01/03/01 Paddling Lower Pecos River:
Since entering Texas the scenery had been nothing but plowed under farmland all along the Gulf Coast. Mile after mile after mile after mile of rice fields, cotton fields, sugar cane and veggies. Driving up towards Laredo the terrain became more hilly but mile upon mile of brush. This continued up to Del Rio. Amistad Reservoir and National Recreation Area is north of Del Rio. And the scenery changed dramatically.
The hills weren't a great deal higher than before but they all seemed be be composed of sandstone. And canyons and cliffs were everywhere. US 90 cuts right through 10-15 feet at the top of some of the higher ones. This is more like it.
Yesterday was a cold, dreary, dizzily day not fit for hiking or paddling. Instead I spent it doing some chores and checking the immediate area out. The Pecos River is going to be a wonderful paddle, maybe my best ever with tall canyon walls on both sides. The Pecos flows into the Rio Grande in a short distance so I hope to get a paddle on it too.
The put ins I checked out on Amistad Lake were very promising with rugged terrain surrounding the reservoir. It dams the Rio Grande but it is down many, many feet. (I later found a boat ramp 1.5 miles from any water??) The scenery still seems great though.
While checking out the put ins I saw several jackrabbits with their extra long ears, my first ever, as well as cottontails. I saw lots of coot like birds, black with a white bill, a 4 point buck and several doe. I startled four doe feeding along the side of the road. They ended up running along side the truck and then cut across in front of me. I had to brake to avoid them and then watched as they all gracefully cleared a barbed wire fence and escaped into the brush. The deer here are almost a grayish brown, rather than the tan color of eastern whitetails..
01/03/01:
Today I was up at dawn watching the sky for signs of blue. When I saw some I knew I was heading for the Pecos River just up the road from the Seminole Canyon State Historical Park. Yesterday I had been to a picnic area, the US 90 bridge over the Pecos River and the Amistad National Recreation Area, Pecos River Section. Everywhere I went were 100-200 foot deep canyons with the Pecos River flowing through them.
I drove into the NRA, Pecos River Section and down 150 feet into the canyon towards the boat ramp. Some rocks had fallen from the crumbling canyon wall onto the road. A locked gate blocked the road near the bottom. Like everything else, the Pecos River is way down too. Apparently there is no water at the ramp for boat trailers. There is, however, a path right at the gate that leads 150 feet or so to the Pecos. I unloaded the kayak and slogged my way through some gawd awful sticky clay. Every step I took added another pound of gook to my sandals. And it wouldn't come off.
The Pecos River had narrowed to a 15-20 foot wide channel at the put in. Beyond that was mud banks for a 100 feet or so and then brush. But beyond that the canyon walls rose up close to 200 feet. The temperature was in the 40's but the sun was out and there was no wind. The canyon walls blocked out the sun so it was still pretty chilly down on the water and I had gloves on.
The walls were continuous on both side of the river as I headed upstream into a -3 knot current in 2 feet of water. I was hopeful things would ease up on the other side of the US 90 bridge where the river widen some. The east wall was pretty sheer and showed little signs of erosion. Short canyons intersected the river from this direction periodically. The west wall showed signs of a lot more erosion, one would presume, from a predominant easterly wind.
It took me 15 minutes to paddle the -.5 miles to the US 90 bridge. Watching the shore as I maintained a moderately strong stoke I could see I wasn't moving very fast. Once above the bridge the current dropped to 2.5+ knots and then kept dropping as I made way upstream. I was paddling in water not more than a foot deep. Whenever a blade would hit bottom it would come up covered in sticky mud and it would be a minute or two before it was clean again.
