08/30/2011 - Rattlesnake Bayou

Launch: Home.
Launch Cost: Free
Destination:I paddled to Rattlesnake Bayou expecting to see some Manatees but they were gone. Apparently the manatees do not like eating the Rattlesnake Bayou eel grass because thanks to BP, it was too oily for their diet. So they left in search of less oily food. (It's a joke...)
Distance: 10 miles (round trip).
Trip Rating: Easy
Time Paddling: 3 hours
Weather: Hot - high about 98 degrees, but it was a dry heat. Very little wind. Near Neap tides. Very little current. No waves. Might was well get in a few more paddles in the heat before it turns cold.

Header image is a photo of the Rangeline Road bridge.

This poor minnow thinking it wise to jump for safety so it didn't get eaten by a bigger fish, jumped for its last time because the surface scum was impenetrable. The minnow could not get back into the water. By the time I got there, it was too late to save it. Maybe the thick scum is why the Manatees left.

Yea! Mosquito busters still work in the heat.

A cloudy day today up in Rattlesnake Bayou but the clouds produced no rain to help with the drought.

This pine tree doesn't look healthy due to all the brown needles.

Had to do a double take when passing this dock piling. The piling is about a foot in diameter. Never seen a crustacean like that around here. Looks like a New England lobster to me.

Sunset on Dog River. Despite the heat, this was a good paddle.