Well, let’s try this new format…
I’m hoping this personal trip report will convey a bit of what it is like to participate in one of these Pnet gatherings and share a bit of the “flavor” of this river, these paddlers, and this season in the Ozarks. It will be long post by our recent standards, though many of us used to do longer in the past.
So my departure was delayed a bit on the start of this year’s trip due to a veterinary appointment I’d overlooked but we were loaded, breakfasted, and rolling by mid-morning on Wednesday Oct. 15th. Linty and I made the drive from Wisconsin to Missouri and it was uneventful though it rained off and on most of the way. This was actually a rather hopeful thing since, though the rivers have been high up here for a long time this fall, I had gotten reports that the Ozarks have experienced dry conditions lately. Upon arrival at the Pulltite campground (our customary base camp for these gatherings since the very early years) night had fallen and it was misting slightly. I felt some relief that there was no rain shower while setting up camp. It’s always nice to at least get set up in the dry. Pete’s camp (identifiable by the red Mad River ME) was set up, as was Pam’s (of Rob and Pam – identifiable by the sand Mad River Guide)), and Tom and Laurel’s pick-up camper was detached and hooked up to water and their solar chargers were deployed. But there was no sign of activity, no camp fire, not even tent lights, anywhere. After the mind-numbingly flat drive through Illinois, we took that as grounds for turning in also. Last thing I recall was a coyote chorus in the distant hills as I drifted off. Good to be in the Ozarks again…
As anyone who has read Bullfinch’s mythology could predict, the dawn arrived rosy-fingered. The view of sunrise is, however, a bit obscured at the Pulltite campground which is located in a heavily forested valley on the banks of the Current River. The night was cool, just short of frosty, so there was a heavy morning mist on the river. In previous years I had discovered that in the early morning it is often likely that river otters can be seen directly across from the campground, but if they were there on that Thursday morning the mist hid them. It’s still worth visiting the river bank at that hour to see the sun turning the mist to pastel shades and the forested limestone bluffs were showing their colors, which were just beginning to turn. It was still and quiet and I don’t recall seeing a cloud in the sky. Only a pileated woodpecker was stirring on the river. Soon enough, though, I encountered Pete stirring and, God bless him, he had a cup of hot coffee to see me through until my own coffee water boiled. Other than our group there was only one other party in that part of the campground, a group of four kayakers from Oklahoma who were doing the Current as a change of scenery from their usual annual river camping trips on the lower Buffalo River in Arkansas. There wasn’t any crowding worth mentioning on the river for the entire trip, either.
Pam was up shortly thereafter with the unhappy news that Vic was bowing out this time and that theBob and Joanne wouldn’t be joining us due to some problems Bob was having with his legs following a recent medical procedure. And that Rob had to miss a couple of days due to work conflicts. Pam is not only the bearer of sad tidings, though. She also had the welcome news that Margret (WildernessWeb’s wife) was staying with Dan and Carol, who live near the sort-of nearby town of Eminence, and would be coming for the day’s paddle. As I recall it was about then that Brian (brother to Duggae – remember him?) arrived (with his beautiful red Bell Wildfire – I mention this only because I know youse guys are really into boats and this is important) and set about the business of pitching camp.
It was at about this point that it was decided that since we were at the Pulltite campground, we would begin paddling from the Pulltite campground. We’re deep thinkers, you know. Besides, it’s always nice to keep the shuttle logistics as simple as possible. The next takeout downstream from Pulltite is Round Spring so, after Dan and Margret arrived and all the boats were hauled down to the river’s edge, with our destination decided, we dropped my car and trailer, as well as vehicles to haul Tom & Laurel’s kayaks and Dan and Margret’s boats at Round Spring. I think it was Pam who drove the folks whose vehicles were left at the takeout back to Pulltite on this occasion. Henceforth I’ll spare you the shuttle details, but there might be some here who are newbys to river paddling and might be unfamiliar with the usual shuttle procedures. Anyhow, we were on the river and paddling by mid-morning and we had only about nine miles to do, so there was no rush at all. This is decidedly not a racing event or one that requires any special skills, though there are some of us who can paddle fast and have some special skills. We usually make two or three stops along the way and many of us drift a lot of the time. It’s all about enjoying the river and the companionship of fellow paddlers.
