Collinsville III
Where: Farmington River above Collinsville, CT
When: 6/21/97-6/22/97
With: Chip, Dave, Seth
When: 6/21/97-6/22/97
With: Chip, Dave, Seth
The annual excursion to Collinsville. As usual, Chip was the organizer and he proposed a couple of dates in mid-June. The weekend of the Solstice was good for everyone so we started the preparations. Chip, Seth & I made good use of our new Internet connections and did a fair amount of the planning via e-mail.
Our first need was boats. We decided to go with smaller boats this year, so that meant leaving Dave's sea kayaks at home and renting three boats. Dave was elected to call Collinsville Canoe but they told him they had nothing to rent. Something going on, apparently. Chip & I called around Boston, but no one would rent us kayaks. We considered a number of options, including doing a hike instead or postponing the trip to later in the summer, but then Chip tried one more phone number. Somehow he found the number for Main Stream Canoe in a Boston phone book and got in touch with Jack. Jack had once been an Olympic kayak racer (he said) and now ran a canoe rental shop on the Farmington in New Hartford, right next to where the tubers launched just above Satan's Kingdom. Jack was more than happy to help us. He had plenty of kayaks to use and he could shuttle us upstream and we could use a campsite at his place and... Well, it just seemed like our problems were solved. So Chip told Jack to expect us and we were back on track.
One concern we had was the water level. Last year had been a bit scratchy and we wanted be sure we had at least that much water in the river. Several reports said the levels were low and a USGS gauge I found on the Internet said that the level was about 2/3 of normal. When Chip asked Jack though, Jack said the water was fine, no problem. Though we realized he had a vested interest in reporting the river to be in good shape, we decided to trust him anyway.
Saturday dawned and everything went like clockwork. Chip & Dave arrived at my place at 8 and we were back on the road to Collinsville in my car by 8:30. We got to Collinsville at 10:30, found Seth waiting for us, did a little visiting, ate some early lunch, and then headed upstream to Main Stream Canoe around 11.
Jack's operation was definitely on the rinky-dink end of the business spectrum. His shop occupied the back end of a building whose front end housed a flea market. We pulled into the dirt parking lot and surveyed the assortment of battered boats strewn about. Most were small Keowee-size craft, but there were two 12-foot kayaks sitting on a rack to the side. Jack had mentioned those to Chip and we had planned to use them. We reconsidered a bit when we noticed the duct tape patches on the bows of both boats.
Jack came out to greet us and turned out to be a big, friendly guy with little pretense. He was willing to do whatever he could to help us have a good time, but he kept his business interests in mind. We started by checking out all the boats in the yard. Storage turned out to be a problem. The small kayaks did not have the folding seat backs of my Keowee, so there was no access to the cargo space behind the seats. Since we all had overnight gear, we needed some way to stow our stuff. We looked at some boats in the shop, but found nothing that would suit us, so we took a look at the 12 footers. Though beat up, they seemed useable and had ample stowage capabilities. We decided to take those two for Chip & Dave and we selected a small boat with some rear compartment access for Seth.
Now that we had the boats, we had to make arrangements to get on/off the river. We needed to get the four boats and ourselves upstream on Saturday and then find a way to get the three rental boats back up from Collinsville on Sunday. To get on the river, Chip had arranged to have Jack shuttle us up. For reasons we never fully understood however, Jack was not allowed to drive us all the way up to the dam where we'd started last year, nor was he permitted to drive down to Collinsville to pick us up. After a good bit of negotiating, we got Jack to agree to drive our four boats and us up to the dam. My car was left at his place. For the return on Sunday, we said we'd use Seth's car (parked down in Collinsville), but left open the possibility of a call to Jack for a pickup. We loaded the boats on the trailer and piled our gear and ourselves into the shuttle van. At the last moment, Jack had a change of mind and said it was just too risky to go all the way to the dam. Instead, we'd start about 2 miles downstream. He offered to drop $10 off the rental fee for the trouble, so we agreed and were on our way.
