Kayaking Newport Harbor with the Brittanys in July 2011

We spent ‘The Fourth’ visiting our friends who live on the Peninsula at Newport Beach, California, and as always, took Gwenn and Mitch, our rescued French and American brittanys along. Rather than leave them back at the house when it was time to kayak, we decided to let them come along just to see how well they would adjust to this new experience on the water.  We hope to live on a sailboat someday, so it was a chance to see how well they adapt.

Launching the kayak at the shoreline while keeping two dogs onboard meant having Jeanne in the front of the kayak first, trying to hold back both Gwenn and Mitch. Between Gwenn’s excitement at the new experience and Mitch’s standard fear of the unfamiliar, Jeanne had her hands full, but was able to hold them long enough for us to be afloat and onboard. There were a few tense moments where we weren’t sure if they would dive overboard but they calmed down.

Like any coastal area, seagulls were everywhere, and Gwenn was soon very distracted by the delicious sight of so many enormous birds in one place and occasionally couldn’t help but bark. Mitch simply sat and observed the boats, the people and waves. There was a brief moment where we left behind the harbor and entered the open ocean that both dogs began to whine and look back toward the shore. Clever dogs to know that they were on the verge of leaving behind the safety and familiarity of land. We turned around and pointed back toward the harbor, and the dogs immediately calmed down and once again enjoyed the ride. I don’t know if all brittanys are suitable for kayaking, but ours certainly are.  To read other dog adventures, click here.