Cost - Free if you own a kayak or around $20/hr if you want to rent one

One of our favorite places to spend time during the hot days of summer is my grandmother’s cottage. It’s on a really nice lake so when the weather is just right we can find a lot of fun things to do. Recently my grandmother bought two kayaks. That’s right, my 73 year old grandmother with a knee replacement bought kayaks…Anyway, we recently came back from a week at the cottage so we got plenty of quality time out on the water.

SHE SAID:

I have always been athletically challenged, but from time to time I like to venture out and try to force my limbs to coordinate themselves. I figured kayaking was pretty safe because it really only involves moving one set of limbs at a time. I hadn’t tried kayaking until now because I was sure I would end up capsized and trapped upside down in a drowning fit. If the same is true for you, read on.

Brad’s grandmother (“Grammie”) recently bought sit-on-top kayaks. Pretty self-explanatory. No climbing into. No trapping. No drowning (probably). So when we went to visit last, I decided to give it a try. It was super easy to get into and was very stable, so I didn’t feel like I was going to capsize, even when the wind picked up and a few waves appeared. Even though the kayak was completely open, I didn’t end up soaked. This, of course, depends on how frantic your paddling is.

What I didn’t anticipate was my husband deciding to play “bumper kayaks” at the deepest part of the lake. That was quickly resolved with a reminder of who feeds him.

Some things to remember when you’re out there:

• Safety first! – wear a life jacket.
• Relax. The tenser you are, the more likely your movements will be jerky and your kayak will rock more, whipping you into a panicked frenzy.
• If the water is kind of choppy, go against the waves on your way out when you have more energy so that the way back is easier. If it’s your first time try a short trip out and back to get the feel for it.
• If it’s sunny, wear a hat, sunglasses and lots of sunscreen (especially on the tops of your legs).

If you’re looking to give it a try, here are a few places in the HRM that rent kayaks. Most rent for $20/hour:

Paddle East Canoe and Kayak – you must kayak on site (Lakes Banook and MicMac)

East Coast Outfitters – located in Lower Prospect, NS

Sea Sun Kayak – located in St. Margaret’s Bay, NS

Though I don’t think I’ll ever be suited for ocean kayaking, I will definitely try lake kayaking again.

HE SAID:

Although I didn’t have the same fears of capsizing as Susan, I am just as athletically challenged as she is. Actually, even more so. I was still excited to jump in a kayak for the first time and give it a try. I immediately felt comfortable as the kind of kayaks we used were very stable on the water. Now, some people (cough, cough…Susan) like to paddle leisurely across the lake, taking breaks every few minutes to rest their tired muscles and take in the view. Not me. I have this weird instinct that kicks in that compels me to see how fast I can paddle and how far I can get before collapsing from exhaustion. It was all well and good until I realized that the farther I paddled, the farther I was from the cottage. You see, when you use my method of paddle ‘til you drop, make sure you turn around and head back somewhere near the halfway point of your strength level. Otherwise you’ll be out in the middle of a lake struggling to get back. Other than a few sore muscles and hands, all went well.

Now, a tip for the guys out there who might be planning to go kayaking with your lady. No matter how funny or harmless you might think playing “bumper kayaks” in the middle of the lake is, please for the love of Pete, don’t do it. Especially if the aforementioned lady has an ungodly fear of drowning.

Noted.

The only other thing I would mention about this activity is that the two of you may end up going two very different speeds out on the water. This is where a decision must be made. Either you both compromise and find a comfortable speed where you are both happy and can travel together, or you just decide to go your own ways and meet back at a certain time. Seeing as this site is about things to do for TWO and not ways to do your own thing, I would recommend the compromise.

• Cost – $20 or less assuming the prices at your local mini-golf spot are similar to ours. It also depends on how many rounds you play.

Mini-Golf. The game designed for people just like the two of us. It gives you the satisfaction of getting out of the house and doing something, without robbing you of your dignity by proving to you and everyone around you that you can’t play sports to save your life. It’s also pretty cheap fun, so we really had no excuse but to give it a try.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________

SHE SAID:

Even though all of my childhood memories of mini-golf involve my dad passionately whipping a ball across the course in a fit of unholy rage, the love of the game has never left me. It is strictly for mini golf, though. I will never understand the desire to stand in a hot field and try to land a tiny ball in a tiny hole a mile away.

Our trip to Putting Edge was perfect for a rainy day, but would also be good for a scorcher day when all you want to do is stand in a fridge. The glow-in-the-dark aspect made mini-golf even more fun. Plus, the black lights make your white clothes glow. Unfortunately, I forgot to wear something white, so all that showed up were lint chunks on my shirt. Luckily I don’t suffer from dandruff.

The course was really fun to play on with just the right amount of challenge. I’m not very competitive, so it didn’t bother me that some holes took me six strokes to land the ball. I’m also not very athletic. Actually, that’s an understatement. Rocks have more coordination than me. So, it was nice to do something sport-like that didn’t require a ton of skill.

Once we were done the course, we discovered we could play again for only $2. Instead, we opted to visit the arcade, where Brad used his joystick skills to land me a sweet carrot-inspired plush toy.

HE SAID:

I don’t think I’ll ever be one of those guys who gets up at 5 am on a Saturday morning to head out onto the green for 18 holes of misery, I mean golf. I’m more of a mini golf kind of person. It’s quick, it’s easy, and it’s fun. Occasionally, I come across a hole that takes roughly 17 tries to complete, which results in the other mini golfers having to duck for cover as a putter flies above their heads, but overall it’s a lot of fun. And since everything is better when it’s glow in the dark, Putting Edge sounded like a good way to spend an afternoon.

When we walked in we were greeted by the lights and sounds of the arcade. They had all the things you’d expect to see in an average arcade: various sport simulators, air hockey, and those games where you try to grab a stuffed toy with a claw. More on that later.

Jumping straight into the mini golf action was really easy. We were each handed a club, a ball, and a scorecard, given some basic instructions, and sent on our way. For the first two or three holes, I found myself enjoying the glow in the dark aspect more than the golf. But once the novelty wore off a little, it was time to get serious about my score.

The difficulty of the 18 holes gradually got more and more intense, but it never got so hard that I wanted to throw my club. They did a great job of creating a fun course with every turn being different than the last. I really enjoyed the times where I was presented with a choice to either take the easy shot and get a decent score, or take the risky shot and either get a great score if I succeeded, or fail miserably if I missed.

Once we successfully navigated the course (it can be a fun game just finding your way around the course) we handed in our things and headed to the arcade. I saw that the game where you try to grab a stuffed toy with a claw was marked “PLAY UNTIL YOU WIN.” Challenge accepted. After a few futile attempts, I was finally able to get the claw (the weakest claw in the history of claws, by the way) to pick up a toy. Unfortunately, it bounced off the lip of the victory chute and fell back into the pile of toys, but I didn’t give up. I was finally able to beat the game and win a toy.

If you have a glow in the dark mini golf place near where you live, you should definitely check it out. It’s a lot of fun for not a lot of money. If you don’t, just go play old fashioned glow in the light mini golf (a.k.a. outdoor). For the competitive types, it’s fun to keep score and see who wins, for everyone else, just have fun with it.