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Paddling Journal February 2009 The outage is on the radar - last chance to paddle freely for a while. Trips this month: 8
2/1/09
For the last couple of years I have started a new tradition that involved me paddling on the St. Mary's River at St. George, Ga and then picking up our Super Bowl dinner at the "Shack By The Tracks". I considered doing that again but decided to vary it a little and paddle on the other side of SR-121 in the Okefenokee instead.
I got going early and was in the water a little after 8 on a frigid morning that forced me to wear my fleece mittens as I headed down the canal. It was a beautiful morning and I enjoyed the peaceful trip down the canal as the sun began to rise behind me. I could hear the Sand Hill Cranes trumpeting all around and I flushed a Great Blue Heron but was not able to get any shots until I turned up the Cedar Hammock trail and was able to get close to a Heron there. I decided to not go up the Cedar Hammock trail very far and so I turned around and began making my way toward the canal split. Suddenly, a large brown bird flew out from a tree not more than three feet from my head and flew across the canal. I realized instantly that it was a Barred Owl and I watched him perch on a branch on the other side the canal about 15 feet above the water. I paddled over and took several shots before he flushed again and flew up the canal where he rested in a tree on the return side of the cutoff. I was able to get a few more shots before he flew off again and I was unable to find him.
I returned to the split and took the southern branch down to the path to Grand Prairie and made the turn to the south. Off to the right about 50 yards away, I spotted about a dozen Cranes grazing next to a Cypress Island who were trumpeting as they fed. As they called, I could here their call reverberating and echoing behind me in a strange way that I had never heard before. The water levels were even higher than they had been before and I think that may have been causing the odd echo as the sound was bouncing off the water and echoing throughout the swamp.
I made my way down to the place where the path turns to the east and followed it shooting the dozens of Cranes along the way on either side of the trail. I took the return path back to the canal and as I was shooting some Cranes I noticed a Great Blue perching on the top of some tall Cypress trees. When I check with my binoculars I could see that it was actually a large nest that it was in so I marked it on my GPS. I continued up the trail and spotted a large Gator sunning himself near the entrance to the trail. I re-entered the canal and began paddling toward the cutoff. As I was heading north I spotted a large dark bird perching about 10 feet above the water with his back to me and I realized that it was a Red Shouldered Hawk.
He was sitting with his back to me intently watching the prairie on the other side of the canal. I slowly paddled over to him and took several shots of him as he sat there. He turned to stare at me but he never did flush even after I pushed off and continued on down the canal. I reached the canal cutoff and turned back to the east and I began to hear the first sounds of other people out on the water. I passed a group picnicking at the composting toilet who were returning from a camping trip and a group of kayakers at the split. I turned into the Day Use Canoe Trail and started making my way back to the put-in. I passed a young Gator close to the mid-point and then after passing a couple in a canoe I paused to take a lunch break. I finished the trip not seeing much else and was packed up and on my way around 1 pm. I made it down to St. George and less than two minutes later I was on my way home with a delicious BBQ pork rump at my side. It was tough, but I managed to make it home without digging in to that bad boy.
See the pictures from this
trip
2/6/09
Serendipity was the word for the day. I got up early on yet another frigid morning with temperatures in the low 20's and decided that I would see just how committed I am to being what I like to call an "all weather paddler". I have paddled in temperatures that were close to freezing and perhaps well below that magic number of 32 when you count the wind chill factor but I have never headed out on the water when the actual temperature was in the low 20's. I had done the research about the hunting schedule at Guana and felt confident that Six Mile Landing would finally be open so after considering paddling closer to home I decided to head toward Ponte Vedra. After scraping a heavy frost off of my truck windshield for the first time in several years I headed south as the sun popped up over the ocean.
As I crossed the ICW on JTB I could see that the bridge was covered with a fine layer of frost and as I headed down A1A the palm trees along the way were drooping with a heavy covering of frost. As I pulled up to the entrance to Six Mile Landing I said a couple of curse words when I saw the chain was still in place blocking my entry. Since there is no place where I can find definitive information about when the put-in is actually open I always go with a "Plan B" in mind and so I turned around and headed north with my intention to either go to Durbin Creek or the ICW at the Palm Valley Bridge. I decided to pull into the parking lot off of 210 and at least check out the water conditions at the Intracoastal and found absolutely glassy waters at peak high tide. Not a ripple stirred the waters and there appeared to be no current whatsoever. I unloaded my boat and was soon on my way south passing the "McMansions" that line both banks for the first half mile or so. Once I passed the last of the docks a serene scene lay before me as the banks from that point on for as far as the eye can see is devoid of human habitation. As much as we hated the ICW at Dutton Island I think that this section of it may even be more beautiful and less developed than our section north of the river.
