Got the Packrafts back out
last update: 07/14 @ 20:08

Sarah and I took out the Packrafts again.

The river was a bit lower than last time, about 3.2. So we headed up the Maryland chute (through the Calleva paddleboard class), played around a bit, and then popped out and over the rocks there.

It’s very handy to have a watercraft that crazy light :)

We paddled up a bit further then headed down the Virginia chute. The photo on the right is a little eddy above the center chute.

After playing around a bit in the Virginia chute we headed back to the Maryland chute for a few minutes before heading back home.

These packrafts remain a really fun watercraft. I need to work a bit more on my roll — I did test it out and came up, but only because I pushed off the bottom.

Mather Gorge
last update: 07/08 @ 17:37

Not the blue skies I was hoping for, but the clouds kept it a little bit cooler.

And the rain stayed away.

I decided to portage a little bit and got up to Rocky Island — first time in a while I’ve done that.

It was a nice day to be out and I mostly had the river to myself, though I did pass a kayak class at the Maryland chute and a second class in the gorge, below Wet Bottom.

But I had the Maryland and Virginia chutes to myself. And the only others at Rocky were climbers and fishermen. Of course, it was a weekday and just about 3.0.

Oh, and I drifted almost between these two before they thought I was getting too close.

Once more for June
last update: 06/30 @ 19:17

Nice day to be out on the river.

It was about 90 degrees — cooler than the rest of the week is forecast to be — and 2.94 so getting summer low but not too low yet.

I anticipate Sarah and I will get the packrafts out again soon.

I ran into two classes of Calleva boaters (and saw a raft upstream where we often see the heron).

These guys in inflatables were coming downstream from Mather Gorge (Maybe they put in at fisherman’s eddy below Great Falls?).

And they met up with a group of hard boaters playing around at the Maryland chute.

I even briefly helped with one errant boat on my way back to the take out.

Comparision
last update: 06/05 @ 18:41

I can’t remember the last time I was out on the river two days in a row.

I wanted to head back to the same spot in the canoe and see how I think the two watercraft compare. (It was a little warmer today and the level down just a bit to 3.6 but very similar.)

I think I can be confident that the packrafts are unlikely to stand up to 10 years of use as well as the canoe has. I don’t see any issues with them yet but I just don’t believe they will still be river-worthy in ten years — but I’m happy to be proven wrong.

Both are really fun boats to paddle. I will admit to laughing out loud yesterday after surfing in the packraft, it was just FUN.

I feel more stable in the packraft and the benefits of two blades on the paddle make it easier to deal with swirly currents. I feel like I need to think more about what I’m doing in the canoe. I spent a long time looking at Hollywood rapid on the James the last time we visited and thinking about how I might run it in my canoe (I used to run it all the time with little thought in a kayak.) I think I’d just paddle the packraft as I used to paddle my Mirage and later Pro Jet.

And I’m confident (but don’t have experience yet) that a swim in the packraft will be a quicker recovery — it’s so much lighter and being self-bailing, won’t hold much water at all.

And I can walk normally much more quickly after getting out of the packraft than getting off my knees and out of the canoe. Obvious but worth stating: portage and getting from the car to the river and back are much easier with a ˜10 pound packraft.

I had a lot of fun in the canoe today — and ran into two other canoes playing the same spot. I’m not ready to trade one for the other.

I’ll just enjoy having great options for now :)

As promised…
last update: 06/04 @ 18:51

… I took more than one photo this time. This one is not too bad.

It was about 88 degrees, blue sky, low humidity (for DC) and the river was about 3.8.

We had fun in the Packrafts at Angler’s Inn. We paddled up the back channel and portaged just a little bit (because they are so light).

That let up paddle down the Maryland chute before playing around a bit.

I had no trouble crossing the Maryland chute hole — they are nicely stable boats.

And even got on the Virginia chute wave for a bit of surfing.

Oh, and we were butterfly buzzed.

This guy stayed with us for a little while as we recombobulated after the short portage.

New Watercraft!!!
last update: 05/29 @ 17:17

Next time we take out the packrafts, I’ll stop having fun long enough to take more than one photo. This one turned out sort of OK.

At any rate: the Christmas packrafts have seen the river now.

And they are fun to paddle.

Today was warm and surprisingly high water (about 6.2 — this is just upstream from the back channel at Anglers). But the packrafts handled the current and eddy lines well. I either almost surfed a nice wave or did surf it briefly :)

Lots more fun to come…

Picture Perfect Day
last update: 05/08 @ 23:09

The river was just about 3.0, low for spring but I was quite happy with it. I was a bit busier than expected this morning, but really glad I jumped at the chance to get out.

Friday afternoon, no problem with parking, few other folks out — I did see a couple SUPs and a couple kayaks — and 75 degrees with sunny skies.

This is the Maryland Chute. If I’d been less busy in the morning, I would have paddled up the gorge. Next time.

I remain a huge fan of retirement!

Phew …
last update: 04/30 @ 16:38

… It’s been a busy month and as I made plans for that quick trip to Seattle last week, I realized I’d not been on the river in April yet this year.

I just made it.

Today was a perfect spring day: about 70 degrees, water level 3.2 (a bit low for spring, but I’m not complaining) and mostly sunny.

The Maryland fire departments had the same idea: when I pulled up, they were still getting off the river from training runs. My fav: Cabin John plus Montgomery and Howard Counties had their swiftwater rescue teams out.

Beyond that excitement, it’s great to see the shore greening out nicely.

If you allow the James river in August last year, and ocean kayaking in the Galapagos in January last year, I’ve been able to get out at least monthly since May, 2024. (I’m enjoying the new tagging option and Sarah’s advanced tag filtering idea to find things like that out.)

(Hmmm, last time I just made it for a month — June 2025 — I spelled it “whew;” I think I got it right this time with “Phew.”)

Warm again
last update: 03/26 @ 16:47

A bit over 80 degrees and river running 3.86 on a weekday!

Perfect time to be out. The water is still cold so I stayed pretty conservative.

But crossing the nice wave in the Virginia Chute was a lot of fun, even when it broke in my cockpit and I took on a fair amount of water. It was not enough to make it impossible to control the boat (and I stayed upright).

So it was fun. But I was not lured into the whole in the center chute. That would be a long cold swim no matter how tempting it looks. Also a lot of work to get back up to that spot.

I was warm even in a boat full of water with polypro and no wind/water breaker over that.

I saw one CCA trip coming off the river as I was heading out. And one guy with a SUP getting up to the Virginia Chute as I was heading back. So I had Anglers Inn Maryland, Center and Virginia all to myself.

Beautiful Day!
last update: 03/10 @ 16:51

You just can’t pass up an 80 degree day in March. And with lots of water in the river (back to 4.6 again), it was a great day to be out at Angler’s Inn. (This is next to the hydraulic in the center chute; I stayed out of that.)

I did see a couple of other folks on the river, but there was space in the lower parking lot — always a plus for weekday boating. I really do like this retirement thing!

It’s interesting to see who is wearing what on a warm day in March (the river water is still cold, but no more ice on the river): I saw one boater in the parking lot in a dry suit, and one just putting in wearing shorts — both ends of the spectrum. All the hikers and walkers were in shorts and tee shirts. I was happy to have my fleece, even if I was a little warm. A little water spray was enough to keep me comfy.

Chilly water on the Potomac
last update: 02/20 @ 17:37

With the snow and cold temperatures, I wasn’t sure I’d find a nice day to get on the river this month. This morning was pretty rainy but the forecasters promised the rain would move out and the sun might make an appearance.

I’m glad they were right. It was about 55, air temperature. The water was clearly much colder. Not frozen where I was but the back channel was frozen and there were small icebergs floating down the river.

Along with some other debris: sticks, branches, logs. It’s been a long time since I’ve see the river at 4.6 feet. Clearly there was a lot of debris to flush downstream.

And did I mention there were little ice bergs floating around? Also there was a lot of ice pretty much across the river down by Georgetown.

Not that I was going to go in that direction at all, sadly not anytime soon. The huge sewage spill is starting to get under control, but I expect it will be a while before the river from Lock 10 downstream is safe for recreation.

The C&O canal, below, was also ice covered, but I’m confident not thick enough to skate on. I know folks have taken advantage of the ice since the big storm to skate there — but not today; maybe not again this winter.

I owe my PTO colleagues thanks again: one retirement present was an NRS gift certificate — suggested by Sarah :) — which I used for splash pants. That made the one little breaking wave that washed over the bow much nicer — no shock of freezing water on my legs (through the polypro pants).

I’m pretty confident March will have at least a day or two this nice or nicer so I expect to see more of Angler’s Inn.

Still cold!
last update: 01/31 @ 17:44

Sarah decided today was the day to check out the ice on river.

While it was about 20 degrees it was not windy.

