and it was absolutely perfect. Temp high 60's and that meant no bugs. Some times the horse fly's at the upper end can be bad. The sun was perfect down where we were protected from the wind.
We saw a lot of fishermen, more than I had ever seen in one day, maybe 20 but the fish were no biting very well. We have had a lot of rain and there were many worms and such washed into the river.
The water is still cool but bearable. Lucky too. We came around a bend and I saw a fisherman that looked like he was in trouble. The bottom of the river is solid in most places as rivers tend to be but in places it is like quicksand. It is like gumbo quicksand! You get in that crap and it is almost impossible to get out without help.
Here this old guy was, probably my age but he was a good 80 or 90 lbs overweight, garbed in waders and all the fishing rig a trout fisherman just has to have.
I saw that he was in a bit of trouble and asked him how things were going. He said they were bad a the moment as he was stuck. The water came half way up his chest and he said the muck was over his knees, he was struggling for sure. He was trying to make it to the shore but all he had for a walking stick was a branch he had managed to pull out of the muck before we came on the scene.
I asked if he needed help and he was like most men and hated to say yes but he was wise enough to admit he was in trouble.
I paddled to the other shore and waved Mary back and told her what was up. I got out of the kayak in that cold arsed water and waded across toward him. The water in the middle was above my belly button and that was enough to take my breath a bit
I go across and the bottom was solid until I was about 7 ft from him or so. I took one more step and I sank into the gumbo muck to my knees. I told him that he should quit trying to get to the far shore and let me hold onto him and lead him across to the other side, since that is where he had started but I don't know if it was from the exhaustion, he was in lousy shape, or fear but he said he wanted to keep trying for the far shore. He was within 12 ft of it and there was a dead tree that he could walk if he could get on it.
I asked him to give me his rod and anything else so he was not encumbered by it, which he did. He was still stuck rather solid and feared going over his waders but I honestly didn't think that was gonna happen. I waded across and got my kayak paddle and got it to him as an additional walking stick so when he got on the log he could stabilize himself. Dang long was only about 6 inches across and wobbling in the mud.
I told him it was a nice rod and asked if I could have it if he drowned
He laughed and said I could have everything if he drowned and I told him to try not to crap in the waders if he did. Don't like no crappy waders
In the end he managed to get to shore, which was not much better than where he was actually. It was a thick muddy marsh. He had to work himself upstream with the rod and all and it was thick as hell.
I bit him farewell and we headed down stream again, knowing that he felt he had things in hand. I would to have loved to have had that rod too!!
I had mounted my helmet cam on the kayak and was trying it out. I took over an hour of video and grabbed this sample to show. I am learning how to edit the dang things but have much to learn I guess. I put the music in at first but then decided to do the voice over and thought I had taken the music out but it looks like both are in there. Sorry. There is a bunch of it that should be probably edited out but I am not sure just how to do it yet. I will get it the next nasty day.
This is just a small part of the river, which is a 16 mile run. I will do better next time.
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We saw a lot of fishermen, more than I had ever seen in one day, maybe 20 but the fish were no biting very well. We have had a lot of rain and there were many worms and such washed into the river.
The water is still cool but bearable. Lucky too. We came around a bend and I saw a fisherman that looked like he was in trouble. The bottom of the river is solid in most places as rivers tend to be but in places it is like quicksand. It is like gumbo quicksand! You get in that crap and it is almost impossible to get out without help.
Here this old guy was, probably my age but he was a good 80 or 90 lbs overweight, garbed in waders and all the fishing rig a trout fisherman just has to have.
I saw that he was in a bit of trouble and asked him how things were going. He said they were bad a the moment as he was stuck. The water came half way up his chest and he said the muck was over his knees, he was struggling for sure. He was trying to make it to the shore but all he had for a walking stick was a branch he had managed to pull out of the muck before we came on the scene.
I asked if he needed help and he was like most men and hated to say yes but he was wise enough to admit he was in trouble.
I paddled to the other shore and waved Mary back and told her what was up. I got out of the kayak in that cold arsed water and waded across toward him. The water in the middle was above my belly button and that was enough to take my breath a bit
I go across and the bottom was solid until I was about 7 ft from him or so. I took one more step and I sank into the gumbo muck to my knees. I told him that he should quit trying to get to the far shore and let me hold onto him and lead him across to the other side, since that is where he had started but I don't know if it was from the exhaustion, he was in lousy shape, or fear but he said he wanted to keep trying for the far shore. He was within 12 ft of it and there was a dead tree that he could walk if he could get on it.
I asked him to give me his rod and anything else so he was not encumbered by it, which he did. He was still stuck rather solid and feared going over his waders but I honestly didn't think that was gonna happen. I waded across and got my kayak paddle and got it to him as an additional walking stick so when he got on the log he could stabilize himself. Dang long was only about 6 inches across and wobbling in the mud.
I told him it was a nice rod and asked if I could have it if he drowned
He laughed and said I could have everything if he drowned and I told him to try not to crap in the waders if he did. Don't like no crappy waders In the end he managed to get to shore, which was not much better than where he was actually. It was a thick muddy marsh. He had to work himself upstream with the rod and all and it was thick as hell.
I bit him farewell and we headed down stream again, knowing that he felt he had things in hand. I would to have loved to have had that rod too!!
I had mounted my helmet cam on the kayak and was trying it out. I took over an hour of video and grabbed this sample to show. I am learning how to edit the dang things but have much to learn I guess. I put the music in at first but then decided to do the voice over and thought I had taken the music out but it looks like both are in there. Sorry. There is a bunch of it that should be probably edited out but I am not sure just how to do it yet. I will get it the next nasty day.
This is just a small part of the river, which is a 16 mile run. I will do better next time.
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