Lover's Leap

I put in by the 4-span steel bridge and head upriver.  It is mostly sunny with a wind coming down the river.  The wind is steady with an occasional prolonged gust, but I make good speed into it by hugging the forested shoreline where the wind is buffered.  

I paddle steady, a tripping pace, something I could do all day, feeling it at the end but not ending exhausted.  There are just a few boats out - mostly bass boats. The round trip will be about 12-1/2 miles - a half day of canoeing.

Lover's Leap

Hugging the shoreline, I look up into the forest.  Sometimes, the land drops steeply to the water, but quite often there is a gradual slope with little brush.  Every so often I spot an old stone wall, a reminder of the wool "gold rush" of the early 1800's.  This hilly terrain would have been pastureland.  Sometimes, the walls end at an eroded bank, all of which tumbles into the water.  Sometimes,  a wall crawls out of the woods and disappears into the depths.  The canoe passes over pastures drowned. I flush Great Blue Herons every once in awhile. They are the dominant bird among a some ducks and Swans.  One pair of Swans has 6 gray cygnets - I often see 3 or 4, but this is the first time I've seen 6.

I get to the narrow gap known as Lover's Leap, pass through and then turn back.  

Exiting Lover's Leap

The wind has decided to ease up.  It is always in my favor, but not as strong as when I came upriver. I cut the corners of the S-ing river taking advantage of any wind that finds me.  

It was a good day.