It’s a feeling that came to define what it means to me to escape.

During the pandemic, I convinced my family to kayak on White Rock Lake in Dallas, Texas.

Ive become quite enamored with the kayak as a way of exploration in a new or even familiar place.

Aerial view of Mariah in a green kayak around the haunted lighthouse of Long Island Sound in New York.

The author on a kayak tour around Long Island Sound’s haunted lighthouse.Credit:Courtesy of Mariah Tyler

This feeling is what keeps me coming back.

We had booked theCorazon Cabo Resort & Spabased on their exclusive offerings through an adventure operator, Cabolectric.

We started to rethink our whole itinerary.

Author as a child in 1999 on a white water river rafting trip in the Animas River of Colorado

Author Mariah Tyler on a whitewater trip down the Animas River in Colorado, in 1999.Courtesy of Mariah Tyler

Soon after, we kayaked as close to the arch as law allows.

Paddling up to it and sitting in its presence felt nothing short of ethereal.

Troubles aside, I would go back and do it again in a heartbeat.

The long canoe on the Buffalo River in Arkansas in 2002

A long canoe on the Buffalo River from a 2002 trip to Arkansas.Courtesy of Mariah Tyler

In addition to reducing stress, paddling through the water on a kayak is remarkably empowering.

As someone who tends to worry often and question everything, kayaking enables me to be in full control.

Pair of photos from a kayak tour in Cabo San Lucas

From left: The author during a kayak tour in Cabo San Lucas; the clear kayak used on the tour.Courtesy of Mariah Tyler

View of the Cabo San Lucas arch seen from the kayak

The Cabo San Lucas arch seen from a kayak.Mariah Tyler/Travel + Leisure

Author on a sand bar in the middle of the Pedernales River in Texas.

Pausing on a sand bar during a kayak trip on the Pedernales River, in Texas.Courtesy of Mariah Tyler