High Water Adventure

It's not very often we get high water on the rivers in August, especially at these levels. I took advantage of the rare opportunity and headed out to Indian Slough Wildlife Area.

Though I have to say that I was afraid it would be kind of a let down because after a summer of paddling and watching wildlife on Odessa, I've got pretty high expectations.

It was absolutely awesome!

I parked on the road (parking lot was under water) and slid the kayak into the water on the west side of the road. Actually, ON the west side of the road. Then I headed out from there.

First I paddled up under an eagle nest and got a good look at that. Then I watched a kingfisher fish, dragonflies mate, eagles soar, carp suck, turtles bask, herons wade, swallows swoop, ... well, you get the idea.

I also paddled under trees and over grass and next to the tops of buttonbush. I can't even say exactly where I went because I just wandered from one little pocket of water to the next. At one point I thought maybe I was going to end up in the Iowa River (I didn't and I don't think I was ever really very close).

After several hours of paddling I ended up right where I started - completely by accident. It was fun wandering around without a map - a bit of an adventure not knowing exactly where I was and how I would get back. My two guideposts: the sun and the eagle nest.

This trip will be worth repeating in the high waters of spring. And always in the high waters of late summer.

Indian Slough Wildlife Area

I had so much fun yesterday, I grabbed the Red Kayak and headed out again today. The destination for the day's paddling was the marsh at Indian Slough Wildlife Area. There was plenty of water because the Iowa River is still pretty high, but the parking lot is finally dry so I could put in off the structure levee to check out the east side of the slough.

Truthfully, since the Maiden Voyage had gone so well, I was afraid this trip would almost have to be a letdown.

Nope.

After crossing the open water past a dozen wood duck houses, goose nest structures and dozens of coots, I headed into the backwaters. That's where the fun began (getting out of the headwind didn't hurt either). I kept paddling down smaller and more shallow passages until I was pushing my way through grass and dead trees.

After passing some scolding geese, scaring up a few teal and accidently chasing a wood duck hen from a box, I caught a glimpse of a large white bird. With the luck I'd been having, I held out hope that it was a trumpeter swan. It turned out to be a pelican that must have had an injury since I never saw it fly but it did manage to hide when I got too close.

I kept wandering down an increasingly small ditch and even managed to float the Red Kayak over an old beaver dam and branches knocked down by the ice storm.

I sat for quite a while watching tree swallows perform their courtship dances (anyway, I assume that's what they were doing since I did see the culmination of the courtship) and spent a good bit of time seeing just how close the goose couple would let me get.

Today's wildlife list: coots, carp, wood ducks, geese, pelican, blue-winged teal, turkey vultures, cormorants, tree swallows, egrets, great blue herons and a bald eagle nest (too far away to tell but I've heard the eagles are tending young ones there). Also, plenty of unidentified birds.

Number of people seen: zero.

Another great day on the water.