-winged Scoter, Pelagic and Brandt’s Cormorants, Bald Eagle, Common Loon, and gulls - lots of gulls. We wend our way through clumps of tangled bull kelp that heave upward with each passing wave. The tide is out, setting the table for the Black Oystercatcher, gulls, crows and ravens. Leaning, we sweep our paddles for a tight-radius turn about algae-covered rock. A flock of adolescent oystercatchers assemble nearby, scrutinizing our invasion of their home. Another boomer breaks behind us. Green water laced white with foam squeezes in around the rocks.
I scan the gaps between the rocks near the shore. I’m hoping to spot a mink, or to surprise a river otter or raccoon. A small bird catches my eye. It’s busy flicking its beak through the algae, deep in the inter-tidal, the domain of the Black Oystercatcher, the Surfbird, the Harlequin Duck. It’s standing on little perching feet, and it looks up inquisitively, as a surge in the channel draws me near. It’s a bird we often see pulling worms from city lawns. An orange-breasted bird. An American Robin.
The surging water bounces my kayak about so I can’t get a fix on the bird with binoculars. The robin - an opportunist in the twice-a-day, low-tide, feeding frenzy - is flicking for insects. A wave sweeps the rocks; the robin hops deftly away from the spray.
The opportunity to observe birds up close - whether it’s a robin in the intertidal, an osprey catching fish, or a pair of oystercatchers screaming out their territorial claim - is one of the joys of kayaking. Kayaks excel at shoreline exploration - on the coastal sea, or in the protection of an inland waterway. Kayaks transport you into the habitat of birds.
Kayaks for Birding
Different kayak types meet a variety of needs. Many are suitable for birding. Some good birding kayaks are also ocean-tested craft capable of surviving (by expert paddlers) the wickedest seas. Some are plastic tubs of dubious utility on any pond. A kayak for birding should be stable, maneuverable and portable. What will be your intended use? A rough-sea-capable "sea kayak" can be used on the mill pond. The inexpensive plastic "recreational" kayak should only be used on a mill pond.
Most kayaks are stable enough. A good bird platform should have what I call a "sweet spot" - a flatish portion of the hull under your seat that keeps you stable without rocking. You can really only test this by sitting in the kayak on the water. Avoid the rounded hulls. They rock with each body movement or lapping wave, making use of binoculars difficult. But be careful of too much beam (width). That beamy, flat-bottom, stable-feeling kayak is likely to pitch when the waves pick up, and reduce your boat control that comes with a "loose" fit. Look for a kayak that you can control with you hips and knees.
A maneuverable kayak turns easily. A well-designed kayak will track straight, yet turn with little effort if leaned. A rudder is useful, but often unnecessary, in a short kayak suitable for birding. Rudders also add to weight, cost and maintenance.
The advantage of light-weight is obvious. How much can you lift by yourself to put the kayak on your car-top? How far are you willing to carry it? Fiberglass kayaks are lighter than plastic (polyethylene). Kevlar is lighter still, but expensive, as is carbon-fiber. A few manufacturers are now offering a thermoform material that is light-weight and inexpensive. Thermoform can be brittle, though, so I recommend it only for calm waters.
For short sea kayaks, I like the Mariner Coaster. 13’ 4" long, it’s also one of my choices for rough-water paddling. Why choose it for birding? At 40 pounds (35 in kevlar), it’s light-weight. It turns on a dime, but tracks nicely, and you can pack enough stuff in it for a week-long trip. The Coaster has spawned many imitators: check out the Northwest Kayaks Sportee and the Eddyline Merlin. Another light-weight performer is the Pygmy Arctic Tern 14, a "build-it-yourself" wooden kayak that’s just 32 pounds, a dream to paddle, and gorgeous. It’s a nice fit for women and smaller paddlers up to men’s shoe size 9 or 10. In plastic, I like the Prion Calabria. It’s rock-solid and stable, with seat room for bigger paddlers, but a heafty 54 pounds. A better choice might be the Necky Manitou: 12-10" long, a stable but not too beamy 24.75" width, and 45 pounds. All of these kayaks except the Prion are manufactured in Washington State. All are in the 12-14 ft range, with closed decks and moderately-sized cockpits. You can pack enough gear in them for an overnight, and all can be paddled wearing a spray skirt - the apron-like water-deflector that slips over the lip (coaming) of the cockpit rim. For seaworthy craft, I’ve recently been paddling a carbon-fiber Necky Chatham 16, a British-style kayak that’s nonetheless rock-solid stable and an excellent choice for birding despite a slender 22" beam.
A second kayak type, the "recreational" kayak, is very popular. Sea kayakers generally disparage them. They’re inexpensive, stable on calm water, sort of maneuverable - and slow. Most are plastic. You can pick one up new for as little as a few hundred dollars. One that’s caught my eye is the PokeBoat: 12 ft long by a beamy 32 inches, yet it weighs just 22 pounds in kevlar. It has the typical "rec boat" big open cockpit and is a mill-pond only craft, but almost all of us could easily lift it onto the car rack. Your not likely to keep up with your sea kayaker friends in it, but it could be just the ticket to see that elusive bittern or rail.
