Hey everyone!
Unfortunately, we've hit some weather concerns. Last night, that 30% chance of rain turned into 100% and really poured for much of the night last night. Our tent was soaked, along with a couple of our sleeping bags. We started packing up at 4am while it was still raining, and decided to take a look at the forecast, which showed between a 70-80% chance of rain--and possibly even thunder storms--until around 2 or 3pm today, accompanied by a drop in tempurature from the 60's to the 30's by tonight. After that, the night lows for the next few days were looking to be in the high 20's/low 30's. Taking all that into account, we finally decided after literally hours of debate that we needed to call of the rest of the trip.
Rest assured we didn't come to this decision lightly. Maybe over the next couple of days we may find that the weather predictions were completely wrong and we could have made the trip. The problem is that, right now, we can't see into the future, and based on what we were seeing for ourselves outside and the forecasts for later, we made a very hard choice to play it safe. As I've said before, doing a trip like this is such a gamble; you go through so many places over such a long distance for so many days that completing the entire thing can never be a complete certainty until your at the end. I think that all four of us understand that, and though we're dissapointed we weren't able to finish the whole River, we were still able to travel around 140 miles of it, which is nothing to sneeze at! We had some fantastic experiences and have some great stories to tell, which I hope we'll get a chance to post here in the days to come. Thanks so much for everyone's prayers and support; you can bet this won't be our last trip!
-Daniel
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Smart move. the upcoming weather is not favorable to your number one concern. Safety.
ReplyDeleteRivers not going anywhere. Have fun planning the next trip.
Besides, I was getting concerned over your food rations anyway. You guys are eating in every pic! LOL
Aww, probably a smart move for sure, and I agree with anonymous, the river isn't going anywhere. You got farther than I ever would've. All about experiences though, right?
ReplyDeleteHey Guys,Better to have tried.....
ReplyDeleteDon't give up the dream. Plan,plan & Plan is the key to long trips in planning, and then one must have a steely resolve, determination and tenacity. Oh yeah, and luck too. I,ve taken canoe & packpack trips here in Florida in my favorite months, Jan,/Feb. the trick is to be prepared. Get good advice from experienced canoe trippers.
This past August I solo canoed the 242 miles of the Suwannee River from the Okefenokee swamp to the Gulf of Mexico in 7 days. Damm the heat and push on!
And check-out Bill Belleville's book " River of Lakes," about the St Johns.
With boots & paddles, Popski
Hello all,
ReplyDeleteI just had a friend forward me your blog site and read about your exciting adventure. Congratulations...that is amazing! I find canoeing so much more difficult than kayaking and completely understand the circumstances for your decision. It was a total deluge and the weather turned frigid after that.
You should be sooo proud! I had to start my St. JOhns kayak trip 3 different times. The first time I ran into a wall of hyacinth in the canal system that was completely impassable just 2 hours from Highway 60 and with the second start I didn't even make it to the river's edge, as my daughter talked me out of going...as we were driving through torrential downpour and lightening that was supposed to last for days. It was the right decision to not start under those conditions and third time was the charm!
Keep up the great work! I can't wait to hear more about your next trip down Florida's beautiful rivers.
Michelle