Tomorrow we’re due for gusts to 35mph or so — making windchills that are formally wicked cold.

Today was cold, but we were well bundled.

And while we walk by pretty much every time we head down to the river, today we went inside an open house for the Alexandria Seaport Foundation. (Not pictured, their building is just to the left and a little ways back from the old propeller in the photo on the right.)

We know them as the wooden boat builders on the waterfront. (Before it got too cold, they were working on “Dave” outside.)

They seem like very nice folks and Alexandria is fortunate to have that resource (which we knew nothing about before today).

I suspect we’ll stay hunkered down at home tomorrow — and send warm thoughts to family further south where the next snowstorm is hitting.

Thank you Sarah for the nudge to get outside, and for asking if I got a shot of the Capitol — that spurred me to take off my gloves (again) and put on the longer lens so it might be visible.

(Now I need to pay more attention to the level in the viewfinder so that the photos are straighter.)

(For those with a long memory — we did not get out the canoe today.)

Back on the Potomac
last update: 01/13 @ 23:18

It was a little it higher (around 3 feet on the gauge) today; just over 50 degrees. And no ice to be seen; I’ll take it :)

I saw a surprising number of other boaters out today (including Robert Gue, from Asseteague) — pretty much all in dry suits, which made me feel a little under dressed. But I stayed conservative and just played around a bit in the sun.

12 months in a row with at least one day per month on the Potomac. I had fun and feel good about being able to get out on the river.

Looking a lot like Christmas
last update: 12/18 @ 16:51

The boy is home.

The tree is up and sprouting presents.

Sadly we weren’t able to pick up this tree from our local lot and carry it home. They were running low on trees and their trees were starting to look tired.

We’d hoped to pick up a tree with Robert but after checking the local lot a couple days before he came back from Seattle, Sarah and I decided to hit up the garden center up the street.

Interestingly enough, the guy who helped us with the tree and putting it on the car, recognized us as Robert’s parents. He was the younger brother of an ultimate frisbee playing teammate.

Oh, and the water is cold enough for there to be ice on the Potomac :)

While the air was about 55 degrees, clearly the water was colder. And the river was surprisingly low (I’m starting to understand why DC is looking for options beyond the Potomac for drinking water.)

The level today was about 2.65 feet. I thought maybe the gauge was frozen and not accurate, but that seems perfectly in line with the scrapy rocks I found.

There was a very cool sound as I paddled by some of the thinner ice flows: a crinkle like breaking glass as the ice cracked from the minimal wave caused by the canoe’s passing.

This is the Virginia chute (at 2.65) with a little ice on the shady part of the rocks. The thin ice flows were closer to the beach, where there is a lot less current.

And I’ve been told I can count sea kayaking in the Galapagos for my January boating trip. This makes 20 months with at least one boating trip a month. If we get another nice day next month, I may be able to make it 12 months in a row on the Potomac.

Really looking like fall
last update: 11/03 @ 17:34

I expect with the dry autumn we’ve had this year, the leaves around Angler’s Inn are unlikely to get any better than today.

Which is fine, I think the back channel looks splendid in its fall glory today.

It was a bit chillier (low 60s, and I’m sure the water is also gradually cooling off) than the last time I was out but we did get some rain so the level was up a bit to just over 3 feet (3.03).

I did see the heron again, but not long enough to try to get a photo. I also saw a couple other boaters out on the water today.

I’m hoping for a bit more rain before I get out again, today was noticeably less rocky and the Maryland chute a bit more fun to surf across.

Of course, I also hope it’s not too cold for me to want to go out should the river come up a bit :)

Another pretty day
last update: 10/22 @ 22:34

Cooler today, mid-sixties, but the water level was about the same at about 2.7 feet.

And there were more clouds coming in.

But the leaves are starting to take on fall colors, even though it’s been a dry summer so I don’t expect the colors to be great this year.

But this spot, just upstream of the Virginia chute, was quite pretty.

Sarah was meeting with a friend so she missed out on the walk or paddle this time — but got to enjoy time with her friends, maybe a fair trade.

And, in light of my prior post (see below), this is the not too pricey waterproof camera we have that I feel comfortable clipping into my boat for a trip when it will get wet (generally not too wet, but you never know). It’s quick and easy with a little Joby tripod to snap a selfie for this blog.

Blue Sky Day
last update: 10/15 @ 17:36

I was fortunate that the only side effect from my vaccinations yesterday was a little arm soreness at the spot of the shots.

So I took advantage of the weather to head back to Angler’s Inn and the Potomac. Sarah came along to get out on the Billy Goat trail.

We both enjoyed the weekday with fewer folks out. There were a couple folks going downstream, towards lock 10, and I saw one downriver boater coming down through the rapids at Anglers.

And I think we both saw this same heron, at different times. He didn’t let me get much closer before taking off — and maybe finding a spot on the canal to be spotted by Sarah.

The water level remains low, about 2.75 feet; surely an effect of the almost drought conditions we’re in. The big storm we expected earlier this week generally stayed to our east, so still not much rain in a while.

But I’m not complaining about the beautiful, blue skies!

Nice to feel more like fall around here
last update: 10/02 @ 17:15

The sky was blue between the puffy clouds while the river was a bit low (reflecting the lack of rain): 2.78 on the Little Falls gauge.

That made for a nice, mellow day to take out the canoe and check on on the chutes at Angler’s Inn (this picture is Virginia side).

I didn’t see anyone else on the river; one kayaker was getting ready to go as I was loading up my boat but there were hikers on the trails and rocks.

Potomac getting low
last update: 09/03 @ 17:39

The river has fallen below 3.0 — it was about 2.74 when I was out today. The weather was lovely but it would have been nice to have a bit more water in the river.

But that’s not meant to be a complaint, just an observation. I’m very happy to be able to get out on a beautiful day like today, whatever the level.

(That’s the Maryland Chute at Angler’s Inn in the background.)

Another fun day on the river
last update: 07/08 @ 16:02

I’m taking a page from our Galapagos trip and using a rashguard/sunshirt these days. It seems to be working, I’m not feeling sunburned and appreciate a little cooling when it gets wet.

The river was about 3.6 today; this photo is from the Maryland chute at Angler’s Inn. It was hot, but nice to be on the river again. And that’s a pretty fun level for playing in both the Maryland and Virginia chutes.

Maybe when the temps drop a bit (~92 today) I’ll be more inspired to get back up the gorge and check out Wet Bottom and Rocky Island — it’s been a while.

Whew!
last update: 06/30 @ 17:28

I just managed to get on the river in June. I’m trying to see how close to at least monthly I can make it.

That should be easy but… (I don’t expect sympathy) I tweaked my back early on in the month and then we had that trip to Curaçao…

But I did get out today (about 3.8 on the gauge), it was much cooler on the river but ~95 degrees with crazy humidity is really hot! When I crossed over to the Virginia chute, I saw this family making their way upstream. I was surprised when they just paddled/ran up the wave next to the rock. Very impressive attainment skills.

I did note that my strap tie-downs are ready to be reattached. So I have some maintenance in my future before my next trip on the river. With the month of July coming up, I’m pretty sure I’ll be able to make that fix and keep my streak running.

We’ve had some rain
last update: 05/07 @ 17:27

So the river is muddy and up a bit (4.6).

With a mostly blue sky (some clouds) and mid 70s it was a really nice day to be out.

I didn’t make it across to the Virginia chute — too much current moving downstream.

But I did paddle up the back channel and saw a goose family complete with a few goslings waddling around.

And the Howard County swift water rescue team was out training. When I first got there, they were all swimming down from the Virginia chute — I would guess getting used to being in swift water.

They were just getting ready to head upstream when I took that photo. When they really starting going up the current, it was pretty impressive.

You may notice that they are front loading the rafts to keep the nose down a bit as the motors get going.

Back to normal programming
last update: 04/22 @ 19:03

A perfect way to spend part of Earth Day!

It was warmer today; about 75 degrees and the water level was about 3.5 feet. The water temp seemed a tiny bit warmer than last week — but maybe that was really just the much warmer air temp.

At any rate, a very nice day to spend some time out on the river.

Chilly day on the river
last update: 04/17 @ 18:04

Sally had a friend to go visit this morning so Hank and I dropped her off and headed to Angler’s Inn. Sadly, Sarah had a conflict.

It was about 3.75 on the gauge; the water is still pretty cold (I found out with direct experience) and the air was just barely 60.

So chilly.

But look at the blue sky!

And all the trees are starting to leaf out now (some more than others).

We had to say goodbye to Hank and Sally this afternoon. They are headed back up to Hull for the spring. But we’re talking more seriously about when we could head up that way for a visit.

Cloudy but warm day
last update: 04/03 @ 17:33

We’ve have some crazy warm days lately; today was an example: almost 80. The river is about 3.5 on the gauge so a bit lower than last month. The water is still chilly but it was a very nice afternoon.

