Kayaking - Eleven Point

 Today’s paddle was 8.52 miles and took us about 2 hours and 45 minutes on the water.

We started the day with a scenic hour-and-15-minute drive. William was clearly in his element—once he hit the road, he took off! The drive itself is half the fun, full of rolling hills—up and down, up and down—which made it feel like a mini adventure before the river even began.

When we arrived at Hufstedler’s Outfitters, they quickly got to work loading our kayaks. Unfortunately, one of their trailers had a dangerously bent wheel, forcing them to pull over. You could tell the staff were really trying to make things run smoothly this year—especially after some hiccups last year. Thankfully, the delay was minor. They ran one trailer to the river and came back for the others.

The river was running higher than usual thanks to the recent heavy rain. The sky was dark and moody, but the water was clear and the banks were lined with lush trees. It felt like we were paddling through a painting. How lucky are we?

We stopped for lunch at one of my favorite places—Old Mill Springs. We sat on the old stone wall, overlooking the historic mill where water gushes out from the spring. It’s absolutely gorgeous. Some of us walked around to explore, while a few brave souls jumped into the freezing water. One of the funniest moments came when a butterfly landed on Rebecca—probably drawn to the floral print on her bathing suit. Everyone got a good laugh out of that.

Our favorite part of the river is usually the waterfall, but this year, the water was so high that the falls had turned into fast-moving rapids instead. Honestly, I think it made it even more fun! Many of us paddled back along the shoreline just to go through them again.

Even after tackling the roughest stretch of the river, we finished without a single swimmer. Another successful and memorable day on the water with our paddling buds.