Sea Wolf Park
Galveston, TX

There were about eight of us that met up at Sea Wolf Park for a paddle out to the old concrete ship, S.S. Selma. Just offshore from where we launched we encountered a pod of dolphin that were feeding. They were very close but hard to photograph as one never knew where they would appear next. We were close enough to hear them and see the spray from their blow holes. We continued on out to the ship in relatively flat water, except for an occasional wave or two, created by the cargo ships in the distance. The concrete ship was amazing up close and personal and very intimidating at its bow. Of course, we were in kayaks so a good analogy would be perhaps a Great Dane and a kitten. I’ve never seen so much re-bar in one location in all my life. It must have really been something to be aboard this vessel back in the day. The water was a pretty green/blue and one could see all different kinds of crustaceans attached to the sides. This would be a good lesson in marine life for the kids. After paddling around and taking pictures, we paddled over to Pelican Island shoreline where we got out and stretched our legs. Some of us went treasure hunting down the shore, finding shells, smoothed glass, skeletons of fish and crabs, huge mooring ropes, odd shaped driftwood and anything else you could imagine that would wash up from the ocean. We visited for a while, snacked and decided to head on back. We paddled back out to the ship for one more round of pictures, then headed back to our launch area. The trip was about two hours, on the water by 09:30 and off by 11:30 am. Good timing as it was getting hot. I think I will go back in the fall when it cools off a little and explore that shoreline a little more in detail. Who knows, I just might find a buried treasure. Google has some wonderful information regarding the S.S.Selma if you are interested.

 

Wikipedia info on the S.S. Selma

 
Terri's photo album of the trip: Shutterfly

 

Terri Morgan