When I came in off the gulf on Thursday I paid for a camp site for just two nights not knowing when I’d be able to get back on the water. When the weather reports showed 20-30 mph winds for today I knew it’d be another day off. As luck would have it when I checked my e-mails yesterday I found a note from a paddler the locals between Crystal River and Pensacola know as “The Kayak Queen”. Charlotte was tipped off about this trip in early January by a friend and has been following with great interest ever since. When she saw that the weather was going to have me stuck for a couple days she put out the offer of a nice home cooked meal and a place to stay. After almost two straight weeks sleeping in the tent I was happy to take her up on that offer, so after work today she stopped by the camp ground and picked me up.
At her friends insistence Charlotte took me straight to a little seafood restaurant to have “the best fried shrimp in town.” They were some of the best I’ve ever had. Of course as hungry as I’ve been lately I’ve had the “best” of almost every food I’ve ever had. From there we drove just twenty minutes up the coast to Crystal Springs (a route that took me an entire day to paddle) to try to see more manatees near Three Sisters springs. The wind however, was blowing so hard that the choppy water in even that protected water was too rough to see anything. So from there we stopped by to see Matt’s store at Ardvark’s Florida Kayak Company and then went on to Charlotte’s house.
At her friends insistence Charlotte took me straight to a little seafood restaurant to have “the best fried shrimp in town.” They were some of the best I’ve ever had. Of course as hungry as I’ve been lately I’ve had the “best” of almost every food I’ve ever had. From there we drove just twenty minutes up the coast to Crystal Springs (a route that took me an entire day to paddle) to try to see more manatees near Three Sisters springs. The wind however, was blowing so hard that the choppy water in even that protected water was too rough to see anything. So from there we stopped by to see Matt’s store at Ardvark’s Florida Kayak Company and then went on to Charlotte’s house.
Me with Charlotte 'The Kayak Queen'
Charlotte is about as gung ho a paddler as I’ve ever seen. Talking with her reminds me of the spirit of the sport that got me hooked so long ago. She’s paddled locations from all over Florida all the way up to Canada, the San Juan Islands, and Maine. Her favorite places to paddle are the blue water rivers of north central Florida and a large part of why she moved to this region is for the paddling.
While I organized gear and filled my water bags for a return to the water tomorrow, Charlotte prepared dinner for the two of us and her sister with her friend. Around three heaping plates full of pasta and chicken with cream sauce, I filled my hostess and her guests in on some of the highlights of the trip so far. Their eyes filled with wonder when I told about being robbed and pepper sprayed and about the enormity of the Mississippi River itself.
It was a great day in the company of great people. Once again it felt great to be able to meet local people and share this adventure with them.
After carefully studying the weather predictions tonight it looks like I might actually have a good day on the water tomorrow with a nice tail wind to help me on my way south toward Tampa.
While I organized gear and filled my water bags for a return to the water tomorrow, Charlotte prepared dinner for the two of us and her sister with her friend. Around three heaping plates full of pasta and chicken with cream sauce, I filled my hostess and her guests in on some of the highlights of the trip so far. Their eyes filled with wonder when I told about being robbed and pepper sprayed and about the enormity of the Mississippi River itself.
It was a great day in the company of great people. Once again it felt great to be able to meet local people and share this adventure with them.
After carefully studying the weather predictions tonight it looks like I might actually have a good day on the water tomorrow with a nice tail wind to help me on my way south toward Tampa.
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