By Pam Reutebuch

The temperature at 10:00 am hovered just above freezing when our eight adventuresome paddlers met at the welcome station on the westbound side of I-20 just after crossing into Georgia. We would have seven kayakers: Brian, our trip leader, Joe, Sherry, Pam, Sheila, Jeffery and Greg and one solo canoeist, Bob. We exchanged our "Good mornings," took advantage of the facilities and then made the short drive to the put-in area.

We had planned to put in at the head gates near the Savannah Rapids Pavilion located in the Augusta Canal National Heritage area. Due to construction, this put-in was not accessible. After some serious scouting of the area (aka a lot of walking), Jeffrey found a path off a side gravel parking lot that led to a "do-able" put-in. Unfortunately, he suddenly started feeling ill and decided it would be best if he passed on the day's adventure.

The rest of the group gave it a "thumbs up" and started unloading boats and gear for the 1/4 mile portage. The path cut through the woods, then followed alongside Reed Creek, with its waterfall and small rapids. The last little bit was down a bluff and through the trees and underbrush. Everyone worked together and after several trips back and forth, the boats and gear were all gathered at the water's edge. It was then back up the trail to run the shuttle to the 13th Street Gatehouse where we would be taking out. One last trip down the trail and we finally got on the water. It was almost 1:00 pm.

We headed up current so we could explore the head gates area and lock. We also got a water-side view of the construction and renovations under way on the Lock Keeper's Cottage, dance pavilion, barbecue pit and picnic shelter. When we were done exploring and taking pictures, we headed downstream. To my surprise, there was a fair amount of current, so the paddling was easy. In fact, you barely had to paddle at all except to steer. We floated at a relaxing pace, taking in the scenery and chatting about the past week's events.

We floated past the put-in at Reed Creek. About 3/4 of a mile later we passed a rock quarry on river right and a drain gate on river left. Brian spotted the big loblolly pine referenced in several accounts about the canal. Pam spotted a hornet's nest that had been broken open, exposing the honeycomb-like compartments inside. Sheila spotted a wasp's nest. We saw numerous patches of bright green, feather-like plant masses. After doing a little research, I was able to identify it as the parrot feather plant (myriophyllum aquticum). At about the 2-mile mark, we passed under the I-20 bridge.

A half-mile later (around 2:00) we stopped at a landing, just past a drain gate, for lunch. We secured the boats, climbed up to the towpath and walked back past the drain gate to an area referred to as "The Clearing." There were a couple of picnic tables in this grassy area overlooking the Savannah River. An added bonus was the "port-a-potty."

Shortly after we got back on the water, I spotted something sticking up out of the water near the bank. I turned around and went back to investigate. It turned out to be a mountain bike! The rest of the group paddled over to get a look. It looked almost brand new, so we decided we could tie it in the front of Bob's canoe. (He had mentioned earlier in the trip that he could use a little extra weight in the front of the boat.) Our "found treasure" secured, we continued on downstream.

We passed the Augusta Water Authority. We stopped and talked with some cyclists who were riding on the towpath - one of whom, to our surprise, was Kyle! We then passed under the River Watch Parkway, past a new pedestrian walkway and then took a short detour to go take a look at Lake Olmstead, which branched off on river right. We saw several great blue heron and a snowy egret.

Continuing down the canal, we came to some bulk head gates and were instructed, by a sign in the water, to pass through the left (north) chamber. A half-mile or so further, we passed the Silk Mill Gate. Shortly thereafter, we came to the most identifiable landmark along the canal - the 168' Powder Works Chimney - and the Sibley Mill which was later built behind it. Below that was the King Mill. We then floated under the Broad Street bridge. We were paddling right into town.

We paddled under the Butt Memorial bridge, with its four stone lions at the approaches, emerging to a view of the Granite Flour Mill. Docked near the Calhoun Expressway bridge, we saw one of the replica Petersburg boats used to give tours of the canal. We then passed through a footbridge with the center span missing just before arriving at the 13th Street take-out. It was around 5:00.

We loaded up the boats (and the bike) and headed into town to stop by American Wilderness Outfitters LTD., an outfitter located on Washington Road. Brian then shuttled Bob back to the put-in to get his truck. We then all met at Shealy's Bar-B-Que in Batesburg to top the adventure off with a buffet-style bar-b-que dinner.

Thanks to all for a great trip!

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