Since this was a "serendipitous" trip I decided to spend some time exploring the few small creeks that flow into the ICW. The first one I checked out was on the east side and I found a couple of campsites on the marsh side of one of the islands that might be a great place to stay. I crossed over the waterway and paddled up a small swift flowing stream that headed up into the woods. It was blocked by a series of rusted out metal culvert pipes where a road used to cross connecting the islands on that side of the ICW. The road has been dug out to prevent people from driving and there were reflective signs facing up the road to warn that the road was impassable. I floated back out to the ICW and entered the next creek just a quarter mile south of the previous one. I had paddled a short ways up this creek when I was here two years ago but the tide was too low at that time to go very far. Today, there was plenty of water although I could see the high water mark was nearly a foot above the surface. The water was rushing out and got swifter as I worked my way deeper into the woods and got much narrower. I came to a place where a single rusted out culvert pipe lay in the middle of the stream and I could see that this was the same road I had seen earlier. It too had been dug out but I was able to easily get past it and continue on a ways before the stream finally got so narrow that I decided to turn around.
I had seen some odd looking white residue on the tree roots at the high water mark which I assumed was salt residue. When I looked closer, however, I discovered that instead of salt that I was seeing something I had never seen before in all my years of paddling - ICE! That's right - ICE! Apparently, while the tide was slack this morning there was enough time for the water to begin to freeze and once the water level dropped it remained stuck to the trees and hung down like a necklace waiting for the sun to reach this area deep in the woods. Since I didn't believe that brackish water would freeze so quickly I decided to taste the it and sure enough I could not detect any saltiness at all, There must be freshwater springs feeding this creek which would explain the strong current and clarity of the water. While I was marveling at this and taking some pictures of it I spotted some movement ahead of me where the culvert pipe was located and I realized that it was an Otter who had spotted me and was huffing angrily. He swam toward me and and then dove under the water when he got to within four or five feet. As I watched for him to come back up my boat was drifting toward the upstream side of the culvert pipe. A second Otter surfaced just a couple of feet from my boat and raised its head up to peer over the pipe as it tried to locate it's mate. My boat was about to hit it when it suddenly turned around and saw me. It dove into the pipe with a loud splash and soon emerged from the other end where it began huffing at me. There was a pool on the downstream side of the road and as I floated into it the pair of Otters began popping their heads up in rapid succession to huff at me. I had to laugh because it reminded me of the arcade game "Whack-A-Mole" only in this case it was "Whack-A-Otter" since they would pop up on either side of my kayak, huff and then disappear.
Finally, I pulled over to the side and one of the Otters swam back up to the pipe where a small log was leaning up against it. It pulled itself up on the log so that it could see over the pipe into the pool where it's mate was located but blocked from it's view. They both popped their heads up a few more times and then suddenly they were gone. I paddled back upstream to see if I could spot them but it was obvious that they had tired of their game of "Whack-A-Otter" and were gone. I don't think that this stream has a name but I have dubbed it "Otter Creek" and marked the pool on my GPS, naming it, of course "Otter Pool". I explored another branch of the same stream before returning to the ICW and entering the mouth of Jones Creek. I paddled up it until it ran along the western shore of Guana and then let the current carry me back out to the waterway. The outgoing tide was well underway but the current wasn't too bad so I was able to arrive back at the ramp a little after noon.
See the pictures from this
trip
2/8/09
With high tide due around 8 am this morning I decided to head up the road to the Cedar Point for my 700th trip and was in the water about 5 minutes before sun rise. It was amazing how "balmy" 45 degrees felt after paddling on Friday when it was in the mid-20's but I dresses warmly and wore my mittens as I set out on glassy waters. There was a light mist that was hanging close to the grass line and was bunched up in the little inlets as I paddled around the first bend and headed toward the confluence point.
As I started across the stream that leads either to the confluence or to Clapboard I could just barely detect some large white shapes floating in the mist and I knew that the White Pelicans who seem to like this spot were back. The water level had long since chased them off of the two little islands where they normally like to gather but there were still four of them in the vicinity and another dozen or so further upstream near the sea daisy island. I wasn't able to get very close before the stragglers flew up to join their brethren and then a small fishing boat came roaring up from Clapboard and the entire group flushed and flew to the east where their pool lay. I pulled up to the island where a Great Blue was perching in the sun and as I was shooting him I could see a commotion to the east. Three or four dolphins were feeding and I saw one of them shoot across the water with his entire upper half exposed. I waited to see if they would come toward me but they didn't and so I ate my breakfast and headed north. I was surprised to find that the current was against me the whole way up to the point and was quite strong. Finally I made it to the landing and after taking a quick break I decided to continue upstream to check out the two nests.
