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PostPosted: August 15th, 2021, 12:16 am 
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Joined: November 16th, 2007, 1:11 pm
Posts: 176
Location: Mid-coast Maine
Looking for an August river to do with my 10-year-old daughter, and there just weren't many choices with low water levels. We landed on the St Croix - it was running about 525cfs, probably would prefer at least another 6" - 1' of water, but it was totally passable as it was. Had thought about trying the Machias but was warned off and glad I listened to the advice b/c driving over it on the Airline (Rt9) there was NO water in it.

The river section of the St Croix from Vanceboro to Kellyland is about 33 miles. We stretched it out by adding 15 miles of Spednic lake. C&C Canoe (Curtis and Cindy) in Vanceboro did our shuttle - picked our truck up where we left it at the lake and brought it down to the dam for $160.

We putin at the Castle Rd launch on Spednic Lake about 2pm on Tues, Aug 10. The lake is stunning and vast and the weather was fabulous. We hadn't paddled tandem in my Moisie for a long time, and she was 8 then - big difference! Mostly we hugged the American coastline but made a few unauthorized forays onto the Canadian islands. Saw one guy out fishing in a motorboat and another guy in a Grand Laker Canoe but both were a ways off and mostly we had that giant lake all to ourselves. Clouds rolled in and the wind picked up as the day wore on. Tried to get to the island site (in CA) on Todd's Island but by the time we got to the point on Dark Cove, it was windy and cloudy and we were both tired and I didn't want to chance crossing that big open water if we didn't need to. And low and behold there was an unmarked campsite on that point in Dark Cove. Besides, we had knocked out 8.5 miles of lake, with wind in our face, and morale was still high - didn't want to push it. Dad fixed Zatarain's 'dirty rice' with sausage for supper - daughter #1's favorite. Off to bed with her, cigars and a good book next to the fire for me.

"Dad, dad, it's 7am, you should really get up. We're wasting the day. C'mon." Not words I hear from Tom... I don't know where she found the early morning gene. But... breakfast wasn't going to make itself. Pancakes and cocoa for her, eggs and coffee for me. She packed up tent & sleeping gear (unasked and unanticipated!) while I did dishes and packed the kitchen. Socked in with fog but had cleared enough by 10 to see where we were going. The wind heard us coming and got moving as soon as I touched my paddle. Another 6.5 miles of lake - thank god for doubleblades. Portage around dam at Vanceboro was easy-peasy. Paddled over the log booms in the river to keep boaters away from the dam (bad Dad!) to get nice and close to the embankment. Six feet of riprap on the lake side to clamber up, then a grassy bank down to the other side. Think we did it all in 10 minutes. Lunch by the dam. Then down the actual river. No border agents bothered us. We could've been Americans, Canadians, or KGB operatives, but that's an easy way in (or out!). Did about 9 miles of river that afternoon. Nice current most of the way, very pretty scenery. Lots of 'Rips' - mostly R1 stuff - nothing to write home about, but a really intimate and visually interesting, pleasant paddle. Big slow slog going around the point at English Cove. We camped on the Canadian side at Halls Rips about 5:15. Kid drives a demanding schedule... About an hour after we had made camp a Canadian couple showed up and asked to share the site. I suggested there was another one just around the corner, but they said that was on the American side and they weren't supposed to go there... such rule followers! (One turned out to be an elementary school teacher and the other an insurance person, so go figure...) So we happily shared the site and they were very pleasant company and very good to the kiddo. Dad spilled the pasta on the ground while straining it (rookie cook mistake- very frustrating) but we re-boiled it and with the sausage and spinach and cheese on top, the pine needles disappeared. Chatted with the neighbors - they went to bed when daughter did, and left Dad to his cigars and rye and book and fire.

"Dad, c'mon. Really, they already ate breakfast. I'm hungry. Wake up." Ye gods...again...? Ok, I'm comin'... Pancakes, cocoa, eggs, coffee, chitchat with the early-to-bed neighbors. Ok, see you down river. Break down camp, load up. First rapid was right around the bend - Little Falls - a legit CIII even in low water. Good squirrelly ledge drop and a twisty, rocky run out. Canadian neighbors were analyzing it to death. They left our camp an hour ago... I took a quick look, got the girl back in the boat and had run it, eddied out, caught three fish, and drank a beer before the CANs came down. (Felt like I needed to wait and make sure they got down ok.) Then they paddled on, and daughter swam a lot while I drifted and fished the smallies. Similar to the day before, very intimate and pretty paddling, rapids were busy but not demanding. And only busy because I count it a fail if my boat touches a rock - in low water conditions my challenge to myself is to find the cleanest line through. The river changes character a bit about an hour past Little Falls - more cabins/camps on both shores and then the provincial park which was depositing tubers from its boat launch. Luckily not by the dozen. The Garmin InReach started acting weird on this day, and still haven't sorted it. But it stopped tracking us and asked me to sign in to something online to continue use (which is a completely stupid request if you know your customer is out in the damn woods relying on an InReach!) We had left camp about 9:45am but by 2pm our dot hadn't moved and my wife is madly messaging - are you ok? did you have a heart attack? are you alive? It got progressively worse. For some reason I couldn't get a message through to her, but I could to a buddy - who I asked to relay the news. Ok, that sorted, we ran Canoose Ledge and Rips which was a CII ledge drop followed by a good runout. Camped at the Annapurna site below Dog Falls. Daughter did a lot of swimming this day and I did a lot of fishing - all smallmouth, some good size. Skeeters were intense at this site. I cooked steaks that turned out to be all gristle, and the girl was beat and just gnawed the bone for a bit, then said the hell with it and went to bed on her own. I built the fire higher, snuck my cigar, drank my rye, and finished my book.

The skeeters didn't leave in the morning. We ate our standard breakfast and broke things down and daughter was neck deep in the river until we were ready to leave - which meant she left a lot more of the packing up for me. From here, it was lots of flat water to the end. Still pretty, though, and some excellent fishing in this section, too. Big lake paddling getting to the dam - daughter didn't have much left. I think her arms were about to fall off. Easy takeout in the channel behind the Kellyland dam. NOTE: an easy portage here would put you back on the river for another 20 miles of paddling to Calais, but they have closed off general access to this portage.

A nice newly printed and updated map of the St Croix International Waterway is now available.

Christian

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"There is nothing - absolutely nothing - half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats." - WATER RAT, The Wind in the Willows


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PostPosted: August 15th, 2021, 3:03 pm 
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Joined: December 19th, 2006, 8:47 pm
Posts: 9295
Sounds like a Great Dad Daughter trip!
Untold, did you fess up to being on the wrong side of the river for camp?? :tsk: :lol:


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PostPosted: August 15th, 2021, 7:37 pm 
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Joined: November 16th, 2007, 1:11 pm
Posts: 176
Location: Mid-coast Maine
Hi LRC,
It was a great dad/daughter trip!
And it had been too long since the last one.
Honestly, no one told us we couldn't camp on the Canadian side... and there was no signage anywhere. Our Canadian campmates said they were told at the CAN putin (which is right next to the border station) not to cross to the American side. We didn't see anyone while we portaged the dam and ate lunch, though we were in view of the US checkpoint the whole time. Besides, taking into consideration every interaction I've had in the past with CAN authorities, my guess was if someone took issue with our presence, they would ask us very, very politely and apologetically to git, and would probably help pack the drybags.
; )
Christian

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"There is nothing - absolutely nothing - half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats." - WATER RAT, The Wind in the Willows


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