Indian Bayou

I and a small contingent of the Pelican Paddlers braved the chill today and ventured a few miles down Indian Bayou, from Sam Houston Jones State Park to “the island” for one last paddle in 2012. The temperature barely reached 50 today, and I was concerned I would be cold. But I dressed warm enough, maybe even too warm, and had a delightful time. My arms reminded me that I hadn’t been on the water in two months. Too long.

The bayous in Louisiana are beautiful, even in winter.

I didn’t catch any with my camera, but we saw several blue herons. Otherwise, not much wildlife. I suppose one could say one of the best parts of kayaking in the winter is that there are no mosquitoes.

I'd explored Indian Bayou several times in the past, but never before in winter. You can read about a couple of my other trips down this pristine waterway here.

Happy New Year, everyone! How are you celebrating the end of 2012?

Flashback Friday -- Indian Bayou

Friday nearly slipped past without a Flashback. Almost, but not quite.
Last evening, my friend Tracy and I paddled Indian Bayou. She's in my boat here, just getting her feet wet, so to speak. The blue boat, in case you are interested, belongs to another friend of mine and is for sale.

Way back in 2008, long before I got a kayak, a good friend of mine, railroad conductor and fellow writer Rodney Hennigan, introduced Bob and I to this lovely body of water not far from our home. Read about that enchanting excursion here. And do check out Rodney's website, too. He wrote and published a sweet little book called My Father's Gift.