B Map Zilker Park Boat Rentals, just downstream from Barton Springs Pool, rents 17ft canoes and open-deck ocean kayaks.

Guests have the use of ocean kayaks, boogie boards, surf bikes, a Sunfish, snorkel gear and floating mats without charge.

IN a converted tavern near the waterfront, George Dyson designs ocean kayaks and ponders the mysteries of an earlier age of Native American boat builders, the Aleuts.

They stopped at an upscale outfitter's shop, where some over-tanned Yuppie wearing razor-pressed khakis informed them that a thousand dollars wasn't nearly enough for two new tandem ocean kayaks.

A four-bedroom, four-bath villa, scheduled for completion in March, will rent in high season for $1,995 a day, before 18 percent tax and service, but including the services of a housekeeper and lots of gear, like ocean kayaks.

At the Hyatt Regency Cerromar, in the town of Dorado about 30 minutes west of San Juan, windsurfers, paddle canoes, ocean kayaks and water trikes are free to guests in season.

For that, you get three meals a day at the resort, three single-tank boat dives a day, two single-tank boat night dives a week, unlimited shore diving and use of ocean kayaks, canoes and windsurfers.

Instead of canoes, an "adventure station" rents out ocean kayaks and surfboards; instead of outhouses, each cabin has its own hot tub; instead of the communal campfire, individual gas fireplaces.

What to Do Kayak Kauai Outbound on Kuhio Highway in Hanalei rents river and ocean kayaks and organizes guided trips (starting at $55) for those who don't want to paddle alone.

Wonders by Rail and Boat Given good weather, the call of the wild can be irresistible in Vancouver, even for sedentary souls like Betsey and me, and you don't have to rent an ocean kayak or a mountain bike to explore the city's glorious surroundings.