Tuesday, April 29, 2025
Weather Conditions:
High:74
Low: 62
Skies: Variable clouds with storms in the afternoon. Chance of rain 70%.
Wind: Light and variable
Today’s mileage: 6 miles
Total: 39 miles
Where we traveled: Dave’s Cave to Tyler Bend
The Whippoorwills bade us good morning again.
The rain did make an appearance while we slept. So, if the satellite forecast for last night was wrong, is it inaccurate for the rest of the week?
Remember our failed sleep pads? Remember our stone (really more rock than stone) campsite? Think about how well those two go together. Thankfully, I added a garden kneeling pad to my canoe gear to provide cushion on my paddling seat. I bring it into the tent to keep it dry. Last night, upon lying down, I realized I needed hip pain relief; a strategically positioned kneeling pad was a lifesaver!
A couple of guys passed our campsite and wanted to know where we were. We told them we were six miles from Tyler Bend.
Around 10:00, hoping to reach safety from potential storms, we launched. Proximity to civilization is important to us; we also want to avoid a sandbar that might flood.
Soon after we launched, we realized why the area was called “Dave’s Cave.” Around the bend from our campsite was a cave at river level. Just beyond that was a bluff resembling a gnome (? Dave).
Gary and Linda were the probes today. Partly because they have a good map and know where we are and where we are going. I also don’t think Gary had the Go Pro hooked up, so he didn’t NEED us for any action shots. But he should have!
Soon after we oohed and awed and took pictures of Dave’s Cave, we approached two enormous boulders (John nicknamed them “Dave’s Balls”) in the middle of the river. Gary paddled left with no problem. We followed his line, but suddenly, the current pulled us towards one of the boulders. This time when John shouted, “back,” my mind followed his direction. We barely avoided a collision and a definite dump! Glad my mind worked today. Slamming into a boulder would have been much worse than hitting the tree.
About an hour into the trip, we floated up to Baker Ford. We discussed stopping but decided since a restroom wasn’t in eyesight, we didn’t want to waste time looking for it. We knew Tyler Bend was close, so we spent our time paddling. Gary has a rule—“If you can’t see it from the river….”
Soon after passing up a stop at Baker Ford, a brief squall, complete with wind and horizontal rain, forced us to seek shelter in the lee of a bluff. Forces of nature remind me of our vulnerability.
People we encountered on the river:
2 tires—while these aren’t people, they are there because of them. Although infrequent, we’ve spotted these before; however, even one is more than enough.
Wildlife:
2 eagles—1 adult, 1 immature
Herons
Blue Bunting
Notable sights:
Dave’s Cave
A Tyler Bend sign welcomed us at the beginning of a large bend. We considered stopping, but Gary had a map and was sure there was another takeout on the other side of the bend. This is a case where he didn’t follow his “don’t pass the good in search of the perfect” rule. I’m glad, because around the bend there was a restroom, water, trash, and campground at the top of the hill. Since the campsite’s picnic tables were visible from the river, we pulled ashore about 12:00. As soon as we exited our boat, John and I searched for a restroom. We turned right from the river road toward a pavilion and restrooms. John was walking ahead of me and reached the building first. He tried the first door. Locked. He tried the second door. Locked. Oh no!!!! Then he read the sign on the door. “Use restrooms in the other campground.” Though I noticed a smaller building across the street, the larger one overshadowed it in my consideration. Across the yard, past campsites with picnic tables, and fire rings with wood, we hiked to the OPEN restroom. What a relief!!
After everyone had visited the restroom, we discussed a game plan. At that point, the radar looked colorful, and the forecast showed storms arriving around 1:30. Decision made. We will stay. A decision to stay and not return to the river is hard when the sun is shining, but…
By 2:00, we had set up and moved the canoes to higher ground. We are prepared for whatever happens in the next few days. We and our canoes are safe and near a shelter and a road.
Despite thunder booming shortly after our setup, the 2:45 radar showed the rain moved north.
Linda talked to a guy weed eating. He supported our decision to stay off the river. He said we may get an inch of rain tonight and another tomorrow. If the river goes up too much, trees on the banks barely holding on will lose their grip and will float down the river. We’ve dealt with drift on the flooded Mississippi River, but the size of that river allowed us to get out of the way.
There is electricity in the bathroom to charge our phones. Each campsite has an old-fashioned green pump. The kind you lift the handle to get the water to come out and must be careful not to smash your finger when you shut it off. Three picnic tables, a fire ring (you have to crawl inside to light it), and two charcoal grills are at our site. We are roughing it.
We investigated the showers the weed trimmer guy mentioned. Nice. (Guess who’s taking a shower tomorrow.) Then we walked to the visitor’s center. Closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Of course they are.
We have neighbors—three guys who have previously paddled the Buffalo. They warned us about the aggressive raccoons in the campground. Can the raccoons here be any worse than other campgrounds? We secured the food buckets more tightly just in case.
What a treat to make dinner standing at a picnic table instead of leaning over a silver emergency blanket. We enjoyed dinner by a fire. Wine and bourbon included.
The Whippoorwills didn’t sing us our go-to-bed song, but a close relative, the Chuck-Will’s-Widow, did.
Lazy night and slow morning to watch the weather. Paddle or not to paddle. That’s the question.