08/28/2013 - Dog River

1) Errr, the fake mustache disguise is not working.

2) Hahaha. Did you see that silly goose wearing the disguise? I laughed so hard my face turned red.

3) Speaking of Red, fall flowers are starting to bloom. Cooler weather can't be to far away now.

4) One lean flying machine.

5) Mosquito dragons engaged in 69.

6) Pickerelweed and a butterfly.

7) A damselfly getting a neck massage.

8) Another damselfly.

07/18/2013 - Paynes Creek

1) This winged creature fluttered by and alit on a Pickerelweed flower.

05/18/2012 - ASRT Black Warrior Nature Paddle

Launch: On the Black Warrior River northeast of Demopolis at Old Lock 5 Park. Launch choices were a Rock bank, a concrete boat ramp, or a fixed concrete dock. It would have been nice to have a kayak designated launch area - friendly grass or sand bank to launch from. I struggled and ended up hurting my wrist while getting out on the high concrete dock as the one lane boat ramp was busy.
Launch Cost: Free
Destination: Explore Big Prairie Creek and a couple nearby sloughs.
Paddle Distance: About 20 miles (round trip)
Paddle time: 7.5 Hrs
Weather: Sunny, winds calm to 5 mph. Air temp 75-85 degrees. River and Creek currents minimal at less than 0.5 mph.
GPS Track: To view or download the GPS track of this trip, Click Here.

I went up to Demopolis early for the Alabama Scenic River Trail's Black Warrior Nature Paddle event and got in a paddle before the group gathered in the evening at Foscue Creek Park.

A few areas along Big Prairie Creek were swamped by wild Coneflowers (Dracopis amplexicaulis).

Mayflies were dense along the shoreline.

A male Widow Skimmer (Libellula luctuosa) dragonfly.

Yes, they have Alligators in Big Prairie Creek.

This turtle's shell had a thick layer of algae on it.

Pearly Crescentspot butterflies were abundant.

Pearly crescentspot on a coneflower.

The major theme of the ASRT Black Warrior Nature Paddle was birds. Here is an Osprey Eagle.

A pretty blue bird.

A turtle shares his log with a turquoise eye colored Cormorant.

The Cormorant flew off and dove into the water.

While cows are not wild animals, to see such huge animals next to the shoreline on a paddle does make the paddle more interesting.

There was small section of Big Prairie Creek where the water color became a funky green color. When I mentioned this to some local Demopolis residents, they brought up the subject of sewage pollution from Uniontown. Uniontown is 12 miles away though and sewage spills release into Cotton Creek, not directly into Big Prairie Creek and this green colored section was confined to about a mile stretch of Big Prairie Creek. There is nearby farmland so perhaps this was an algae bloom related to fertilizer runoff. There are also about a thousand catfish farm ponds to the east of this creek. Most of the creek color was light brown like in photo 11.

Big Prairie Creek is a beautiful creek to paddle with almost no sign of civilization. The creek is long enough that you can paddle all day in it without running into a dead end or a log jam.

There are at least nine beautiful sloughs within 2 miles of the Old Lock 5 Park of which I only had time to explore three of them. Motor boat traffic is rare in the sloughs while wildlife and bird watching opportunity is maximum.

Osprey Eagle.

05/11/2012 - Demopolis Vacation (2 of 3)

Vacation Paddle Trip - 3 days/2 nights in Demopolis, AL
Camp: Foscue Creek Park (US Army Corps of Engineers)
Launch: Demopolis City Landing
Destination Day 2: Explore Daub's Swamp and some of the areas along the Black Warrior River north of Demopolis, AL.
Distance: 24 Miles
Weather: Sunny, light winds with occasional gusts, 80s during the day, 60s at night.
Caution Note: Currents were negligible. Wind can be a factor on the open waters of the Tombigbee River and Black Warrior River. Water levels may vary significantly. You might want to check out the river guage in Demopolis before kayaking: http://water.weather.gov/ahps2/hydrograph.php?wfo=bmx&gage=dlda1GPS Trip Track: To see or download the track of this trip, Click Here.

Header image is a photo of a cypress tree swamp.

By sunrise I was already on the water in the kayak exploring backwaters near the Demopolis Marina. There was a slight fog hovering over the water.

When the welcoming committee Geese come out to greet everyone, you know it is going to be a good day to paddle.

Wild pigs can make a racket along the shorelines as they snort at each other.

Wood Ducks. There is no telling what you might see while paddling in the backwaters of the Demopolis State Wildlife Management Areas. No trash in the background of these photos.

The variety of scenery was amazing. The sun hitting the water at the right angle caused odd coloration of the surface due to microscopic pollen or algae which could not be seen when paddling through it.

