Dear Wes, I second Joan's appreciation for this wonderful post. It was marvelous, and I forwarded it to my best friend, who's temporarily unsubscribed. If writing talent is somehow genetic, then I do hope we're related (my maiden name is Boyd, and my family was originally from the Midwest. Maybe you're a cousin I didn't know I had!) I will think of you especially when I paddle in our currently unseasonably warm weather in central California. While it can get foggy, cold, damp and miserable here in the heart of the winter, at least the rivers and lakes are still liquid! Thanks for the inspiring post, Liz (Boyd) Miller Sacramento, CA That was a really beautiful, if poignant, "trip report." Most of us share your feelings, but only a very few could have stated them so eloquently. Happy New Year. Joan On Fri, 24 Dec 1999 10:09:23 Wes Boyd <boydwe_at_dmci.net> writes: > For the last several days, I have been watching the ice build up > around the shores of a nearby lake.... *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
That was a really beautiful, if poignant, "trip report." Most of us share your feelings, but only a very few could have stated them so eloquently. Happy New Year. Joan On Fri, 24 Dec 1999 10:09:23 Wes Boyd <boydwe_at_dmci.net> writes: > For the last several days, I have been watching the ice build up > around the > shores of a nearby lake, and watching a flock of hundreds of geese > huddle > in the shrinking puddle of open water. This morning it was cold, > after > being clear much of last night and I wondered how they were doing, > so I > decided to use the excuse of a run to the convenience store for a > cup of > coffee to see how they were doing. I headed up the road in my van to > the > sparkle of the overnight's light snow twinkling in the light of a > cold > winter sun. > > As far as I could see, the lake was frozen over, but far out on the > lake > there was a flock of what appeared to be hundreds of geese huddled > together, steam rolling off their body warmth. You'd think they'd > fly off > to a warmer climate, and they're going to have to pretty soon, but > they're > apparently hanging on in hopes of a thaw that will have to be a lot > bigger > than the weatherman says is coming. > > I don't paddle the lake the geese were on very often, since there's > no good > public access and it's surrounded with cottages, each with a couple > of > jetskis at the dock in the warmer months. Coffee in hand, I decided > to head > down to Lake Hudson, my regular kayaking grounds to see what was > happening > there, if anything. > > Down at Lake Hudson, I pulled into the familiar driveway, to see the > think > skin of the snow from the night before covering the road; in my rear > view > mirror, I could see the wind wash from my van piling it in a > complicated > skien of chaotic windthrows. My eye picks out a particular shiny > spot, and > I wonder at how it can continue to throw the light at me as I change > angles > in approaching it. How magical sunlight and snowflakes can be! > > It was obvious that I was the first person to head into the lake > today, > even though by now it was midmorning of another short winter's day. > The > colors of the day were white and brown, with the blue of the sky > overhead. > Off to sunward, I saw the shape of a large bird gliding between > naked, > barren branches. It looked sort of like a hawk, but since I only saw > a > silhouette, my bird identification was challenged. Whatever it was, > it was > another bird that I would have thought would be off in a warmer > climate, > soaking in the rays of a tropical sun, soaring over some beach > crowded with > sunbathers, but it too must have had some reason to hang around and > put up > with the cold of a Michigan winter, at least for a bit longer. > > It was bleak down at the boat launch, the scene of many loadings and > unloadings over the years. There would be none today, for the lake > was > covered with ice. There was the gray where stress fractures > resulting from > the expansion of the ice when it froze shoved a little water out > onto the > surface, enough to wet down the dusting of snow, but as a last gasp > of hope > of open water, it wasn't much to think about. The ice was new enough > that > there was no way I was going to walk out on it, although in the back > of my > head I thought that I might like to take a hike out there later in > the > winter, when the ice is thicker. Such a hike might reveal a few > secrets > that are hard to discern from the seat of a kayak, but today > wouldn't be > the day, either. > > I could at least take a walk around the boat launch. I left the van > running; the heater isn't very good, and it could use all the help > it would > get. A light breeze bit at my ears, and I pulled down the stocking > cap that > I'd only started wearing this week. A mile off in the distance, I > could see > the secret little spot that I call "The Narrows", where a channel > leads to > the western part of the lake. Today, the western section was hidden, > and > this time, it would remain so, since there'd be no trip down there, > along > the ridge where the turkey vultures soar in the summers, no blue > herons to > inspire by the grace of their flight, no geese -- not even a > huddling flock > of diehards like I'd seen on the other lake earlier. There'd be no > soft > putter of motors as fishermen trolled for the lake's lunker muskies, > and no > dip of paddle in the water. Under it's hard, white blanket, the lake > was > asleep for the winter. > > The days and weeks until the lake wakes up seem endless, a near > eternity > looming ahead. Over the last decade or so, we've had open water by > the end > of February about half the time, but I've seen the ice remain until > April, > too, so there's no safe way to make a prediction of how long I'll > have to > wait, frustrated by nature's cycle. I make a mental note to take the > paddling gear out of the back of the van, where it's ridden > regularly since > March. I have to have faith in the cycles of nature, in the > wanderings of > the sun, that sooner or later the days will warm up, that the first > sprigs > of green will appear, and that the geese will come back. > > "Two months", I think. "Two months, and at least we'll be looking > out of > it." I'm lying to myself, of course; it'll be more like three, or > even > more, before I'll be able to get out with the kayak with any > regularity. > > I'm not really dressed for being out in the breeze, so I turn back > to the > van, where the heater is struggling to pull ahead of the winter's > cold. All > the holiday activities lie ahead, the dinners, the gifts, the family > time. > It's a bright spot in a bleak period, when spring seems so far away. > > > ************************************************************************* ** > PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author > and not > to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission > Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net > Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net > Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ > ************************************************************************* ** ________________________________________________________________ YOU'RE PAYING TOO MUCH FOR THE INTERNET! Juno now offers FREE Internet Access! Try it today - there's no risk! 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