No water on the lens this time just because this was early in my time playing around the chutes.

75 degrees
last update: 03/19 @ 22:35

I can’t turn down a 75 degree day :)

The level was pretty close to the 3.8 from last month — surprising with the lack of rain we’ve had.

But I’m not complaining. It was very nice out (water still chilly, but air was warm).

And I would say the water on the lens is proof of a good time :) A little bit of time both on the Maryland and Virginia chutes and some fun in the center chute as well.

Let’s see how long I can claim the cold water is keeping me conservative on the river…

Nice Day!
last update: 02/26 @ 21:00

I couldn’t let a day like today go by without getting out.

The Potomac water was cold but the air was over 60.

And the sky as blue as could be.

It was a very nice change from the polar vortex that we’ve seen a couple of times this winter.

The water was cold enough that I was happy to be very conservative and mostly stay dry.

Let’s see if I can get out at least once a month the rest of 2025.

Sarah says I can count time in a kayak on our Galapagos trip as boating, but I’m not sure I’ll let myself get away with that. (Seems like salt water shouldn’t count.)

(At about 3.8, the Virginia chute wave was really calling to me; but I only surfed across once — I really didn’t want to flip today.)

Warm end of the Year
last update: 12/30 @ 22:18

With late December temperatures in the mid 60s, I couldn’t stay home.

I took the canoe (and the cool weather gear as the water is pretty chilly) to Angler’s Inn.

Early afternoon on a Monday and I had the river to myself — along with a couple ducks.

As I was heading back towards the car, more folks were showing up.

The river was about 3.3 and I think they were heading upstream to Rocky Island.

Clearly leaves are off the trees now.

I think this makes it look colder than it really was.

Happy Birthday to me
last update: 12/10 @ 17:42

Back from unusually sunny Seattle to…

…Foggy DC.

But not a bad day to be on the river. It’s about 2.8 and I had Angler’s Inn all to myself this afternoon.

I really liked how still it looked at the beach.

And the (low) water was plenty clear to see through, but I didn’t see any fish today.

And surprisingly few birds as well.

It was a bit cool. And there was a bit of rain yesterday and the forecast is for more tonight. So maybe the birds were all curled in warm in their nests.

Speaking of warm, thank you PTO: I used part of the NRS gift certificate for Endurance pants which made the enviable splashes much less shocking.

I even decided to treat myself to new wetsuit booties — my toes are sticking through the ones I have now. It’s likely the first time I’ve worn them this fall or winter.

I’m looking forward to getting out more with my new cold weather gear.

I bet I can even find a pretty, blue-sky day (even if cold) in the next few weeks.

Head clearing
last update: 11/07 @ 18:15

We’re still very much trying to process what just happened in the elections.

Time outside is a great stress relaxer.

And getting away from screens and news and having such a pretty place to focus on and pay attention to really helps reset (or at least temporarily calm) the mind.

Another crazy warm November day (yes, I do worry we’re the frogs in the pot gradually warming up), so we got the boats back out.

I’m glad to be the recipient of Sarah’s excellent photographer’s eye, but clearly my game is slipping.

As we paddled over from the Maryland Chute to the Virginia side, I liked this view of Sarah with the fall leaves behind her.

But when we came back to the Maryland side; and saw the Heron hanging out, she saw this great shot of me under the Heron’s gaze:

Closing out the month
last update: 10/31 @ 22:17

We took advantage of with warming weather and headed back to Angler’s Inn today.

The river was about 2.8; low but still a fun spot to play in.

And the fall colors are looking pretty good.

It’s been so long since it rained that the river is really clear now. And it’s great to be able to see down to the bottom.

We scared off our heron before we could get a picture.

(That’s the center chute on the right; no boats in that picture — we had the river to ourselves.)

But we saw lot of minnows cruising over and around the rocks.

And the birds really seemed to enjoy the thermal over the river today.

It was a great way to step away from the news and goings on in the world and just enjoy the river in our backyard.

We did neglect our Jack o’lantern carving duties; but it seemed like a more than fair tradeoff.

(That the Maryland chute above and to the right.)

Home Turf
last update: 10/21 @ 20:56

Blue skies and nary a cloud to be seen!

Another beautiful afternoon on the river.

This time Sarah and I stayed closer to home and enjoyed paddling Angler’s Inn to Lock 10.

We saw herons, buzzards, ducks and some really big catfish.

And Sarah took this great picture of me in the waves at Stubblefield Falls.

Another great weekday trip!

We did see more boaters putting on as we finished our shuttle. We decided those were the after work crowd.

Finally, check out the colors: it really is looking like fall. It may not be a spectacular year for leaf-peeping, but these are looking very nice in the afternoon sun.

Starting to feel more like fall
last update: 10/07 @ 22:37

The weather is starting to feel more like October now and the water from Hurricane Helene has dropped a bit.

The river was still higher than I’ve see it in quite a while, about 4.3 today. I played around in the current, ferrying across and getting pushed around a bit.

I wasn’t able to get up to the Virginia chute, but did take a peek at Difficult Run. At water levels I’m used to, it’s hard to get back in there.

Also, I poked up the back channel to see what I could see.

A Heron, a duck, some turtles and lots of buzzards today (along with a couple hikers and a kayak or two).

It was a nice day to be out; I don’t know if we’ll get any really good colors this fall, but clearly we’ll know pretty soon.

Another beautiful day…
last update: 09/10 @ 23:20

… water level was a little low; just under 2.8

But temperature in the low 80s.

Blue skies.

Weekday, so plenty of parking spaces.

And only one class of SUPs on the river.

So plenty of fun.

I left the class in the Maryland Chute and went to play on the Virginia side. When I came back, they were just heading downstream so I had Maryland Chute to myself.

And I’ve never seen deer crossing the back channel before.

I also saw turtles, heron and an egret.

And lots of little fish, every time I looked down.

Change in the weather
last update: 08/23 @ 17:46

A few days later…

Blue skies, warmer weather.

It’s getting back towards normal August here. And Sarah and I had a lovely time on the river (on a weekday — I’ll get over that eventually).

Break in the heat
last update: 08/20 @ 23:21

It was like an early fall day today.

Cool, but not cold.

And the water level was OK, a bit low but not summertime low.

And exactly what I had hoped for in retirement: the weather was perfect for a quick trip to Angler’s Inn and I was free to take advantage of it.

The sun did break through the clouds now and again. But I’m very happy to have the cooler weather, even if it’s just for a couple of days.

Fun day on the river
last update: 08/16 @ 22:41

Steve and Helen have landed in Alexandria on the tail end of their trip around Lake Superior.

And they brought boats.

So Sarah and I introduced them to Anglers to Lock 10.

We did paddle up to play in the chutes a bit before heading down to lock 10.

New to me (weekday paddling): we ran into a summer camp trip from Calleva. They had a fair number of kids in kayaks, on SUPs and in rafts. They all seemed to be having a good time and they were very nice to our four boat party at the take out.

Steve and Helen may have some Facebook posts later.

And Sarah is likely in the market for a longer padde after playing with theirs.

As expected
last update: 08/13 @ 18:21

Beautiful day.

Good water (much of the Hurricane Debby water has receded — not all but most of it).

And I got on the river.

On a Tuesday :)

Saw one other boater on the river and had no issues with parking spot. Seems like I could get used to this.

Less than 90 degrees
last update: 08/04 @ 17:04

I got out this morning apparently during Cabin John VFD swift water rescue training.

It didn’t look like there was anyone being evacuated, and I got the sense they were checking out where the rocks are with the low water to better know how to get up and down the river.

I enjoyed my time out; I saw a couple kayaks and some SUPs in addition to the rescue rafts.

But no heron today.

Back on the river with Pocket
last update: 07/28 @ 20:22

Pocket was good, she asked “When should I meet you to go to the river?” Not “Should I meet you?”

(Actually, that’s how it was relayed to me. Pocket said she was less forward when talking to SZap.)

It was hot but not horribly humid.

And certainly cooler on the water.

We paddled up from Angler’s Inn to Rocky Island — I don’t recall doing that when there was so little current in the gorge. It really is pretty low.

But there are smiles on everyone’s face.

Angler’s Inn
last update: 07/07 @ 21:30

Another hot day on the river.

The level continues to drop a bit as we’ve not had much rain.

But we’re still taking advantage of the river in our backyard.

We heard that yesterday the river (at least the parking log) was pretty full.

Today, parking was easy.

We did see a few other folks out on the river.

But not very many.

On theory: all the Fourth of July visitors were on their way home.

We did see a couple of these guys.

I believe that’s a northern water snake or banded water snake.

Nonpoisonous but, we’ve been told, bitey.

It was hot enough that they were stretched on the rocks just under the water.