We shared the ride upstream with a couple and their dog who were doing a day trip on a canoe. The driver was a personable young guy who gave us the required speech about safety and offered some tips on the river. He dropped us off at a small park by a bridge and soon we were loading up the boats. It took some doing, but we managed to get everything shoved inside and then we were on the river at last. I was first on the water and paddled up a ways before drifting back to the launch site to await the others and light a cigar. Soon we were all afloat and we headed downstream.
We only went a short ways before pulling into a small side channel to group up, apply sunscreen, and celebrate the journey. It was a beautiful, hot, sunny day and the river provided just the right amount of cooling to make things pleasant. We all took pictures of each other (I'd brought disposable cameras for everyone) and Chip uncorked a small bottle of champagne. As Seth was passing it back after taking a drink, he leaned too far and capsized. Fortunately, dry bags and trash bags kept his gear dry and the water was shallow, so it was mostly just entertainment. A perfect beginning for our trip!
Realizing we were in no hurry (we'd started 3 hours earlier than last year and 2 miles downstream), we took our time getting settled in before setting off again. The rest of the day was spent making short runs on the water punctuated by visits to shore to check out interesting things. Given the weather, it was not surprising that we had a lot of company on the water. Tubers, fishermen, canoers, kayakers. Seth commented that he would have had more privacy had he stayed in NYC!
Though we'd paddled this same area last year, we all found the surroundings to be pretty much unfamiliar. I kept expecting to see features that had seemed so notable on our previous trip, but I only got vague bits of recollection. I kept expecting to see more bridges, for example, and tried to pick out the spot where we'd seen the beautiful girl last year, but no luck. Still, I did manage to recognize our camping spot and pulled everyone over to the shore while I wandered inland to confirm the spot. Sure enough, it was our campsite, but it was only mid-afternoon and we'd only been on the river a few hours.
We debated our plans. We could stop, set up camp, and just hang out, but that didn't seem too inviting to anyone. The campsite was okay, but there wasn't much to do there. Besides, it was a hot day and we were having fun on the water. We decided to keep going and find another site further downstream. I recalled a secluded pool on a side branch of the river (the left fork around an island). We'd paddled through it last year and at the time I'd thought it would make a nice campsite. None of the other guys remembered it, but I thought it was just a bit further downstream, still in the same state/town forest as last year's site.
We pushed off and started paddling again, keeping an eye out for a fork in the river. None came quickly. Instead, we found ourselves leaving the forest and approaching a town. Again, we debated our plans. We could stop where we were, before we got to the town, or keep going. We chose the latter. Seth seemed to think that there were some more forested areas beyond the town, and we figured that if worse came to worse, we could camp in the area around the big rapid in Satan's Kingdom.
We floated through the town and sure enough, the forest re-enclosed the river soon afterwards. Still no sign of a fork in the river though. By now we'd been going for a good while and we started looking for anywhere to stop. I was pretty sure the pool was still somewhere around, but we'd gone much further than I'd recalled, so I was ready to give up the search. The left bank looked promising and we headed over. Just then, we spied a fork in the river ahead. We headed in and though we didn't see a pool, we did find plenty of places to camp. Both the left bank and the island on the right had possibilities.
We went in a bit, pulled the boats to shore and began some exploring. I went on the island while the others went to the left bank. The island was okay, though there were no cleared sites and the ground seemed a bit rocky. The left bank had some small spots but nothing that screamed out to us. After a bit, Dave and Seth went exploring and returned to claim they'd found the perfect spot. We floated downstream to it and found The Pool! A deep, calm, wide pool with a large rock along one side. Above the rock was the site Dave & Seth had found. It looked good at first, but turned out to be pretty slanted. We agreed to stay near the pool, but went looking for another place for the tents.
