Wow! Good Friday and I was set for a big paddle. I met "Frijon Lady" last week and her 4hr. paddle south seemed like a testing but achievable goal. Only thing, when I arrived the river flow was upstream - this was to continue for another two hours. I didn't want to paddle against it for two hours, then fight back for another two hours - especially with big Easter tides. So up we go!
So today was otherwise bog standard except that I wanted to have a fish on the way. Off we go, current favourable, sky overcast, wind light. Perfect.
P. came and went in under and hour. This is the historic head of navigation for the river, and soon after the river got narrower and shallower - more interesting. The scenery is repetitive, steep banks, heavily vegetated in weeds, fish leaping, ducks scooting put from the banks, all good. It got interesting when I saw a Sacred Kingfisher, the deepest blue wings with lime green (?) about the face. Beautiful but very timid.
On and on we go, still feeling strong and enjoying the ride. Over the duration of the paddle I saw four Osprey: two on their own then a pair just as I arrived at water too shallow to continue.
Throughout, the river was real interesting, there were heaps of logs, some sitting on the bottom, some just whirling and spiralling about. Hundreds of smaller pieces, mostly bamboo, rhythmically beat on the hull as we scooted past. Thank God for plastic hulls.
I learned years ago when floating with the kids that you should never base river navigation on your experiences of nearby roads. Basically, roads are pretty straight, rivers go anywhere! They bend and loop about and many is the time you can hear a train in front of you when you know the trainline is behind you. Well, that's kind of weird fun, but the upshot is that you paddle for a lot longer than you expect. I expected to see my destination bridge for a half hour before I bottomed-out. Luckily, I was able to walk on the river bed to the next bend and see the bridge a tantalising few hundred yards away.
I was feeling a little fatigued, but not hungry. Odd, but I ate anyway, just muesli bars and an up n go before heading back. In the short term we pushed the tide even though it is supposed to have changed. Then i noticed it was with us. Obviously it was not like the tides by the sea which slow around change times. The river seemed to be against us, then with us. And I don't mind saying,I needed all the help I could get. But as happens on rivers and hikes, everything looks different on the way back. Even the little glide I enjoyed had disappeared, but it was a lovely distraction. I had prepared a handline and lure, but found the lure to be to buoyant and had no takes even though the mullet were plentiful.
It took pretty much right on two hours from the ramp to the top of the paddle and once the current came with us,I estimated it would take the same on the return. It took 2.5 hrs. but that could be for the breaks and fishing delays, as well as me allowing my rate.
To go from paddles of just 5 k's a week or so ago to about 20 k. today left me feeling worn out, but really chuffed. The feeling of fatigue is a great elixir.
Thanks.
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