Kayak Trip #54, Mt. Morris Lake and Emerald Lake, 9-15-12

Today, we headed south to Mt. Morris. Our neighbors, Cliff, Lisa, and Ian joined us for this trip. We put in at a city park on the northeast side of the Morris Lake at a boat landing. We paddled down to the dam and back, and then under a bridge to a stream connecting Morris Lake with Emerald Lake. 

Heading back into Morris Lake, we encountered quite a bit of boat traffic. Everyone was courteous and friendly and gave us our space. We did enjoy riding a few waves left by the speed boats.

The trees are beginning to show color. Summer is almost over! We do look forward to seeing some fall color from the water and hope for enough warm days ahead to do so.

It was a fun afternoon, and we enjoyed the company of our friends.

Kayak Trip #53 Waupaca River, Anderson Rd. to Brainerd's Bridge

We had a good rain the other day, and after scouting parts of the Waupaca River, we saw that the water levels were up a bit, so we decided to revisit the segment between Anderson Rd. and Brainerd's Bridge Park. We hadn't been there since our two trips in June, (#21, and #28), so we weren't sure what we'd run into.

For the most part, the water was high enough to keep moving. We did get stuck in the shallows at one point, but didn't have to get out and walk. The class I rapids along the way were pretty fun. The trip takes about an hour.

Just upstream from the put-in at Anderson Rd.

Going under the Anderson Rd. Bridge.

A fun dock along the way.

The highlights were seeing three sandhill cranes and a Great Blue heron, and navigating through several rapids. Look for them in this video:

Kayak Trip #52 Upper Chain O' Lakes, & Feeding Fish at Whispering Pines, 9-5-12

This afternoon, we headed back to the Upper Chain, this time armed with a bag of oatmeal! Last time we were there, we saw lots of fish at the dock by Whispering Pines Park, and decided to go back and feed them.

I have lots of memories of feeding the fish when my parents took me to this park as a little girl. At that time, the park was privately owned, and there were all kinds of fun things to do there. The dock had little vending machines that dispensed oatmeal when you put in a coin. This was pretty cheap entertainment for our family with 5 kids. I think my folks probably brought their own oatmeal to save a few cents. :)

Here is an interesting article about the history of the park from the Waupaca County Post. Whispering Pines is now part of Hartman Creek State Park as it was willed to the state in 1975. I also found some awesome photos and old postcards from the early days HERE.

Ducks on Lake Orlando

Underwater shots of bluegills.

They were just inches from my camera,

and in fact seemed quite interested in its bright, orange color.

Underwater video of fish.

Hubby feeding fish from the dock.

Fish coming to the surface to feed on oatmeal.

A green heron at the next dock. Also saw a large turtle.

Kayak Trip #51 Jordan Pond and the Plover River, 9-1-12

We packed up our gear and headed down the road a bit toward Stevens Point to kayak on Jordan Pond, at the county park there. There's a nice kayak/canoe launch, so we put in and headed out.

The wind was quite strong and the water was choppy.

We paddled down to the dam (which is why there is a pond here on the Plover River).

We paddled all the way back against the wind toward the north end and the access to the Plover River.

We headed up the river.

This is not an alligator.

Some fun upstream:

Saw this sandhill crane on our way back to the dock:

Back at the dock, a man came by just as I pulled up. He mentioned how he had difficulty getting out, and just as we were talking about it (while I was trying to get out), I tipped over. Great... Nothing hurt but my pride. Made a mental note to pack dry clothes in my tote bag next time...

We found a great place for a picnic (and drying out) and enjoyed our lunch.

On the way back to the vehicle, we passed this pretty bridge that connects the parking lot to an island with campsites for canoers/kayakers. 

It's a nice county park, and a pleasant place to spend a Saturday.

Kayak Trip #50 Upper Chain O' Lakes, 8-31-12

On this beautiful Friday evening, we headed out for a peaceful paddle on Waupaca's Upper Chain O' Lakes. Putting in at Knight's Landing, we headed through Manomin Lake to Pope Lake where we scared up some ducks. Paddling down the creek to Marl Lake, I was reminded of our moonlight cruise where the lightning bugs lit up the way like so many sparkly Christmas lights. If it hadn't been for the pesky mosquitoes after dark, we might have done it again under the full "blue moon" this evening, but I would rather not be chewed alive, especially with the threat of West Nile Virus!

Boaters on Manomin Lake

Kayaking the Upper Chain O' Lakes

Marl Lake

Red Sumac on Marl Lake

We paddled back under the bridge at Knight Road and into Knight Lake where we were met by three very large sandhill cranes. 

I was able to approach them closely without them taking flight. After awhile, I even got them to sing with me! (And don't miss the crane blowing bubbles in the water toward the end of the video! So fun!)

We paddled into Lake Orlando just as the sun was going down and decided to hang around for a few minutes to watch it. Talk about beautiful! This is likely the best sunset I've ever photographed!

Gorgeous!

I submitted this photo to NBC26 facebook friend, weatherman Cameron Moreland who featured it on the news!

When I got home, I got a neat photo of the "Blue Moon." (Ok, so it was digitally tinted, but still cool!)

A perfect end to a perfect evening!