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speakup

Man the water is cold!" That was my first reaction after I hauled myself out of the Trout Creek; a bit embarrassed, very wet, cold, but smiling.

I had just rolled my kayak while on a morning paddle down through town and I loved every minute of it. I admit, I had never been in a white-water kayak. I had only ever done flat-water kayaking.

I was very nervous about even making this trip since I am still in therapy for a recently-healed broken wrist, but I could not pass up the chance to try something new.

In the summer you would have a difficult time kayaking down the Trout Creek due to low water and you would likely portage more than paddle, but in the spring, wow! It flows fast and furious. These spring conditions can make it a bit of a challenge, especially for an inexperienced paddler like me (insert snicker here). For me though a challenge is all the more fun. We started just below a set of rapids and getting in the kayak was a challenge, but with no incident the trip got under way.

For the first hour, we floated and paddled down stream with a relaxed rhythm. As the sun got higher in the sky, the air around us got warmer. I took note of all the little things about the creek and could feel every ripple as I sat in my small craft. Mallards continually moved off ahead of us and I would stop in an eddy from time to time to take pictures. As we moved into town, people would watch with a bit of awe and bewilderment as we passed by and we would give a friendly wave and say, "Great day isn't it?"

Finally we reached a set of rapids that I was anticipating. These are newly formed rapids and there are quite a few trees lying across the creek, making them even more difficult to navigate.

I made it through the chute to an eddy where I pulled out. From there I had to go across the creek to get around a downed tree and here is where I made my "rookie" mistake. I left the eddy paddling hard with my nose upstream a bit to get across, but in this instance you can't paddle on both sides you must paddle on the downstream side only. This keeps your nose pointed upstream and also moves you across the current ... oops ... I forgot and over I went.

I clambered out of the creek, pumped out my kayak, portaged around the tree, and happily carried on my way for another hour and one-half until we reached our destination. Oh and I guess I should say after another portage for trees, I fell in again trying to get into my kayak. Go ahead and laugh, I did.

Unfortunately my digital camera got waterlogged despite being double bagged in ziplock and I don't have any pics to show, but despite this loss the trip was well worth the lost camera and the extra two weeks I will have to endure for my now swollen wrist. It was a great paddle even if the water was cold.

Ben Whalen is an avid backpacker, adventurer, and environmentalist, who loves the natural areas in and around Kings County. If you have a suggestion for an article or would like to join him on a hike contact him at benwhalen@hotmail.com.