When it’s cooler, they sun themselves on rocks (sometimes).

Lower water…
last update: 06/29 @ 22:24

… Still plenty of fun

Sarah and I made it back to Angler’s Inn this morning. It was hot but not nearly as hot as last weekend. And while the river was a bit lower, it was still very nice to be out.

This evening, we were able to watch the Seattle Cascades win their Ultimate game which sets them up for the post season.

Great Falls
last update: 06/08 @ 17:52

Sarah’s brother David happened to be in town this weekend (congratulations on the award).

And he had some time free so we picked him up and headed to the Billy Goat trail.

I know Hank and Sally and I did this as well, but it had to be 30 years ago.

It was a picture perfect day.

Perfect for us and the Heron!

I’ve forgotten the view of the Falls from the Maryland side. Really pretty impressive (even if the straight Virginia drop is hidden behind the rocks.

And the while we shared the trail with many other families and folks — we had the benefit of someone to take our picture for us.

There is a bit of a scramble up the rocks at one point on the trail, and I’ve often watched folks slip a bit there when I paddle up the gorge. Now I know why :)

It was great fun to see David and show off one of our favorite spots to him. In a way, returning the favor of the Eastern Washington hike he took us on earlier this year.

Now we just need to get him in boat…

Beautiful June Day
last update: 06/01 @ 18:30

We’re thinking more of this in our future!

A lovely June day and we headed a but further upstream to Violette’s Lock.

We realized it had been year since we were there last.

Almost exactly 4 years.

It’s a pretty spot; a bit further to drive and the paddle back up the canal can seem like a lot of flatwater — but filled with turtles this time of year.

Clearly the weather was perfect for it and we had a great time!

The ducks and herons seems to be happy to today too.

We’re less sure about the snake; but it kept to itself so no problem.

Start of summer
last update: 05/26 @ 22:32

The traditional start of summer and Sarah and I were able to get out on the river.

The temperature was certianly summerish: high 80s.

But the water was still cool.

And not too low.

We had a good time at Angler’s Inn.

Both in the waves and surfing across the channel.

There were a few other folks out on the river including one paddle boarder at the Maryland chute who was clearly having a good time.

We hung out there for a bit.

Then paddled across to the Virginia side.

And generally welcomed summer for 2024.

I look forward to more afternoons like this :)

And I’m sure the Potomac won’t disappoint us.

Potomac again
last update: 05/19 @ 22:26

The water level was a bit higher.

And while it was cloudy in the morning (and rainy yesterday), the sun broke through and it was a lovely afternoon.

I saw a few kayakers but at least as many paddle board folk out enjoying the weather.

Sarah will be with her peeps when she next comes out to play on the Potomac.

Back on the Potomac
last update: 05/04 @ 16:08

It’s been a busy spring, but I got back to Angler’s Inn today.

The weather was crazy during the week, a new high record (91) set Thursday; Friday just perfect with mid-70s. Last night the rain and cold front came in.

Of course, not well represented in the photo is the layer of fog just above the river. The river water was warmer than the ~50 degree air temp.

And the rains held off while I got to play in the waves a bit.

I’m sure this will just be the first of many trips as the weather warms up. And I’m sure Sarah will be joining me on many of those.

Cool, but better water level
last update: 12/29 @ 01:14

Robert was not feeling well but back asleep.

So I took advantage of the time off of work and nicer weather to get on the river.

It’s been raining for a few days so higher water than it’s been in a while — and the temperature was not too bad. I was still consciously conservative to try to stay upright (which I did) as the water was pretty cool.

Cold water, warm air
last update: 12/10 @ 15:47

The rains arrived overnight, along with warmer air from the south. That, combined, with the cold Potomac, resulted in some impressive river fog.

Sarah and I walked down to take a look this afternoon between the early rain and the expected storms this evening.

It was a pretty odd site, hard to capture: dense fog from the surface of the river to about 20 feed above it, then it cleared out (but under cloudy skies, harder to see).

Not so much fall anymore
last update: 12/09 @ 19:51

The heavens are supposed to open tomorrow and we expect to get dumped on by rain.

So Sarah and I took advantage of the warmer (note warmer, not warm) weather to head to Angler’s Inn.

She hiked up the Billy Goat trail and found the secret path to the top of the Maryland chute. Check out her Facebook page for her view.

I stuck with my canoe.

The water was “bracing” :)

And I noticed most of the other folks on the river were in drysuits. But I was warm enough except for my feet — my toes were getting cold.

But that does not detract from how pretty a spot it is, even with the leaves off the trees.

And I got to check in with my favorite heron again (top right corner); I bet he or she does not head south for the winter. This was on the Virginia shore; Sarah said she saw one as well, so it seems like there is a heron family in residence there.

Blue Skies
last update: 11/12 @ 10:23

Cool water and the leaves are just past peak.

It was a clear day even if a little cool.

But the river remains low.

That blue sky is not helping our drought. But it is nicer to be out in than the drizzle we had Friday.

It was fun to see some blue skies peak through as we watched the UW Huskies football game (which also had some drizzle and a lot of wind) in the afternoon. While the Huskies won, I think the fans and players may have preferred our weather to theirs.

We’ll miss Robert for Thanksgiving but are looking forward to having him back on our side of the country for Christmas!

Looking very much like fall
last update: 10/29 @ 22:06

It’s looking a lot like fall out there.

But yesterday, at about 85 degrees, was much warmer than fall.

Sarah is visiting friends in Long Island, so I did a few chores yesterday and got on the river today.

The water level is very low — it’s been a while since we’ve had a good soaking rain — and it was about 10 degrees cooler today. But still very nice to be on the water.

The clouds were coming in, but not very fast. Maybe we’ll get some showers this week; the river would be greatful.

We should have more fall-like weather later this week.

And the trick-or-treaters will likely be happy in a warm costume this year. We hope a few come by so we’re not stuck with the candy we have to give out.

Cooling Off
last update: 10/10 @ 17:30

The weather has taken a turn towards fall. It was pretty abrupt but we’re expecting it to warm back up a little bit this week.

Fortunately the water takes a bit longer to cool down so it was very nice to be out yesterday (thank you federal holiday).

Let’s see how long I can keep my streak of at least one trip on the river a month going this time. I missed July so it’s a pretty short streak now.

Blue Sky
last update: 09/17 @ 14:03

Splendid weather yesterday for getting out on the river.

Just about 80 degrees.

Blue Sky.

Cool water.

Still low water, though.

I took advantage of the weather to go up the gorge to Rocky Island — very low as you can see. But a great day to be out and about.

While I was at Rocky, I saw a couple slalom boaters attaining up the rapids. I wonder if they could attain Wet Bottom Chute. I portaged that and Anglers but both are short and easy to get up.

I could easily see attaining Anglers (with two paddle blades — that’s my excuse). But Wet Bottom seems a lot harder to get up; I’ll have to keep my eyes open there.

Getting pretty low
last update: 08/28 @ 15:38

I got back on the river yesterday afternoon. But it’s getting really low. I had trouble finding a route up to the Maryland chute.

Getting across to the Virginia chute was rocky.

And coming back the Maryland side, I had to push myself over some rocks to get past Golfball Island. There is starting to be little place to put a paddle into the water.

I expect we’ll get some rain in the next few weeks the level will gradually start to rise again.

Another nice day on river
last update: 08/20 @ 18:25

Blue skies and warm temps.

But low water.

Still fun though.

SZap opted for the duckie this time.

We got to paddle with Pocket!
last update: 08/14 @ 19:35

Pocket said she’d like to join us on the river this summer. It’s taken until now for both Sarah and I to feel healthy — pesky summer cold.

So we paddled up to my new favorite selfie spot — but that rock ledge needs to be more level…

Our heron was further downstream for this trip.

Playing in Angler’s Inn
last update: 08/14 @ 19:34

David and his canoe running the Maryland chute (photo by SZap).

It was pretty low, about 2.9, making it pretty much perfect to introduce Pocket to this part of the Potomac.

She’s done a lot of flat water boating (she joined us in storming the castle a while back) and expressed an interest in getting more comfortable in rapids.

Sarah opted for her paddle board for this trip.

Fortunately, the electric pump she picked up a couple years ago continues to serve us well.

It would have been hot work to pump up both inflatables in the 90 degree heat.

Fortunately, the water was still cool and the sky a perfect blue!

Keen eyed observers will note that Sarah’s and Pocket’s runs are both the Virginia chute.

We pulled the boats over the rocks to paddle up to the gorge, came back down and they ran the Virginia chute an extra time before we headed back to the Maryland side for one more run (after a brief portage).

Summer colds and…
last update: 08/05 @ 22:37

I started feeling unwell at the end of June. After three negative Covid tests and two negative strep tests the consensus is summer cold. But it really hung on.