A pair of ducks flew off and then I passed a pair of what appeared to be smaller cormorants. A couple of blue herons and several American egrets stalked the shoreline. And then, up ahead I saw what I thought might be several javelina or peccary (a pig like mammal) on a small grassy patch at the base of a sheer cliff. The cheapy binoculars showed them to be two adult goats and four kids. Pop decided he didn't like me and led the family along a steep pitch and then up a rock slide. I dunno if they were wild or domestic. I think mountain goats have long beards and are a grayish or whitish color. The male was a rust colored brown while the female was black. The kids were mostly black. The kids seemed unhappy to be leaving and bleated all the way up the hill.
The sun came out over the canyon walls and warmed things up some. But then a 5+ knot wind started from the north and that cooled things off again and the gloves went back on.
As I moved upstream the water became deeper and the current diminished. The canyon walls moved right to the water's edge too. I was paddling close to the east wall checking out some markings hoping they might be Indian pictographs for which this area is famous. When I paddled back out towards the middle of the 50 foot wide river I startled two does and a fawn that had been feeding above me. I watched as they bounded off with their white tails raised as a decoy for any predators that might be chasing them.
Soon I came upon about 15 white pelicans. It seemed strange seeing what I think of as an ocean bird way up here in these canyons. Two took flight and came downstream to check me out and then flew back and rejoined the others. They probably told them It's not an alligator but I dunno what the hell it is.
They swam upstream ahead of me until they came to a large rock with 50+ ducks and some cormorants on it. The ducks hit the water and then decided flight might be the safer choice. The beat of their wings in the narrow canyon was the only sound I'd heard since leaving the bleating kids behind.
Two hours into the paddle I came to a railroad bridge just before a train started across. As I sat there watching it the wind shifted to the south at a stronger 10 knots. Damn, I fought the current and wind on the way up and now would have to fight the wind on the way back? I had lunch there hoping the wind would die down or shift again. When it didn't I turned back. The GPS showed I'd come 3.26 miles as the crow flies which would probably equate to 5-6 real miles. 10-12 miles would be an OK paddle after not having paddled much the past two months because of the weather.
Caves seemed much more noticeable on the way back. Several looked like they might have pictographs but were to high and too far for the cheapy binoculars with no landing places because of the steep walls.
When I got back to the duck rock a lone white pelican sat there looking forlorn and lonely. I told it where everyone else had gone. It must have been Spanish because it just sat there as if it didn't understand English at all. Eventually it did take off upstream so who knows.
Just about back at the take out I saw a ringtail cat on the far shore. A ringtail is not a cat at all but more like a skinny raccoon. This guy looked like it had a problem. It wobbled as it walked and then just lay down. I paddled past and all it did was raise its head to watch me go by.
At the take out I found a rubber raft all ready for a long trip. I slogged my way around through the sticky clay again but did get the kayak back to the gate without getting everything else covered in mud. I didn't see anyone around and figured whoever belonged to the raft was off setting up a shuttle. As I was loading the kayak a car pulled down next to me. A guy in his late 20's had just paddled 200 miles down the Rio Grande from Big Bend to the Pecos River. It seems he does this by himself every year during his vacation. Cool.
The Pecos River is a winner, one of the best, certainly in my top 5.
01/04/01 Hiking Seminole Canyon:
Absence of wind this morning made the temperature feel pretty good. Then I looked at the truck and it was covered with ice. Not just frost, but ice, the kind you have to turn the defroster on to get rid of if you no longer carry an ice scraper.
Seminole Canyon Historic State Park has a three mile (one way) trail that leads down to the Rio Grande. Never having seen this river I was anxious to do the trail. I also wanted to see if this section of the Rio Grande was paddleable. Panther Cave, for which the park was created is almost at the junction of Seminole Canyon and the Rio Grande. This is a sandstone cave containing many Indian Pictographs dating back 4,000 years (federal estimate) to 8,000 years (Texas estimate) ago. In any case, these paintings are the earliest expression of a religious system in America (whatever that means). My hope is to paddle down the Pecos to the Rio Grande and then down the Rio Grande to Seminole Canyon where they have a boat dock and steps leading up to Panther Cave.
