I had been trying to put together a TAPC trip to the Pine for a month, and finally, Jocelyn could join me, so we took advantage of the sunny, warmer weather (high 40s-low 50s), before hunting season. I had heard there were 2-5 downed trees, but didn't anticipate that it would take us AN HOUR to paddle the very short distance to Coolwater Campground. We encountered 4 downed trees, 2 that required long portages, climbing steep embankments (thank goodness for bow & stern lines), and 2 low "limbos". Since it usually only takes me an hour to paddle to Peterson Bridge, and we had theater plans for "Cats" tonight, I was beginning to wonder if we'd have time for a hot shower beforehand. But, once we got past Coolwater, the river was high & fast, so very few obstacles, and even had time to enjoy lunch on the new picnic tables at Peterson, before continuing on down to Low Bridge. As it turned out, we had plenty of time, were only 45 minutes longer than planned, and had a great day on the Pine, as always!
I would not recommend paddling between Dobson Bridge & Coolwater until Mark & his crew from Pine River Paddlesports have a chance to clear the logjams in the spring!
Jocelyn portaging logjam upstream from Coolwater Campground (above),
"How low can YOU go?", her successful limbo (below)
