In spite of cool temps and a brisk wind, we lost less than two paddlers last night, an attrition rate Jay deemed “acceptable”. Our band of paddlers consisted of a mix of old, new, and “occasional”: Jay, Dan, Steve, Steve, Steve (seems to be a theme here), Mike, and John completed the “regulars” list, while Tadd made his annual showing (although he promises to be more regular in the future), Kmart Dave returned to the water, and Dale – disguised as Bill – joined us for the first time, paddling what was previously Bill’s water-borne transport.
Even with the overcast, Golden and Hogback lakes were as pretty as ever. Water levels were on the high side; the channel was as wide and deep as most of us have ever seen it. The only risk in the journey came as I narrowly avoided spearing my outrigger canoe on poles in the water that were apparently installed for a now departed dock (which Tadd located further down the channel on our return trip).
Speaking of Tadd, our fearless outdoorsman made use of the expanded shoreline to run his canoe hither and yon amongst the flooded tree areas. Following our successful journeying to the farthest reaches of Hogback Lake and back, Jay generously supplied our starving band of ragged kayakers with some excellent butterscotch cookies fresh from the Joyce’s kitchen. Thank you Joyce! Then we entertained ourselves with deep discussions centered around paddling themes and how long it would take Kmart Dave’s grandson to arrive with the spare keys to his accidentally locked-inside vehicle.
In other words, another excellent evening on the water!
To join the group in NE Indiana on Tuesday nights, search “KayakFW” in Yahoo Groups.