Some backwater creeks had stone wall banks.

The US Hwy 43 bridge over Black Warrior River.

A much smaller bridge.

A turtle getting some sun on the edge of a dense forest of cypress trees.

This turtle was enjoying the sun on a sandy bank. I was enjoying the sun from the Kayak.

There were some flowers still blooming. This looked like a Cherokee Rose.

A Pipevine Swallowtail Butterfly showing off its blue colors.

Some of the most beautiful areas are in the backwaters off the Black Warrior River.

I paddled up on a deer while gliding through this dense canopy of trees. Based on the moss on the tree trunks, this area sees seasonal flooding with water levels getting much higher.

A spray painted sign on the concrete wall above the White Bluff river bank says, "Welcome 2 Da River." Thanks - You have a wonderful place here in Demopolis!

A photo of the Black Warrior River from where I took a break.

Relax while you paddle and look around. Bring out the binoculars. Things are watching you from the shoreline and waiting.

Be careful - some critters may not be watching you and you might not want to surprise them. This was a harmless water snake. Not all snakes are harmless.

Demopolis has a nice shoreline trail along the Tombigbee River. Someone had a good vision when they designed and built this waterfront park. It is really a nice place and is big enough to host larger events at the nearby park. No homeless people are camped out here like you would see in Mobile's waterfront park.

One of two launch ramps at the Demopolis City Landing. This is the one I launched from.

05/10/2012 - Demopolis Vacation (1 of 3)

Vacation Paddle Trip - 3 days/2 nights in Demopolis, AL
Camp and Launch: Foscue Creek Park (US Army Corps of Engineers)
Destination Day 1: Foscue Creek and the lakes on the other side of Tombigbee River across from Foscue Creek Park.
Distance: 10.5 Miles
Weather: Sunny, no wind, 80s during the day, 50s at night. Perfect!
Caution Note: Currents are negligible. Wind can be a factor on the open waters of the Tombigbee River. The real concern is the Submerged Dam downstream and the 40+ foot drop. Avoid it!
GPS Trip Track: To see or download the track of this trip, Click Here.

I found out about Foscue Creek Park through Alabama Scenic River Trail which is using this park as base camp for their upcoming Demopolis-Black Warrior Nature Paddle on May 19-20. Perfect weather prompted me to explore the waters in the Demopolis area, which is about a 3 hour drive from Mobile. Why did I wait so long to kayak in this area?

Header Image is a field of beautiful wildflowers at Foscue Creek Park. The US Army Corps of Engineers deserve two thumbs up for this Park.

Foscue Creek Park is circled in Magenta. I had no idea there were so many backwater areas in the Demopolis area to kayak.

Foscue Creek Park is one beautiful US Army Corps of Engineers Park. I'll be going back! On many of the camp sites you can drag your kayak down a few feet to the water and launch. Nice!

I did not have one of those creek side campsites so I launched at the Foscue Creek Park boat ramp on the grassy shoreline. I understand that paddlers in the ASRT event will get to kayak through the Demopolis Lock and Dam which will lower the kayakers about 44 feet. If you haven't yet gone through a lock and dam in a kayak, sign up soon!

When turtles wave hello it is usually a good sign of friendly wildlife.

I saw more wildlife in this area in one day than I saw in the upper Mobile-Tensaw River Delta all last year. A nutria swims along the water while four great egrets forage for insects on the shoreline vegetation.

A baby nutria runs circles around Mom.

This reminded me a bit of Bayou Jessamine in Baldwin County, except on the banks of this waterway, wildlife foot prints are everywhere.

One cypress tree with an amazing root system.

Demopolis Lakes are teeming with wildlife.

The wildlife is noisy when bolts off across the water.

Pipevine Swallowtail Butterflies were all over the plentiful Water-willow flowers (Justicia americana) that lined many of the shorelines.

Pipevine Swallowtail Butterflies were all over the plentiful Water-willow flowers (Justicia americana) that lined many of the shorelines.

Water-willow close-up.

Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias perennis).

Take time to observe and you will see who is watching you as you paddle along the waterways. Deer have very flexible necks and this one keenly watches my every move even though its body is facing the other way.

A baby duck surfaced next to the kayak and then froze when it saw me. The funny placement of the large duckweed makes it look like a girl duck.

Big movement about a kayak length away on the bank of the narrow creek caught my eye. We surprised the hell out of each other. This large Bobcat was staring me down and crouched like it was ready to leap my way. It was a tense situation which I diffused by splashing water on the Bobcat with the paddle causing it to leap twice to get up the 15 foot high bank and disappear. Whew!