Kayak Canoe Alabama

Saturday, August 06, 2005

Bottle Creek Indian Mounds

Saturday, August 6, 2005 brint.adams@us.army.mil

The morning started out with iffy-looking weather and did not disappoint us. I met our group at the Stagecoach Inn in Stockton, AL before 9:00 AM, before continuing to Rice Creek Landing. Stockton is about three miles north of I-65 exit 31 at Hwy 225. We had Tony and Dave in Tony's new large fiberglass tandem, Roland, Jimmy, Nick and newcomer Ian with a Featherlite foldable. Ian recently relocated a couple of weeks ago with the Coast Guard from his last assignment in Hawaii. He still has a Hawaii license plate on his spiffy red Z3 to prove it, and amazed us by pulling the large backpack-sized kayak out of the tiny trunk.

The water level was very low but rising as we put in at Rice Creek Landing and started out towards Briar Lake. One of the fishermen we passed, asked if we had ponchos, stating we were going to get wet. I called back, "It's all just water." We continued across Briar into the cut-through to Tensaw River. There was no current this morning, and the cut was clear of debris.

We continued down the Tensaw along the east side of Larry Island, crossed the main channel to the entrance of Bayou Jessamine. Again, there was little current, as we made good time. Tony was interested in seeing the large Cypress tree, so we stopped at marker 5, got out and trekked back into ever-increasingly muddy conditions. The tree is located about 100-150 meters due south from the tree marked with the large blue 5. Most were wondering on the way in why we made the trek, but after seeing the state record tree, were glad we did.

Once back, cleaned up a bit and paddling, we came across our first debris blockage. With low water, a large tree gave some of us barely enough room to squeeze under, while others started their kayak under, climbed over the log and then back in. Upon reaching the split to Jug Lake, we came across Danny and Tony, who had camped overnight at the floating platform around the north side of Fisher Island, at the end of Jug Lake. They were interested in continuing to Bottle Creek, so turned around and joined us. Danny mentioned getting muddy, as they portaged around a smaller tree across the narrow entrance to Jug Lake. While the rest of our group was negotiating the last obstacle, I decided to go ahead to the next one and see if I could clear it. The tree was only about 8" in diameter, so it was easy to saw through. Ian and Nick pulled one end of it out of the way, so we could pass through later in the paddle.

We continued on Bayou Jessamine, with little debris resistance, weaving around a few obstacles and sliding over the tops of a few others barely above the surface. We turned southwest downriver on Bottle Creek for a half mile to the major left-hand turn and got out on the sand beach along the west bank. The water was low, so the bank was about six feet above water level. Some of us pulled our boats up the bank and under tree cover, while others left their boats in the water, tied up along the shore.

The next leg of our trip was to hike due west to the Indian Mounds. I led and started out on the trail, which was blocked by downed trees from Ivan. After bushwhacking around, I never found the trail, so we continued west and came up against some water I did not remember crossing before. So, I angled southwest and got into some gumbo and decided to turn back east to the river. When we got back, I regrouped and decided to try it again. This time I used a compass and attempted to keep moving due west, but came across the same water. We found a copperhead which occupied our attention for awhile, while I scouted ahead. I still did not see any familiar landmarks, so I turned back.

The rain started to fall, which was enough to convince the group to give up this time and head back to the river again. Once back, we ate lunch while the rain began to let up a little. By the time we were ready to start paddling back, the rain stopped. We retraced our route to the left fork to Jug Lake. Danny and Tony decided to paddle back to Rice Creek, since they had just left the platform in the morning. The rest of us paddled the 1.1 miles around Jug Lake. The water was like glass, with a few fish jumping, a gator or two watching us from near the bank, to snowy egrets leading us in. The setting was picturesque.

Most of the group had not seen the floating platforms before and were impressed with the design and looked forward to coming back to use them for camping trips. On our return, the water level on Jessamine was a little higher, making it impossible to slide under the tree as we did on the way in. Most of us portaged around and continued out to Tensaw, when the rain started again. It was steady, but not a downpour, so we continued upriver along Larry Island to the cut-through and back to Rice Creek. When we got back, Danny and Tony were finishing loading their boats, as they took a little detour on the return.

Everyone thought the trip was quite amazing, with all of the various sights and experiences we encountered and are ready to embark on another adventure.

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