After a bit of looking, we found a good spot just downstream, in a wooded glade. Since we'd be gathering at the pool, there was no need to group the tents together. Chip & I started with our tents close to each other, but I wound up finding a nicer spot with a view over the river and moved my tent down by where Dave had set up camp. Seth had no tent, but he figured he'd work something out.
Having found a place for the night, we settled in. We hung out on the rock, swam in the pool, explored the woods, had dinner, and just relaxed. There was one encounter worth noting. At some point (before/after dinner, I don't remember) Dave, Chip & I went for a walk on an overgrown path that ran parallel to the river above our tents. We headed downstream at first but didn't get too far so we turned around and went upstream. The path continued a good ways and then came out into some grassy fields. Just beyond, the path ended at a road and a bridge over the river. We climbed up the field a bit and found a house, power lines, etc. so we returned to the path and headed back. Halfway across the final field before the woods we heard a bell and looked up to see a medium-size dog coming toward us, followed by an older gentleman. We feared a confrontation ("Get off my land!"), but the man merely greeted us, assured us the dog meant no harm, and then headed up the hill with his dog to his house. Returning to the campsite, Seth mentioned the man had stopped there, noted our tents, and given his tacit approval. Nice.
Finally, after an evening of regretting the lack of fishing line (we watched almost constant strikes and leaps in the pool), chatting, drinking, etc., we headed to bed. Chip & Dave crashed first and I stayed up with Seth down by the water until the bugs got too bad for me and I retired to my tent. Seth decided to sleep by the pool.
I slept well in the humid warmth, with the river murmuring just outside my door. Around midnight though I was awakened by the sound of boats bumping on rocks and voices calling in the night. Voices from folks other than us. "Someone's ripping off the boats!" I thought, and I bolted out of the tent. The sky was clear and the full moon lit the whole place up. Looking down to the river I could see all four boats still lined up. I was a bit confused, then I heard another voice and looked up to see two guys in canoes bumping their way down the river, doing a no-light, midnight, summer solstice paddle. Cool! Dave also got up and we both watched as they disappeared downstream, then we returned to sleep.
The next morning, I relaxed in bed a good while, then got up and went down to the rock by the pool. Seth had taken up residence in a hammock by Chip's tent, so I just enjoyed the pool by myself. After awhile, Dave and Chip joined me and we had breakfast by the water. Seth hadn't gotten much sleep, so he crawled into Chip's tent and crashed while we relaxed and chatted. Eventually he got up and came to tell us of The Bug. He'd been dozing on the rock by the pool late at night when he heard a scratching sound. Turning on his flashlight he saw an enormous bug with a segmented body and big pinchers coming toward him. He took a couple of pictures and then decided to head back to the camping area for the rest of the night. He drew us a picture and it indeed looked fearsome. [The photos confirmed the story. It was quite a bug.]
For the next few hours we sat and talked and swam and ate and just enjoyed the nice, slow life and the beautiful morning. Seth produced drawings of The Bug and of Chip, and David wrote the following:
Blackberry Brandy after a last sip of java sets the lighting for the new day's morning. The gossip of birds and the river's babbling accompanies a family of ducks paddling. The cool pockets of air mingle with the rising warmth, and we talk of things we hope have some worth. So as fabrics are woven, the light day has risen and we will become action. We'll move out to stake our claims, the ones we think we have chosen.
Finally, around 10, we decided to get moving. We disassembled the camp, packed up the boats, and pushed off for another day's adventures. We were still in the branch of the river and we kept our eyes open for more places to camp next year. A few turns and rapids below the pool we found a likely spot. Another large pool, much bigger than the one we'd camped at. The water was about 4 feet deep and the pool was big enough for several boats to paddle around in. On the right bank there were several likely campsites on the island, with dirt paths down to the water. Though it lacked the rock to gather on, it would allow us to have kayak jousts, do some fishing, and swim around. Maybe next year.
