The Buffalo River trip is over and now all of us are home.
This is when the fun starts, unpacking and cleaning, drying, washing and then putting the stuff away so it is ready for the next trip.
One nice thing about this run is my reputation about making it rain is still intact.
Darn if it did not start before the trip, I am going up I-75 and here comes a gully washer, wind and just about everything else. Driving down the road I am getting to the I-10 turn off and it is coming down so hard I miss the turn, which I have made numerous times. Went a few more miles down the road and pulled off to turn around and there is a Dodge pickup with a canoe on the top behind me.
The driver pulls into a closed gas station and I make my loop then back on I-75 and down to I-10.
Pretty soon the Dodge is behind me again and then we play leap frog over to Milton,Fl and the KOA. I pull in and that truck is there, when the driver sees me he gets out and it is Joe.
We get a dry spot to camp, it was the last one, so up goes the tent and Joe decides to sleep in the back of his truck under the topper he has on it which was a good idea since it was a lot dryer then where I was sleeping. The rest of the trip out and back we tagged each other, might call it a canoe convoy. By the way it is still raining but only off and on not full time.
Arriving at Steel Creek and locating a camp site, Harry and his gang show up and the rest trickled in except for Jim & Swampy since Swampy wanted to fashionably late and make a grand entrance. We had the fire going in the drizzling rain so when they got there we could cook up the goodies Jim brought. But before then Tom (Buzzard Bluff) brought fried Chicken and Dan had a cooler full of soft drinks and ice for us.
I must say we sure had a good supper and everyone was full, plus a few of the guy's that live in the general area managed to take some of Jims home made sausage with them when they went home in the morning.
By this time it was getting late and the bottom was getting ready to fall out of the sky, which it did, a real frog drowned that night and even into the morning.
Up in the morning and over to the river after a $3.00 breakfast in Low Gap that Dan arranged with the owner for us which would have cost $18.00 here in Florida.
Put the boats in at Ponca and off for the shuttle .. getting back an hour later (in the rain) the river came up over half a foot.
You know the old song ... Singing in the rain ... well we were paddling in the rain and having a blast. This is one beautiful river even in the rain.
Had a good day on the river and then camped in the area of Big Bluff (correct me if I am wrong on the location , Bear) which is a good camping area?
Up in the morning and on the river then getting down to Hemmed in Hollow I was sweaty and tired :lol: so I decided to take a dip in the river and wash some of my clothing, gear, boat, shoes, just about everything and then Moon those women on the river bank after they pulled my canoe out and suggested I get dry clothing on. I have to say the guy's with them were some really nice folks.
The water was cold to the touch when paddling but dumping everything in the river, myself included, the water felt warm, I am sure it was warmer then the air temperature, that was cold and rainy. But that is another story and I am sure Swampy will fill all of you in on the fun filled facts. Ha Ha Ha
I have to say Swampy was the 1st one back up stream to check on me when I took that dip...Came busting out of the woods just like a Grizzly Bear.. He told me seeing my shoes float past him was what gave him the hint I went swimming.
The other hint was the shoes were about 12 feet apart. :lol:
The rest of the guy's were gathering firewood and making a very welcome , warm and nice fire on the riverbank for me when I got there. It did feel really good.
( A note or thought here.... When the canoe started to ship water over the starboard side and at the point of no return I bailed out of it and into the river, this way I saved a couple of my bags and one of them had the dry clothing in it. Not sure if it was the correct thing to do but it sure beat trying to ride it out. I found out a long time ago, I don't melt if I get wet and having something dry to put on is sure nice. Also a canoe not complexity filled with water is easier to handle when you are in the water. )
It must have looked like I was having some fun or to much fun because Harry, Ray, Van and Harry Jr., were sitting in an eddy watching all of this. The reason I say that is because just a short distance down stream Harry and Ray tried the same thing but without any women there to help. Remind me to talk to them about that bad timing.
Out at Kyle's campground and camp set up then a fire and dry clothing for Harry & Ray along with a stiff beverage to warm them up inside.
I had on my last set of dry clothing and the wet stuff sure did not dry that much on the clothes line I set up overnight in the misty rain so I called it quits for me and paddling. I told Bear about that decision and then Harry, Ray, Van and Harry's son decided to do the same.
This is when we came up with the idea of taking a lot of the gear Joe, Al, Jim, Bear and Swampy had and putting it in the two trailers (Harry's and mine) to transport it overland so they could run the rest of the river not loaded down.
Lighter weight in the boats , YES
From what the guys said that worked out really good and relieved there worries about dumping there stuff in the river.
I have not gone into a lot of detail here since some of the others have but I know my good buddy, Swampy , will go into detail and back it up with pictures.
All I can say is this bunch of Geezers, except for Jim ... he has not really hit the Geezer status yet so me made him a honorary one, are some really fine folks to be on a river with and everyone helps everyone with any problem, even when they go swimming in the river.
By the way the day we left it was sunny, warm and really nice, Then I get home and the wife tells me that the week I was paddling they had just perfect weather here at the house. Could this be some sort of pay back for paddling with a Southern Attorney ..... Could it be that the camping and paddling Gods are mad at for doing that , I am sure it is not because of the rest of those good folks who were on the trip.. Makes a person do some thinking.
Chuck.
Bear , Don't worry I would be more then honared to paddle with you again it is always a pleasure.
