We had 7 kayakers and 8 canoeists today, so split the larger group along party lines. Tim led the Canoeists and Pam led the kayakers. Among the kayaks (Wayne, Gordy, Peter, Alex, Bob, John, and myself) there was a fair bit of playing, but no swimming under my expert leadership. ;-) The canoe half of the trip went equally well with Ginny and Gary Quam, Bob Whiting, Tim Brown, Keith Edmondson and Dianne Whitaker, a friend of theirs named Mike, and the redoubtable Mr Tilson. That’s 1 OC2 and 6 OC1s. The kayaks beat the canoes across the river and kept up their lead all day. The canoes caught up with the kayaks a bit at the Surfing Ledge, but the kayaks plowed on ahead while the canoes dawdled. Gary brought his fast boat, an Ocoee, to play with. The canoers stopped at Memorial Beach for a snack and a knee break. They arrived back at Violette’s around 12:20 when the last kayaker, Alex Dadok was leaving. Overall, a pleasant paddle for all involved with nothing untoward to report. It was an overcast morning with no sign of the Coast Guard. Little Falls gauge read 2.98 and dropping, revealing rocks and ledges not seen in awhile. Turtle count: 2.
Note: With the water level so low, the log jam after Jacuzzi is the most impassable I’ve seen it this year.
Additions from the peanut gallery:
Summer is closing down. The persimmons along the canal are ripening. If we're lucky we might be there to pick a few in the two hour interval between puckery and rotten. The late summer purples are flowering: brilliant tall Phlox, deep purple NY ironweed, and big billowy dusty purple Joe Pye weed. These plus the yellow late sunflowers and goldenrods hint that shirtsleeve paddling days are numbered. The hydrilla - or sub aquatic vegetation (SAV), as John would call it - in the C&O Canal is now dying back, making for an easier paddle up the canal. The canal actually seemed to have more water in it. All the canoes (even the tandem) boofed the log at the start.