As I write this I am reminded of those first few trips we took all those years ago on the Current when we inevitably would turn to the theBob with our questions about distances on the river. No matter what section we were on, when asked how far it was to a takeout he’d reply “bout nine miihl”. Eventually someone would ask about how such a thing could be - a river that was always nine miles from a takeout. He’d then tell us that’s just how they designed the Current.
For anyone reading this that visits the Current for the first time, and is departing from the Pulltite landing, it should be mentioned that there is, perhaps a half-mile downstream from the landing, a delightful spring (Pulltite Spring) that comes in from river right. It usually has a flow like a decent sized creek and is all but smothered in water cress. If you land where this spring enters the river, you will find a trail winding inland along the base of some tall limestone cliffs. In spring the cliffs are covered in Sweet William, columbine, ferns, all manner of wildflowers, and with luck both red and white dogwood flowering. In fall the trail is carpeted with leaves and the surrounding hills glow in the sun. The walk along this trail is always cool and moist and bathed in the music of running water. It is perhaps a quarter mile long and leads to a sort of box canyon with a deep blue-green pool at the base of a tall varnish-stained cliff where the spring bubbles up. A short distance from the pool is an old hunting lodge made of logs stood on end, stockade style. It is a place that anyone who passes that way shouldn’t miss. It is the sort of place that makes you want to live because if you die, after having spent some time in such a spot, heaven might be disappointing.
Just downstream from that on river right is Fire Hydrant spring which in wet years shoots water out of a cliff into the river like a fire hydrant. Over the years Fire Hydrant Spring has been gradually losing water to another downstream spring which percolates much less dramatically up through a gravel bar.
These springs, all within a half hour’s paddling time from Pulltite landing are examples of the stuff of which the Current River is made. I could offer descriptions of the many other delightful springs on this river each with their own unique character, but that would truly be a loooong post. I’ll try to refrain from any more of that. Nevertheless Medlock, Welsh, Round Spring, Cave Spring, Big Spring (and it is BIG) should be mentioned. There are also a host of others, many nameless or seasonal. They all add up to a river that is normally gin clear and rapidly flowing through a pool and drop routine amid wooded hills and beautiful limestone cliffs. It makes for mesmerizing paddling. Through this clear water one can see perhaps ten or twelve feet down in the pools. It gives the impression of flying over car-sized boulders and a variety of fish will be seen. The drops are usually gravel, or sometimes cobble, and often lead one into narrow fast channels that accelerate a paddler past boulders and strainers – and can capture you in an inside shore eddy if you give the obstacles too wide a birth – “shaking hands with eddy” as Vic would say. It’s like white water with training wheels. Few paddlers have much trouble with it, though the Oklahoma group quit early after one of their party had recurrent problems – they were apparently used to wider waters. No fault in that, we’ve all taken a swim occasionally – though not this year.
So in the interest of brevity (if it’s not too late for that already), on Thursday we did Pulltite to Round Spring. On Friday we were mesmerized from Akers Ferry to Pulltite. Saturday was from Cedar Grove to Akers Ferry. On Sunday we did Pulltite to Round Spring again for those who missed it the first time. I’ve always enjoyed finishing a trip with this section since there is a gravel bar at Sinking Creek, just above Round Spring, that is perfectly suited for stretching out on the gravel with a PFD pillow, snoozing, and soaking in the sun. It is usually the last such opportunity I have before the cold of winter sets in up here. It’s a good spot to recall in February. Monday we drove home.
