Thirteen members of the Maine Outdoor Adventure Club joined me on Saturday for "Paddle-n-Picnic" on the Androscoggin River north of the Twin Cities. The pace was slow and enthusiasm was high.

We had 12 boats total -- two tandem canoes plus 10 solo kayaks. Most of the kayaks were brilliant yellow, so we made quite a vivid splash of color.

Members of the Maine Outdoor Adventure Club paddled on the Androscoggin River on Saturday.
ALL PHOTOS SCOTT ANDREWS

Paddling along the southern end of Gulf Island Pond. Most of the kayaks were brilliant yellow.

Peter Durand of Scarborough and Nancy Negri of Gorham were among the MOAC paddlers.

Nancy had one of the many yellow kayaks.

We put in at the hand-carry boat launch at East Waterman Road in Auburn. This section of the Andro is actually an impoundment -- large lake -- created by Gulf Island Dam. Considering its proximity to Lewiston-Auburn, Gulf Island Pond, as it's known, is surprisingly wild and unpopulated.

Sarah Conly of Portland had a mostly yellow kayak.

We paddled around the attractive archipelago about a mile north of the dam, then headed two miles north to an an island in Turner where we stopped for a picnic lunch. A mother goose on her nest was somewhat annoyed at sharing the island with us, but we chowed down on the east side and left the west side to her.

After returning to East Waterman, we headed to the nearest ice cream shop. That's more or less a standard practice on MOAC activities.

Jessica Packard of Freeport enjoys a post-paddle ice cream cone.

MOAC's midweek after-work paddling trips start this week. For info on joining the fun by joining the club, click here.