Adventures with Mike and Nature

Spring is here and it's time to get adventures on the calendar!

Details:

I've reserved the South Shelter at Hardy Lake. It's above and overlooks the beach area while being beside the Sunnyside ramp. The plan is for everyone to bring their boats (I'll be bringing a few of mine for people to try out), bring some food to share (if you'd like to), bring any excess outdoor gear that you may have for a swap, and to have an awesome day and potentially meet some new friends.
I'll make a couple of posts on my Facebook page so people can advertise any gear they're bringing and let people know if and what food you may be bringing.

While we're hanging out, sharing some grub, and telling tall tales, we'll also have our swap meet. Bring any outdoor gear that you have and may want to sell or trade to someone else. This is not a flea market or yard sale. Outdoor equipment ONLY! If you have a lot of stuff, you may want to bring a table.

WARNING: This is GEAR SWAP ONLY! You can trade goods onsite. If you wish to purchase an item from another individual, please make arrangements to do it off state park property. I don't want to run into any problems with DNR regulations and risk getting us shut down. Thank you for your understanding!

After we get done hanging out, we'll head down the lake. I'll be bringing a bunch of boats and they will be available for people to try out. The best part is that it's FREE! Hopefully, other people will be willing to allow others to try out their boats. I'll also be giving some basic instruction for those of you looking to try out kayaking for the first time and you're not sure how to get started.

You do not need to own a kayak to attend this event. The purpose of this event is to give people an opportunity to paddle a variety of kayak types (I'll bring sit-on and sit-in kayaks) and to, hopefully, help some people out that are trying to break into this sport. It's also a chance to hang out with likeminded people and potentially coordinate some events for later in the season.

After we're done hanging out and trying out some different boats, we'll go for a paddle around the lake.

Hardy lake has a campground, hiking trails, a large lake with beach, marina, and tons of other stuff to do. If you're coming from farther away, you may want to consider camping out for the night.

I hope to see a ton of people out there. This will be a super fun event!

Mother's Day on the Blue river has become a tradition for a lot of us. Bring Mom down one of the prettiest streams in Indiana.

THE PLAN:

We'll meet at Rothrock Mill public access. We'll unload our gear here and then run the shuttle. Once the logistics have been taken care of, we'll start our paddle down one of the most beautiful sections of river in Indiana.
We commonly see eagles, Great Blue heron, hawks, deer, cormorants, and various ducks and geese. Others have seen beaver and otter (I haven't been that lucky yet) This time of year, we'll likely see some baby ducks and geese. There are also tall rocky cliffs along this section of the Blue. Along with the views, we'll enjoy the company of some pretty cool people. We generally stop on a gravel bar for lunch around 11:00am or so. There is some great rockhounding along this stretch of the river (if you're into that sort of thing). Don't be afraid to look down on occasion. We've found lots of coral, some geodes, pretty chert, and various other fossils and pretty rocks. I wouldn't be surprised if people find an artifact every now and then.

This is a 10 mile paddle to Blue Chapel. There are some slow spots that you will have to paddle through and there will be a few spots where the water moves pretty quickly and can be a little winding. As always, please know your abilities before joining in. If you have any questions, ask me.

WARNINGS!!!

Even though it's SPRING, the SUN and DEHYDRATION are still factors that need to be considered. Please consider them and take appropriate action.

Afterwards, we'll be heading over to one of our favorite places to eat after a paddle, Rita's Taco Shop. This place has great Mexican food, drinks, and they have picnic tables outside.

If there are any questions, post 'em up in the comment section, send me a message, or give me a call.

I hope to see a bunch of you out there!

Let's head up to northern Indiana to explore some of our early pioneer history along the Wabash river. While we're there, we'll go for a bike ride or two.

The Plan:
Day 0 Friday: We'll meet at Mississinewa Lake at the Miami state recreation area. I have reserved campsites 464 and 466 checking in on Friday and checking out Tuesday morning. If you would like to join me on one of my sites, please let me know as soon as you can. Most of the adjacent sites were available as of this posting. If you can't make it at 2pm, no big deal. We'll be there all weekend. Come when you can. This is just going to be a meet and greet day. If you are not a camper, there are hotels and B&Bs in the area.
No organized events scheduled but we can go for a paddle on the lake or a hike around one of the trails.

