Day 2

A pleasant start after camping on dry land. Before long I was just a couple bends away from Kohlhagens Beach and had a brief chat with some guys fishing. Just after that, in a moment of low concentration, I banged straight into a nasty clutching snag mid river. I pushed the boat passed part of it but a piece of it took out my rear (actually forward) view mirror and then looked like it was going to get a grip on the back of the boat and tear a bit off, but I jumped up the back and pushed away. We floated free and I said a few choice things as I rowed clear. The inside of the turn actually had a nice sandy beach backed by a grass bank, so I pulled in there to check the damage.

The mirror was still on board, but the rubber mount had pulled off over some screw heads. I got the swiss knife out and extracted the screws and then re-assembled the lot and stuck a bit of tape over it for strength. There appeared to be no other damage apart from to my nerves, so I had a bit of a break and then set off.

As I passed Kohlhagens beach, a couple of blokes came out in a canoe, wished me well, and said it sounded like a great trip and they would love to do it too. I thanked them and felt a bit cheered. Because it is a holiday weekend, there are lot of people camping on the banks and they all give a wave.

After Kohlhagens Beach, the next big landmark is the departure of Old Man Creek. This diverges from the river and rejoins quite a bit later. Of course, a pile of water goes off down this waterway and the river becomes shallower, narrower and faster. I didn't really understand this until I had got past it. I had planned an easy day with an early stop, but in this bit of the river the banks are steep and the river is pushing along at quite a rate through lots of snags, which is a bit wearing. To add to the amusement a stiff breeze had sprung up which made handling the boat a bit harder. On the plus side, the speed of the current meant i was covering some distance.

On a fairly straight stretch a collection of snags appeared ahead. On the left, a submerged fallen tree with lots of branches sticking up, and on the right, a pair of isolated stumps. I went right as there appeared to be more water over there. This was a poor choice. As I approached the things, i could see they were just right for jamming the boat if hit broadside. To late now to pass to the left of them, I pulled on the oars and aimed between them, caught a bit of current and BANG hit the left hand one head on, hard enough so I fell off the seat. More bad language.

To be continued in a later post..

Sent from my iPad