Robert, however, did test positive for Covid about two weeks ago. He reports feeling on the mend, but did miss a fair amount of summer quarter classes.

And Sarah ended up with her summer cold about a week ago. She, also, is feeling better. And felt up to a little hiking/bushwhacking while I was on the river this afternoon.

With luck, the whole family will be feeling fine next week!

Father’s Day
last update: 06/18 @ 22:08

Sarah is still out in Seattle with Robert. While they slept (3 hours later there than here) I got out on the Potomac at Angler’s Inn. It’s pretty low and the water is so clear because it’s been a while since we had any rain.

But it was still a fun time. And a beatiful day.

When I came home we video called and I opend my Father’s day packages. Robert got me an Aston Martin shirt (which I wore later watching the F1 race) and Sarah got me a lovely cheese board and an offer for Double Gloucester, the next time it’s in stock at our local cheese place.

A very nice day, but it would be nicer with family in the same time zone.

Both of us on the river!
last update: 06/12 @ 22:19

No, that’s not us under the overhang…

Sarah has a busy start to summer: She was down in Decatur last week. Home for a few days around the weekend. And is off in Seattle this week.

All good travel: she was able to help out the newest additions to the Williams clan, Margot and Billie Mae. That gave Sarah a chance to hang out with really little babies (weeks old) and gave their parents and grandparents a little bit of a break.

And now she’s getting to see Robert’s new summer dorm (having just missed helping him move — up 5 flights of stairs — by about 48 hours).

We took advantage of those couple days she was in Alexandria, with very nice weather, to get out on the river. Where we saw those two climbers in the gorge. New to me, they weren’t going up or down the wall, they were crossing horizontally.

We saw our favorite heron and a few ducks and a lot of fishing cormorants.

Back on the river
last update: 06/04 @ 22:29

Sarah is down in Decatur with the new grand nieces.

So I have to make do with the Potomac.

It was a pretty day today; cooler than it was on Saturday. That made it very nice.

And with the expectation of rain, fewer folks at Angler’s Inn to make it easier to get on the river and I had the Maryland chute to myself almost the whole time.

Fantastic Weather!
last update: 05/22 @ 17:29

We took advantage of the glorious weather today and headed out to Angler’s Inn. Sarah was feeling a little bit off, but also wondering about the trail that goes upstream.

So she went up on foot and I took the canoe up (a little ways).

I saw my great blue heron friend at the Virginia chute.

Clearly a master of disguise, he (or she) really does blend in to the rocks very well.

And had a lot of fun surfing across the Maryland chute.

Excellent ways to enjoy a perfect, May day.

Let’s hope for more like this!

Fun weekend part two
last update: 05/07 @ 18:04

I got out on the Potomac at Angler’s Inn today and checked in on my favorite heron. He (or she) seemed to be doing fine; enjoying the weather and not actually fishing.

The river was about 4.7 so a bit pushy but it was still fun to get and be pushed around a little bit.

Hank & Sally are in town
last update: 04/16 @ 22:03

And I got to paddle with Hank before we all met up for an excellent dinner at Rice Paper. It was fun to be on river with Hank again. And great to hear that retirement is treating them well. Dinner with Carolyn, Rita, Chita, Bob, Joy, Sally and Hank was grand.

And we all enjoyed stopping by the place they are staying in while they are in town (Joy has a very convenient condo).

Bonus: Rice Paper gets huge recommendations!!!

That feeling when…
last update: 03/05 @ 17:45

… You’ve not really been paying attention to the river level but think it’s been just under 4 for a while and you drive over the bridge on the way there and think… hmmmm…. maybe I should have checked the gauge?

It was actually about 6.25. I had fun, saw some ducks but didn’t get as far up to the rapids as I normally (at lower water levels) do. I also looked long and hard at one spot before thinking the possible swim be be very long and very cold. I snuck around that spot.

The weather was fantastic, but the water was cold.

Fun visit
last update: 02/12 @ 12:23

Carolee came up to DC for a conference and was able to come a couple days early and stay with us.

We had a lovely dinner Friday at our newest favorite local spot.

Saturday, we took advantage of the fantastic weather and headed to Great Falls (Virgina side).

Doug, who saw where we were, asked a good question: why “Olmsted Island?”

I’ll get some of what Carolee found out later wrong, but Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. was on the Park Improvement Commission for the District of Columbia.

So the island just downstream of the the main falls (to the right of these photos) is Olmsted Island to honor him.

Doug’s question, which Carolee posed to one of the rangers we met on our walk, caused him to go, “hmm… I’ve got some research to do.”

Which was fun, it’s often hard to stump a park service ranger.

It may have been mid-February, but it was a beautiful mid-February afternoon. And it was great to have someone to share that fun spot with, to learn a little more history and inspire a park ranger to learn a bit more about their park.

Excellent start to the year
last update: 01/02 @ 21:47

It was nicely warm — air at least — today and I managed to get out on the Potomac to start the year off well.

It was interesting to feel the warm breeze when it came from above and the cool breeze when it came across the river.

Let’s see how many months in 2023 I can keep this up?

According to the blog, I missed a couple months last year…

Stare down contest
last update: 11/05 @ 22:19

You’ll have to trust me on this.

With reduced pixels of this photo you can’t see the heron.

But he (or she) was there.

We had a staring contest as he (or she) looked for fish to snack on just above the waves and I surfed across them.

If I posted the full size photo and you zoomed in above the nose of my canoe, you’d see this heron. Just hanging out.

Well… not just hanging out. Looking for lunch or dinner.

Eventually I felt bad for getting in the way and decided to head for home.

But I don’t think I’ve gotten that close without the heron flying away.

And I should note the river was low and he weather crazy warm, we tied the November 5 record of 81 degrees.

Color may have peaked
last update: 10/30 @ 18:39

Beautiful day outside today but it is cooling off.

It’s looking like the trees may be just past peak on the river; I saw a lot of yellows but also starting to see browns as well.

The Potomac is really low so that may have something to do with it.

Or it may just be that time of year.

The paddle jacket was a little too warm until I got a lap full of cold water surfing across the Maryland chute. That made me glad for both the jacket and the wet suit booties.

I expect I’ll be bundled up for the next several months now — as long as it seems nice enough to be out.

On the river this time
last update: 10/16 @ 11:23

Sarah was off Saturday morning helping to raise money for Children’s Hospital.

I was a slacker and headed out to the Potomac.

It was very pretty fall day to be out. Cool but not cold.

And the leaves are starting to show some color.

I’m not sure how colorful they will be around here. But I expect to get on the river a few more times this fall to see.

Another pretty day
last update: 09/25 @ 11:32

We paid attention to the weather forecast and headed to the river yesterday to avoid the possible rain and thunderstorms today.

With the quick shift to fall weather over the last day or two, it was much cooler than it has been but still a very nice day.

We opted to paddle up the gorge rather than just stay around Angler’s Inn this time.

Always good to see how pretty a spot that is.

Also clear from these photos: the low, fall water level.

2.85 is not unusually low for this time of year.

But clearly (looking at the bathtub rings) lower than the year round average.

We took the easy way out and carried the boats over some of the rocks to get up to what was left of Rocky Island before turning back around to go with the flow.

It was a really nice way to spend the first fall weekend day of the year.

We’re looking forward to more (before it gets too cold).

Another pretty day on the river
last update: 09/18 @ 23:16

It was another beautiful afternoon.

Sarah and I headed to Angler’s Inn

Just to play around.

We were not the only ones out there.

But there was plenty of fun to be had by all.

We played abound a bit in the Maryland chute.

(I said it was hard but not impossible to flip the inflatable.)

And headed across the river to play around a bit in the Virginia chute.

We even got to see someone’s first descent.

He was on a paddleboard and did OK.

Well, it’s a forgiving spot.

He fell off the paddleboard above the drop.

And he fell off the paddleboard below the drop.

But he was having a good time and carried back up to run it again.

We enjoyed watching him learn to respect the current.

And we enjoyed playing around in the current ourselves.

It really was a lovely afternoon.

I’m looking forward to many more.

Back on the Potomac
last update: 09/04 @ 21:53

With Robert settling in to his new routine, Sarah and I headed to the Potomac this afternoon.

It’s been a while since we’ve run Anglers to Lock 10.

This time, with two cars, no need to wave down a taxi or Lyft for the shuttle.

That helped to make sure I had my paddle this time.

The water level was a bit low.

But we still had a fun time on the river out on a pretty day.

It was fun to see what we could see at low water.

And I have to confess to missing a brace at the end of Yellow Falls.

But I went back out play there. Thank you SZap for the excelleng photo.

I expect we’ll do more of this with Covid fading and Rober doing his own thing on the other coast.

Nice day
last update: 08/14 @ 17:12

The weather was so nice this weekend I had to get out on the river.

That helped a little bit with my sadness at Robert moving out to Seattle.

