Bde Maka Ska kayaking "hike"
Mon, Jul 14, 2025, 9:15am
Our July 14 "hike" is a kayaking adventure on Bde Maka Ska (formerly Lake Calhoun) and Lake of the Isles led by Barb Friedman and Bev Moe. We will meet at the northeast corner of Bde Maka Ska, near the new concessions building for a two hour kayaking tour of Lake of the Isles and Cedar Lake. If you don't have a kayak (or paddleboard), Wheel Fun Rentals, located next to the new concessions building rents both single and double kayaks at $15 and $25 an hour, respectively. Canoe rentals are also available. The second hour is free if we rent before noon. Life jackets are provided with the rental.
Please arrive at 3000 E. Bde Maka Ska Pkwy by 9:15 so we can get on the water by 9:30. This event is perfect for beginner kayakers. Kayaks are very stable. We will go under the Lake Street bridge and go right into Lake of the Isles. If time permits, we will cross the channel into Cedar Lake as well.
There is plenty of parking nearby on a Monday morning, on the boulevard around the lake and on 31st street (a short block walk away from the rental place}. We will meet at 9:15 so we can get on the lake by 9:30. Afterwards, let's sit by the lake with our lunch; either bring your own or purchase at Pimento Jamaican Kitchen at the nearby concessions building.
Sign ups for this event are through the member portal -- be sure to create your login before you try to sign up. Search for an email from [email protected] for log in instructions. It may have gone to your spam folder.
Please sign up for this hike (required). Registrations will be accepted up to 24 hours before the hike.
Your completed form will be used to be sure everyone who signs up has arrived before the start of the hike. Newcomers are welcome!
—Bev Moe and Michael Luxenberg, UMRA Hiking Club co-leaders
Upcoming Events
Learn about writing memoirs, technology for seniors, campus architecture, and more at the fourth annual Age-Friendly University Day to be held in the McNamara Alumni Center on the Twin Cities campus in Minneapolis on Monday, June 23.
Professor Kathryn Pearson will be a special guest at the UMRA breakfast in June. This will be an opportunity to hear Professor Pearson’s perspective on President Trumps’s first 100 days, and to engage in discussion about what we, as individual citizens, can do in these challenging times for democracy.
Catch up with friends and former colleagues, meet new UMRA members, enjoy delicious food, and participate in the third annual UMRA Summer Social Quiz at the Como Lakeside Pavilion in St. Paul on Wednesday, June 25.
H is for Hawk: A Memoir on Grief and Falconry by Helen Macdonald, published 2016.
The UMRA Hiking Club will hike two wonderful county parks in Monticello, MN on Monday, July 7. Lynn Anderson will lead the hikes and we will meet at her home at 9:30 a.m. and carpool from there.
Our July 14 "hike" is a kayaking adventure on Bde Maka Ska (formerly Lake Calhoun) and Lake of the Isles led by Barb Friedman and Bev Moe.
The UMRA Book Club will discuss Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid when it meets via Zoom on July 18.
Bill Doherty's April Living Well Workshop, Dealing with differences in a polarized world, inspired many UMRA members. He has very graciously agreed to hold a Skills for Disagreeing Better workshop for us in July. You will learn about the values and concerns of the other political side and practice skills for communicating more effectively in the presence of disagreement.
Still Life by Louise Penny.
Join hike leader Nanette Hanks on August 4th for a “Trail in Two Cities” hike.
The UMRA Book Club will discuss Blue Ribbon by Karal Ann Marling when it meets via Zoom on August 15.
Join Larry Micek, hike leader, on August 18th for a hike at Lake Elmo Park Reserve, located at 1515 Keats Avenue North, Lake Elmo, MN.
You are invited–join other UMRA members and friends for a late summer river cruise, this year on the Saint Croix River, departing from Stillwater Riverboat Company dock. Our lovely 2.5 hour private charter cruise on the Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway includes lunch, a cash bar, and the excellent company of friends and colleagues.
Daytrip Stillwater in the afternoon with friends! Make a day of it.
The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald.