Apalachee River to Causeway 2005 LXXVI
Sunday, October 23, 2005 brint.adams@us.army.mil
The cold front continued to roll in, thankfully pushing off Hurricane Wilma to the east with its northwesterly winds. This morning at 7:12 AM, back out in to open along the Causeway, the wind was up over 15 mph and kicking up a steady and tight chop out in Chacaloochee Bay. I knew it was not going to be pleasant or a particularly fast time, but I wanted to get in a little wind work and was up to the challenge.
Since I was out in the morning, the tide was heading out, giving me a push at the start and heading east into the rising sun over the bluffs of Spanish Fort. It was particularly stunning this morning as it broke over a slight cloud formation right at the horizon. There were several fishing boats out whizzing along Pass Picada, which did not seem to affect the already bothersome chop. I reached Apalachee in 6:45 and back past the parking lot in 16:00, so I knew I was in for a somewhat slower time.
The fishing boats continued to go by as I made my way past the confused culvert waters. The bay had a particularly tricky quartering chop, which did not make it easy to get into any kind of rhythm. I finally made the bridge turn in 34:41. I fought my way back and made the finish in 52:20 for an overall speed of 5.7 mph. The low 50's temperature and sunrise made up for the breeze, making the morning paddle still definately worth the time to get out.
The cold front continued to roll in, thankfully pushing off Hurricane Wilma to the east with its northwesterly winds. This morning at 7:12 AM, back out in to open along the Causeway, the wind was up over 15 mph and kicking up a steady and tight chop out in Chacaloochee Bay. I knew it was not going to be pleasant or a particularly fast time, but I wanted to get in a little wind work and was up to the challenge.
Since I was out in the morning, the tide was heading out, giving me a push at the start and heading east into the rising sun over the bluffs of Spanish Fort. It was particularly stunning this morning as it broke over a slight cloud formation right at the horizon. There were several fishing boats out whizzing along Pass Picada, which did not seem to affect the already bothersome chop. I reached Apalachee in 6:45 and back past the parking lot in 16:00, so I knew I was in for a somewhat slower time.
The fishing boats continued to go by as I made my way past the confused culvert waters. The bay had a particularly tricky quartering chop, which did not make it easy to get into any kind of rhythm. I finally made the bridge turn in 34:41. I fought my way back and made the finish in 52:20 for an overall speed of 5.7 mph. The low 50's temperature and sunrise made up for the breeze, making the morning paddle still definately worth the time to get out.
posted by brint @ 9:13 PM
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