We had twelve people sign up for the trip. The river flow on Saturday was around 1800 CFS and the water was a couple of feet higher than the last time we went on this trip.
It was warm and sunny and portended a great trip. After a couple of paddlers finally found the put-in (note to self – GIVE MUCH BETTER DIRECTIONS TO THE PUT-IN), we packed the boats and the drivers drove their vehicles down to Columbus to park them at Howell’s Canoe Livery for the weekend. Howell’s then drove us back up to La Grange, and we started off in a picture-postcard day, on a river that was just about perfect.
Packing the boats and discussing logistics.
The Crew heading off!
The plan was to put in at La Grange, paddle to Columbus, stopping at two islands to camp overnight, and finish by joining a group paddling around the Columbus Loop on Labor Day Monday.
We stopped for a break on a sandbar.
The Walkers got caught in a sweeper and flipped.
Drain and recovery efforts after the tump. I don’t think anything was lost, but everything got wet including their bedding. Haven’t we all been there?
We weren't going to make it to our planned camp site, so we settled in on this gravel bar instead. John has a meal plan that involves a bucket of KFC chicken for his meals. No preparation, no cleanup. Just a good ice chest, and a stop at a KFC on the way to the put-in. He may have something there.
The Colorado 100 Mile Canoe Race was held the same day we started. It started at Bastrop, some 60 miles upstream from where we started in La Grange. This is the first contestant through, at about 6:30 Saturday night.
Paul's cooking group made fried bread, salad, and something chili something. Evidently the cook forgot the noodles for the spaghetti. Like nobody’s ever done that before! Hee hee.
Racers for the 100 Mile Colorado Race kept going by throughout the night.
Sunday Morning was foggy
But the sunrise was AWESOME!
We picked up a friend who thought the tent was a new home. He was less than thrilled about the morning.
We packed up and got under way. Notice the little privy off by the tent. It was handy, but just another tent to set up and take down.
What a wonderful world that has such marvels in it!
We stopped to take a break and cool off.
Michael pointed out an eagle in a tree.
This was the best shot I could get with my point and shoot camera. Notice the dark clouds behind it. That’s a clue.
It got darker.
Soon it started to rain.
And RAIN.
AND RAIN.
And the rain got OH, MY GOODNESS! HARD.
Coming up to the island for Sunday night, it was still raining.
We arrived at our planned camp site in the rain and put up Paul's rain fly over the cooking area.
Paul’s tarp was the focal point of the camp for the rest of the evening.
We compared two different types of privy tents on this trip. This one is a spring loaded pop-up. You just unfold the wire coils and it springs up like some windshield sunscreens. The zipper on the bag fell apart the first time it was used, so they had to fold it and put it in the bottom of their canoe and load stuff on top of it to keep it flat. I suppose a homemade bag would fix it, but still...
This one was a more traditional tent with poles that slid through pockets and crossed at the top. Both worked well to provide privacy on a treeless campsite. Both were very delicate. The fabric on this one tore in two places while trying to put the poles through the fabric sleeves, and the zippers were easily broken and stuck. But we were on a treeless island in full view of a crowded RV park, so they were useful.
We met up with a group of paddlers that were just doing the Columbus Loop on Labor Day Monday, and paddled around the Loop. Unfortunately, it rained about half way through.
We made it to the take out!
Safe and Sound! IT WAS A WONDERFUL TRIP! WITH GREAT FOLKS!
Dragged the boats and gear up and piled them in our vehicles and headed home. I did discover that Howell’s Livery has some showers available for the use of its customers. They are kind of primitive outdoor open shelters with shower heads, but it was wonderful to be able to rinse off before heading home.
Everything got wet multiple times this trip, and everything needed to be rinsed off and dried. So most of the structures in the backyard were pressed into service as drying racks.
So, until our next adventure, See You On The Water!