04/12/2011 - Dog River Sunset Paddle

Header Image

1) Here comes an otter to greet me.

2) Female red-winged blackbird doesn't have red wings nor is it black.

3) Green heron.

4) Not sure what kind of owl this is. Any of you bird watchers know? I was about to take another photo of it when a red-winged blackbird dive bombed at the owl hitting it causing the owl to fly off. (According to two sisters, the owl is a Great Horned Owl.) "Where are the horns?" I ask.

5) Berries you probably want to avoid. Do you have any idea why?

6) Blue Iris.

7) Sunset on Dog River.

02/18/2011 - Black Creek

Launch: William Brooks Park (US Hwy 43 at Chickasaw Creek – Southwest Corner)
Launch Cost: $4
Destination: Black Creek
Distance: About 18 miles (round trip)
Paddle time: 5 Hrs 30 Minutes
Weather: Very Foggy , winds calm to 5 mph. Air temp 55-70 degrees. Tide falling. Current minimal except in Mobile River where it was running about 1 mph. Water temp about 50 degrees.
GPS Track: To view or download the GPS track of this trip, Click Here.

Header Image

1) Every year I like to kayak in foggy conditions. That way I won't get freaked out should a fog bank ever descend unexpectedly. On this trip, the first hour paddling in fog was in pre-dawn darkness. Both sound and smell was amplified. Was attempting to get a photo of tugboat lights in this shot but the camera focused on the kayak making the fog droplets look larger than life.

2) In Mobile River, visibility was about 1/4 mile. Could not see the other side of the river.

3) Brown Pelicans were sure numerous.

4) This is a strange photo of boat wake erosion eh?

5) Never can time the photo right to get the shot of an otter when it sticks its body about 2 feet out of the water. Also caught my first sighting this year of some alligators.

6) Ducks adapting to the industrial revolution.

7) I love the textures of lichen.

8) Big fish like to hang out near the treated sewage outflow (green water). What kind of food has the fish on your plate been eating?

9) During the last 20 minutes of the paddle, it went from cloudy to almost clear.

10) Creepy Photo - the reflection of this duck has 3 eyes.

01/15/2011 - Whiskey Ditch

Launch: Riverdocs on the Causeway (northeast of Ed's Seafood Shack)
Destination: Whiskey Ditch
Distance: 5.7 miles
Paddle time: A little over 2 hours
Weather: Mostly sunny, temp in the 60s. 5-10 mph winds. A beautiful day.

Header Image

1) Water levels were quite low at the launch site.

2) A couple of playful otters came swimming up to me in Whiskey Ditch.

3) Shore birds were taking advantage of the low tide.

4) Another shoreline bird.

5) It was suppose to be cloudy all day. Except for a brief line of clouds passing by, it was sunny all day.

6) The bandits were out.

7) A diving duck surfaced right next to the kayak and immediately took off running on the water.

8) A few minutes later the diving duck was on the mud bank playing dead as I paddled by.

9) It is hard to see big herons unless they move because they blend in so well with the dried vegetation.

10) Some hunters left a disgusting pig souvenir at the launch site. The only part it appears they took was the pigs head.

02/01/2009 - Gunnison Creek Again

Launch: Steele Creek Park in Satsuma, AL
Distance: Approx 10 miles
Route: Up Gunnison Creek to the first log jam and back.
Pace: Leisurely.
Weather: Sunny, 55-60 degrees, calm conditions.

1) I wanted to go up Gunnison Creek again to explore the upper section. Conditions at start time were ideal again.

2) North beyond I-65, the creek really clears up and you can see the flowing grasses and sandy bottom.

3) Also associated with the more shallow creek is a little current.

4) Upper Gunnison creek is beautiful. I kept thinking there would be a log jam around the next corner but I was able to paddle on 0.75 miles past US 43. I'll be paddling up there more often. 

5) Grrrr. Took a whole bunch of otter photos and they all came out blurred due to the camera switch setting which must have been bumped in my excitement.

6) The otter came shooting out of the water carrying a turtle, played with it, grew bored or something and went back into the water.

7) The clouds were reflecting nicely off the waters as the sun lowered closer to the horizon.

8) Nice view! Even better in person.

9) Sunset.

10) The Gunnison Creek sunset had some wispy clouds shedding their moisture in advance of an approaching front.

12/29/2006 - Briar Creek

Launch: Brynes Lake in Baldwin County off Highway 225.
Launch Cost: Free.
Route: West out Brynes Lake, across the Tensaw River to Gravine Island Sandbar for a break. Then northwest toward Mobile River, then north into Big Briar Creek up to the first tributary to the right, then returned to launch site.
Distance: 11.1 miles round trip.
Average Speed: 3.1 mph.
Time: Approx. 3.5 hrs.
Pace: Leisurely.
Weather: 65-70 degrees, sunny, and light winds.

1) Taken from the top of the sand on Gravine Island.

2) A variety of Lichen blankets limbs of trees.

3) The palmetto plants provide a bit of green in an otherwise drab environment.

4) The waters were slick on Briar Creek Tributary.

5) A variety of Lichen blankets limbs of trees.

6) The sun lowers on the horizon on the trip back, only to be hidden by the trees later on.

7) A rather interesting tree structure.

8) Several times, the otter would pop up on the right bank ahead of me, then slowly cross the creek on an intersecting course.

9) As I got closer, the otter would slap its tail and disappear under the water, only to pop up on the right bank again to repeat the game.

10) On Byrnes Lake, an otter darts out in front of me.

So ends a year of great kayaking adventures on the Mobile area waterways. I look forward to breaking in 2007 on the waters. Hope to see you out there next year. 
Happy New Year!

Nature is the greatest teacher and I learn from her best when others are asleep. In the still dark hours before sunrise God tells me of the plans I am to fulfill.
-George Washington Carver