And it’s always nice to spend some time at Angler’s Inn on the Potomac. There were other folks out but not too many; I got to play in the Maryland chute as much as wanted to without having to take a break other than to bail out the water.

Potomac Fun
last update: 07/10 @ 22:25

Yesterday was pretty rainy but today was another perfect day to be on the river. There were more people out and about than last weekend, but still plenty of fun to be had.

Back on the river…
last update: 07/02 @ 18:05

… and I saw this guy. I’m going to believe it’s the same Heron we’ve seen before just upstream of Angler’s Inn. This time, he was hanging out at the Maryland Chute, which has a new to me log stuck on that rock. They are saying there may be heavy thunderstorms this afternoon so that log may move along later today.

First 2022 Potomac trip
last update: 03/19 @ 22:54

It was a perfect day to take advantage of Daylight Saving Time and get out on the river in the evening. The water was still cold, but the air was about 77 and a lovely blue sky (completely over exposed in this photo, sorry).

And an excellent way to welcome Spring!

Cold snap continues
last update: 01/23 @ 17:27

Sarah and I checked out the Potomac closer to Mt. Vernon than our regular haunts. The recent cold has left a lovely ice rim around the shore.

And yes, it is satisfying to break some of that ice up. It should be cold enough for at least the next week to rebuild anything we broke off.

Sad end to the day
last update: 12/18 @ 23:54

The day started pretty well…

After finishing up some household chores, I popped the canoe on car and headed towards Angler’s Inn.

The traffic on the American Legion bridge was crazy bad and I made a huge detour south to go across Chain bridge.

At that point I was starting to think about just heading back home.

But I made the crazy detour and by the time I got to Anglers, there were parking places and I was ready to get on river.

It was cloudy and cool.

But for December, it was great!

There were a few other folks out but not many and so it felt like I had the river to myself.

While the water level was low, I had fun.

A bit of surfing across the Maryland chute, and a bit of surfing across the Virginia chute.

And I was almost able to make the attainment up the center channel. Almost, but not quite.

Then, when I got home Sarah came out to tell me that Pinker was not doing well.

She’s been ill but hanging on for months; however, the last couple days, she’s stopped coming upstairs and purring.

Sarah said she was just sitting all day with her head pointed to the wall.

It was time to say goodbye. A very sad trip to the vets office. But it was nice for all of us to be able to go.

Robert just held her in the back seat (and took this final photo).

She’s been with us for just over a decade and she will be sadly missed.

I know her brother misses her as well. We’ll be sad for while, but our lives were made better by having her a part of the last decade; we’ll remember all the fun and joy she brought and enjoy her brother’s company.

Fall day on the river
last update: 11/07 @ 22:00

A bit crisp, the water was cool but not too bad.

I wasn’t the only one out, but not a lot of folks on river.

We can have fun outside too
last update: 10/03 @ 22:12

Robert had volleyball on Saturday.

That meant homework on Sunday.

Well… He also was hoping to watch the Talladega NASCAR race. But really he had homework.

Which meant he could not join us on the river.

Sarah borrowed his inflatable and we headed to Angler’s Inn.

It’s close, convenient and fun.

And it lived up to all three.

Great weather too!

We played a bit in the Maryland chute. Then headed across the river to the Virginia chute.

It was late enough in the fall day that the Virginia chute was in the shadows and a bit cool.

But very much fun.

We saw a lot of paddle boards. And a couple flotilla of kayaks. We even some some slalom boats — including a C1 — headed upstream.

Sorry, we only took selfies, so you have to trust us about the others.

Beautiful day
last update: 09/19 @ 23:02

A perfect day to be on the river. Just a bit over 80 degrees, not too many others out there and the level was a nice 3.4 feet.

A very nice way to end a nice weekend.

(And a nice return to normal for the blog…)

Fun, busy weekend
last update: 09/06 @ 21:12

We started the long weekend by smoking some ribs, chicken and salmon. It was Robert’s idea and he was in charge of the sauce and keeping the temperature right in the smoker (when he wasn’t napping).

It was a perfect way to bookend the summer as we had the smoker out as 11th grade was winding down at the start of the summer.

This time we had two of the four Gaughs over (rather than the MRC crowd) so there have been more leftovers.

And today, I enjoyed the perfect weather and higher water to get back out in the canoe.

The river was high enough to make the ferry to the Virginia chute a bit of challenge.

(I didn’t give any thought to trying to get up the center channel.)

All-in-all, a great, long weekend!

Hot day on the river
last update: 08/28 @ 22:12

The thermometer in the car said 93 as I headed to Angler’s Inn. It was hot in sun but the water felt good (I had to rinse an ant colony out of my boat so that was a great excuse to just stand in the water for a few minutes).

Pretty day, but hot. I read in the paper over half the days in August have been above 90 and today was one more.

Robert, back in school, was doing homework. Sarah, after a busy week, was enjoying her book.

Another beautiful day
last update: 08/08 @ 22:53

Sarah and I got back to Angler’s Inn this afternoon. Robert is getting over a summer cold and napped most of the afternoon away. We’ll get him back out before schoot starts.

Nice day on the river
last update: 07/25 @ 22:25

The traditional trip to the Lego store followed by Sushi-go-round was yesterday.

Robert spent most of the afternoon and evening building the Mustang set. Pictures to come of that.

And we watched some Olympics yesterday.

And again this morning.

But it was time to get out of the house by this afternoon.

Robert met up at a volleyball court for some outdoor volleyball (and injured his knee a bit).

Sarah and I headed to Angler’s Inn and paddled up the gorge.

It was a perfect day for it.

The occasional slip off the board or attempt to roll the canoe were felt great. And the threat of rain held off (we did hear some distant thunder).

For the record, it looks easier to roll a canoe on Youtube than I found it to be. That is still a work in progress.

Still getting used to it…
last update: 07/19 @ 17:52

Robert had to work yesterday afternoon. Sarah and I did some errands in the morning and then headed to the river in the afternoon.

While it’s low, it’s still a lot of fun.

And very pretty to be on the Potomac by Angler’s Inn. I’m sorry Robert missed it; maybe next time.

Fun Father’s Day
last update: 06/20 @ 23:15

While Sarah was representing the family in Connecticut for a wedding, Robert and I watched the F1 Grand Prix this morning. Then he had to go to Shocker: work!

First though, I unwrapped my big box of nothing: my Father’s Day pressie is delayed, but I expect it will be Lego Bricks.

Then I got out on the river and later Pocket and her friend came by for a friendly, well, actually, cutthroat game of Catan. (After a few laser tag games once Robert got off work.)

It was a lovely mellow day.

Storming the castle
last update: 06/14 @ 19:08

We missed doing this for Mother’s Day last month.

And with Robert now gainfully employed, he missed the trip yesterday.

But, Pocket one of the folks from the vaccination PoDs Sarah has been working since the vaccine became available, joined us this time.

The weather was pretty perfect. Plenty warm but with a brief bit of rain to keep it from getting too summer-time hot.

And most interesting: Pocket, (who’s real name is also Sarah with an H but adopted Pocket for… reasons) brought her foldable kayak.

She has an Oru Kayak.

It’s pretty cool: fits in the back of car, folds together in a couple minutes (gathering a crowd of interested onlookers), and works well.

Pocket was first across the river each way. I credited her longer boat with more of keel to track straighter and go faster. Sarah credited Pocket’s upper body strength as she is an avid rock climber.

It was fun way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

And if you’re interested, Fort Washington is back to firing off their cannon on the first Sunday of the month. Alas, yesterday was not the first in month so we missed it.

Rainy river
last update: 05/16 @ 23:47

A little rainy this afternoon on the river.

But I went up the gorge to Wet Bottom Chute were I ran into the Fauquier County swift water rescue team practicing.

Interesting to me, should not be a surprise though, that Virginia county enters the river on the Virginia side. I’m used to the Cabin John Volunteers and Montgomery County fire departments entering at Angler’s Inn on the Maryland side.

While it was a little gray and rainy; it’s still a very pretty spot. And especially so for a spot that close to home and DC.

Spring Green
last update: 04/25 @ 18:22

The trees are a lot greener than they were a month ago.

The water, however, is still cold.

Nice day to be out but it would have been OK if I had not flipped coming off the wave on in the Virginia chute.

Still, nice to get out and paddle around a bit.

Warm March day
last update: 03/27 @ 22:34

Unfortunately, Sarah was volunteering as vaccinator’s assistant for the city today. She missed most of the warm weather (tomorrow is supposed to be rainy, alas).

The Potomac is a pretty amazing resource to have so close by. This is the top of the Virginia chute — and really doesn’t do the wave justice. It needs a boat for perspective.

Beautiful day
last update: 03/21 @ 22:40

I got back out on the river for the first time in months. The water is still a bit cold, but with the sun out, it felt wonderful.

