After Abilene, we were officially over half way through our trip and were pointed back South. We took our time packing up from Abilene. I was getting pretty tired by now of loading and unloading the kayaks from the pop up. Especially after not using them at the last 2 parks, but at South Llano River State Park, they would end being worth hauling every mile!
Our drive was easy and pleasant and we were set up by 2 pm with a light drizzle and overcast skies making for quite a cool afternoon. We took advantage and jumped right on a 3.5 mile rountrip hike to check out a canyon wall where water seeps out apparently creating a habitat for lizards and wrens. No luck on finding lizards, but the kids enjoyed scaling the canyon wall and testing their limits (mine as well).
After an early dinner, we drove to nearby Junction to get some more ice and food for the next few days since we didn’t do it on the way in. We crossed the Llano River leaving the park and the highway travelled along side it into town. I was in the middle of pondering out loud that there must be someway to float or kayak this stretch when I saw a sign for a kayak shuttle service outside a restaurant! A sign is a sign, so we pulled in to find out more! Fortunately, the owners were there and after a brief conversation and some convincing for the boys, our plans for Monday were set. 🙂
That morning we ate our weight in pancakes, loaded all 3 kayaks onto and into the car and drove to the river crossing at the entrance of the state park. Sally stayed behind in her kennel in the camper. We unloaded the kayaks on the river bank, told them to stay, hopped back into our car and drove it to a park in Junction 7 miles downstream. We then called our new friend, Bill with Paddler’s Porch, and he picked us up in his truck and shuttled us back to our kayaks! All for the fair price of $30! Along the way, he gave us tips and tricks for the journey and we chatted about ETX as he’s originally from Longview. Always a small world. I was a big fan of the arrangement. Our car would be at the finish line, we could travel on our schedule and we knew if we wanted to see it again; we better finish! And I didn’t have a plan much beyond that. I packed a backpack that was bungeed on my stern with 10 bottles of water, multiple snacks, sandwiches and tuna packets. Ashlyn was to command the 7ft “banana boat,” Weston the 5ft youth yak and Archer on the bow of my 10 footer.
How I wish I had the ability to type out every inch of the 7miles of rapids, obstructions, and still very wild river we traversed over the span of 4.5 hours. I also wish I had a go-pro on the bow to capture some of the shit we went through! Cliff notes are; Ashlyn is a natural, she is all in and was our lead through the whole trip. She would go through rapids ahead of us and call out where the fast cuts were and where branches were hanging out. Her only complaint was fatigue at the end. But she’s ready to go again. ATTA GIRL! Weston’s boat was too small for him already. He also got flustered easy and flipped a few times. He was smart every time and found his footing first before messing with his boat. But for the last half mile, he ended up sitting on my stern holding a tow on his boat while I trucked it to out run a storm that chased us our last mile to the finish. Navigating a 10foot kayak with 60lbs on the bow was a booger, but Archer did really well holding still in the middle as best he could and the one time we got sideways on a log in the river and flipped, he did just as I had advised in my pep talk at the beginning and got clear of the boat to stand up. His biggest complaint was being sore sitting in one position for so long.
We made it to the city park where we left the car and got the boats loaded all before a hellacious storm blew through. Then, I treated everyone to huge blizzards from Dairy Queen. The whole thing was the most epic adventure I’ve done with the kids yet and while hard, it was perfect! They were awesome at being safe and following directions. Being a completely foreign river to all of us and tackling it with their limited practice on their kayaks, there was just enough risk to make the completion so rewarding! For me and Ashlyn anyways…the boys never want to kayak again. Lol! Maybe they will grow into it, maybe they won’t, but in the meantime I’m looking forward to the next trail with my pro paddler. 😍
After that very full day, we returned to a power outage at the park. Everything was still cool at least since the storm had just blown through. Sally was happy to see us and we spent the evening with an early dinner watching the dozens of armadillos mill about the camping loop. The power came back on in time for bed and we treated our sore bodies to an early bedtime.
The next morning after a good night’s rest, we packed up camp and spent some play time at the “waterfall” area of the river at the front of the park. We had learned the previous day that was basically the clearest spot for the next 7 miles of the South Llano River and the boys were bitter over their lack of swim time the day before. Sally got in on the action as well and we stayed until our hunger drove us into town for a quick Sonic lunch and we were on our way to Guadalupe River State Park.
This was MY FAVORITE PARK OF THE ENTIRE TRIP. And not just for our kayak adventure. It is still so wild there! We saw whitetail deer, axis deer, turkeys (there’s actually a whole protected roosting area in the park for them), javelina, hogs, coyotes, jack rabbits, raccoons, and so many armadillos we lost count. The park is a registered “International Dark Sky” location and all the campers respected the lights out policy. We were able to walk at night by not moonlight, but STAR light. Just stunning. The campsites are beautiful and accommodating with their awnings and multiple shade trees. I can’t wait to go back. Fortunately, it makes a perfect half way stop for visiting our Lubbock family!
-Lindsay
Gregarious Gregorys 