(see folks I make it rain so then I can tell Bear he is all wet and get away with it. )
This is when the fun starts, unpacking and cleaning, drying, washing and then putting the stuff away so it is ready for the next trip.
One nice thing about this run is my reputation about making it rain is still intact.
Darn if it did not start before the trip, I am going up I-75 and here comes a gully washer, wind and just about everything else. Driving down the road I am getting to the I-10 turn off and it is coming down so hard I miss the turn, which I have made numerous times. Went a few more miles down the road and pulled off to turn around and there is a Dodge pickup with a canoe on the top behind me.
The driver pulls into a closed gas station and I make my loop then back on I-75 and down to I-10.
Pretty soon the Dodge is behind me again and then we play leap frog over to Milton,Fl and the KOA. I pull in and that truck is there, when the driver sees me he gets out and it is Joe.
We get a dry spot to camp, it was the last one, so up goes the tent and Joe decides to sleep in the back of his truck under the topper he has on it which was a good idea since it was a lot dryer then where I was sleeping. The rest of the trip out and back we tagged each other, might call it a canoe convoy. By the way it is still raining but only off and on not full time.
Arriving at Steel Creek and locating a camp site, Harry and his gang show up and the rest trickled in except for Jim & Swampy since Swampy wanted to fashionably late and make a grand entrance. We had the fire going in the drizzling rain so when they got there we could cook up the goodies Jim brought. But before then Tom (Buzzard Bluff) brought fried Chicken and Dan had a cooler full of soft drinks and ice for us.
I must say we sure had a good supper and everyone was full, plus a few of the guy's that live in the general area managed to take some of Jims home made sausage with them when they went home in the morning.
By this time it was getting late and the bottom was getting ready to fall out of the sky, which it did, a real frog drowned that night and even into the morning.
Up in the morning and over to the river after a $3.00 breakfast in Low Gap that Dan arranged with the owner for us which would have cost $18.00 here in Florida.
Put the boats in at Ponca and off for the shuttle .. getting back an hour later (in the rain) the river came up over half a foot.
You know the old song ... Singing in the rain ... well we were paddling in the rain and having a blast. This is one beautiful river even in the rain.
Had a good day on the river and then camped in the area of Big Bluff (correct me if I am wrong on the location , Bear) which is a good camping area?
Up in the morning and on the river then getting down to Hemmed in Hollow I was sweaty and tired :lol: so I decided to take a dip in the river and wash some of my clothing, gear, boat, shoes, just about everything and then Moon those women on the river bank after they pulled my canoe out and suggested I get dry clothing on. I have to say the guy's with them were some really nice folks.
The water was cold to the touch when paddling but dumping everything in the river, myself included, the water felt warm, I am sure it was warmer then the air temperature, that was cold and rainy. But that is another story and I am sure Swampy will fill all of you in on the fun filled facts. Ha Ha Ha
I have to say Swampy was the 1st one back up stream to check on me when I took that dip...Came busting out of the woods just like a Grizzly Bear.. He told me seeing my shoes float past him was what gave him the hint I went swimming.
The other hint was the shoes were about 12 feet apart. :lol:
The rest of the guy's were gathering firewood and making a very welcome , warm and nice fire on the riverbank for me when I got there. It did feel really good.
( A note or thought here.... When the canoe started to ship water over the starboard side and at the point of no return I bailed out of it and into the river, this way I saved a couple of my bags and one of them had the dry clothing in it. Not sure if it was the correct thing to do but it sure beat trying to ride it out. I found out a long time ago, I don't melt if I get wet and having something dry to put on is sure nice. Also a canoe not complexity filled with water is easier to handle when you are in the water. )
It must have looked like I was having some fun or to much fun because Harry, Ray, Van and Harry Jr., were sitting in an eddy watching all of this. The reason I say that is because just a short distance down stream Harry and Ray tried the same thing but without any women there to help. Remind me to talk to them about that bad timing.
Out at Kyle's campground and camp set up then a fire and dry clothing for Harry & Ray along with a stiff beverage to warm them up inside.
I had on my last set of dry clothing and the wet stuff sure did not dry that much on the clothes line I set up overnight in the misty rain so I called it quits for me and paddling. I told Bear about that decision and then Harry, Ray, Van and Harry's son decided to do the same.
This is when we came up with the idea of taking a lot of the gear Joe, Al, Jim, Bear and Swampy had and putting it in the two trailers (Harry's and mine) to transport it overland so they could run the rest of the river not loaded down.
Lighter weight in the boats , YES
From what the guys said that worked out really good and relieved there worries about dumping there stuff in the river.
I have not gone into a lot of detail here since some of the others have but I know my good buddy, Swampy , will go into detail and back it up with pictures.
All I can say is this bunch of Geezers, except for Jim ... he has not really hit the Geezer status yet so me made him a honorary one, are some really fine folks to be on a river with and everyone helps everyone with any problem, even when they go swimming in the river.
By the way the day we left it was sunny, warm and really nice, Then I get home and the wife tells me that the week I was paddling they had just perfect weather here at the house. Could this be some sort of pay back for paddling with a Southern Attorney ..... Could it be that the camping and paddling Gods are mad at for doing that , I am sure it is not because of the rest of those good folks who were on the trip.. Makes a person do some thinking.
Chuck.
Bear , Don't worry I would be more then honared to paddle with you again it is always a pleasure.
(see folks I make it rain so then I can tell Bear he is all wet and get away with it. )