Schroon River Detour

We’re camping this week on a bend in the Schroon River. In fact, looking across the beach from our campsite it looks like a small, serene pond reflecting the rim of green trees in its still surface. Nothing would make one suspect otherwise.

Although I spent most of my childhood summers swimming, boating, and fishing in Schroon Lake, I have not spent much time in or on the Schroon River. Turns out it’s an old river that bends almost back on itself in places.

Last evening, Sam and I kayaked up-river and explored the shallow waterways where the river is near to becoming a bog. I mentioned to Sam about oxbow lakes, which I had learned in middle school were formed by lazy old rivers that wound back on themselves and formed small ponds or lakes. The one we explored yesterday was forming an island instead of a pond.

Just as some of the most interesting road trips include wandering off the beaten path, detouring off the main flow of the river made for a fun adventure. In order to gain entrance, we had to skootch our kayaks through foot-deep water and push into the mud with our paddles. It wasn’t long and we reached water that wasn’t much deeper but deep enough to glide along.

A tree limb sticking at an angle up through the surface of the water had been felled by a beaver’s sharp front teeth. Sam scared off a large blue heron and later bumped a floating log where a turtle the diameter of a dessert plate sunned himself. The turtle’s companion had long since slipped nervously back into the water, but this one seemed determined to stay as long as possible. “How does a turtle climb up on a log like that?” Sam wondered aloud.

“They have claws,” I said.

“Oh.”

Between the beaver's stick and the tenacious turtle, we’d come to the opposite side of the oxbow and had to portage our kayaks in order to continue. This spot is where we first noticed a vivid red flower poking out among the various grasses and weeds on the riverbank. When I first saw it, I thought because of its brilliant color it must be a piece of colorful garbage. How exciting that it was a beautiful flower in a secluded place. Afterward we noticed the flower a few more times but no more than three in each place. Someday I’ll learn its name.

Up to the point where we went off to explore the oxbow we’d been paddling upstream. This took no extra effort as the current’s flow against us was imperceptible. When we came back from our detour to the main flow of the river, we headed downriver, and the current noticeably assisted our progress.

Once back at the “pond” of river in front of our campsite, we paddled to the opposite side where the previous day Jessica had watched something orange drift with the current until it lodged in wet twigs and grass near the opposite bank. It turned out to be a solid plastic toy boat that had no doubt been a child’s beach toy.