Fathers Day was no exception. Bob, now ex neighbor asked if I wanted to go boating on Sunday. By boating we mean kayaking. I said Sure! The I realized it was Fathers Day on Sunday.
I know I asked for a nice huge breakfast of eggs waffles and bacon, but I guess Tracy will just have to cook it some other time?
She's still not ready to jump in a long distance trip and this was kind of a long one, even for the first trip of the year. However, that did not stop Mackenzie from jumping in to be my paddle partner for the day!
The trip started at Grafton's Lime Kiln Park, actually a interesting historical site. They also have disc golf and fishing. Quite a nice park. The weather looked kind of cloudy to start the day but it turned out to be great.
We launched before 11 AM and headed on the Milwaukee River to the Thiensville Dam.
Go Kiki
The dragon flies were thick! I had no fewer than 5 land directly on me at one time, say nothing of how many were on the boats.
We ran across a pair of bald eagles. Were they nesting? We couldn't tell but the swooped down enough to get a much better view that this picture I took.
We Surprised some deer around the bend
Lazy and hot was the day. Dangle your feet in the water to keep cool.
Flotilla
Natural Bridge?
It was a tale of two rivers. The first 4 miles were really nice. The water was shallow (some scraping and getting stuck) but it was fast so we made really good time without a lot of effort. Then the river got wide and slow. You could tell we were getting into the urban environment. Houses all along the banks, docks and boats lined up. You know it was so bad for boat traffic they had slow no wake buoys for almost 2 miles.
The houses ranged from huge mansion type homes to shacks with blue tarp roofs. I guess it depended on who was still holding onto the property.
Some of the boats were also shall I say, unique?
That is a homemade party pontoon with a porta potty on the back. Can't get much more redneck that that can you?
The last 1 1/2 miles was all paddling west. Into a moderate breeze. Our little party was getting pooped. The river became more of a lake to paddle and at the end near the take out, people had ski boats running for water skiing and wake boarding. Yea it's like a lake at that point.
We got to the boat launch and did the shuttle runs to get the cars and boats all back together.
It was great and exhausting 9 plus miles of boating. Kiki and I had a great time. Now I really want to do this but then when done with the paddling, unpack the boat set up camp, relax, fish, swim or whatever. Pull up the next day and do it again.
When I got home Joel had tended to the grill just as I had asked him. Fathers day feast fit for a king.
Baby back ribs, baked potatoes and asparagus.
We ate dinner, I had a few beverages and sat on the deck reading a book until almost 9:00 PM What an awesome day! I do have a great family, to give me such a perfect day. I am a lucky man.
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