A bit below this pool we rejoined the main stream and soon came to the takeout for the place we'd rented the boats. It was also the entry point for the inner tube folks. We quickly rejected the idea of a takeout there and continued on down river. As last year, we found ourselves slaloming around tubers for a few miles and then we were into Satan's Kingdom. We all paused just above the big rapid. I got out of my boat and went to the rocks to survey a route. The others pulled over above me and stayed in their boats, planning to just run it. I grabbed my camera and awaited them. Dave came first and plunged safely through the waves. I got a picture and then discovered it was my last one. Chip came through next and also made it through with no problems. Seth followed close behind. He got turned around at the end, but otherwise - no trouble. I returned to my boat and made my own run with no incident.
Having passed that test, we paddled on to the next (smaller) rapids (Rooster Tail) and ran through there easily. David & Seth went first and parked at the base of the torrent to snap pictures as Chip & I came down. Beyond that, the river quieted down and the rest of the trip was a leisurely paddle to Collinsville. Collinsville Canoe was having a huge demo/sale event, so the water around the park where we were taking out was full of folks in boats. We made our way through, pulled the boats up on land, and called it a trip. Seth retrieved his car and we lashed the three rental boats to the top for the trip back to Main Stream Canoe. He & I drove the boats back, thanked Jack for all his help, and then drove back to Collinsville. My kayak was lashed to my car and after some relaxing with Seth's friend Jon at his art gallery, Chip, Dave & I headed home.
* Notes
We're getting better at this. Next year, we need to arrange for the boats earlier so we're assured of what we want. We should get Keowees, if possible. We can also do without the shuttle service. With a roof rack, we should be able to get all four boats on a car for the trip to the dam. Lower cost and we get those extra two miles of river.
The cameras were a lot of fun. Another good idea was the Platypus water system.
Two years of great weather. Will our luck hold next year? What do we do if it rains?
Dinner needs some attention. We need more courses, especially desert. A plate o' pasta is just not enough.
Evening activity is another concern. We need something to keep us going after dark. Maybe quit paddling earlier and take a nap. Maybe coffee with dinner. Maybe toys (squirt guns?) or games (kayak jousting). Something.
The new campsite we found does have some nice features, but that rock was mighty nice. It'll be a tough call next year when we decide where to stay.
More pictures
Our first need was boats. We decided to go with smaller boats this year, so that meant leaving Dave's sea kayaks at home and renting three boats. Dave was elected to call Collinsville Canoe but they told him they had nothing to rent. Something going on, apparently. Chip & I called around Boston, but no one would rent us kayaks. We considered a number of options, including doing a hike instead or postponing the trip to later in the summer, but then Chip tried one more phone number. Somehow he found the number for Main Stream Canoe in a Boston phone book and got in touch with Jack. Jack had once been an Olympic kayak racer (he said) and now ran a canoe rental shop on the Farmington in New Hartford, right next to where the tubers launched just above Satan's Kingdom. Jack was more than happy to help us. He had plenty of kayaks to use and he could shuttle us upstream and we could use a campsite at his place and... Well, it just seemed like our problems were solved. So Chip told Jack to expect us and we were back on track.
One concern we had was the water level. Last year had been a bit scratchy and we wanted be sure we had at least that much water in the river. Several reports said the levels were low and a USGS gauge I found on the Internet said that the level was about 2/3 of normal. When Chip asked Jack though, Jack said the water was fine, no problem. Though we realized he had a vested interest in reporting the river to be in good shape, we decided to trust him anyway.
Saturday dawned and everything went like clockwork. Chip & Dave arrived at my place at 8 and we were back on the road to Collinsville in my car by 8:30. We got to Collinsville at 10:30, found Seth waiting for us, did a little visiting, ate some early lunch, and then headed upstream to Main Stream Canoe around 11.