I saw geese and ducks but it’s too early for ducklings.

Giving Thanks
last update: 11/29 @ 18:39

This Cornoavirus year, I’m thankful for a happy, healthy family. Our nuclear family is doing fine; school and work are generally treating us well.

Our extended family is almost all well; some troubling news from the west coast. But overall, we’re doing very well.

Thankful for a lovely meal, with contributions from each of us. I am quite fond of Robert’s cornbread. And the Turkey Sarah pulled off is great!.

(Present tense because with just the three of us, there were plenty of Thanksgiving dinner leftovers.)

Thankful to see Robert fully licensed (provisional) as a driver. He and I took a final check out drive together on Friday to complete a program with our insurance company to give us a small break on teenage boy car insurance rates.

He’s cautious and aware and will be fine on his own. But we’re not getting the WRX STI rally race Subaru…

And thankful for a beautiful set of vacation days. Robert was biking on the mountian bike trail, Sarah getting her five mile walk around town and I was having fun mostly staying warm enough on the river.

Now if we can get that vaccine out and stamp out this virus, we’ll have a really great 2021!

Another beautiful day
last update: 11/08 @ 22:30

It’s hard to get better than 70 plus degrees in November with blue skies and leaves turning…

A very pretty day to be on the river.

I paddled up the gorge to wet bottom chute and really enjoyed the warm air and clear water. The level was a bit down but not too much, still plenty fun for me.

Sarah and Robert took off in different directions on their bikes to enjoy the day.

And we all met back up at home.

I’m not sure what the cats would do if they saw a heron. They pay attention to the birds flying around the front porch. But nothing bigger than a cardinal.

Good start to November
last update: 11/01 @ 21:27

It started out gray and rainy this morning.

But the the rains moved on out and the afternoon was actually quite nice. Better than it looks in the photo. There was starting to be some blue patches in the sky.

Nice to be able to get on the river today and stop looking at the news.

Fall
last update: 10/18 @ 19:29

A nice, cool day on the river.

Beautiful weather, a little cool and the water is starting to cool off (I was a bit more aggressive playing in one wave than maybe I should have been).

If you squint just right at the little creek coming into the Potomac in the background, you can see the Heron hanging out there looking for dinner.

No rope swings in the gorge, and I likely would not have been tempted even if there were…

Rope swing!!!
last update: 10/11 @ 13:32

The weather, ahead of Hurricane Delta, was cloudy but pleasant yesterday. We took the boats to the Potomac. And with the help of a rental car for shuttle, paddled Angler’s to Lock 10.

It may be the last time for the season when the rope swings seem inviting.

On this trip we passed three: The first had a big tree just underwater, close to the landing zone.

The second, seen here, was just about perfect.

By the time we got to the third, we were getting comfortable again and decided to just keep paddling.

That’s Robert’s splashdown above.

David on the left.

Sarah below.

All in all, a great way to spend an October afternoon. Good leaf watching from the river, no crowds — but there were folks on the shore and even a few other boats on that stretch.

Bonus
last update: 10/11 @ 13:24

Sarah walking across the Potomac…

…It wasn’t really that low.

More fun on the river…
last update: 09/07 @ 21:00

… This time, Robert’s school friend Will and his dad and sister took us out on their boat.

A very different affair from our kayaks and canoe.

Rob (a good name), took us north from Belle Haven to the Jefferson memorial where we jumped in the water to cool off.

Squirt guns helped with the cooling off.

Then the tube came out.

It’s a wild ride!

More so on a day with several other boats so more wakes and more waves.

The boys got some good air a couple of times.

And Robert even talked me into going with him on the tube.

Whitewater, but not the kind I’m used to.

Robert’s learning to roll!!!
last update: 09/07 @ 20:46

Miguel, who Sarah found through Potomac Paddle Sports was great. Robert had a couple rolls — not when I happened to be there, alas.

And he’s feeling better about a hard shell boat. He was saying on Saturday that he thought a hard shell would be more fun to play in the waves with. And now he’s well on his way…

Fall day on the river
last update: 09/05 @ 22:30

Another beautiful day on the river.

But the new camera is not yet used to us.

Or we’re not used to it.

We’ll see if the self-timer pictures get better over time.

This picture of Robert turned out well.

He’s been having so much fun playing in the wave, surfing this one and a bit at Maryland and Virginia chutes, that he’s talking about getting back into a hard boat to have more fun.

We may be back on the river tomorrow. Maybe the self-timer will work better then….

Beautiful day on the river
last update: 08/23 @ 22:18

Sarah and Robert were taking care of some biking issues today while I grabbed the canoe to head back to Angler’s Inn. Having an apartment with kayaks on the coast in Maine was great, but I really love some more current.

I flipped on the eddy line today and it felt good to be in the water on a hot day. After that, I was having a blast in both the Maryland and Virginia shoots.

Clearly the weather was very cooperative.

Back to the river
last update: 06/28 @ 11:08

We went back to Violette’s Lock yesterday to get out of the house, on the water, and remain socially distant.

There were some folks swimming where the rope swing used to be — note the steps up the tree. And they took this great photo. Thank you!

Sarah elected to go with a kayak for this trip because we start on the Maryland side and paddle across the river to the Virginia side above the dam and then back to the Maryland side below the rapids. A fair amount of a cross current ferry moves.

The weather was hot, but it was much cooler on the river, especially when the cool front/storm clouds blew over. We made it back home before the rains started.

The storm clouds are behind the camera for this timer picture on our way back to the Maryland side to paddle up the canal to our car.

A very nice summer outing.

Spooky Afternoon on the River
last update: 01/04 @ 16:24

With 60+ degree weather in January, it seemed like an excellent time to go to the river.

Robert and Sarah were less convinced.

With the cold water and warm air, it was spectacularly foggy.

On the way back to Angler’s Inn, it was helpful to know where the takeout was as it was quite socked in.

And I can attest to the water being cold.

After taking on some water in the waves and getting pretty wet, I developed literal cold feet and decided not to do much surfing.

The level was nice, the wave on the Virginia side and hydraulic on the Maryland side were both fine. But I really didn’t want to get that wet and I certainly didn’t want to take an accidental swim.

It was very cool to be out in the fog though.

And nice to get back into my boat (I missed December).

Cloudy day
last update: 11/10 @ 22:49

Kind of a cloudy day on the river today. Yesterday was pretty cold so I shouldn’t have been as surprised as I was to see so many folks at Angler’s Inn today (when it was a bit warmer).

It was cool, but not too bad.

Then again, I did decide to try to stay mostly dry.

Another beautiful day!
last update: 09/16 @ 17:11

It was a little hot in the sun, but once on the river it was fine. The water level is a bit low, about 2.8 but the water temperature is cool so it was very pleasant.

I’m sorry Robert was getting ahead on homework (lots of evening plans this week). And that Sarah felt a little bit off and decided to stay home.

I went back to Little Falls and this time I thought to stop and get a couple pictures on the way.

This time I started at the lock 5 parking lot and carried up the tow path to the path over to the feeder canal. From there, it is a little upstream paddle to get to the gates for some warm up then down the Z Channel into the main river.

At 2.8 the Z Channel is just passable for my canoe. I worry that if it drops much lower, I may have to walk the last drop in the channel.

Little Falls itself was fun, as always. This time I was felt more comfortable and in control than last weekend.

And it’s great to be able to get out there two weekends in a row.

I couldn’t help myself and had to try to get a self portrait with the rapid in the background.

If nothing else, the beautiful weather should be clear.

The carry up to the C & O Canal is not too bad, and they have water in it now so it’s an easy paddle back to the car.
a perfect circular run!

Perfect day for the river
last update: 08/25 @ 16:54

I snuck off to the river this morning.

Well, not really sneaking: Robert was still asleep and Sarah was plotting evening plans.

The weather was ideal; the river is normal summer low but not too low. I paddled up to Wet Bottom Chute and then came back down.

We have an informal get ready for back to school gathering this evening. The kids are down to their final week of lazy summer before school start September 3rd.

Perfect Day!
last update: 08/11 @ 22:43

We had a perfect afternoon on the river.

The level was low but not too low; the Maryland chute was fun and it was easy to get back up and even drag the boats over the rocks and paddle down.

And the humidity has broken for the weekend — truly amazing to have such perfect weather for a weekend in August.

We packed up the boats and headed to Angler’s Inn.

And we even got a parking space before we were completely unloaded.

I guess we happened to time it all just right today.

There were others on the river, including a river dog, but mostly they were in one spot and we were in another.

Speaking of spots, I didn’t get a picture, but golf ball is huge now. Space for two or three helicopters :)

We’ve likely seen the last big water for the year, so it may stay huge until next spring.

After a day like today, I’m sure we’ll be back to check it out.

