First Paddle of the Season

We finally arrived at camp on Friday.  We were delayed in NJ due to car trouble but that hopefully has been fixed.
Yesterday I went to the farmers market.
And today we took our first paddle.  The Fish Creek and Rollins campsites are still closed due to the pandemic, so we went to a very quiet Rollins Pond to put in our boats.  We did our usual route, paddling through Rollins, with lots of pine pollen on the water.


















Then into Floodwood


















As we entered Floodwood we found a mother merganser and at least a dozen chicks.  We didn't see them resting on a log, so we got too close


















and mama decided it was time to leave.  We enjoyed watching them swim along with the little ones closely following their mother's instructions.

















We stopped at a campsite for a break and found swamp laurel in bloom.












































The clouds were gradually appearing as the temperatures rose.  There was still lots of pollen floating on the water in Floodwood.


















We paddled down Fish Creek, through Square Pond, and landed at a camp site opposite the road back to Rollins Pond for a total paddling distance of about 7.5 miles.
























Then it is a bit over one mile walk back to retrieve the car.  Not only was it a good time to paddle before the campers arrive, but we discovered that the water is already quite low due to the nearly drought conditions in the north country.  If we don't get substantial rain soon, there will be quite a few places along the route where one would have to get out and walk.