They were empty so I paddled up to the place where the creek bends to the west and runs by the boat squatters who have now been there 2 years. I haven't felt like paddling past their hovel since they nearly block the channel but I spotted a Red Tailed Hawk on a tree beyond them so I ventured forward. The four vessels that make up their marine squatters camp looked to be unoccupied and the none of them looked like they had been inhabited in some time. The barge is leaning to one side and piled with lumber, batteries and at least four ancient outboard motors that were completely rusted out. What really caught my attention, however were a couple of large yellow stickers that upon investigation proved to be the FWC finally taking some action and notifying the "owners" that they were here illegally and had five days to remove the vessels. It was dated 1/21/09 so the five days is long passed but at least someone had finally taken notice. It's nice to see the FWC doing something useful rather than harassing kayakers.
By this time the Hawk had flown off so I turned around and made my way back to the point. When I arrived there, I saw another (or the same one) Red Tailed Hawk in a tree and got a few shots before he flew off. I debated taking Cedar Point out to the ICW and looping back around but the current in front of the point was only just starting to head that way so I took the shorter route and paddled back the way I came. Once I reached the confluence point the current was rushing out toward Clapboard the rest of the trip was easy. 700 trips since I began this web page nine years ago this month. Not bad.
See the pictures from this
trip
2/13/09
I decided to try once again to paddle at Six Mile Landing in Guana and arrived at the ramp as the sun was still behind the dunes along Ponte Vedra Beach. A large group of Coots had gathered near the ramp as I loaded up but the had dispersed by the time I got in the water. I decided to head south to visit the Eagles and have breakfast there and since the water levels were still very high I had an easy paddle along the eastern shoreline as I made my way south.
It was a bit chillier than I had expected with temperatures in the mid-40's but there was no wind and I knew that the high was going to be in the 70's by the time I left so I wore only my light fleece. I could hear the roar of the surf crashing on the beach as I headed across the lake and made my way toward the pine trees where the nest is located. I could make out one of the Eagle's sitting on the tree adjacent to the nest, his white head gleaming in the morning sun. As I got closer I saw a dark shape suddenly leave the nest but a couple of minutes later it returned and settled back into it. The Eagle outside the nest flew off a couple of minutes later and flew along the tree line to the north.
I paddled up to the grass line and sat below the nest as the female sat there nestled down in the nest. I took several shots and then ate my breakfast. The Eagle was aware of me but it was obvious that she was sitting on her eggs and wasn't going to leave unless her mate came back. Finally, I decided to move on and began paddling north along the western shoreline. Other than the dozens of Coots everywhere there wasn't much wildlife out in the lake which considering the high water levels and lack of migrating birds was not a surprise. I passed the make Eagle perching on another pine tree but he flew off before I could get close.
At one point I spotted a tiny stick floating ahead of me but just about the time I thought it was odd how much it looked like a tiny Gator it disappeared under the surface of the water. It couldn't have been more than a foot long but I never saw it re-surface. I surprised a Raccoon who was feeding on a grassy island but he scampered into the cat tails before I could stop. I paddled out into the main channel and decided to cross over to the east side and paddle past the first houses on that shoreline until I reached the landing. Just before reaching the landing I suddenly heard a loud "thunk" under my feet and I could see the water beneath me stirred up. I realized that I had collided once again with an unseen Gator. After taking a break at the landing I continued around the backside of the island there and into the lagoon located behind it. There were several Glossy Ibis feeding there and I was surprised at how close I was able to get to these normally shy birds. After they flushed I returned to the main channel and began paddling south until I reached the path around the big island near the ramp and returned to the ramp from there.
See the pictures from this
trip
2/16/09
Hope and I headed west to Camp Weed this weekend for our annual Valentines/Pre-Outage getaway weekend. The conference center was holding a special Valentine's Day fancy dinner so we decided to make reservations and stay a couple of nights at the inn with plans to go paddling on Sunday in the area and then head to the Okefenokee at Billys Lake on the way home on Monday.
