WE made an early start on the Friday and arrived at the Eastern Mangrove Resort at 06:45 hours. I am not sure why, but we expected it to be quiet at the resort that time of the morning but the car park seemed busy with other people dressed like us. We went to SeaKayakExplorer.com and purchased a new kayak and was dressed for kayaking, we followed the instructions and walked around the outside of the hotel, along the public promenade to the marina.
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I guess the five star resort is not yet ready for this kind of adventurer. As we walked past the empty infinity pool the mangroves loomed large to our left in the high tide. The Noukhada base was easy to spot with kayaks, SUPs and a small sailing boat being the only watercraft in the otherwise empty marina. As we walked towards the small collection of people a guide greeted us. The formalities, signing the waiver and making payment, were dealt with smoothly and efficiently. We had to wait for two others to join our group so we chatted to some of those making their way out in the morning. Quite a mix! Two visiting businessmen and fishing enthusiasts were renting fishing kayaks to go out and see what they could catch. There was a bunch of South African ladies who rented kayaks weekly to go out and do their own thing every Friday morning exploring the mangroves and the islands. They were renting SUPs for the first time this morning to join the mix and there was much talk about the new Noukhada SUPs and SUP lessons.
Our other two tour members arrived and we were ready for the group safety and paddle briefing. Roger, our guide, briefed us and then led us to the ‘beach’. It seems amazing that, on an island that boasts 8km of coastline, it is so difficult to get in the water. Noukhada told us that they have spent some AED 30,000 building a launch platform to get guests into the water safely. It looked like something out of Star Wars in massive blue plastic lego. Anyway, it worked and we set off paddling past the construction site and into nature. In the meantime, an Eco Tour and the ladies with kayaks and SUPs had set off and promised to meet us halfway round. The kayaking was at a gentle pace and Roger ensured we stayed togetheras a group. We passed Asian fishermen collecting clams, on an industrial scale,from the shores and then turned the corner into the mangroves. I had not expected to see so much wildlife in Abu Dhabi but we saw a plethora of birds from Stints, Plovers, Terns, Herons and even the Flamingoes in the distance. At one stage in the tour fish jumped over one kayak causing squeals and giggles. We paddled down ‘Crab Alley’ looking closely for sea creatures but sadly, being September, high tide and dredging, we could not see much. The industrial drone in the distance rather spoilt the sounds of nature and we were told that this was the dredging for the Royal Place at the northern end of the mangroves. Don’t they have enough land mass already?
The paddle was easy, not technical, but still a very pleasant, non-brunch way to spend a Friday morning. We got back within two 
hours and yes, we did pass the ladies and their kayaks and SUPs. I am told by Roger that I probably burned over 900 calories doing the tour, so reckoned we were good for a big breakfast.
For the future? I am intrigued by the City Cycle Tour that goes live in September and, when I can get to those pedals, will sign up for that new Noukhada adventure.
For more details, see: www.noukhada.ae, info@noukhada.ae or 02 650 3600.
Published in October 2012
