The water in the St Joe River was as delightfully putrid as ever, but the fellowship of all the paddlers who showed up, along with a thorough beautiful evening more than made up for it. Much of our usual gang was there, along with several we hadn’t seen for a while (like Craig and Lori Schaffer, Dale Johnson, and a few I hadn’t met). It was also quite a canoe night, with Craig, Lori, Steve Evertson, and Larry all paddling canoes.
We ran a classic course, starting at the Leo boat ramp, with most running up to the first (steel) bridge and back. Mike and I ran faster and farther, going to the second (concrete) bridge. Then we all headed back, not too much worse for the wear, unlike the Halloween creatures spotted observing us from the shore. Fortunately we finished in the daylight…
Now we classically indulge in Louise’ cookies at the end of our paddles, but yesterday was special: Louise had a feast of cookies (peanut butter and chocolate chip), buckeyes, and chocolate cake to celebrate the August and late July birthdays! ‘Twas a great way to finish off the evening. A pair of peanut butter cookies even provided Dale with enough energy to paddle back home in his new kayak. Thank you Louise!
Steve
