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Courtesy of the University of North Florida
and Jack Woodward
On Saturday, Dot and I took along 'newbie' Sabrina Foust from Auxiliary Services for her initiation to kayaking. We went back up to the St. Mary's River at Thompkins Landing. Sabrina had a very strong desire to go kayaking with us. She also told us both up front that she knew she wasn't in very good shape and pretty much out of shape. Dot and I both give credit where credit is due, and we are here to say, Sabrina held her own. We started off with Dot in a single and Sabrina and I in the tandem. We told Sabrina what we tell everyone else we take with us . . you really won't know what you are doing until you've done this two or three times. For all the times Dot has been out, I am sure she will tell you she is still learning too. And for all the times I have been out, now and then I get taken by surprise. On the water kayaking, always expect the unexpected. At one point Sabrina and I got taken by surprise when the kayak rode up on an unseen submerged stump. The front of the boat lifted out of the water and that was really the closest I ever want to get to rolling over. I really thought we were going for a swim. Luckily we managed to keep our balance and regroup. We had to do some serious back-paddling to get off the stump. I know I had the water churning so much some of it got washed into the boat, since the back of the boat was so low in the water because the front was so high. It 'twas a thrill to say the least. But it's all part of the experience. And the fun.
Since some new people have been added to my email list, I'll reiterate why the water is so dark. The St. Mary's and the Suwannee Rivers both source in the Okeefenokee swamp in Georgia. There, downed trees, peat and decaying leaves in the water stain the water brown with tannic acid. The water becomes the color of coffee. The sand is the whitest white imaginable. Even though the water is darkly stained, this water is some of the purest and freshest water in the whole state. And it has warmed up a lot. Wading in it was very refreshing. And we did a LOT of wading this time out. The water flow was 26 cu. ft. per second, or roughly 200 gallons a second. The lowest recorded flow has been 14 cu. ft. per second. As a side note, the maximum recorded flow was 8,360 cu. ft. per second, roughly 66,000 gallons per second. This time out the water height was 1.76 ft. The lowest has been .91 feet and the highest (h'mm gotta check into this) I've seen 13.5 feet before, but now it is saying 12.22 something is wrong somewhere. I look at this website
http://waterdata.usgs.gov/fl/nwis/uv?02231000
to get an 'idea' of the water level on the river. I check out two sites, the water level and the weather. The weather was calling for mid 90's Saturday but on the way home at 5pm, a bank in Baldwin said it was 100 degrees. UGH!
Oh boy! Sand patterns.
I know you saw this scene in the last web posting, but it is still a pretty picture.
We were all impressed by the mirror image here.
Dot is getting to be a much stronger kayaker. I got the tandem to ease up the load on her when we go out together. Like this time where our take-out is the same as our put-in, we always paddle upstream first against the current so we can kick back and enjoy the float/paddle downstream back to the take-out. Not once did Dot complain about the current whupping her butt. And the lower the water gets, the faster the current gets because the water is forced into narrower channels.
Sabrina thought I was taking pictures of Dot, not realizing I was taking her picture. This was almost a mile into the trip and she is still smiling and laughing. We had to get out of the tandem a lot to wade through the shallow parts. I lost track of the number of times we had to get out of the boat, but it was a bunch. Trees always seem to fall into the deepest parts of the river forcing us into the shallows.
Dot and I have noticed though, the lower the water gets the more scenic the river becomes. All we ever see out here is other kayakers or canoeists. The water is way too shallow and full of submerged trees and logs for motor boaters. Even jon-boats can't get through here. Lucky us!
We saw lots of tadpoles up against the banks of the river.
Another 'get out and wade' point. See the tree in the deep part?
Good excuse to get out and wade though.
The scenic beauty is outstanding. Ask Sabrina. As pretty as the pictures are, you just can't appreciate the beauty of it all. And the silence is impressive. No people, no cars, no planes. Just the wind and the gurgling of the water. This is Heaven on Earth. This was the view at our midway and lunch stop.
High Resolution photo of the day:
Click on this link to go to a high-resolution photo of the previous picture for use as a desktop background picture.
BEWARE!! For those of you on modem, low speed dial-up, this is a HUGE file.
Sabrina didn't know there was going to be a test halfway through the trip. After paddling upstream, a 'newbie' learns a lot about paddling a kayak. At least how to use the paddle to best advantage. What they don't know, and are absolutely clueless about, is steering. In the tandem, the person in the rear does the steering, telling the person in the front when to paddle on the left or on the right. Midway through the trip, we put the 'newbie' into the single while Dot and I kick back in the tandem. Most of our 'newbies' 'volunteer' to take the single. Some like Sabrina just don't know it's coming and like . . Surprise! .. You are going in the single on the way back downstream. If they want to. We wouldn't force anyone to go in the single if they didn't want to. Believe me, Sabrina was a willing 'volunteer'. Especially after they learn just how stable my kayaks are in the water. They are not 'tipsy' at all. Ask Sabrina. Ask Oupa. Ask Kathy. They will all tell you these kayaks are very, very stable.
