In the mid 90s, we took a group of cub scouts for a little canoeing/camping trip to the Okefenokee Swamp. Here are some pics.
This picture demonstrates the mirror-like quality of the water's surface. Can you tell the original? First it was scanned right side up, then upside down.
This is the landing at Billy's Island. Billy's Island was the site of an actual town during the logging heyday in the early part of this century. The community even had a movie theater. We paddled up to this island to explore the remnats of past civilizations. The image is surreal, but you can see J.D. at the end of the pier.
Part two. A deserted coastal island.
Jeff, J.D. and I explored the salt marsh around some islands off the coast of South Carolina.
Jesus knew what he was talking about when he counseled against building a house on sand. People still ignore what he said.
There was a great deal of beach erosion, lending something of an ethereal feeling to the place. The beach was in the woods or the woods were on the beach.
Part three. The Apalachee River.
I have done the Apalachee River from the Highway 78 Bridge to the Lake Oconee Bridge, Highway 278, a total of right at 31 miles. I did it in 3 different sections on 3 different days. The first time was the middle section, from High Shoals to just below Highway 441, about 12 miles. We did the trip in early spring in 1994, my first trip in my Old Town Tripper. I recount the story in the Broad River section of these pages. Since the water level was up, there wasn't any dragging. Indeed, this particular section of the river is a popular day paddle when the water level is up. That's the key, though
-- when the water level is up. The water level has been down now for several years because of this persistent drought. There are many shoaly areas along this stretch of the river which, in order for you to get through in low water, you will have get out and drag the canoe. But, that's what you can expect from a trip on that section of the Apalachee this time of year.
My next trip on the Apalachee was January of '95. Jeff and I put in at the 441 Bridge and paddled through Collarbone Rapids, where we took an involuntary swim, (It was a warm, sunny day and we quickly dried out.) and paddled and
dragged the 10.9 miles to the Highway 278 Bridge on Lake Oconee (which, BTW, is only 1 1/2 miles from my house). Just below the rapids, the river splits up into fingers. But, don't let this image fool you. There is no one channel recognizeable as the main channel. Just pick one and hope for the best. The day was absolutely gorgeous, with the sun streaming though the trees of the swamp through which we trudged. Trudged, indeed, for we did as much dragging of the boat as we did paddling. I was releived when the fingers came back together a few miles later as the river passed under the remains of Tremble Bridge, its haunting rusted iron frame still spanning the river, and we could paddle again. But, my relief was short lived, as the river again disappeared into the swamp. It remained this way until about a mile above the takeout at the Highway 278 Bridge.
Moreover, since this trip was in January, the water was up. It would be awful in late summer, with the water low. But aside from the water level, I'd have an even bigger concern with doing this section in the hot time of year: copperheads,
cottonmouths and rattlesnakes. I flat out would not do this section in the summer. Where the river flows just below the 441 bridge is well known to contain well more than its fair share of rattlesnakes, in significantly
higher numbers than any other area of the county. It's those rocks that cause collarbone rapids -- part of that major granite structure that runs from Stone Mountain over to Elberton -- that lie exposed in the woods and which provide the ideal rattlesnake habitat. And there ain't a swamp in Georgia that don't have a lot of copperheads....
My third trip down the Apalachee was in June of 2000, I think.. Laura Wexler was doing a book about the lynchings at More's Ford on the Apalachee and wanted get a view from the river. So, one fine Saturday morning, about 8 o'clock,
we put in at the Highway 78 bridge. It's a good thing we got an early start. You may figure that I'm harping on this drought too much, and maybe I am, but we dragged two very tired butts off that river nine hours later after having
dragged and toted the boat at least half of the mere 9.3 miles to High Shoals. We hadn't gone a mile, a tough mile at that, when we had to portage a couple hundred yards around deadfalls. That set the tone for the remainder of the day. There are two old defunct dams on the river that also must be portaged. Their presence gave me a sense of how many mills there once were on most of the rivers and creeks in north Georgia. Another positive note of the trip were the number of mountin laurels there were along the river. However, we were too late to enjoy the profusion of spring blooms there must have been as evidenced by the copious spent blossoms we saw. I also saw a number of Paw Paw trees. But we were too early to enjoy the fruits. There were also a number of other flora natives. Carolina Jessamine, Cross Vine, etc. Again, this trip is not ecommended during dry weather, as we are currently experiencing. I regret that
these notes on the Apalachee are so negative. A bad day on the river is still better than a good day mowing the grass at home. I'm glad that I had these experiences. But I'd need to be paid to repeat it. The nice thing about the Apalachee is its wildness. It has a significantly wild and remote feeling.
J.D. in a contemplative moment (eating lunch) after we made 23 miles in 4 hours on a flooded Flint River in South Georgia.