The trail itself is just a dirt road through a lot of brush. The most interesting part of the trail is the view of Mexican sandstone hills off in the distance. Just about the time I was ho-humming to myself I got a glimpse of a canyon. My first thought was holy s...! Steep, 100+ foot canyon walls dropped straight down to nice calm flat water. Then I realized it was Seminole Canyon and not the Rio Grande I was looking at.
I could see Panther Cave with a boat dock and steps plus several other caves on the far side. Off to the right I could see more water and canyon walls intersecting with Seminole Canyon. Following cliff top ledges I soon stood above the Rio Grande for the first time. The canyon wall of Seminole Canyon where it met the Rio Grande made for a great picture. The Rio Grande is probably 300+ feet wide at this point and without rapids or heavy currents and no apparent shallow spots; certainly paddleable. While only 50-75 feet high, the canyon walls along the river are sheer on the far side with no breaks in them.
Looking upstream I saw a grassy area with canyon walls (apparently) on three sides. My guess was there was a sharp bend up there and this is where a lot of silt and stuff settles after the current crashes into the canyon wall. With the amount of water downstream, I would expect narrow channels up there with some pretty strong currents running through them but I couldn't see any from my vantage point. It did look like there might be a dog leg right that I couldn't see though.
Since I saw no signs prohibiting it, I walked along the ledges .25 miles, hoping to get a better view upstream but was blocked by a small canyon. I just wandered around on the ledges and enjoyed the great views along the Rio Grande and Seminole Canyon for an hour or so before starting back.
Near the end of the trail a fork bore off to the right. I thought this might get me past that small canyon. .5 miles along this road I came to a much larger canyon, not as big or as impressive as Seminole Canyon but still pretty interesting.
I followed more cliff top ledges along this canyon back to the Rio Grande. Things were warming up some and I started to worry about rattlesnakes and slowed my pace and became more watchful. I tried to avoid rocks they might be under, beside or behind. I tried to maintain a balance between avoiding likely snake places and the edge of the cliff. I'd hate to jump away from a rattlesnake and jump over the edge of the cliff. That would certainly ruin a good trip.
I got to the Rio Grande and worked my way down a series of ledges till I got a better view upstream. I ended up with a good view but couldn't see around a canyon wall to the dog leg right. In fact, now it appeared there was a dog leg left. (Later, a map showed a dog leg left). I didn't see anything that would preclude me paddling down this stretch of the Rio Grande and as of right now, that is on my list of trips to make.
01/05/01 Paddling San Pedro Canyon:
Yesterday afternoon warmed up considerably but the temperatures went down with the sun. A half moon and lots of stars lit up the skies last night. This morning was somewhere in the 30's but there was no wind. This morning's walk turned up ten does and a bunch of jackrabbits.
A bright dark blue Amistad Reservoir out classed a bright blue sky as I launched from the San Pedro Boat Ramp. Several American coots swam away in a hurry while a stupid looking cormorant swiveled its head on the end of a long skinny neck looking for anything that might eat it.
I paddled a short distance across the entrance to San Pedro Canyon to take a peek up Devil's River and see what I could see and then turned back up San Pedro Canyon. The entrance is 300-400 feet wide and doesn't seem to be a canyon at all. To the south are low lieing banks. Pale gray limestone bluffs six feet high stand at the northern corner of the entrance. Small caverns extending back a ways undercut the bluffs.
It's a good thing I took a GPS fix while launching. I couldn't see the put in from across the lake. 100's of coots in groups of 10-20 scattered as I paddled east up the canyon. I had a mild surge of adrenalin
Many side channels and coves lead off the main body of water in the canyon begging to be explored. Some are quite large and twist and turn every which way. A mile or so into the canyon small ridges developed on the north shore while several houses encroached on the natural scheme of things to the south. Another US 90 bridge was a further reminder of civilization as it spanned the canyon a few miles ahead.
