DAY 44 TenaCity to WindyCity Runyak June 15, 2020

TenaCity to WindyCity Runyak
June 15, 2020

Flint to Chicago DAY 44

ALL PHOTOS AND IMAGES WILL ENLARGE WHEN CLICKED


After a 2:30 hr. drive I arrived at Red Bridge about 7:00 am, positioned my kayak for what would be a 10:00 am launch. 
The early morning air was nippy I put on a jacket and looked out at the river where fog was hanging over the water. 
I then drove to where my run would begin, and where DAY 44 paddle would end, High Bridge River Access. 
The run turned out to be a .40 mile further than expected. A road I was to take Fife Springs was on the map but I never saw it. After not seeing it, I looked at my phone gps; it said I passed it. Should I go back and look again? It still would be shorter than going on, for it ran on an angle and would cut off the longer route. I decided not to trust the Google map and do the extra distance. 

10:00 am launch with just Kate and myself. 
We were soon in the backwaters of Tippy Dam. We passed many islands in Tippy Pond.
Kate heading for Tippy Dam
On Tippy Pond we heard a haunting bird call and it sounded familiar but couldn't identify it. We soon saw a Common loon on our starboard. The memory of the call came back to me from decades before. It being about 20 yards away makes it the closest loon sighting of my life. The loon disappeared, we waited for it to emerge for a photo op. When it did it was too far from the direction we wanted to go. Sorry no loon photos. We also saw a bald eagle from a distance but never close enough for photos. First eagle sighting of the 2020 Expedition.
View back where we had paddled, taken from the above dam portage.
Tippy Dam and our takeout to begin portage.
The portage was also about 6 mile into the paddle, and marked our 1/2 point of the kayaking leg. 

Name that butterfly?
This was recorded from where we ate our lunch. Water moving quite fast away from the dam. We did soon slow down a bit. For sure the second half was much faster pace, averaging about 13 min/mi, compared to the 17 min/mi on the pond to the dam.
Tippy Dam was built in 1918. Named to honor a Consumer's board member Charles W. Tippy. 
Our below the dam portage launch. 
We carried the kayaks .35 mile.
The portage is longest portage because of a dam I've ever encountered. 
This path was way too steep for humans to walk down. 
Upstream from High Bridge River Access 

















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