Retro51

So far I've spent about 3 hours on Benbrook, and yesterday I spent about 3 hours on Lake Granbury. I would say many kayak trips, at least on a lake, are spent exploring the shoreline. Benbrook is surrounded by state park, and I did go across to some parts that seemed to be rarely visited. So you have that option there. Granbury, on the other hand, is surrounded by houses or condos almost entirely. There is a small park by the dam, with a swim area, but I didn't go that far. Anyway, shoreline exploration on Granbury amounts to Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous - in other words, gawking at the houses on the lake. Many decks, boat docks, some swings and slides into the water, etc. But there are also some bays to explore, just to find the houses that are back in there.
I put it at Rough Creek Park next to the Pier 144 Marina. This is off of the Glen Rose Highway. Besides being full of normal water craft, the Marina houses the Granbury Riverboat - a very cool looking craft that I guess you can rent out for parties and weddings. From there, I went under the bridge to some back bays, exploring each as far as I could, and looking at the houses there. This part was very enjoyable - I had it to myself. I think there were some likely fishing spots there, that would not be accessable to most other boaters.
I came back under the bridge and explored the opposite shoreline for over an hour, coming back through the center of the lake to the marina.
I came back to Benbrook and wanted to go down the Trinity, or at least the fork that runs from the dam, by the golf courses and the Trinity Bike Trail. This is where I ran into problems. First, I had to carry (drag) my kayak down a steep slope from the parking area to launch the kayak. I jog on this trail and thought the water level would be OK (it was very high recently as they let out tons of water from the dam).
Well - first off the water was low, so low in spots that I had to get out and drag the kayak over rocks. So I had to master the art of getting back in, once the water was deep enough - standing in hip deep water, not from a beach. Twice I tipped over the kayak - and it filled up completely with water. I had to drag it to the side, turn it over, and then open the drain and hold it up on it's stern, to drain out the water. That would have been disastrous on a lake - since I couldn't stand in the water and pull it ashore. I'm not saying it would have sank - it has some flotation, but it would have been a major disaster. Mostly I wouldn't be going in and out on the lake, at least, not out in deep water. However, I am going to try to add some flotation in the bow and stern - either styrofoam or sealed milk bottles, tied together, just in case.
After 3 hours on Granbury, and another hour plus (plus getting in and out, dragging the kayak over the low spots, and up and down the bank, and twice draining it of water) I was exhausted and called it a day.