Each night we enjoyed clear starry cool nights around the campfire due in no small part to Tom’s (Tazz) enthusiasm for cutting and splitting fire wood. We enjoyed “high tea” thanks to the contributions of Pam and Laurel. Rob joined us on Saturday; Margret paddled with us on Thursday and joined us at the fire on Thurs. and Fri. nights. Dan, a soft-spoke local who is incredibly well-informed about the geology and history of the area, paddled with us on Thursday and Friday. I am in awe of his skills at navigating within strainers to recover cans and other trash. He outdid himself this year, as I can recall seeing none anywhere on the river this trip.
There are two other sections of the river that we didn’t do this year. We didn’t do the section from Baptist Camp to Cedar Grove because this most upstream section can be mighty bony in low water as we had this year. The section from Round Spring to Two Rivers, where the Current joins the Jack’s Fork, is a delightful stretch but a very long shuttle from Pulltite and is about a twenty mile paddle. That is a stretch that is better done by river camping, especially with the shortening hours of daylight. The same can be said for the Jack’s Fork from Buck Hollow to Bay Creek, also best done at higher water levels. We have only ventured below Two Rivers a few times, as that’s where the motor boat traffic picks up.
To those who attend the Ozark ‘Vous there are other attractions besides the paddling. Often, though not this year, our gatherings coincide with an event held at Ally Mill, near the town of Eminence, called the “Haunting of the Hills” which features blue grass jam sessions, “buck skinner’s” displays, and demonstrations of traditional Ozark history and arts. There also is another straight up arts and crafts fair held at the same time but on separate grounds.
But this year the hills were haunted by Terry (WildernessWebb). We’ve been doing this now since 2002, in the spring and fall, and I think it’s safe to say that none of this would have happened without Terry’s assistance. He, for instance, took the initiative for reserving the site at Round Spring for our first three gatherings. He first showed us the way to Rocky Falls. I don’t mean to downplay the importance of theBob and Kate’s contribution to getting this all started, or that of the many early Pnet folks, TexasLady, CM, Sloopsailor, DuluthMoose and PuffinGin, Barb, and others who attended and kept attending to make this the tradition it has come to be. Still and all, Terry really was instrumental.
There isn’t a stretch of the Current where I, where each of us, don’t have memories of Terry. There are perhaps dozens of spots on the Current where I can remember him eddied out on the backside of a bend shooting photos of folks as they dodged a rock or rootwad. He named spots along the way and I, at least, will always remember those spots by his names… Helicopter Pilot Bluff, Pyramid Rock… I can recall on one of our early trips when I was dawdling behind the pack thinking I was the last, only to be met by Terry drifting along, paddling sweep, with his feet propped up on the deck of a Liquid Logic kayak, smiling ear to ear, smoking a stogie, casting the base of the bluffs for smallies. His kindness, gentleness, humor, and love of paddling and wild places permeated the group and, I suspect, any group of which he was a part. There were several years of late when he had to bow out due to health issues, but he and Margret were always the picture of optimism, and I never had a doubt that he would be back next year when he beat the current hurdles as he had so often before. His gentle nature hid a resilience and indefatigably that was only apparent to those who had known him over a period of time. We are all blessed by having known him. The world is a better place for his having been in it, and that’s something we all will do well if we can emulate. There were, as best I can count, nineteen of our paddling group who made it to his visitation, some traveling a considerable distance. That, I think, says more than a little about the effect he has had on us. There were at least as many of his fellow nurses there, indicating that we weren’t the only ones who felt affection for him. It’s tempting to suggest we rename the ‘vous as a memorial to him, but perhaps that is unnecessary. None of us will ever forget his presence on that river. That is something for a future campfire discussion, perhaps.
I have recently read a book by Steven Pinker about the benefits of the “enlightenment” that we all now enjoy but which we tend to take for granted; the gifts of modernity in short. A phrase from that book, “the sin of ingratitude”, struck me and now comes to mind. As we, with our various reactions, come to grips with this new iteration of Paddling.com (or net or whatever) in addition to gratitude for our involvement with this sport of ours, and the waterways we have enjoyed, and the many fine people we have enjoyed them with, we really ought to remember another group of folks without whom none of this would have happened:
Thanks to Brian and the members of the P.com group.
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