Lately, I've been quite the outdoors-y girl...sort of. First, hiking with David and now canoeing with my sister and brother-in-law. I must admit, these rendez-vous with Mother Nature have been quite enjoyable.
Before delving into details of my first canoeing experience, I must first tell you about my trip there. Sheila, my Australian accented GPS, was either asleep at the wheel or had a mini-stroke earlier that morning because our route to Russellville, Alabama was, how do I put this, ummm scenic. This pretty much sums up what I saw on my two hour trip from Birmingham to Russellville:
1 cow pasture with a pond
2 horses crossing the road
3 billy goats crossing the road (yes I had to run off the road for fear of being trampled/eaten)
4 cheerleaders collecting money on the side of the road (yes, this happens in Alabama
and 10 corn fields
Needless to say, by the time I arrived on Saturday, I was gettin' in the country spirit. Sunday, we departed at 8:30 a.m. to get an early start on canoeing down Bear Creek. The river was un-bear-ably cold. This factor added to my fear of tipping over and falling in. Mom had already warned that all you do in a canoe is tip over. Thanks, Mom. (She also requested I wear a helmet. I explained that this wasn't white water rafting, but relaxing canoe time.)
One thing I do know - I'm happy with the crew on my first canoe experience. Since all were parents, they packed food!!!! I explained to them that people my age don't pack food and they certainly do not label sandwiches. Peeps my age think like this: do we have beer/alcohol?, do we have ice?, do we have a cooler? I was amazed at their organizational thought and effort throughout the trip. They had dry packs, dry boxes, elastic cords to strap things down....canoeing all Martha Stewart style.
A few highlights from the canoe trip:
- I love canoeing.
- My sister and I shared a canoe and didn't tip, not even once.
- I swam in a crik (read: creek).
- I ate real beef jerky for the first time in my life, not a Slim Jim, but the real stuff, and I loved it.
- I drank hunch punch/hooch out of a coke bottle.
- I saw a man with 5 teeth showing when he smiled. Kid you not.
- I tried to get rid of 7 gallons of water in our canoe by cupping my hands and throwing the water out. It was my OCD coming out. I couldn't stop.
- I saw a snake and a catfish.
- I continued to canoe after I saw a snake.
- I am amazed that such a beautiful place exists today without being a part of a national forest or state park.
my eyes closed nonetheless (I'm a chronic eye closer in pictures)
2 comments:
Sounds like a fun time! My boyfriend Jay and I love to do outdoorsy stuff- I think when you're around good people, anything can be a good time!
This looks great!!! I've been white water rafting and kayaking before but never canoeing. We have a free kayaking trip around here given to us by our real estate agent, but I'm a liiiitle nervous. There are alligators in the water here. It wouldn't freak me out if they would stay away but when you're sitting 5 inches off the water and this giant 10 foot alligator goes under your boat, apparently you can feel it. I'm still going to go but I'm slightly freaked out! I hope my pictures turn out as well as yours.
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