It was beautiful weather for May, with highs in the 70's both Saturday and Sunday. Nina and I spent Saturday at the wedding of an old friend of mine. Vinny had a couple friends over, and while much time was spent playing video games, the lure of Sand Creek and a kayak were too much to resist. They paddled upstream, occasionally having to pull the kayak over small beaver dams, until they found what Vinny described as "the mother of all beaver dams". It was built at the confluence of Sand Creek and a tributary, and was so large and had been there for such a long time that the creek had changed course, flowing around one end of the long dam and creating a waterfall.
On Sunday morning, Vinny and Devin (pictured above), along with Devin's brother Calvin, Joe, and Nina in our 17 foot Old Town canoe, held the first ever Sand Creek Canoe Race. Everyone paddled upstream to the beaver dam, which was the starting line. From there the length of the race was a good quarter mile or more. I went out to the horse pasture to watch them go by, and they were making pretty good time. Devin and Vinny were in the lead when I took this picture, but apparently there was a dispute over where the finish line was, and the three in the canoe claimed victory. A good time was had by all.
I always dreamed of living on a big lake, or a river big enough to canoe. Apparently my dream has come true and I never realized it until now. That kayak is calling my name sometime this weekend.
8 comments:
Awesome! Exploring a tiny creek in a canoe is about as fun as it gets.
Apologies for the shameless plug, but did you see the video I made of doing the Snake River Canoe Race recently?
http://youtu.be/4LZ0AuuSCiQ
Happy paddling season!
Now that you have "discovered" this treasure, I predict that you will have much kayaking this summer. Is't it nice that the kids are all old enough (and I assume good enough swimmers) that they can enjoy it and you don't have to worry (too much)!
I see monthly races in your future!
What fun!
Greg- Vinny is in this great phase where he is discovering things around here and is excited about it. Not to mention he can clear brush and make trails, which we need. :)
I did watch that video- cool! Next time when you're not in such a hurry, the Snake River Is great for smallmouth bass fishing.
Webb- yes, I'm sure the creek will be a big part of summer fun here. Last summer after a good rain when the current was strong we would put on life jackets and float downstream...also very fun. The pond is nice, but I like flowing water.
FC- The kids had a blast. They didn't even mind the 50 degree spring fed trout water.
Awesome! I was wondering about the smallie potential... good fishing even up there above Moral?
Greg- best fishing is probably below Mora, but there are still smallmouth and sturgeon in that part of the river! I had a great uncle who was quite the river rat; he had a place on the Snake River between Grasston and Pine City. And Dr. Thomas Waters, prof emeritus at the University of MN, has a cabin on the Snake near McGrath. It's a nice river, but very rocky in the upper reaches.
So fun! I like to imagine I was as brave as your sons when I was younger... or at least just as inspired by a perfect body of water. :) Summer is CLOSE!
Hi Emily- welcome and thanks for commenting! My son guided me on a kayak trip up and down stream and over a few beaver dams last Saturday. Fun, but the water level was a bit low. But now it's a raging torrent after the big rain Thursday.
I checked out your blog and it looks interesting! I noticed you are participating in the Loft nature writing conference. I looked it up, and it is in my neck of the woods! I may want to attend...
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