Inflatables offer the ultimate in portability, like the 10 ft long, thirty-pound Stearn’s single. Stow it along with a breakdown paddle and PFD (personal floatation device or life jacket) in the trunk, and inflate it with an electric pump that plugs into your car’s cigarette lighter. That’s spontaneity. With either "rec" kayaks or inflatables, avoid windy waterways, and the offshore breeze. You’ll be at the mercy of the wind and waves if things kick up. For inland paddling, a canoe is great for birding, and some recent models are quite light.
Buying a used kayak is a smart move. Even with research and testing before you buy, after a few months of paddling, with skills vastly improved, your needs and perceptions are likely to change. In my own case, I first bought a long and beamy red kayak that we soon started calling the "barge". I wanted the gear-carrying capacity, and the photographer in me wanted photogenic red. Two years later, I traded up for a more versatile, lower volume (and photogenic yellow) boat. It still carries plenty of gear - and it’s headed into its tenth season.
Some people use strap-on wheels as a carry aid. They are especially useful to walk a kayak onto ferries, or to cart the kayak from car to boat launch. To ease the lifting burden of car-topping, a car rack can be fitted with rollers. In use, you position one end of the kayak on the roller, then lift the other end and slide the kayak into place. If you can lift half the weight of the kayak, you should be able to position it on the rack.
Paddling safely
Aside from the kayak and paddle, there are a few other things you’ll need for safety and comfort. A spray skirt keeps water out of the cockpit and helps you stay dry. A PFD keeps you afloat (and legal). Drybag(s) stow non-waterproof gear and spare clothing. Buoyancy bags in the ends of the kayak prevent the kayak from sinking or swamping if you capsize. Bulkheads - partitions that create internal air space (and "dry" storage) - also create buoyancy, but Buoyancy bags assure floatation if the storage compartment should leak. In the Northwest, we usually say "dress for the water". On a sunny summer day, paddling Puget Sound in shorts and a tee-shirt could be fatal. Wear a wetsuit or drysuit - for comfort in winter, and safety year round.
Before you begin your birding-by-kayak adventure, work out a method for re-entering the kayak should you capsize. This could mean carrying a paddle float or sponsons to stabilize the kayak so you can re-enter, or paddling with a partner with whom you have worked out an assisted-rescue strategy. Carry a hand pump for bailing. Practice your re-entry strategy in rough water adjacent to a beach with an on-shore breeze so you won’t be blown away. Better still, enroll in a class that teaches on-the-water safety.
A great way to start paddling is by joining a local club. In Seattle we have the Washington Kayak Club or the Mountaineers. Both offer instruction and both sponsor volunteer-led paddling trips year-round. Quite a few Club members are birders. A safe way to begin kayaking is on local trips led by experienced paddlers. Some universities and a few local outfitters, like the Northwest Outdoor Center (NWOC) also run birding and naturalist trips.
Birding tools on the water
On the water, the best choice in a binocular is waterproof, compact and low-power. 7x or even 6x magnification will outperform 8 to 10x whenever waves rock the boat. I like a roof-prism in a 7x35. I own a 8x42 roof - a little big for kayaking - but I manage to squeeze it under my PFD for stowage while paddling. It’s a good choice for general birding. Look for internal-, rather than external-focus, especially if you’re around salt water a lot. A few years of salt water splash is likely to corrode an external-focus mechanism. Finally, you may not wear eyeglasses, but on the water you’ll appreciate a long-eye-relief binocular useable with sunglasses. For kayakers, binoculars are navigation aids used to spot a buoy, study a potential campsite, or to find that passageway in a seamless-looking shore. Many kayakers carry little 7x21 roofs or reverse-porros that fit handily in a PFD pocket. For them, bird watching may be secondary, but in bright light these little binoculars are often adequate. Be sure to attach a bright colored float onto your neck strap, in case the binocular pitches overboard.
Field guides
For beginning birders, a field guide is indispensable. I often carry mine in a dry bag that I stow in the cockpit. The laminated, waterproof Peterson Flash Guides are also a useful field aid. Unfold the one for Pacific Coastal Birds (west coast) or Alantic Coastal Birds (east coast) and spread it out under your front deck shock cord. It covers 90% of the birds you’ll see, and shows each in its significant plumages. Since many of these birds show up on inland lakes, they’re useful guides for that as well.
Birding Strategies
Your mobile viewing platform can be very stable in calm conditions, often better than standing with hand-held binoculars while ashore. For the most stable viewing, maneuver your kayak to put the bird in front of you. You want to face forward while seated in the cockpit. Bring your elbows in and rest them against your PFD (If you twist at the trunk to view a bird, it’s difficult to stay steady). For decked kayaks, an even better technique is to lean forward and rest your elbows on the front deck or coaming. When things get rough, in moderate chop or swell, you’ll need to change strategy, so try this technique: Face forward, sit up straight, relax, and let your torso act as a spring to dampen the movement of the kayak.
Gary Luhm
This article first appeared in SeaKayaker. It was modified for Washington Birder, and then
updated for Bird Watching Alaska.