At the end of the day's paddle to Emerald Bay and back, from my kayak I spotted two lost SUP paddles on the lake bottom, paused and considered, then continued up the shore 30 yards or so to beach my kayak near the path to my truck. I described the paddles to the staff at the Baldwin Beach Kayak/SUP Rentals and their probable location. I figured they could use the paddles; I like to share stories and finds, especially as I was ready to load up and leave.
On second thought--for how could I resist?--I grabbed fins and mask, and swam back to search for and, ideally, recover the two paddles. Despite my efforts, I couldn't spot them again, but one of the staff took advantage of my info to recover one paddle from the bottom. Score. She used a stand-up-paddleboard, which gave her better perspective--that standing vantage--to scan for the "treasure".
Still counts, I say.
I love finding stuff. I like when other people find stuff too.
For example, my best friend's wedding band from the bottom of a lake or another friend's truck keys from the Klamath River. But those are stories for another day.
Lake Tahoe temps: 68 degrees in the upper layers. That's pretty cosy after swimming in 54 degree Pacific Ocean water. Diving down just a dozen feet meant finding the distinctly cooler waters that Lake Tahoe is famous for, however.
Along this stretch of Baldwin Beach, I spotted two SUP paddles on the bottom--or I'm pretty sure there were two paddles. I don't think I spotted the same paddle twice, but the kayak-rental staffer only found one.
Here, you can see how she's scanning the bottom from that standing vantage for those paddles.
