Wayne McDaniel
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6/21/2020 10:42 PM
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With state and local goverments starting to ease COVID-19 restrictions, on June 21st we launched our first 2020 trip using the Sunday paddlers list for invitations. We were rewarded with 13 paddlers, including many we we were seeing for the first time in 2020: Alf C. Barb B, Gary & Ginny Q, John S, Kathleen S, Ken & Patterson W, Pam W, Tom & Evelyn P, Toni B, and Wayne McD. River level was moderatly high (3.6' on the LF gauge) and rising throughout the trip; climate was fine depite warnings from the weatherman.
On this Father's Day we had two fathers paddling with their offspring, which was very cool. The harried TL tried to divide the group into two per CCA's 10 paddlers maximum group polciy, but, as we know, managing paddlers is a bit like herding cats. So we went down the river more or less as a group, although we were generally good about maintaining social distance. The paddle itself was uneventful (well, mostly uneventful - there were two unscheduled sub-surface river inspections).
We were thrilled to note that NPS has, at long past, re-watered the C&O canal, so a pleasant trip back up to the the VL parking lot. Evelyn clocked in as the champion turtle counter at 33.
by J Snitzer,
The paddle was very nice. Good level, beefy but not washed out LF was 3.5 when we put on and has shot up to 4.5 tonight. My sense is the river was above 3.5 and coming up as we paddled, what, 17 miles upstream of LF? . We were a bunch, 13 or so. I went across under the dam with Kathleen and Ginny. Lots of long ferries, surfing waves and eddy catching. Ginny is a powerful paddler with good control for being so small. Under the dam is much more challenging and more interesting than the slog across the lake up above without the endless view of Trump National deforestation of riparian buffers. We had a few kids along including Pat who spent some time swimming but seemed OK. Toni Bickert was there and paddled well. The right chute below Jacuzzi is still a jammed up mess. We all went left. The ferry back was a piece of work in the rising current. Got your attention. Best of all, the canal had maybe 8-12" of additional water and was a treat to paddle up. There was a fine single pink rose in flower with tall meadow rue up near the takeout. Prothonotory warblers were reported near the locks. A fine day.
by Hendrik van Oss
A number of us did Violets yesterday. Water muddy; LF gauge 4.3'. I counted 44 turtles (43 in C&O, 1 in GW canal), but Gary Quam--some minutes behind me, boasted of 49--I presume that some of these were in fact my turtles that he was trying to appropriate.
They ranged from miniscule turtleoids to one or two that may have been a good 9" or so.
It was a relief to find adequate water in the C&O canal for a change!
Hendrik
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