Jack's operation was definitely on the rinky-dink end of the business spectrum. His shop occupied the back end of a building whose front end housed a flea market. We pulled into the dirt parking lot and surveyed the assortment of battered boats strewn about. Most were small Keowee-size craft, but there were two 12-foot kayaks sitting on a rack to the side. Jack had mentioned those to Chip and we had planned to use them. We reconsidered a bit when we noticed the duct tape patches on the bows of both boats.
Jack came out to greet us and turned out to be a big, friendly guy with little pretense. He was willing to do whatever he could to help us have a good time, but he kept his business interests in mind. We started by checking out all the boats in the yard. Storage turned out to be a problem. The small kayaks did not have the folding seat backs of my Keowee, so there was no access to the cargo space behind the seats. Since we all had overnight gear, we needed some way to stow our stuff. We looked at some boats in the shop, but found nothing that would suit us, so we took a look at the 12 footers. Though beat up, they seemed useable and had ample stowage capabilities. We decided to take those two for Chip & Dave and we selected a small boat with some rear compartment access for Seth.
Now that we had the boats, we had to make arrangements to get on/off the river. We needed to get the four boats and ourselves upstream on Saturday and then find a way to get the three rental boats back up from Collinsville on Sunday. To get on the river, Chip had arranged to have Jack shuttle us up. For reasons we never fully understood however, Jack was not allowed to drive us all the way up to the dam where we'd started last year, nor was he permitted to drive down to Collinsville to pick us up. After a good bit of negotiating, we got Jack to agree to drive our four boats and us up to the dam. My car was left at his place. For the return on Sunday, we said we'd use Seth's car (parked down in Collinsville), but left open the possibility of a call to Jack for a pickup. We loaded the boats on the trailer and piled our gear and ourselves into the shuttle van. At the last moment, Jack had a change of mind and said it was just too risky to go all the way to the dam. Instead, we'd start about 2 miles downstream. He offered to drop $10 off the rental fee for the trouble, so we agreed and were on our way.
We shared the ride upstream with a couple and their dog who were doing a day trip on a canoe. The driver was a personable young guy who gave us the required speech about safety and offered some tips on the river. He dropped us off at a small park by a bridge and soon we were loading up the boats. It took some doing, but we managed to get everything shoved inside and then we were on the river at last. I was first on the water and paddled up a ways before drifting back to the launch site to await the others and light a cigar. Soon we were all afloat and we headed downstream.
We only went a short ways before pulling into a small side channel to group up, apply sunscreen, and celebrate the journey. It was a beautiful, hot, sunny day and the river provided just the right amount of cooling to make things pleasant. We all took pictures of each other (I'd brought disposable cameras for everyone) and Chip uncorked a small bottle of champagne. As Seth was passing it back after taking a drink, he leaned too far and capsized. Fortunately, dry bags and trash bags kept his gear dry and the water was shallow, so it was mostly just entertainment. A perfect beginning for our trip!
Realizing we were in no hurry (we'd started 3 hours earlier than last year and 2 miles downstream), we took our time getting settled in before setting off again. The rest of the day was spent making short runs on the water punctuated by visits to shore to check out interesting things. Given the weather, it was not surprising that we had a lot of company on the water. Tubers, fishermen, canoers, kayakers. Seth commented that he would have had more privacy had he stayed in NYC!
Though we'd paddled this same area last year, we all found the surroundings to be pretty much unfamiliar. I kept expecting to see features that had seemed so notable on our previous trip, but I only got vague bits of recollection. I kept expecting to see more bridges, for example, and tried to pick out the spot where we'd seen the beautiful girl last year, but no luck. Still, I did manage to recognize our camping spot and pulled everyone over to the shore while I wandered inland to confirm the spot. Sure enough, it was our campsite, but it was only mid-afternoon and we'd only been on the river a few hours.
We debated our plans. We could stop, set up camp, and just hang out, but that didn't seem too inviting to anyone. The campsite was okay, but there wasn't much to do there. Besides, it was a hot day and we were having fun on the water. We decided to keep going and find another site further downstream. I recalled a secluded pool on a side branch of the river (the left fork around an island). We'd paddled through it last year and at the time I'd thought it would make a nice campsite. None of the other guys remembered it, but I thought it was just a bit further downstream, still in the same state/town forest as last year's site.
