Black River Canoe Camp, March 6-7, 1999
On a weekend in early March I set out to try a new experience. After years of hiking, I decided to expand my horizons and try a blackwater canoe trip. I had a little canoeing experience, but I'd never been in the stern before. My partner was equally inexperienced. The paddling party consisted of Rob and Zac, Lynda and Wayne, Kim and Paul, Larrie and Frank, David and Brucie, Jack, Myron, Dorcas, Izaak, and Christy and me.
We set off from the Ivanhoe wildlife landing, enjoying the bald cypress trees and Spanish moss that surrounded us. Myron, the trip leader, paddled back to check on us. "How are you doing?", he asked. "Just fine", I replied. "Technically, you should be facing downstream", he explained. "Oh I know, we just wanted to have a look back upstream to get another look at what we passed." I went on to explain that our spinning in circles was really no cause for alarm.
The rest of the day was spent learning how to keep the canoe moving downstream. The 2-day trip covered 21 miles, but we overachieved, easily paddling 30 as we pinballed from one side of the river to the other. We learned a lot, though, and were able to keep up with the expert paddlers by the end of the day.
That night, we enjoyed a campsite surrounded by swamp. Gourmet food was the choice for many, as grilled salmon, chicken, steaks, fresh salad, and yes, apple crisp, were consumed. That evening, we sat around the campfire, enjoying our favorite beverages and feeding the mosquitoes. Many a tale was told of previous canoeing adventures.
On Sunday, we were able to demonstrate our improved paddling skills. We took time to enjoy the river. At one point we snaked our way through the trees to find a bald cypress tree estimated to be 1700 years old. During the weekend we saw the first flower, first snake, first tick, and first mosquito of the season. Nevertheless, it was a fun trip and an experience that I'd like to repeat.
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