August 18, 2004 I went to my launch place on Nag’s Head Road at about 9:00 this morning. Due to the pain of Shingles I have not been kayaking in 5 ½ weeks now. There were lots of big black clouds moving in so I put my little Otter in the Waterway and put on my spray skirt. It started to rain hard. There were no other boats around. It was nice paddling around watching the rain drops bounce up from the water’s surface. I paddled up a little creek into the marsh and the rain began to subside. I removed my life jacket to relieve some of the pain. That was a big improvement. I paddled back to the Waterway and headed west. At that point a rainbow appeared over the waterway to the west. It went from Holden Beach over the waterway to the mainland. It was brightest over Holden Beach. It was beautiful. I stopped paddling and just watched. A second rainbow tried to form above the first but did not get very bright. A sailboat called “Whisper” from Annapolis came up behind me from the East. I watched it pass and slowly shrink in the distance under the rainbow. There were several Great Blue herons in the area also. Everything was so peaceful and wonderful with the birds, the rainbow and the reflection of blue sky and clouds in the Waterway. Then the rainbow began to fade away and the motorboats came out so I had to put my life jacket back on and head for home. I wish I had a camera with me! Jim Crownover