June 28, 2007
This was a tough pond to get to. I drove all the way around it, and didn't find a public launching point anywhere. There were private driveways all the way around. I noticed on my map that there was a small river leading up to the pond on the north end. Ah huh! I'll go in that way. I found a small dam and a river. That's how people get in. Here's today's track.
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There were no parking signs all around the area. I asked across the street at Springer's General Store if I could park in their lot for a couple hours. They were very friendly and allowed me to do so.
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I carried my kayak up to the dam . . .
. . . and put it in the water.
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My plan was working wonderfully! This was nice.
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Uh oh! End of the line.
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I checked my GPS. I've covered half the distance between the road and the pond. Hmmm? What do I do now? I scouted ahead and figured I could pull my kayak through the water. This was working OK but there was plenty of dead wood in the water making it difficult. Then my little stream nearly disappeared all together. It was a thick, tangled mess of deadwood and bushes. The mosquitos were doing a job on me as well. I decided to take my kayak out of the water and carry it through the woods.
What's wrong with this picture?
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It was just a short walk if you were walking down the street, but carrying a 12 foot kayak through thick woods was a different story. The stream opened up enough where I could lay the kayak in the water again. There's another dam, and the pond behind it.
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Ah! That's much better!
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Time to paddle my way around.
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I bet there's a nice view from that house on the hill.
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It was very windy, making the water choppy. When I saw this small boat tossing to and fro and reminded me of some lyrics.
The weather starting getting rough. The tiny ship was tossed.
If not for the courage of the fearless crew, the Minnow would be lost.
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Lakefront property
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Small Bridge on the southern end of the pond
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Apparently there is some type of children's camp in this area. There were at least 100 kids around some picnic tables eating supper. I would have snapped a picture, but I figured all it would take was one child to say, "There's a strange man in a boat, taking pictures" and the police would have showed up with lots of questions. There was a roped off swimming area in this section as well, causing me not to be able to follow the perimeter of the pond.
Time to head back
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ That slide looks like fun. Notice the flag. It was windy, and now I was paddling against the wind.
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It was a beautiful day to be on the water.
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Here's a nice seat.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Island? I didn't see anything. It must be small.
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Yep.
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I completed my tour of the pond and then pulled my kayak back through the jungle to get back to my truck. My plan wasn't the best of plans, but it did work. This was a nice pond/lake, but I'll only come here again if I can find another way in. A saw a couple places where canoes were for rent so there must be an easier way.
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