Hot times on Gray's Creek

[jdupre']

Whheeewwww! HOT, I tell you. Forgot just how hot South La. can be, especially when ya can't duck into the A/C to cool off several times a day. I think Piper and I were ringing wet from Saturday morning until this morning. We had a nice thundershower about 3:30 Saturday afternoon. It lasted about 40 minutes. Here's Piper trying to outrun it. Looked a lot worse than the picture. Lightning cracking and thunder rumbling.

Piper brought a tarp for the last 3 camping trips and never got to use it, but he put it to good use this trip.

Piper broke out the Dutch oven for a little treat of cornbread drizzled with honey.

This was just a tease for the great supper he made us later that first evening.

More to come. I'll let Piper share some details.

Joey

 

[jdupre']

I was amazed at how much stuff you can get in a kayak. This is my version of "packing light" according to piper. The only thing not shown is a fold up chair with armrest bungeed on the back deck.

 

[islandpiper]

Here's the Palace:

And here is where the cook sleeps:

The perimeter security force:

Just a little snack to tide us over:

The dishwashing department:

Pretty pictures:

Click on this one:



Great time. Pretty hot. No bugs though. Also no fish. The water was just about HOT. Ate pretty good and slept well, too. Joey's a great camping partner. The FIRST NEEDS water purifier got a good workout as we went through lots of plain water to combat the heat. The DO came through again as did several little alcohol stoves. We probably burned as much as we drank, should go back out and fix that ratio sometime. Oh, and Joey caught me piping one phrase over and over to fix a flaw....gimme a break.

piper

 

[islandpiper]

See my whole album here:

http://s498.photobucket.com/albums/rr34 ... ne%202010/

piper

 

[jdupre']

Ok, piper, I took the clip out. I'll get a better one some time.

Re: bugs.. Very puzzling. 90 degree heat, rain a couple of times a week, standing water 10 feet from our campfire and almost NO mosquitoes. We're talking prime skeeter habitat and we were able to sit out as darkness fell and had maybe one or two mosquitos buzzing around in an HOUR. Not complaining , mind you, just puzzling.

Here's piper, playing to the gods of the water.

Chicken with cornbread dressing and potatoes with onions. Last night's supper. MMM Good. Piper reached into his grab bag of take out condiment packets to season the chicken--- mild taco sauce, honey mustard, hot sauce, etc. etc.

Had a visitor that took up temporary residence under piper's pirogue.

Piper took a ride in the Swamper and gave his stamp of approval.

 

[oldsparkey]

Guy's thanks for the trip report and it sure is nice being here in the A/C reading about your trip. It really looked warm judging from the wetness of Joey's shirt and all the water running off that tarp.

You did have some good looking meals and I imagine they even tasted better then they looked. I can understand why there were no bugs , with the camp defense you had no self respecting bug would try in invade your campsite and get shot.

The Swamper looks good on the water and appears to be a easy and fun paddling boat while taking a lot of gear. Judging from Pipers picture he has lost a lot of weight but probably gained a lot back with the meals you enjoyed.

Chuck.......

 

[Kayak Jack]

Piper San and Joey San, good to see you two hard working guys get some time in the woods to enjoy yourselves. Fishing, eating, cooking, eating, shooting, eating, drinking beer, eating, etc. etc.

You two make a good team. Both knowledgeable, (and no one else wants to camp with either of you anyway. :wink: )

 

[jdupre']

Judging from Pipers picture he has lost a lot of weight but probably gained a lot back with the meals you enjoyed.

Chuck.......

Chuck, I was thinking how much water I drank this weekend. I'm figuring over 2 gallons-- that's almost 20 lbs of water! Even with that and all of Piper's good cooking , I still lost about 3 lbs.

Joey

 

[rpecot]

Just a little snack to tide us over:

Are you kidding me? :shock: I just had to wipe up the drool off my keyboard.

Looks like yall two did it up right. I swear, one of these days, I'll join you. Just make sure you work on that menu some more before I tag along. I don't want to go home hungry. :roll:

 

[Kayak Jack]

Russ, Piper San cooks as good as he pipes, but quieter.

 

[beekeeper]

Great post guys. Looks like fun all around. Joey it looks like your boat is working out great for you. Any new thoughts about the boat after this trip? Piper's cooking looks delicious. Thanks for sharing this trip.


beekeeper

 

[jdupre']

Beekeeper, the boat DID work out well. Probably could do a 3-4 day trip even carrying 1 gal per day of water. About the only thing I would maybe do different is cut the rear hatch to fit a medium sized ice chest. Ice cold liquids are worth their weight in gold when its 95 degrees out.

It's a welcome challenge to see how much stuff you can get in a kayak. Shape and bulk becomes more important than weight when cramming your camping gear into narrow areas. Unless you're carrying horse shoeing equipment, you'll likely run out of room before you run out of draft.

One handy thing I found. I left several inches between the rear bulkhead and the spot where I figured the back of my chair would sit. It's a very handy spot for your water bottle, small tackle box , small ice chest, etc. I could probably fit 3 one gallon water jugs across in that area. Most kayaks I see have the backband very close to the bulkhead, leaving very little useful room.

 

[BEARS BUDDY]

Looks like a fun trip, except for that 95 degree part. Any leftover chicken?