Put It On Ice!

I’m hitting ice just about every time I go out these days. I’ve come to love it.

There’s always something cool happening on the river, but the ice adds a new element. There’s tissue paper ice, slush ice, ice that looks like it’s forming before my eyes and there’s ice ice. Like the hard stuff. Pretty difficult to paddle through, but it often provides a good platform on which to take a break. Just have to work up some steam to get up on it. Sometimes it breaks, sometimes I’m up above the river. 

Yesterday, I paddle-slid onto a sheet of ice that was covered by 6-8 inches of water. There was a sheet of ice down there and the river flowed above. Little chunks of ice floated by. There must have been some chunks of ice moving under the ice sheet and I just rose up as the ice sheet became more buoyant. It wasn’t like it was scary, it’s just that I haven't been moved by the river like that before. Slow power.

In the three winters that we have lived here, it’s only iced up once before (two years ago). This year, there’s ice all of the time. I think that there have only been two times in the past 10 days or so where I’ve been able to get through. Otherwise, I have to turn around and paddle against the current to get home. Not my favorite, but what are you going to do?

Not go? 

Nah…

Crust ice, chunk ice and ice ice.

This Moon Was This Moon

The river shows something different every time. Last night I went out with the nearly-full moon and it was the first time that the moon was so high in the sky. Seemed really far away as well. Even last month when I went out with the moon it seemed much lower in the sky. And in the summer, it’s usually down. It gets up there but it still seems lower.

Now, I could be absolutely wrong and the moon I saw last night was the same moon that I saw in the summer with regards to its general location in the sky. But I don’t think so. 

So.. the river showed me something last night that I don’t think I have seen before. Think. And it wasn’t even the same moon that I have seen. It was a unique night amongst the times I have been out to meet the moon. It’s the same when it rains, or when it’s windy, or hot as hell; there’s variety within each one of those conditions as there is variety every single day. Season’s change and there are so many different factors out there that come together to color the overall experience.

I do love going out with the moon though. So cool.

Best Hammock Spot on the River

Not that there’s an award for this sort of thing, but if one were going to choose the best hammock spot on the Conestoga River, the photo paired with this post would be it. Yo, Slackwater - pretty sweet.