We pushed off and started paddling again, keeping an eye out for a fork in the river. None came quickly. Instead, we found ourselves leaving the forest and approaching a town. Again, we debated our plans. We could stop where we were, before we got to the town, or keep going. We chose the latter. Seth seemed to think that there were some more forested areas beyond the town, and we figured that if worse came to worse, we could camp in the area around the big rapid in Satan's Kingdom.
We floated through the town and sure enough, the forest re-enclosed the river soon afterwards. Still no sign of a fork in the river though. By now we'd been going for a good while and we started looking for anywhere to stop. I was pretty sure the pool was still somewhere around, but we'd gone much further than I'd recalled, so I was ready to give up the search. The left bank looked promising and we headed over. Just then, we spied a fork in the river ahead. We headed in and though we didn't see a pool, we did find plenty of places to camp. Both the left bank and the island on the right had possibilities.
We went in a bit, pulled the boats to shore and began some exploring. I went on the island while the others went to the left bank. The island was okay, though there were no cleared sites and the ground seemed a bit rocky. The left bank had some small spots but nothing that screamed out to us. After a bit, Dave and Seth went exploring and returned to claim they'd found the perfect spot. We floated downstream to it and found The Pool! A deep, calm, wide pool with a large rock along one side. Above the rock was the site Dave & Seth had found. It looked good at first, but turned out to be pretty slanted. We agreed to stay near the pool, but went looking for another place for the tents.
After a bit of looking, we found a good spot just downstream, in a wooded glade. Since we'd be gathering at the pool, there was no need to group the tents together. Chip & I started with our tents close to each other, but I wound up finding a nicer spot with a view over the river and moved my tent down by where Dave had set up camp. Seth had no tent, but he figured he'd work something out.
Having found a place for the night, we settled in. We hung out on the rock, swam in the pool, explored the woods, had dinner, and just relaxed. There was one encounter worth noting. At some point (before/after dinner, I don't remember) Dave, Chip & I went for a walk on an overgrown path that ran parallel to the river above our tents. We headed downstream at first but didn't get too far so we turned around and went upstream. The path continued a good ways and then came out into some grassy fields. Just beyond, the path ended at a road and a bridge over the river. We climbed up the field a bit and found a house, power lines, etc. so we returned to the path and headed back. Halfway across the final field before the woods we heard a bell and looked up to see a medium-size dog coming toward us, followed by an older gentleman. We feared a confrontation ("Get off my land!"), but the man merely greeted us, assured us the dog meant no harm, and then headed up the hill with his dog to his house. Returning to the campsite, Seth mentioned the man had stopped there, noted our tents, and given his tacit approval. Nice.
Finally, after an evening of regretting the lack of fishing line (we watched almost constant strikes and leaps in the pool), chatting, drinking, etc., we headed to bed. Chip & Dave crashed first and I stayed up with Seth down by the water until the bugs got too bad for me and I retired to my tent. Seth decided to sleep by the pool.
I slept well in the humid warmth, with the river murmuring just outside my door. Around midnight though I was awakened by the sound of boats bumping on rocks and voices calling in the night. Voices from folks other than us. "Someone's ripping off the boats!" I thought, and I bolted out of the tent. The sky was clear and the full moon lit the whole place up. Looking down to the river I could see all four boats still lined up. I was a bit confused, then I heard another voice and looked up to see two guys in canoes bumping their way down the river, doing a no-light, midnight, summer solstice paddle. Cool! Dave also got up and we both watched as they disappeared downstream, then we returned to sleep.
