TenaCity to WindyCity Day 7 September 15, 2017

TenaCity to WindyCity Runyak
Sept 15, 2017

Tenacity 2 Windycity DAY7

CLICK ON ALL PHOTOS TO ENLARGE
Day 7 was sort of impromptu. It was on a a Friday, the six previous paddles had been on a Sunday. In a chat with Dan Rice, who was behind a leg and needing to paddle Day 6, he mentioned he'd be doing it Friday and asked if I would paddle with him. I did not want to do a section twice. I did look at the forecast for Sunday and it said there was a chance of a thunderstorm, and the winds would be 7 miles out of the south. Saturday no rain, winds out of south 6 mph, and Friday no rain and winds 5 mph out of the south. Friday seemed to be the best day to do DAY7. Knowing that Linda Gamage, Kate Ferris, Dan Lamkin, and maybe others, of  the T2W Crew were Up North doing Paddle Antrim, and not knowing for sure anybody else would be paddling Sunday, I figured Friday made more sense.
Discussing the Friday option with Dan Rice, he said he'd shorten his paddle, launch two mile up from the mouth at an Essexville boat launch, and meet me at the Sunset Shores landing (End of DAY6).

DAY6 landing and DAY7 launch site. 

I was prepping for the launch when Dan appeared by truck. I thought he would be arriving by kayak from a launch in Essexville. He said he didn't have enough time after planting a bike at Linwood, our landing spot for today.

 I launched much sooner than Dan from the Sunset Shores landing.

 One reason Dan wanted to start up river a ways was experience the sky/water horizon for the first time. He did forfeit that experience, well sort of, he still paddle out of the Sunset Shores Channel to see this.

I thought the water had little wave action here, near the Saginaw River mouth. I only thought it would get more choppy as we paddled, boy was I wrong.

 This is the mouth of the Kawkawlin River, 2 miles from the launch of what would be a 8.7 mile paddle. After this the water looked like warped glass. Awesome liquid to paddle in.

 The last time I encountered water this glassy was also on the Saginaw Bay when exiting the Saginaw River on my journey to the Statue of Liberty. Twice in the same location? Is it a Saginaw Bay phenomena?

This is a photo (July 31, 2009) from Day 12 of the 116 Day, Runyak for Liberty. The Consumer's power plant at the Saginaw River mouth is foci of the photo.

Shot in the direction of unseen Charity Island some 30 miles away. 10 am morning sun shining from the east.

 Dan in the mercuric looking water

 Closer up

The Cap'n

At six miles into the paddle we stopped for a pop-in visit at my friends Tracy and Jena Windiate's South Linwood Beach house. They weren't home, but it felt good walking around a bit. On the beach we were surprised to see deer tracks.

The Non-Shiawassee Flats  

Taken from Windiate's beach. The small dot above the horizon is actually a boat. The darker line that looks like the horizon actually isn't, the horizon truly beyond the boat. It was explained later this is what is called a superior mirage. I corrected them, we weren't on Lake Superior, we were in an arm of Lake Huron so it has to be a huron mirage. Get it?

I inserted this superior mirage photo of a ship from a mirage webpage

Dan Rice unbeaching his 12 footer from Windiate's property

 There is a plane in the photo. See it? It first went north turned and came back. It seemed be be buzzing us

This is our landing of DAY7. There was a full fledged marina .2 of a mile closer that we passed up. I just liked this one better. We paddled up the narrow marshy passage seen in the center of the photo.
Might as well get used to it, on DAY8 we will be going through Nayanquing Point State Wildlife Area and will be marshing it.
For me, and hoping for others soon, the paddle distance from Flint is 79.7 miles. The runyak mileage is  147.8.