I noticed a 5-10 knot from the west pushing me along churning up wind waves .5 feet high. About the time I noticed it, it shifted to the north and was now blowing off my port beam. That sucked! I had to struggle to keep the kayak on course as the wind tried to turn it. Water dripping off the paddle blade was now blown all over my left arm and thigh. Fortunately I was wearing a medium weight water resistant jacket.
I still haven't used the rudder on this kayak yet and the bungee was on holding the rudder in place. Soon the waves began kicking up to 1 foot high. Prudence dictated I struggle into my spray skirt to help keep my legs dry if nothing else. I got it on just in time because the waves increased to 1.5 feet and the spray skirt was soon soaked as the wind blew spray up over the bow.
I got to the US 90 bridge about noon. The wind and the spray had become unpleasant as I ate lunch there. The hills had been increasing in size for the past mile or so and seemed larger on the far side of the bridge. I had just paddled an hour+ in moderately difficult conditions and would have at least two more hours of that kind of paddling on the way back. What lay ahead was interesting but not spectacular enough to justify expending the required effort so I turned back.
The GPS said I had come 4.25 miles. Actual miles would have been pretty much the same since there weren't many turns. I was moving along pretty well in the beginning. The GPS said I was just under 3 knots when the wind shifted more to the west. Waves started coming at me from near the bow. Every time I cut into one or bellyflopped over one, the wind threw the spray right back on me and I was soon soaked. Fortunately the jacket kept most of the wind off my damp torso and helped keep the heat in.
Watching the time and the distance I saw I was only averaging two knots or so. And then, of course, the wind shifted directly to the west so I got the full brunt of the 10-15 knots right in the face. As soon as I got to the take out I dried off, changed my clothes, popped a zinc tablet to help my immune system and a couple of flu tablets, and turned the heat in the truck on full force, just in case.
In retrospect I probably should not have made this trip. The wind was only a minor factor. Not being dressed properly and the possibility of getting that wet is something for me to avoid at all costs.
01/06/01 Paddling (Diablo East:
Another night in the 30's. A great sunrise though because of some clouds. Lots of different shades of purples, blues and whites. During my morning walk I started noticing deer in the brush watching me whereas I usually see them only when they're on the move.
I launched from the San Pedro launch again. Clouds covered about 80 percent of the sky, most of them white clouds but some dark gray ones too. Temperatures hovered in the 40's with little wind. You fooled me yesterday but not today. I was lucky not to have caught a cold or worse from the wind splashing spray all over me. Today I'm dressed a little better for the weather with four layers of Polartec, etc.
I spent 20 minutes picking trash off a lee shore where the wind had blown it. I took it back to the San Pedro put in and just threw the trash bag on shore, hoping someone else would at least pick it up and put in the trash can (they didn't).
Today's goal is Diablo East, don't ask where Diablo West is, I dunno. This is basically another recreation area with a boat ramp, picnic area and some interesting shoreline, at least on the map. It would be easy to spot from the water because of a nearby railroad bridge crossing the Amistad Reservoir. I did see the railroad bridge with a train going across. Then I saw a big truck, an RV and some cars go across too. What? The simple explanation, of course, is there are two bridges at the same height 50-100 yards from each other. It did look strange with cars and trucks and trains all on the same bridge.
The Amistad dam across the Rio Grande appeared to be 5-6 miles and I thought I might try for it if the wind would cooperate. I passed a couple of small limestone islands and then several coves and channels but ignored them, not wanting to take the time to explore on the way out. If the weather held, there should be time on the way back.
20 foot limestone hills slope back from the reservoir, the bottom part all crumbly while the top part is more sheer. As I neared Diablo East the hills became taller and steeper. One particularly had three tall columns or pillars and two small caves. 40 foot cliffs extended for a ways at Diablo East. Across the reservoir I saw Castle Canyon which I expect to paddle soon from a different put in. On my side I soon passed Governors Landing with its large boat ramp and small marina. After Diablo East the shore became rolling limestone hills of varying heights.
