Aldrich Waterfowl Refuge

Saturday morning, I got up before sunrise and drove to Stockton Lake for some kayaking. Originally, I was going to camp out the night before, by myself, but I was pretty tired after finishing my first week at my new job.

I got up to Stockton and the side of the lake I picked to put in at had white caps and a roaring onshore wind. Not willing to put myself under that much danger and exertion, I opted to drive another 15 minutes to a more sheltered area.

I put in at the Aldrich Waterfowl Refuge. The lake, being very low, was little more than a tree stump choked river channel on this arm. I paddled about three and a half miles, out and back, until I gave up struggling to keep myself from holing the boat. I had several "Oh, s--t!" moments of high centering on a log or stump. The water was just too cold to risk going into and I called it early.

I did see the remnants of an old bridge and a lot of birds, herons, great egrets, Canada geese, coots, a few hawks, gulls and a bunch of other waterfowl I couldn't identify. Also saw some raccoon prints in the mud.

It's a neat area, I look forward to checking it out again when the water is higher or the breeze is low enough to easily dodge dead trees in the water.