From the Bayou File

You know it was a relaxing work day when you have time to look around to find odd and interesting sights.  An old file stuck in a little tree would seem to count as “odd and interesting”, wouldn’t you agree?

With The Backpacker’s Demo Day on University Lake scheduled for Saturday, we took advantage of another summer Friday to paddle Bayou Fountain and make sure the bayou was running free and clear for everyone to enjoy.  We didn’t expect to see anyone out there, really, but even with the early start on a weekday, we still ran across people out on the bayou.

For the second trip in a row, there was not a single tree down.  This is actually neither odd nor unusual, but given the number of fallen trees that have clustered together in rather unexpectedly large groups this summer, it seemed at once both familiar and unique to be able to concentrate solely on elective procedures.

We worked mostly on the section ending just upstream of Screen Porch on the Paddle Trail Map, as that section grows together quite a bit and requires pruning every so often to keep it from jamming and to keep the channel open.  It’s actually sometimes more work to clean up bushy branches than to dismantle simple fallen trees, but it’s never boring.  Tossing in some cuts on previously fallen trees adds a bit of variety, too.

Speaking of variety, but in a bad way, it seems that the invasive apple snails that have been seen on Bayou Manchac have continued into Bayou Fountain.  They lay their pink eggs in clumps above the waterline, and we’ve seen the evidence along the bayou.  If only apple snails would take a particular liking to chowing down on Chinese tallow trees…

After a nice, easy work day on Bayou Fountain, on Saturday it was out to University Lake to hang out with the ducks and The Backpacker for another demo day.  Between summer showers, we got to talk to people about boats and paddling and, of course, Bayou Fountain.  Eventually, a pop-up thunderstorm finished the demo day, but we had a good time, regardless.  That’s the last two times we’ve been at University Lake for paddling both affected by a solitary pop-up thunderstorm, but with luck, that’ll mean the rain gods of summer are satisfied and the Sunset Paddle with BREC Outdoor Adventure this Wednesday will go off without a hitch.  That’s how weather works, right?  Well, we’ll see.