By the time Delores, Janet and Theresa had unloaded and unpacked, Marie and Yvonne had pitched their tent in the free camping zone. Instructions from the paddle guides said to meet at 1:00 at Good Times Motel & Marina.
Seemed everyone got that memo. Finding a parking spot meant channeling some creative parking inspiration.
15 paddlers, including Delores, Marie, Theresa and Yvonne, climbed into this groovy little ol' transformed school bus which served as a shuttle bus, while they watched as their kayaks got loaded onto a couple of transport vehicles. This way everyone (and their yaks) arrived at the designated launch site (Steinhatchee Falls) without getting lost and arriving late, or not at all. Great idea, event organizers!!!
Steinhatchee Falls
Kayaks got unloaded and everyone is getting organized
And they're off.....
Time to enjoy a leisurely 6.7 mile paddle downstream on the tea colored waters of the Steinhatchee River. The upper half of the river is a shady, moss-draped tunnel that widens as it approaches the Gulf.
Beautiful scenery at every turn.
Marie, Theresa and Yvonne - dead ahead
Great opportunity to meet other paddlers and make new friends. Paddling along striking up conversations with complete strangers only to find out how much you have in common. It's a true testament to the phrase "It's a small world".
Wouldn't mind waking up every morning and having such a beautiful view from the window. #jealous
The 6.7 mile paddle ended between 5:00 - 5:30 p.m. as everyone slowly but surely arrived at the take out destination, the ramp at Spurgeon Cheek House, a newly developed property owned by Dixie County that will be available to the public for rental.
All went well until Theresa tipped over in her kayak trying to get it out of the water once she was at the end point. In doing that, her automatic life vest inflated upon impact with the water. The next 30 minutes were spent trying to figure out how to DE-flate the darn thing!!
A quick drive back to the condo to freshen-up a bit before heading over to Good Times Motel & Marina for the scheduled "Meet & Greet" with free hor dourves and free drinks from 6-7.
Problem was, by the time the girls got back to the condo, showered and drove to Good Times Marina were the party was going on, it was 6:30, all of the food was gone! That was pretty disappointing but a few red solo cups of free Coors Light seemed to ease the pain somewhat.
Tummies were growling, however, and that couldn't be ignored much longer so a mad-dash to Roys Restaurant to take advantage of the "free appetizer" coupon that was in everyone's goody-bag was in order.
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