WARNING: HAMMOCK HANGERS! I'm seeing more and more parks not allowing hanging from trees. Please be prepared with a hammock stand or tent.

Day 1 Saturday: 9:00am We're heading to Nick's Kitchen in downtown Huntington, IN (birthplace of Me). This is a breakfast and lunch place that's been around since 1908. The food is great and their specialties are giant breaded tenderloins and pies. Incidentally, Nick's is credited with creating the breaded tenderloin. So a very historical place. Afterwards, we're heading over to The Historic Forks of the Wabash. This is a really cool place with tons of Indiana PIONEER and MIAMI INDIAN history as well as the ERIE canal and WABASH river. They have some old log cabins and a boardwalk that goes over the remnants of the Erie Canal. They also have a public access site at this park and we'll be launching from it. Bring lunch and be prepared to spend a few hours on the river. This is approximately 12 miles down to the Lagro Public Access. This is beautiful section of river with lots to see and do. After we take out, we'll head over to see our friends at Canal Creamery in Lagro, IN for some ice cream and the best hot dogs on the planet. If there is a place with better hot dogs, I have not encountered it.

Day 2 Sunday: 12:00pm We're heading back to paddle the next section of the Wabash from Lagro, IN down to Wabash. More of the same beautiful river! There are many islands along this section. So we'll have lots of stuff to paddle around and explore. Bring lunch and be prepared for another relaxing day of exploration and enjoying nature!

Day 3 Monday: 10am bike ride and a visit to 7 Pillars Nature Preserve. On my last visit to the area, I saw that they had completed and connected other greenways in the area. I'm currently working on options for rides.

Day 4 Tuesday: We're breaking camp and heading out for another adventure before heading home. I'm still working on the details. It will either be a paddle on one of the reservoirs or a bike ride on a new trail. To be determined.

WARNINGS!!!
These are all outdoor events with no overhead cover, please plan accordingly with proper clothing, sunblock, fluids, and snacks.

The event fee for this multi-day adventure will be $100. I'm willing to do a small number of rentals. Please contact me if you need a rental bike or kayak.

If you have any questions, post them in the comments or send me a message. I hope to see a bunch of you on this trip. It's going to be awesome!

Beautiful water, springs, bluffs, gravel bars, wild horses, and tons of wildlife are just a few of the things we'll see while paddling in Missouri. Come on out and see what the Root Wad Squad is up to.

The picture above is a spring that you can paddle into. How cool is that?

NOTE: All times are Eastern. Most of us are from this time zone so I just stick with it.

We're heading over to Missouri to paddle a few sections of the Current river and maybe get a little hiking in as well. Our first night we'll be meeting at Pulltite campground in Salem, MO. I've reserved primitive campsites 34, 36, and 38. They are right on the river. If you would like to join me on one of the sites that I have reserved, please contact me. We're planning on hitting the water around 9am each day and our daily paddling adventures will be approximately 4-5 hours. This will leave us plenty of time for other activities and relaxation.

DETAILS:

Day 0 Sunday: No organized events are scheduled this day. Meet at Pulltite Campground in Salem, MO. Some of us are meeting early and driving the area to check out the put in and take out spots along with possible hiking spots. Dinner at a local restaurant (Dairy Shack for a Rootwad!) if anyone is interested. Also, Maggi generally has a ton of pamphlets for the surrounding areas for everyone.

Still working on where we're paddling. Due to the flooding that they had since last season, I'd like to check things out before I commit to a plan. We might even hit a section of Jack's Fork or 11 Point depending on water levels. Please let me know if you're interested in an overnight out of your boat.

Day 1 Monday:

Day 2 Tuesday:

Day 3 Wednesday:

Day 4 Thursday: Wake up, tear down camp, hit brunch somewhere, go home... Or maybe a little adventure before we head home?

Please bring everything you'll need to enjoy a safe and adventurous weekend on this National Park operated river. For those joining me on my campsites, we'll settle up at the campground once we figure out how many people will be sharing.

If you have any questions, hit me up!