So here is Sabrina, on her own. Captain of her own ship.
Is this a happy camper or what?
In places, the shallow water and the current puts you places you don't want to be . . . like in the branches of a downed tree.
That dang Dot! I am going to have to start watching her more closely. She took this picture of me helping Sabrina back into the single after we had to get out and wade through a shallow spot.
And Sabrina takes the lead. We try to stay close to the 'newbie', but now and then we do get away from them. We got ahead of Sabrina at one point around a curve and Sabrina called out to us as to where we were. Believe me, Dot and I know and respect the responsibility of caring for another human life. But like all 'parents', we slip now and then.
Like I said, the lower it gets the more scenic it gets. And more full of obstacles.
See that little inverted 'V' in the branches just at the front of Sabrina's boat? That's where Sabrina has to go to get through this spot. Between the downed tree and the shallows . . . no choice. The 'newbie' does learn a lot about steering when they are on their own.
This was so cool. I have never, ever seen one of these birds in the wild before. Charlie Bear has told me about him seeing them, but this was my first time. Here is some information I gleaned from the web as to what they are. If I am wrong about the identification, I know Charlie's daughter Donna, Curator of Birds at the Jacksonville Zoo, will straighten me out.
SWALLOW-TAILED KITE
Kite is the common name for about 30 species of typically lightly built birds of the hawk family, Accipitridae, widely distributed over warmer regions of the world. They are distinguished by their graceful, gliding flight and occur most commonly near water or wetlands. Kites are classified in three subfamilies: Elaninae, or the white-tailed kites; Perninae, or the fork-tailed kites (and honey buzzards); and Milvinae, or the true kites. The swallow-tailed kite, Elanoides forficatus, found from the southeastern United States and the West Indies to northern Argentina, is slim, black above, and white below and has a white head and a long, deeply forked tail. It spends most of the time on the wing, feeding on the larger flying insects and skimming the water to bathe and drink. The Everglade kite, Rostrhamus sociabilis, found from southern Florida into Argentina, is heavier-bodied, dark, with a broad white band across the tail. It feeds exclusively on snails. Some Old World species are scavengers.
INTERESTING FACTS:
Swallow-tailed Kites formerly occurred from Oklahoma, Texas, and Minnesota, to Florida. Their range in the United States decreased probably from persecution, changes in land use, and cutting of large river-bottom trees.
Swallow-tailed Kites are among the most adept and acrobatic fliers of all raptors.
In some areas of this kite’s range, 2 eggs are laid, but the first chick to hatch will usually kill the younger chick. This is referred to as obligate siblicide.
Seasonal Occurrence. Most Swallow-tailed Kites arrive in Florida from late February to mid-March and lay eggs by mid-April. Birds gather at staging roosts in south Florida in late July and August before migrating south for the winter.
Yeah I know this is blurry, but this one has a story behind it. We didn't know it at this time, but this guy (gal) was on a bombing run. And WE were the target. That clump of tree limb he (she) is carrying was dropped and fell, hitting the water within ten feet of Dot and I. Always expect the unexpected!
The wingspan on these birds is up to 4 feet. But they are very light in weight, topping out at 16 to 17 ounces, about a pound. What a neat experience!
And coupled with all this scenery. Like I say . . . Heaven on Earth!
And here comes Sabrina!
And a fun time was had by all! It goes without saying, but I'll say it anyway. Sabrina LOVED this!!
She wants to know when she can go out again. Like I told her, well, I don't know. Next weekend is Rene Ottino. And another girl in Auxiliary Services, Stephanie Peters want to go out with us. And Oupa wants to go out again with his daughter, and Kathy wants to go out again with her other daughter. And Dot and I want to go out again by ourselves . . a bunch. So, really, I don't know when. But we will take her out again. Sabrina was good company and she loved the experience. And attitude is everything. To look at her, one wouldn't think Sabrina could 'do' this kind of kayaking outing. But she did. And for the last half she did it by herself, on her own. Well .. OK .. small assist at the very end BUT Attitude . . . is . . EVERYTHING!
If you think you can, then you probably can. Just ask Sabrina.
Enjoy !!
P.S.
If you want me to ADD your name/email address to my emaillist when I add new photos to this website, email me at the address below and I will gladly add your name and address. If your name is already on the list, no problem.
Email to Jack Woodward mailto: jackwoodward66@hotmail.com
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