Bayou Fountain — April 18, 2015

Rain may have cancelled our Saturday plans, but since it can’t dampen paddle trail maintenance, we headed on down Bayou Fountain to see what the high water brought.

We had been planning to host a group for a cleanup on or along one of our waterways, but with the nearly constant rain all week, those plans got washed away.  On the other hand, when we’re out doing paddle trail maintenance, we usually end up rather wet anyway.  It seemed like a perfectly good Saturday for that, and with Bayou Fountain up around eight feet on the Bluebonnet gauge during the week, we expected to have some work to do.

It was raining when we arrived at Highland Road Park, and it continued most of the way down the bayou.  With a good hat, rain isn’t a big deal.  In fact, it was actually quite relaxing paddling along listening to the rain falling in the forest.  (We’ve padded in all types of “bad” weather, and while paddling around thunder and lightning wouldn’t be wise, some of our best trips have been in “bad” weather.)  Eventually, the rain tapered off, but not before we’d paddled virtually the entire way to Bayou Manchac.

We expected the rain, but what we didn’t expect was how much work we’d have to do on downed trees or logjams.  How much was it?  None!  Three weeks without a single blockage in spite of plenty of water flowing.  Well, we didn’t want to get bored or anything, so we took some time to do preventative maintenance on some large logs and other suspicious characters.  With the current up a bit, we even got to free a few long logs and watch them head on downstream all on their own.  (It’s quite convenient when you don’t have to saw up a log twenty-some feet long and a foot thick.)

By the time we finished log herding and turned back upstream, the rain had passed and the skies were looking quite nice.  The current wasn’t bad at all, and we took our time, stopping for a few photo breaks.  The current was, however, a bit inconvenient when you’re trying to get close ups of a couple large spiders without getting *too* close.  (We decided not to use the spider photos here, as pretty plants seemed a more pleasant idea, but they’re out there if you want to click through from one of the photos we did use.)

While the mosquitoes did come out once the rain stopped, all in all it was another great day on Bayou Fountain.  (Also, the blackberries that creep down the banks in many locations are just ripening.)  We’re definitely into prime paddling season now, and on the pleasantly shaded 4.5 miles of the Bayou Fountain paddle trail any day, even a rainy day, is a good day.