Summer in earnest
last update: 06/23 @ 11:04

We took our flotilla back to the river on Saturday. We had plans to actually paddle downstream: Angler’s Inn to Lock 10. In the modern age, we figured Lyft could be a part of the shuttle.

Unfortunately, when I tried to get a lyft back from Lock 10 to meet up with Sarah and Robert at Angler’s Inn, they were having credit card processing issues.

Fortunately, there happen to be a Barwood taxi driver who was enjoying the day at Lock 10. He was just leaving when I was giving up on Lyft and so that was perfect, urban boating — taxi for shuttle.

Unfortunately, I carefully left my paddle in the car at Lock 10, and realized it as I was walking to the river, waiting boats and Sarah and Robert at Angler’s Inn.

Fortunately, there are only a couple rapids on that stretch. After trying out Robert’s beach shovel as a paddle, I decided to hand paddle instead.

Unfortunately, there is a fair amount of flatwater, but the downstream breeze helped keep those of us without a paddle moving.

Fortunately, we discovered that rafting up, we could have the two outside boats paddle while the inside one held on.

It was a fun day on the water with an extra dose of adventure tossed in.

And a ropeswing break; Robert dropping in above; Sarah showing off below.

Not the usual river trip…
last update: 06/02 @ 18:42

… We don’t normally run into the Park Police helicopter on the river. Sometimes it flies over; this is the first time I’ve seen it on the ground at “golf ball island.”

(I thought I was taking stills, but realized after the fact the camera was still set up for a school project of Roberts.)

We heard there was an injury on one of the trails. The response was impressive, we saw four rafts plus the helicopter. No sign of whoever was injured.

With the excitement over, we enjoyed a lovely day on the river; warm enough to enjoy getting splashed, high enough to have some fun waves.

All and all, a nice start to the summer for us.

Spring Weather!
last update: 03/30 @ 17:37

Spring has sprung!

The weather was great for getting back on the river. Angler’s Inn parking lot (and the road leading to the parking log) was packed. But just as I unloaded the boat, someone was leaving and I was able to pop into their spot.

The water is still pretty cold, but the blue sky and warm air made up for it.

If the river was lower, that would be golf ball island behind me.

Beautiful Day on the River
last update: 10/01 @ 18:55

Feeling a little like fall…
last update: 09/10 @ 22:34

We headed back to our standard Angler’s Inn stretch of the Potomac.

Sarah borrowed Robert’s new inflatable (to show him how it’s done).

And then Robert followed in her footsteps.

I missed Sarah running the Maryland chute on her SUP.

And I had the camera with me when I ran it in the canoe.

It was a very nice end to a pretty weekend (in our part of the country, anyway).

Another pretty day on the river
last update: 08/20 @ 18:44

Today we decided to actually go downstream.

So we put in at Angler’s Inn and headed down to Lock 10.

I swear there have been way more open boats on the river since we got back from Idaho. We saw two in parking lot.

There was a handy rock for the camera and it’s timer just past Offet Island. I’ve Got to remember to bring a dry towel to wipe the lens with :)

We found the rope swing again. This time, the water was a much better temperature and so we all took several swings.

I’m biased, but I think I got the most distance.

Robert got the most splash.

And with our new addition to the fleet, we all paddled back into Yellow (or is it Stubblefield) Falls a couple times.

It really was a beautiful day on river. And a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

I’m sure we’ll do it again soon.

Addition to the Flotilla
last update: 08/06 @ 21:18

On our last day in Lewsiton after the Salmon trip, we drove up to Moscow, home of NRS, and picked up an inflatable kayak.

(Moscow Idaho is way closer than the more well known Moscow.)

Robert chose green over blue. It’s very green.

We call it the Green Machine.

It’s a lot of fun.

And we discovered it’s very stable.

Which is an interesting look on the river.

Robert and Sarah are now fighting over who gets to paddle the Green Machine.

Or, should that who gets to stand on the Green Machine?

Our silly standing boaters showing off :)

A little tune up…
last update: 07/03 @ 20:17

The weather was nice (hot but surprisingly dry) yesterday so we took our water craft to the Potomac.

Robert has outgrown his sit-a-top kayak (we’re pretty sure) so Sarah give him a ride on her paddle board.

With a Salmon trip coming up, we expect he’ll get a chance to try out a ducky and decide if that’s the next boat for him.

Robert got in the canoe briefly and looked pretty good; Sarah got in and pronounced it tippy. I don’t think it’s any more tippy than her SUP.

El Galeón
last update: 05/27 @ 15:12

This is at least the second year that El Galeón has visited Alexandria.

We tried to go last time but the lines were too long. Today, with the treat of a thunderstorm, we almost walked right on.

It was pretty cool. Very impressive to think about blue water sailing in such a ship. More so to think about that without the modern advances which they have stashed out of view of the visitors.

A crew of 40 seems pretty large for what is not too big a ship. But one of the notes pointed out that it takes 18 to raise the 2,000 pound mainsail.

Perhaps most intriguing: that misbehaving cabin boys were forced into the crows nests during storms as punishment.

Also the causal note that nowadays they have safety lines when folks are working the rigging; originally, there was a rope towed behind the ship. If you fell off, you needed to get to the rope to be saved.

The rain held off (is still holding off). So we could take our time exploring. And even managed to pick up a couple items from the Farmers Market (note the leeks peeking out of Sarah’s bag).

(No one made any jokes about leaks while we were on board.)

Spring Potomac in the Trees
last update: 05/07 @ 18:46

The river was pretty high today. Way higher than I’ve been on it in canoe. And I really didn’t remember what Angler’s Inn is like at 8 feet (8.3, actually).

The boat ramp and beach were gone. There is a little loop of roadway for the fire department to launch their swift water rescue raft. Today, no loop, two roads; both ending in the river.

I ended up portaging over the rocks to get to an eddy in the back channel that I could get up. Basically, paddling through the trees (and over the path a couple of times).

After a poking up as high as I could get in the back channel (I was not feeling aggressive, especially seeing the trees floating downstream), I poked my nose around the bottom corner of back channel and up as far as I was comfortable on the main channel.

The current was flying by, carrying the occasional log or tree. And the waves in what is normally flat water, were really impressive.

After a bit I headed back to the trees of the take out. I knew I didn’t really want to get into the main current, but thought I’d get close enough to catch some downstream water.

The boils and whirlpools were impressive.

If your not familiar with the area: the first photo would normally be from the bank, several feet above flat water. The second and third would be of what looks like a placid pool, it’s pretty wide, and it does flow slowly downstream normally, but it’s flat at normal levels.

Last Warm Day For a While
last update: 11/19 @ 18:53

Then I took my new toy to the river before the cold front blew in. Another very pretty day :)

Even Prettier Day
last update: 10/30 @ 17:55

But warmer, and later in the fall.

Crazy to get on the river at the end of October with no shirt — but it was 80 out there. The water, I can say from experience, was much cooler. But not so cold that I put on the polypro top I brought, just in case.

And the low water fall river levels mean the water is really clear; as you can see in the “selfie:” canoe shadow on rocks. (I don’t think there is a way to get a polarizing filter on our little waterproof camera.)

Pretty Day on the River
last update: 10/23 @ 19:44

The Fleet Continues to Grow
last update: 10/09 @ 15:32

At least, that was my thought before getting this shiny Ocoee. It’s only been on the water once and I was getting more comfortable in it after a couple hours. But I’ll need a couple more hours before I’m ready to really make up my mind about this.

Potomac
last update: 08/28 @ 22:06

Warm day on the river
last update: 07/31 @ 18:44

With the river up after storms the last couple days (mostly around rather than over us), we were able to sneak back down the back channel (normally dry in the summer).

This was a little bit of the Potomac by Old Angler’s Inn that was new to Sarah and Robert. It’s always fun to do a bit of exploring.

Hot day on the river
last update: 07/17 @ 22:11

A bit under (I hope) at Angler’s Inn on the river.

We ran into friends from the Assateague trip there (kind of a fun circumstance).

Sarah enjoyed her SUP (sorry no photos of her this time) and Robert enjoyed his sit-on-top.

I had a good time in the canoe.

Robert took his boat up a couple times to run the Maryland chute.

The first time, he was a little bit river right, but got over in time.

The second time, he had a better line but, as with the first time, was leaning back going into the hydraulic. So he back endered the first two times.

The third time, he had a good line, leaned forward and was shocked to get through the hydraulic so he stopped paddling and was flipped sideways.

It was hot enough that the water felt really good to swim in, and he’s doing well with his self-rescue skills.

Addition to the fleet
last update: 07/02 @ 17:58

We took it out to Angler’s Inn on the Potomac today and she had a ball. We would have made it to the Virginia Chute, but there was a snake sunning himself on a key rock.

The Maryland side was fun.

We’ll be taking this to the beach next week :)

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