August 24, 2008 James River Run

Life does not get better than a day spent on the river under blue skies and sunshine. Sixteen of us took advantage of the great weather to experience the James River, many of us for the first time. After meeting at the access point just east of Mitchell and delivering some shuttle vehicles to the take out point we got under way. I was surprised and happy that their seemed to be more depth to the river than I thought there would be and was hoping it would hold out, which it did. The river was pretty slow and the wind was out of the south, south east. The water was cleaner than I had thought it might be and it was great paddling. The event was planned to take us 12 miles down stream to the take out and was predicted to take us four hours, which we hit pretty close. The banks along the way were fairly low and covered with vegetation. There were not as many trees or high banks as got to enjoy on the Big Sioux a couple of weeks ago. The only creatures I observed were a couple frogs, one turtle, a loon and a few head of cattle. I am sure that at the right time of day though, early morning or towards dusk that might just change. We paddled pretty steadily and some of us took a moment to take a break answer natures call and have a bite to eat. There were several interesting areas along the way where old bridges once stood and even one unidentified structure along the bank. I have a picture of that structure include here so if anyone knows what it is please let me know. The river was wider than I thought it would be most of the way and there was hit and miss fallen trees to circumvent. As usual the company was great and it afforded some great time to socialize and get to know some of the other people better. But as usual the fun has to come to an end sometime. We arrived at the take out a little over four hours after we departed and once everyone was out of the water we began the shuttle to get everyone back up their cars. Once loaded up Kay and I headed south to Highway 42 and then straight into Sioux Falls. It was a another great day on the water. Kay and I want to extend our thanks to everyone and a special thanks to Jarett Bies and the South Dakota Canoe Association for planning these events. Another wonderful day in South Dakota. Fresh air, exercise and wonderful company. Need I say more? Remeber if you click on pictures you can see full sized views.