The next morning, I relaxed in bed a good while, then got up and went down to the rock by the pool. Seth had taken up residence in a hammock by Chip's tent, so I just enjoyed the pool by myself. After awhile, Dave and Chip joined me and we had breakfast by the water. Seth hadn't gotten much sleep, so he crawled into Chip's tent and crashed while we relaxed and chatted. Eventually he got up and came to tell us of The Bug. He'd been dozing on the rock by the pool late at night when he heard a scratching sound. Turning on his flashlight he saw an enormous bug with a segmented body and big pinchers coming toward him. He took a couple of pictures and then decided to head back to the camping area for the rest of the night. He drew us a picture and it indeed looked fearsome. [The photos confirmed the story. It was quite a bug.]
For the next few hours we sat and talked and swam and ate and just enjoyed the nice, slow life and the beautiful morning. Seth produced drawings of The Bug and of Chip, and David wrote the following:
Blackberry Brandy after a last sip of java sets the lighting for the new day's morning. The gossip of birds and the river's babbling accompanies a family of ducks paddling. The cool pockets of air mingle with the rising warmth, and we talk of things we hope have some worth. So as fabrics are woven, the light day has risen and we will become action. We'll move out to stake our claims, the ones we think we have chosen.
Finally, around 10, we decided to get moving. We disassembled the camp, packed up the boats, and pushed off for another day's adventures. We were still in the branch of the river and we kept our eyes open for more places to camp next year. A few turns and rapids below the pool we found a likely spot. Another large pool, much bigger than the one we'd camped at. The water was about 4 feet deep and the pool was big enough for several boats to paddle around in. On the right bank there were several likely campsites on the island, with dirt paths down to the water. Though it lacked the rock to gather on, it would allow us to have kayak jousts, do some fishing, and swim around. Maybe next year.
A bit below this pool we rejoined the main stream and soon came to the takeout for the place we'd rented the boats. It was also the entry point for the inner tube folks. We quickly rejected the idea of a takeout there and continued on down river. As last year, we found ourselves slaloming around tubers for a few miles and then we were into Satan's Kingdom. We all paused just above the big rapid. I got out of my boat and went to the rocks to survey a route. The others pulled over above me and stayed in their boats, planning to just run it. I grabbed my camera and awaited them. Dave came first and plunged safely through the waves. I got a picture and then discovered it was my last one. Chip came through next and also made it through with no problems. Seth followed close behind. He got turned around at the end, but otherwise - no trouble. I returned to my boat and made my own run with no incident.
Having passed that test, we paddled on to the next (smaller) rapids (Rooster Tail) and ran through there easily. David & Seth went first and parked at the base of the torrent to snap pictures as Chip & I came down. Beyond that, the river quieted down and the rest of the trip was a leisurely paddle to Collinsville. Collinsville Canoe was having a huge demo/sale event, so the water around the park where we were taking out was full of folks in boats. We made our way through, pulled the boats up on land, and called it a trip. Seth retrieved his car and we lashed the three rental boats to the top for the trip back to Main Stream Canoe. He & I drove the boats back, thanked Jack for all his help, and then drove back to Collinsville. My kayak was lashed to my car and after some relaxing with Seth's friend Jon at his art gallery, Chip, Dave & I headed home.
* Notes
We're getting better at this. Next year, we need to arrange for the boats earlier so we're assured of what we want. We should get Keowees, if possible. We can also do without the shuttle service. With a roof rack, we should be able to get all four boats on a car for the trip to the dam. Lower cost and we get those extra two miles of river.
The cameras were a lot of fun. Another good idea was the Platypus water system.
Two years of great weather. Will our luck hold next year? What do we do if it rains?
Dinner needs some attention. We need more courses, especially desert. A plate o' pasta is just not enough.
Evening activity is another concern. We need something to keep us going after dark. Maybe quit paddling earlier and take a nap. Maybe coffee with dinner. Maybe toys (squirt guns?) or games (kayak jousting). Something.
The new campsite we found does have some nice features, but that rock was mighty nice. It'll be a tough call next year when we decide where to stay.
More pictures
