Canoe at the Beach

We put in at Indian Pass Campground just to see what it was like. The tide was coming in and there was a terrific current. It didn't take long for us to decide to beach the canoe. We watched a two man kayak go out, headed for St Vincent. They turned into the current, and sort of went sideways into the beach, making land across the pass in a short time. We have a lot to learn.

Fall Garden

I am severely late in starting fall garden. Too much going on. I finally planted some greens. Cleaned the greenhouse a bit and moved less cold hardy plants into it. Wanted to go canoeing on the Suwannee today, but too much work.

On Lawn Blowers in the Cemetery

I dismiss the sound of blowers, mowers, ridem' cowboy. Tire tracks running over the graves. There are other ways you know, but we must hurry, labor costs are high. I saw the other ways, a push mower and a machete on Baytree Road. I do the other ways. Robinson says "...no disagreeable effects result from decay." A wild garden is an event. It allows untold exploration and old thoughts to survive. It changes with the turning and sometimes glows in the moonlight. Return to the Earth, mausoleums are for rich men.
Download The Wild Garden by William Robinson at Google Books.

Flag Day

I tried to hang up the flag but it is too large for the porch. So I guess no flag on Flag Day.
The garden has gone wild with weeds but the squash are producing well. The okra will be blossoming soon and giving plenty of harvest for pickling. I may even try a few peas with it for an old-fashioned treat.

Illness

It is such a short life, or so it seems when an illness takes over a life. The thoughts of, what have I missed? and, why does it have to be this way? come through at this time.

Gardening

The squash, tomatoes and peppers are doing fine. The greenhouse find at the salvation army was a month late but will work well in the fall.  I will be a certified Master Gardener soon!

Did some more transplanting in the front. The century plant was moved to make more room for the Artemisia. Pulled compost out of the pile and tried to cover the Hibiscus with it to see what happens. 

Course of events

I turned the pile, the steam rose in the cool air. The potatoes were planted near the garlic. It is still to cold to do seeds. But will get the peas in in the next week. dark of the moon, roots?

Garden news

The spinach was planted Thursday, along with transplanting of some daylilies and ground layering of the Artemisia. Continuing the raking, weeding and hoeing. Potatoes were planted at the farm today and city potatoes tomorrow. The compost keeps dropping in size and steams when it is turned on the cold mornings.
Bedding plants should be done as soon as this last Blackberry Winter is over by the middle of the week.

The Alapaha

We put in at the 168 landing and spent the next 4 hours on the many twists and turns of the Alapaha. We landed at the Lakeland bridge on 221. The river had dropped at least three feet from our previous trip on Saturday. We feel very lucky to have had the opportunity to paddle this river.

Alapaha

My first trip on the Alapaha was short, but exciting. The water was high and we went up stream, fighting the swift current. The trip back was relaxing. It was a Saturday and there were many motor boats with rude week-end drivers. We plan to put in on 168 bridge during the week and float to the Lakeland 221 bridge during the week. The Alapaha has sandy banks and the brown water so many south Georgia rivers are known for.

Chattahoochee

Took a short day trip on the backwaters of the "Hooch." Made a loop below Goat Rock around the big island and back to the dock. It was windy and cool and we managed to make it through with only one dunking.

float your boat

While I have heard if one boat rises we all rise there still is much to be said for keeping your own boat in floating condition.

links

www.valdostadailytimes.com

Withlacoochee Blues

I miss the brown waters of the With. The Platte has its own attractions, but the wildness of the With cannot be matched. I look for ward to an October canoe trip.

No Rain

It has been a month since our last canoe trip and I am sure the With is even lower with more shoals. Not a good time to canoe. The Suwannee is probably the best bet right now.

Day trip

The two of us put in our Old Town 14 ft. Guide at the Bellville Landing in N. Florida at 9:20 a.m. on March 31. It was a smooth start and we were surrounded by spring greenery. The waterway was clean of litter, unlike the Georgia landing at Knights Ferry. It was smooth and relaxed until we came to our first shoal. Being novices we took the canoe out of the water and ported it around. Also, we did the same on the second shoal we came upon.
We used one of the stops to enjoy our "Hot an Spicy" vienna sausages, stale triskets, and fizzy water with lemon and ice. Later, as we approached another shoal we pulled in and observed boaters that seemed to be in trouble on the shoals. We walked down to see if we could help and they had made it through and were ready to move on. They were loaded down, traveling with a canoe, packed kayak, a dog, and three men. There was no way they could port around a shoal. It did make us realize we did not have to port and could wade through the shallows with the canoe. we came upon at least two more shoals and waded through with little trouble. We had a couple of good rides through some small shoals that had a deeper channel.
The egrets and kingfishers were plentiful and fish were jumping a foot in the air as we moved along. The river was uninhabited all along the first half of the trip, but as we got closer to Blue Springs the cabins, campers, and trailers began to appear. Real estate signs, Confederate flags, and weakly built piers became the norm. As we approached the high bridge we heard the voices coming from the Springs and knew we were there. We put in around 4:00 p.m. in the Springs after a seven hour ride over a twelve mile stretch of river. Our ride back home arrived shortly and since here is no ramp at Blue Springs we had to carry the canoe up the steps to the parking lot. It was a good ride overall. Our next trip will be to tackle the stretch from Knights Ferry to Bellville.

the full moon

The last dance must be danced alone.

Berry, Reese, & Pitts

The two editorials in the Valdosta Daily Times today by Charlie Reese and Leonard Pitts at first glance did not seem to be about the same topic. I did find a connection and it was due to my recent discovery of the writings of Wendell Berry. The main concept that I was able to connect with these three writers was the knowledge of loss of community. A revolutionary slogan turned into a pr campaign, reported by Pitts, and the inability of the UN to be effective, reported by Reese, are both symptoms of a global corporate entity.
Berry says that national and global communities do not exist. A community only exists at the local level. It is only at that level that anything can be achieved that will actually make a difference.
I am doing my part and it starts with my vegetable garden. The food I gather is produced by me. I started the seeds, nourished the small plants, and finally pulled the dying bean vines out of the ground to go back to the compost to enrich my next round of growing. Gardening is subversive because it really does represent freedom from the whims of the outside world. I will plow up that lawn and I wonder how the city will feel about a few chickens.

VSU

The map showing the plans for the pedestrian-friendly campus are up on the website. It will be an improvement.