The dinner was sumptuous and we rolled into bed well satisfied that night but when we awoke the next morning we found gray skies and a weather forecast for the area that called for an 80% chance of rain all day. After a huge breakfast we finally decided that we would spend the day hanging out at the camp - hiking, watching DVDs and reading rather than running the risk of getting soaked. After exploring the nature trail and spending some time watching and Agility Dog Training Camp we retired to our room and watched a couple of movies.
The next morning we found that the camp had been invaded by Elderhostel Bikers and by that I mean old people in spandex and 10 speeds not leather and Harleys (thank God - although old people in spandex is bad enough). They weren't quite as crazy as the birding group we encountered last year when we were here and after a hug breakfast we packed up and were on our way up the road to Fargo, Ga. and the Stephen Foster Camp. Once at the park we checked in and started loading up for the trip. It was a beautiful crisp fall day with few clouds in the sky with temperatures that promised to wind up in the 70's by day's end. As we stood in the parking lot above the water we could feel a strong breeze that seemed to be coming in from the NW and we wondered what kind of conditions we would find out on the lake. We followed a lone Gator at the beginning of the canal and then headed out into open waters which were deserted and glassy. We turned right and headed east toward Minnies Lake which was our intended destination. We passed four or five more Alligators all of whom were on the northern shore soaking up the rays of the sun. We reached the turn into Minnies Run and spotted a small Gator sunning himself on a small log and a few yards upstream a much larger Gator sunning himself on a much larger log.
Minnies Run quickly began to narrow down and snaked its way through some of the largest Cypress trees that we have seen in the swamp so far. The current, which in most places in the swamp is non-existent, was surprisingly swift, especially as it rushed past the many large cypress on either side of the stream. We passed a few more Gators of varying sizes none of whom were unwilling to give up their sunny spots and merely stared at us as we passed by. We were amazed by the incredible quiet in the swamp - the only sound was the occasional calls of the Red Shouldered Hawks who were flying about the area.
We came to a spot where the stream went around a tiny island and there was a sign indicating that we should take the right hand stream. When we arrived on the other side we could see another sign telling the upstream paddlers to go on the opposite side of the island to avoid running headlong into each other. We decided that this was the "Okefenokee Round-a-bout". A few yards past the round-a-bout there was a sign indicating that there was a rest shelter at Minnies Lake which was a mile further up the path. A short time later we reached an area things opened up and there was incredible number of downed trees many of which were freshly cut. On our previous trips to Billys Lake I had heard that Minnies Lake was inaccessible due to the many downed trees that the hurricanes had knocked over but apparently the path had been cleared.
We hadn't seen much evidence of the '07 fire but we started to see more burned out trees in the area as we approached the entrance to the lake. The sign at the entrance called it "Minnie Lake" but all the other signage called it "Minnies". A short ways up the lake we saw the shelter which appeared to be brand new. The bottom step was a good distance above the water level making us glad the water levels were very high but we were able to get out of our boats with a little difficulty and we ate our lunch. We could see a few charred two by fours nearby indicating the reason for the reconstructed shelter. Evidently, this area had indeed been hit hard by the fire and the shelter was a victim. Fortunately, it appeared that most of the big cypress trees had survived relatively unscathed although many of the smaller trees were charred.
We got back in our boats and started our trip back which we knew would be quicker with the strong current carrying us back to Billy's Lake. We spotted a small Gator near the entrance to the lake that we hadn't seen before but as we continued on down the path it seemed as if we saw the same Gators in the exact same spots as before. Obviously, they were in no mood to leave their sunny spots on this breezy day unless they absolutely had to. The sun was now at it's zenith and back lit the Spanish moss that drooped from the cypress trees as we zipped past them.
We reached the Lake in short order and started to making our way back to the boat basin. We passed a tree off of the channel that was full of at least three dozen Ibis sleeping in the bright sun. As we paddled up the canal leading to the boat basin I saw a huge gator lying in the grass between the water and the rack holding the rental canoes and kayaks. I told Hope as she paddled up that he was in charge of checking them out. You had to be really serious about paddling in the Okefenokee if you wanted to check out a boat today.
See the pictures from this
trip
2/17/09
After returning from our weekend trip to Live Oak and the Okefenokee I took a look at the weather for the rest of my week off and realized that the weather was going to deteriorating from this point on so if I wanted to paddle I had better do it today. After thinking about it I decided to head up to Pumpkin Hill for only my second trip there in 2009.