On the other side of the bridge I passed an Air Force boat ramp and tiny marina. From there I had a good view of the dam. It's only a couple hundred feet wide but a long levee extends into Mexico. I had a leisurely lunch just drifting around .5 miles from the dam. I thought it would be neat to get a view of the Rio Grande as it exited from the dam so paddled closer hoping to find a landing place and path but no such luck.
The gray clouds were gone but the sun was playing peekaboo through the clouds all morning. A small headwind was there to greet me as I turned back but it never became an issue. As could be expected, the fishing boats were out in force on a Saturday. The section I paddled to the dam used to be Devil's River (probably) before the dam flooded the area.
01/07/01:
I'm back at Seminole Canyon State Historical Park for a shower and hopefully to get to Panther Cave. Today I took the guided tour into Seminole Canyon to view the Indian Pictographs. You're not allowed in the canyon without a guide, probably to keep the buttholes from destroying everything. The hour long tour cost $3 and was well worth it to me.
A series of steps led to the canyon floor. More steps led up to the first open faced cave and a number of pictographs dating from 6,000-12,000 years ago. Most of them looked like centipedes except for one of a shaman. A second larger open faced cave had lots more, again the only recognizable one was of three shamans and another of five hands. You were left to decide what the others looked like.
It is believed an extended family of 6-13 lived here at one time. The University of Texas (I think) is the only one to have done an official archeological dig here. For some reason they can't date the paint. The date estimates come from artifacts found at the site. Having read Jean Auel's (Clan of the Cave Bear, etc.) and the Gear's (People Of... series) books on prehistoric peoples I could actually picture them living and working and painting in the canyon. Now I'm really psyched to get to Panther Cave.
01/08/00:
I didn't feel like doing much of anything today. After doing some web site maintenance I drove up to a couple of the scenic overlooks on the Pecos River thinking I'd hangout, read a book or stare off into space for a while. At the Pecos River put in I found the mud and clay had dried up considerably and you could even walk on it most places so I started downstream to see if I could get to the Rio Grande junction.
Walking proved fairly easy on a relatively wide and dry bank. Then the bank narrowed and disappeared. Heading into the six foot mesquite type trees I knew I'd have trouble on the way back. Flood waters had caused these closely packed sapling like trees to grow at an angle pointing downstream and I'd have to go against the grain on the way back. Even so, if I hadn't had a heavy jacket and a hat on I'd have been scratched up pretty badly forcing my way through thicket like foliage.
The main problem I had was trying to avoid dead needles from going down my neck. Pretty soon I was sweating and could no longer brush them out. I gave up after more than .25 miles. The current seemed to be slackening from the -3 knots of the other day as I moved downstream. Also, the other side of the 20 foot river was even drier than my side and had no trees or brush near the shore. That would make lining the kayak up the river pretty easy should it prove necessary.
01/14/01 Paddling Colorado River Spicewood/Lake Travis:
I'm in the Austin area for some doctor stuff. This is going to take almost two weeks. It rained most of yesterday. A heavy fog developed last night soaking everything. It must have gone below freezing too because some of my things had ice on them this morning.
Without realizing it, I paddled out onto the Colorado River. No, not the thunderous giant waters you see rafters on on TV. In fact, looking at an atlas I could see where the big Colorado River flows to the other side of the Continental Divide. This Colorado River flows into Travis Lake to the west of Austin. I had been to the put in at the Narrows Recreation Area the other day when I got the area. The first thing I had noticed was the high cliffs on a narrow river that give the area its name so I was hoping this would be a nice paddle.
Heavy fog still covered the area at 9am but a bright sun forced its way through and the fog quickly burned away. The cold still hung in there though and my fingers were cold even with Polartec gloves on.
A quick 100 yard paddle brought me to the first of the cliffs. Steep sandstone bluffs rise up to 40 feet just as the river empties into the lake. These gave way to steep limestone hills covered with trees, prickly pear cactus, Spanish dagger cactus, bushes and other vegetation. Within a mile or so things flattened out considerably and then rose back up into dome shaped hills of sandstone. After a short distance things flattened out again and I came to a tributary with steep mud banks rising 15-20 feet.
