Black Ducks Along the Long Cut

We set out from the old ford.  The tide is high and still rising, so there is an upstream current to paddle against as we head down.  The sky is partly cloudy with dark bottomed cumulus.  S asks what the clouds mean to me, and I tell her that it will not rain, the clouds are just heavy with moisture.  The temperature is about 60F and with a light wind, it is cool in the shade and warm in the sun.

The scenery is particularly good at this time of year.  The leaves are just starting to change. Most of the trees still have a green tint with a few others already changed to a red or yellow.  The low sun casts sharp shadows while brilliantly shining the highlights.

Below the railroad bridge, we head into the Sneak, following it through to Bailey Creek.  I tell S that Black Ducks often collect up in this corner of the marsh.  We turn off the Creek and into a route that I call the Long Cut. We paddle quietly and sure enough, start flushing Black Ducks from the shallow pannes that form in this high salt marsh.  We make the hidden turn, and paddle a tight 100 yards to open water, spotting a total of about 60 Black Ducks as we go.  And, all of the Ducks we flushed were Blacks.  

With that, we head back to the Sneak and back upriver.