Alternative Transportation

It looks like there are going to be several options for departure and joining the group this trip. 

True Friday Guys will leave Friday morning, October 4, for a full (by our standards) day of paddling. 

Phil needs to launch around 5 pm on Friday.  That means he's the first Night Rider to claim a spot on the Green Mule so anyone else who wants to arrive that way we are now taking reservations.  Phil probably would not be opposed to people showing up later than 5:00 based on the happy and tipsy condition he was found in at the put-in last time.

Your third choice is to come down Saturday morning.  Rob and Kirly are already doing this and it is a viable option but is not encouraged because, while the bridge we're rendezvousing at is suitable for picking up two- and four-legged passengers, there is no launching canoes there.  That means Friday guys will need to have enough boats or extras places in boats for anyone who joins on Saturday.   Not a huge problem, though, so if it's the difference between coming or not coming, by all means come on Saturday.  We just can't all do it.

So work out your schedule and let us know.

Also, a Thank You note from Vernon:

Just now saw the RRCC blog - thanks for spreading the word to my dire predicament. Please pass my thanks to all of the RRCC for their concern, and especially the Swan Creek Brotherhood(RRCC Special Ops) that was poised for action.

Drove in to Centerville this afternoon, and the river is looking mighty tasty!

-V

Next Up on the Duck

Here's the plan.   We'll start where we left off last fall at the Centerville city park and take out at Beaverdam Bridge.   Click the map.

The put-in, as you will recall, is easy, accessible and open to the public...

The take out is none of those things.

 

 

 

Beaverdam Bridge is at river mile 48 and the park is at mile 72.5 upstream.    So it's almost a 25 mile trip.   Shouldn't be a problem for a two-nighter (we did 21-miles in one day and low-water on the Sequatchie) but plan for a full day of padding on Friday (October 24).  Also, this section will be fully jonboatable.

Vernon's Sour Journey

Josh, in case you were one of the few people on the world wide web who did not get this, please forward a check post haste to LUGANSK, UKRAINE from the RRCC account so Vernon can get his sorry self back in time for the fall trip.

Fall Trip: October 24 - 26, 2014

When you can choose, October is the best month -- if, for that matter, you choose to go there at all, and most people don't.

--  Goodbye to a River,  p. 1.


After a detour to the Red River this spring, we will pick up where we left off last fall.   On the Lower Duck below Centerville:

 

Varmint of the Night

Josh and I have concluded that it had to be the Yellow-Crowned Night-Heron who, in spite of his name, could not outlast Rob for king of the night or even for dinner. 

"A nocturnal heron of the southern swamps and coasts, the Yellow-crowned Night-Heron can also be found breeding along wooded streams northward to Indiana and Illinois."

Click on the link, then on "Sounds/Calls" and see if you agree:

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/yellow-crowned_night-heron/sounds

You can also listen to "She's So Cold" from the 1980 album Emotional Rescue here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jo34VhfcetU

According to the range map, the V.O.T.N. was just passing through when he stopped at Pussy Rock, so we were lucky to have him:

 

 

Great trip, everybody.  Here's the list I've got for the off-season.  Let me know if you think of more:

 

Short tripod chain

Dutch oven covers

Collapsible coolers (?)

Tow strap

 

We're likely headed for the lower Duck River to pick up where we left off in Centerville.    See you then.