Shaw Girl Happenings

Well, my friend Jennifer says that whenever she does anything in a boat, something dreadful happens. Now I have had my share of water related catastrophes: boats turtled in the middle of the lake, 2 near drownings, broken bones, bruises, and lacerations, and the worst: losing my 1/2 carat diamond from my engagement ring while lashing a boat in a gale. But, that was all sailing, (which I retired from after the ring incidence, enough was enough.) I’ve always had smooth waters in my canoe. I love canoeing. I love the closeness of nature, the near silence of my trusty canoe slicing through the water, the drip drip dripping of water off my paddle. I do not seek whitewater, but quiet water. I’ve never had any terrifying moments in my canoe; however, that changed last week when I went canoeing with Jennifer.

The morning was overcast, as we put in on the Cassadaga. Temperature in the low 70’s, a perfect day for canoeing: not too hot, not too cold. The stream was lazy this far into August, so we decided to paddle upstream, so as to avoid the annoying car shuffling that occurs when you paddle from point A to point B. We had paddled about 5 miles, past meadowlands rich with wildlife and wildflowers, past the scrubby willows and into the forest, filled with beech, conifers and hardwoods. The sounds of traffic diminished and we were paddling through the wilderness. Heaven.

As we came around another turn in this twisty stream, the sky was black. Rain started, soon became a downpour, the wind kicked up, and lighting started striking. We sheltered under a large tree overhanging the stream, munched on Jennifer’s excellent trail mix (pecans mixed with dried cranberries and raw sunflower seeds, studded with chunks of dark chocolate. Yum- oh!) Lighting struck right across the creek from us. I heard language coming out of Jennifer’s mouth that I never heard before… Finally, the storm passed on and we ventured back downstream.


As we left the forest and paddled through the open meadowlands, another thunderstorm swept through. We were completely exposed. We paddled as fast as we could to an inlet, pulled up the canoe, and huddled under a shrubby willow, shivering and discussing what would get us first: lightening or hypothermia? Well, if you are reading this you know the ending. After about an hour we were finally back in the canoe, although it was still thundering in the distance. We finished our trip, loaded the canoe, and I drove home, soaking wet, took a hot bath and drank a cup of tea and felt restored (and finally warm.)

Photos by Jennifer. Visit her blog here. I left my camera at home along with my first aid kit, hypothermia blanket, cell phone, etc. (I did have my compass however!)

Labels: food, nature, Sue, What-was-I-thinking?