Whiskey Ditch

Sunday, October 30, 2005 brint.adams@us.army.mil

Linda and I led a scheduled club paddle on a delightful fall Sunday afternoon. We paddled our canoe along with four other boats east down Pass Picada from the old Riverdocs parking lot to the Apalachee River. We turned north along the west bank and turned into the first opening about a half mile upriver. The tide was rising and we had a southerly breeze pushing us upriver as well.

We were hoping to see burr marigold in full bloom this time of year, but found none. Apparently, Hurricane Katrina's storm surge brought too much salt water into the ditch, upsetting the marigolds, so as to kill off this year's blooms. We continued back to the lake, where we stopped for a break before returning. The waterway was clear from the usual water hyacinth, possibly another casualty of the hurricane.

Once we turned around, the rising current and breeze worked against us on the return. We had to really work hard to get back down to Pass Picada, where the tide changed directions and we had protection from the breeze. The total trip of five miles took 1:40 of paddling time. All had a nice relaxing time under the clear skies and 75 degrees.