The Colorado River looked kinda flat from that point on so I turned up the creek. The topography here varied too with some flat lands, some bluffs, ledges and some fields and hills strewn with boulders and some large twisty live oaks. A number of Brahma cows and calves and red Angus bulls watched passively as I returned their stare on my way upstream. The calves are called Brangus. Apparently mating Angus and Brahma is a big deal. I saw several signs on the roads proudly boasting their registered herds. Wildlife included a doe, a blue heron, a couple of ducks, a few coots, a kingfisher, a couple of osprey and a bunch of turkey vultures.
After 1.5 miles or so I came to a barbed wire fence crossing the creek and turned back. If they had the authority to string a fence across a creek I probably shouldn't try to continue. If they had the audacity to do it without authority they'd probably have the audacity to take pot shots at a city slicker with their Colt 45's, and I don't mean malt liquor either. Actually a local told me later that was just a gully that had filled up during recent rains.
01-19-00:
Well, I'm back at Seminole Canyon Historic State Park again. The main reason is to get a shower after a few days in a federal campground without showers. I also hoped to paddle down the Pecos River to the Rio Grande and then down to a couple of caves with Indian pictographs. Heavy rains last night precluded that. The rains would have turned hard mud baked banks into a sticky mess I wouldn't want to walk through.
Last night was down in the mid-30's with heavy winds too. This morning was bright and sunshiny but the wind was still blowing hard. Seemed like a good time to hike the rest of the trails here in the park (There are no others in the area).
I started off down the Rio Grande Trail again but after a half mile or so I turned down the left fork in the trail. After a second left I began to see canyon walls ahead coming from different directions. Looking off to the left I could see the park headquarters so assume one of the canyons was Seminole Canyon.
A short walk off the trail brought me to the edge of a canyon dropping 100+ feet to the canyon floor. On the other side I saw a beige, open faced sandstone cave. My heart skipped a beat when I saw a beautiful Indian pictograph of a coat. It was very realistic and even had a shadow. And then it moved. Oh well. Six goats were scattered around the cliff face and fallen boulders. The big one I thought was a pictograph was mostly a dark tan with some black. Two smaller black goats were close by while three grayish white goats grazed a little farther off. One of the white ones hopped up on a steep rock as if to keep watch for unwanted visitors.
Back on the road I spotted fresh tracks I at first thought were deer. Deer only have two toes (or whatever) while these tracks had three. I presume these were either goat tracks or javelinas. I've also seen emus, llamas, tiny antelopes and herds of sheep and domestic goats in the area. I saw what I at least think of as a mule deer. Standing only 2.5 feet high at the shoulders it had a head more like a mule than a deer.
Soon I saw where two canyons met. This was pretty impressive with sandstone and limestone cliffs rising 100+ feet from the canyon floor. Following the ledges on my side a ways in both directions I couldn't see more than a couple hundred feet because of all the twists and turns in the canyons. Much of the canyon floor was much like pour concrete it was so wide and smooth. Many of the limestone rocks near the cliff appeared to have ancient plant fossils embedded.
01/20/01 Paddling Devils River:
The weather hasn't been cooperating with me over the past few weeks. If it's not raining it's super cold and if its not super cold its super windy. I could hike in the cold and the wind but there is no hiking available around the Amistad National Recreation Area. The Recreation Area follows the lake and river contours but doesn't extend away from the water much at all.
Last night the temperature dropped into the 20's and ice covered everything this morning. The wind wasn't blowing for a change at Seminole Canyon State Historical Park when I got up. Yesterday started off pretty cold but warmed up into the 50's. Hoping something similar would happen today I drove 45 miles to the put in at Rough Canyon in the Amistad National Recreation Area to paddle Devils River. By the time I got there things were beginning to warm up but a 10-15 knot wind was blowing too. Frustrated over being landlocked for so long and hoping the wind wouldn't find me in the canyons I elected to go out anyway. Only two boat trailers were in the parking lot at 9:30am. I didn't take that as a good omen on a Saturday morning. They must know something I don't.
