Limantour has several problems. The carry to beach from the parking lot is long and the waves can be rough to launch over. Don loaned Kate and I his wheels to get the kayaks most of the way to the water. But once the wheels hit the sand we just had to carry the rest of the way. I helped Kate launch into the waves but a big set came in and got her wet. She finally climbed over a large wave just before it broke and made it out to sea. Don and I had better luck with the sets although I still got wet.
The mouth of Drakes Estero is only four miles from Limantour. Don had a laminated satellite map that showed how the water exiting the estero creates a sand bar on the east side that we had to paddle around to find the calm channel. As we approached we could see waves breaking on this sand bar and calm water inside.
Before we found the entrance around the breaking waves a large set reared up. We were too close to the sand bar and had to turn and climb over these waves before they broke. Don and I made it over the first one but looking behind me I saw Kate’s head start up over the top but her boat was side-surfed back over the fall. When the wave had passed I saw Kate, her paddle and her boat each going in different directions.
I wanted to dash in to help, but several large waves continued to come in. If I went in right away I would be surfed well past her so I had to wait. I backpedaled over each wave until the big set was over and then sprinted in. By this time Kate had recovered her paddle and discovered that she could stand up in the shallow water over the sand bar. I passed her by and caught up with her kayak upside down in deeper calmer water. I did a T-rescue to drain all the water out of Kate’s kayak and pushed it back to where she could re-enter. She had lost one of her shoes and could not get the foot pegs to work the rudder. I folded her rudder up and we paddled into Drakes Estero behind the protection of the sandbar. (Picking up the errant shoe on the way).
Don had continued west and found the calm entrance to the Estero. We saw him paralleling us on the wide channel but he didn’t meet up with us until about the time we met the Petaluma Paddlers hauled out for a walk on a stony reef. They launched again and followed the three of us to Sunset Beach for lunch. The ‘Paddlers put out a huge spread for lunch, covering an old hatch-cover with two tablecloths to hold all the food. Kate was feeling better but decided to follow the ‘Paddlers back to Johnson’s Oyster company in the calm water of the estero.
I launched early to go surfing in the waves breaking into the mouth of Drakes Estero. I got a few good rides in the shallows well inside the killer sandbar. But I had eaten so much good food at lunch that I was uncomfortable exerting myself in the surf. So when Don came out and was ready to head back to Limantour I followed him right away. At first we thought that the waves had calmed down greatly since our arrival and we would not have to go as far west as Don did on his way out. Then we noticed that waves still broke far to the west, but left a gap in the middle. We headed towards the gap but it seemed smaller and smaller as we approached until waves broke all the way across in front of it. We waited for a calm window and managed to climb over some medium sized wave and escape over the killer sand bar before another big set came in.
We quickly paddled the four miles back to Limantour and made easy, if sandy, landings there. I quickly stowed my gear and left to drive half way around Drakes Bay to pick up Kate at Johnson’s Oysters. She and the ‘Paddlers had taken their time, paddling into Home Bay (a lobe of Drakes Estero) to view the swarming leopard sharks there. So I arrived only a short time after Kate came to shore. We bought a couple dozen oysters before heading home.