It was clear and cold when I left my house on Heckscher but as I headed down Cedar Point Rd. I could see that there was fog on either side of the road and sure enough when I pulled into the put-in I could see that the whole area was shrouded in a thick mist. I got in the water as the sun started to peek through the fog over Black Hammock and began floating with the outgoing tide toward the point. There was very little bird life visible so I spent most of the time shooting the fog and the sun as it broke through it.
I reached the point and started to enter Edwards Creek when I spotted a large dark shape in the trees close to the corner. I assumed that it was an Osprey but I noticed that it was a bit larger and sitting more erect than the Osprey. I started to shoot what I now realized was an Eagle but only managed to get a couple of shots off before the mature bird took off without a sound and began flying due east over Black Hammock Island. I beached my boat and walk around the point a bit before getting back in and headed around to the bay east of the flats. After shooting some Mergansers there I started back. As I was approaching the point I watched as some vultures were circling overhead and realized that one of them was actually an immature Bald Eagle who circled over me and then appeared to land back near the bay where I had just been. The wind had started to pick up so I decided to keep going toward home and made it the rest of the way without much problem.
See the pictures from this
trip
2/24/09
I have been off the water for a week due, in part, to my work schedule and the almost constant breezy conditions that we have been having around here lately. I had cancelled a few after work trips due to the wind but today, with the outage looming and no one at home, I decided that I would set out for Pumpkin Hill and get in the water no matter how windy it was when I reached the water's edge. I almost reconsidered when I was nearly blown over as I carried my boat down to the water at dead low tide. There was a cold wind blowing in from the NE at least 15 mph and it cut right through the light fleece that I keep in my truck. I pressed on and was soon paddling into both the full force of the wind and the incoming tide which, aided by the wind, pouring in. Usually, at dead low tide I am down in the channel low enough to stay sheltered from the wind and the current stays slack for a couple of hours, but not today. I rounded the first bend and shot a couple of Great Blue Herons sitting in the bright winter sun along the grass line. I had thoughts about making it all of the way to the point but as I made the turn near the trials I was hit by the full force of the wind and tide and after struggling to make headway I gave up and began drifting backwards. I spent some time shooting some more Herons on the way back but I knew that the product of tonight's shoot was going to be poor so I didn't spent much time and was soon packed up to leave.
See the pictures from this
trip
2/27/09
They moved up the start of my scheduled night shift for the outage a day which killed my plans to go paddling in the Okefenokee or somewhere else where I didn't have to worry about getting home and ready for work. My SI joint has started to flare up recently - most likely due to my lack of paddling - so I decided to scale things way back and got to the Ribault Club for a bit of vegging out on the FGR.
I was in the water at 8:45 on a beautiful but breezy day that was promising to reach the mid-70's by the afternoon. I headed directly for the yacht basin and began shooting a Great Blue Heron who snoozing with his back to me. The squawking of the Black Crowned Night Herons who reacted to my presence woke him up and he flew away so I continued my cruise around the basin shooting the Night Herons. I began to notice something about them that I had never seen before - a long white plume that stretched from the top of their heads to half way down their back. I've seen this breeding plume on the Yellow Crowned Night Heron before but this was the first time I had seen it on their cousins. I could also see that their backs were unusually dark and I'm sure this is in order for them to get noticed more easily by the ladies. Normally, I marvel at how their simple black, white and gray camouflage makes them nearly invisible as they roost deep in the shadows of the Live Oaks but obviously, as we enter breeding season the "art of not being seen" is not what they have in mind.
I left the basin and let the incoming tide carry me past the houses and around the bend to Point Isabella where I did a circuit of the basin there before heading back out to the river. I paddled down to the sandbar directly across from the Plantation and paddled through a stream that cuts through it and exited on the Big Talbot side. I began paddling back to the east, shooting a large gathering of Herons, Egrets and shorebirds who were gathered on the backside of the sandbar. After exploring one of the streams that cuts through the marsh between the Talbot Islands I reached the island we like to call "Hammock Island located at the mouth of Simpson Creek. Once at the island I was exposed to the full force of the cool southerly breeze but so I strung up my hammock so that I was shielded by one of the big cedar trees. I ate, drank, read and dozed but I since I had a few things to do before my night shift started in a few hours I didn't get to stay as long as I wanted.
I packed up and let the now outgoing current carry me against the breeze and I was soon back at the basin. I decided to do another circuit and shot some more Night Herons, a Great Blue, an Osprey and a pair of dozing Brown Pelicans who kept a watchful eye on me as they kept their heads tucked under their wings.
See the pictures from this
trip
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