As I turned northeast up Devils River I could feel the wind pushing me from the southwest, knowing that whatever pushed me along one way would push against me on the return trip. Six inch wind waves were continuous. My goal today were some deep canyons 5-6 miles upstream. I had talked to the pilot of a small two seater who had flown over the area and he was very impressed with it. I turned my back on the 50-75 foot Rough Canyon cliffs as I headed upstream.
Devils River is 200 feet or so wide at this point and who knows how deep. 20 foot rocky limestone hills lined both shores. Many small canyons fed into Devils River on both sides. This wasn't a good day for exploring, knowing I'd have a lot of wind to face on the way back. After a couple of twists and turns on the river, the wind didn't seem so bad. That didn't last long, however. Soon the wind seemed to be trying each of the various directions trying to make its mind up which would be best to aggravate me. It didn't take too long for it to figure the northeast would do the most damage, directly in my face. It stayed that way for a couple of miles, mostly in the 5-10 knot range but sometimes gusting over 10.
The 20 foot hills gave way to 20 foot cliffs and the river narrowed to 150 feet or so. Then some of the cliffs began rising as high as 40-45 feet. I'd been watching some hills up ahead thinking that is where the deep canyons must be but then the river veered away from them. Soon I could see another set of hills directly ahead and then I could see 100+ foot cliffs still a couple of miles away.
I reached the first of these cliffs 2 hours and 15 minutes into the paddle and six GPS miles from the put in. A mile or so back the wind had shifted to the southwest and was now blowing well above 10 knots and gusting big time. I was having trouble maintaining a steady course as the kayak constantly tried to turn broadside to the wind. Waves were close to one foot high now.
I decided to keep paddling as I munched on my lunch. 50+ goats grazed on the nearby slopes. I had seen several blue herons, lots of coots and a couple of osprey along the way. Halfway through lunch I became concerned enough about the wind to turn back. What a bummer. I had just gotten to the canyons but was afraid the trip back against the wind would be a long hard one and the farther I went the longer and harder it would become.
I put the chin strap of my hat down so the hat wouldn't blow away and headed downstream into the wind. The GPS said I was moving along at 2.5 knots but I found that hard to believe. Paddling close to shore, the shoreline didn't seem to be moving all that fast. I was six GPS miles from the put in and with the twists and turns of the river that should equate to seven or eight real miles. I figured I'd be doing two GPS miles and hour meaning I had three hours of tough paddling ahead of me. I checked the distance each half hour. That proved out to be two GPS miles an hour almost right on the nose so maybe the GPS was right.
About halfway back I was paddling along admiring some large and deep caves in the sheer canyon walls hoping to spot some Indian pictographs. I found some graffiti but no pictographs. Then all of a sudden I was face to face with a small white goat with little 2-3 inch horns staring at me at eye level from a small cave just about at water's level. As I drifted by it craned its head out of the cave to watch me. I backed up and got the camera out while it just watched me. As I snapped a picture it decided maybe it should be somewhere else and headed back into the deeper recesses of the cave. From that, I presume much more of the canyon walls had been eroded on the inside over the eons. I know many of the limestone mountains in the Appalachian Mountains are almost completely hollow with extensive interconnecting caves. Maybe the same thing is true here.
Earlier a large, black eagle size bird had flown from one side of the river. This guy was big, much larger than a turkey vulture but I dunno what it was.
House had dotted the cliff tops along the east shore but they had no access to the river. I did see one boat ramp that looked more like a public boat ramp than a private one on the east shore maybe 4-5 miles into the paddle but nothing shows up on the DeLorme Atlas other than the Rough Canyon put in.