We launched at 9:50 from the landing behind the YMCA on Racquetball Drive. (We used to leave from the park at Logan's Landing but the gaggle of geese and their output have earned them title to the area.) The launch at the Y is very easy to access after Labor Day or any other time the fields are not in use. It is not visible from the parking lot but you can see the opening in the trees. We drove alongside the tennis courts and parked next to the opening to unload. We only had to carry the boats a few feet. We moved the cars back to the lot just in case something was scheduled while we were on the river. (It wasn't.)
The beautiful day called for us to use as much of the river as we could, so we headed downstream to S. Airport Rd. before turning around and heading upstream to the dam. The current was negligible as we started but as we neared the dam it was obvious that the water level behind the dam was being lowered. The current was stronger and there were some funky whirlpools, but it did not interfere with anyone's progress. When we came to the dam we could see water and foam gushing forth. The return trip downstream took up about 25% of the total time on the river. This section of the river will probably change to rapids when the dam is removed. While it is nothing like that now, we all felt we'd earned lunch after at Auntie Pastas.
Paddlers: Lori Brickman, Ruth Rague, Nan Harris, Ralph Brickman, Joe Harris, Jody Bennett