Five Spoke Wheel

Another great adventure with the Brits…

Kayak fleet loaded, Camo-Tow on the sidelines

Terry and I slid Camo-Tow off her trailer and onto “Wheel-ber”, our aluminum, all-purpose, cart. She was allowed to rest up from her busy life as a charter fishing boat to have a sit in the sun. We stacked a couple of kayaks on the Gheenoe trailer and cradled my Tarpon T160i on the Yakima “Hully Rollers”. All gear was loaded and the beer and sandwiches were on ice… Just a short drive to nearby Franklin Lock Corp of Engineers south park and the convenient boat ramp. The weather was perfect again.

Lucy and Terry preparing to get underway

It only took a few minutes to off-load the boats and have all the gear stowed and ready. Even though in many places the creek is only three feet deep, I always insist that our paddlers wear their PFD’s. It is much deeper in some areas. Better safe than sorry. Lucy and I of course have the finest, REED ‘Chillcheater” shorty style paddling jackets. We gave our British friends the “dorky” ones. So what?” say I. They will all keep you afloat. Proper looking and stylish fashion, is only important to Lucy and me. ;O)

Pam and Terry in the comfy and fast Wilderness Systems “NORTHSTAR” tandem

Pam and Terry were off and away while Lucy and I finished packing the expedition food and beverage supply. Of course, they made us cary everything and serve them as well. Living with Lucy, I am used to that… There was a stiff following wind that made the downriver portion a “breeze”. It is only about a half mile to the mouth of Telegraph Creek, so we made it there in jig time. We were all anxious to complete the more boring river portion and really get “up the creek. Lots of wading birds and a few power and sail powered pleasure yachts, gave us a courteous low-speed pass as they traveled up and down the picturesque Inter-coastal waterway…

Only the beginning

Looks as if Walt Disney designed it…

None of the many visitors we have brought on this journey have ever indicated they were disappointed by the beautiful old Florida creek. There are a few houses in the first section of the trip, but we were soon alone in the wilderness. Lots of turtles splashed noisily into the water, when we passed close by. We also aw a couple of majestic Ospreys and several other more common species of wading birds. My favorite bird sighting, was the high diving Kingfisher who provided an awesome aerial display as he dove, over and over, for a tasty catch…

As always, Lucy’s Indian heritage showed through as she effortlessly paddled her “Venus 11” through the twisting creek

“Venus if you will” (Must be sung)

Lucy left her “Easy Rider” Dolphin behind and chose instead to paddle her “Venus 11”. She handles it like an Olympic champion. It is the perfect size for the narrow creek. She also picked our new  Lendall, carbon fiber, four piece paddle as her weapon for the adventure… Lucy commented that she loved the feel and performance of the rather high-ticket power-stroker… We wanted Pam and Terry to lead the way, because they would have the greatest opportunity for wildlife sightings, if they were the first, round-the-bend…

“Oh my gosh!” The happy couple were quite pleased and surprised when they spotted; Zebra, Llamas, Camels and Big Horn Sheep on the bank

Lions and Tigers and Bears, oh my (Must be sung)

First time paddling visitors are always surprised by the exotic animal spotted along the creek. A very nice couple raises exotic animals and birds and maintains a very nice animal farm right, along the creek. I often wonder why some of them don’t just wade out into the creek and just swim away. They must be well fed and nicely treated. Why would they want to leave? ;O)

Even in its “Winter Mode” the scenery along the creek never disappoints

Lunchtime…

We made a stop at one of our favorite lunch and swimming spots. Everybody else ate lunch, I enjoyed the cool water, then I ate.  ;O) Even with the lack of rain, there was plenty of water in the creek to afford easy passage over the numerous stumps and downed trees. There were wildflowers and flowering trees all along the banks…

It was easy-out and easy-in for the slender, physically fit couple

The majority of the shoreline is heavily wooded so when a rather clear area is discovered it quickly becomes a “favorite spot”. The water was a little cloudy due to the absence of the normal cleansing rain. It only takes a little bit of rain to flush and clean the narrow watershed. Still easy to see the bottom, just not as free of silt as usual. We had brought along delicious submarine sandwiches, homemade dill pickles, purchased from one of the vendors at the local Green Market and plenty of healthy, tasty fresh fruit. A second cooler held a plentiful supply of ice-cold Bud. We were well fed and hydrated – as usual.  ;O)

Relaxing and stretching our sea-legs, following our yummy shore lunch

The paddle back to the launch was uneventful. Only problem was the wind. Behind us on the way downriver and in our face on the way back. No matter. we all made it back just fine and agreed the trip provided just the right amount of exercise…

“Yummy to my tummy” Lucy’s delicious homemade spaghetti

Once back at O.O.C. with kayaks back in storage mode, gear washed and put away, Lucy treated us all to a delicious dinner. She prepared her famous homemade spaghetti with meat sauce, spicy cole-slaw and hot, buttery, garlic bread. We bought Terry and Pam a “Calamondin Tea Cake” on our earlier visit to the Alliance for The Arts, “Green Market”. She shared a small piece with each of us and it made the perfect dessert. We topped off the evening with a spirited game of “Chicken Foot” and then all adjourned to our sleeping spaces and enjoyed happy dreams of our next day together…

Cheers to you all, “Spokesman Dave”