A collection of photography and exploration focusing on Upstate South Carolina and beyond.
0
I mentioned this in a previous post. Kayaking at Samish island can be tricky. Tide and weather have to be in agreement. Tuesday morning the tides were perfect, with high tide at 11:30 am. However, the weather wasn’t so great. A heavy fog had rolled in. I was seeing patches of blue overhead and knew that it would burn off eventually, so I loaded up the boat and headed over to Duff’s beach cabin for a foggy paddling trip.
It’s been over a month since I’ve had a boat in the water and things just didn’t seem…right. On the trek across country I had two kayaks on top of the car and we crossed many bodies of water that looked ripe for paddling. However, the rest of my paddling gear was in a shipping box making its own way across country. Plus, we had two cats with us and were on a time crunch, so stopping to paddle wasn’t an option. Finally everything aligned – the paddling gear had arrived, the weather was good, tides were favorable, and we weren’t having major appliances or septic systems installed. It was time to paddle.
This was my last Second Saturday with Lowcountry Unfiltered before we move out west. I was hoping for an epic trip for this outing, and Matt came up with a perfect venue. This particular Saturday we would be exploring the wilds of the Lynches River through Florence County. It would be one of our longer treks, and take us through areas we had not yet explored. It did turn out to be an epic, and most excellent trip.
Read More “Paddling the Lynches River with Lowcountry Unfiltered” »
As much as I like paddling with my friends, sometimes I like just getting out on my own. This week I was in the mood for just such a trip. Temperatures were supposed to be hot, and Lake Jocassee seemed like the perfect place to cool off. Tuesday I decided that’s where I would head.
It was time. The Second Saturday in July marked our Ninth Annual Edisto River Rope Swing and Beer Commercial Float. This trip is by far the most relaxed of all of our trips and, as the name implies, features rope swings and beer. Throw in a few sand bars, bratwurst and sauerkraut, and good friends, and it becomes the epitome of why we do this.
Read More “Ninth Annual Edisto River Rope Swing and Beer Commercial Float” »
It was a Second Saturday, and time for another Lowcountry Unfiltered trip. However, there was a problem. I wasn’t anywhere within range of my fellow paddlers. Even so, fellow paddler Craig Lee and I were able to do an LCU trip…sort of. We spent a spectacular day paddling the wilds of Ocala National Forest on the Juniper Springs Run.
It’s been a crazy couple of weeks. Before I do another paddling post I thought I’d do a quick update. Lots of family stuff going on, new instruments, and a bit of travel have occupied my time recently.
I was determined to celebrate Water Wednesday this week. Even if I had to go by myself, I was going somewhere. I really needed the solace and relaxation of being on the water. Fortunately, Jeff Holland was able to join me for an exploration of Lake Keowee and Estatoe Creek.
Once again it’s time for the Rocky Shoals Spider Lilies (hymenocallis coronaria) to make their appearance along the rivers of the Southeast. This past weekend marked the peak bloom for the lilies and all week I was seeing photos taken at Landsford Canal State Park posted to social media. A paddling friend also posted a link to a tour run by the Catawba Riverkeeper Foundation. Laura was away on a Furman trip, so I decided it would be a great opportunity to head back to the Catawba River for this event.
I’m always looking for new paddling companions. Not that there’s anything wrong with the close friends I’ve developed in my other paddling groups, but different people bring different perspectives and and expertise on new paddling venues. The more the merrier (most of the time.). So lately I’ve been keeping track of the Tri-County Blueway Paddlers Meetup group. Ed Deal and Deb Mims have been organizing some insteresting trips over waterways I’ve wanted to explore and at times that I can attend. This week they scheduled a trip to the Old Santee Canal which I’d visited back in February with Lowcountry Unfiltered. I enjoyed that trip so much and the scenery was spectacular, so I decided to head back for this trip.