River Run - Tons of Fun!

[dreamshark]

I would have liked it even better if the water had been just a little higher and the crowds just a little smaller, but both were tolerable. The main thing was - for three or four hours, I wasn't hot! The water temperature was perfect - cool enough to balance out the 100-degree ambient temperature, but not cold enough to induce hypothermia. I just love being in water, especially running water. I achieved a perfect level of drunkenness. Drunk enough that the boisterous flotillas of fellow tubers were amusing rather than suffocating but not so much that I felt sick or fell asleep. Drunk enough that getting various pieces of floating luggage untangled from the baling twine was a challenging game but not so much that I lost any of it. Enough so that I could fling myself fearlessly onto the tube (face down orface up!) but not enough so that I ever missed the tube.

However, 3 hours was plenty. Most of the rest of our group of 10 wanted to shuttle back up to the top and do it again, but Richard and I knew we had reached our limit. As it turned out, the group had taken such a remarkably long time to make the 45-mile trip from the Cities to the launch site that there wasn't time enough for a second ride anyway. So we stopped and ate at a Mongolian Barbeque on Hwy 36 (not Khan's, a different one). The place turned out to include a full Chinese buffet along with the usual cook-it-on-the-spot Mongolian thing, all for one low price of about $11. Although I really enjoy the Mongolian grill thing, I was too hungry to wait for that and went right for the instant gratification of the buffet. Which was pretty good, as Chinese buffets go. I would definitely go there again.

Even the low water was entertaining in a way, since there were lots of rocks and little rapids to navigate around or haul ourselves off of. This resulted in periods of blissful floating interspersed with sporadic frantic activity, which is more fun in the long run (I get bored easily). It was a lot more exercise than I expected, actually. I came home too exhausted to do anything, crashed at 11pm and slept for 10 hours. I got slightly sunburned on both thighs, but the sunscreen did the job everyplace else. I'm surprised how stiff and sore I am, though, especially in the arms and lower back.

Comments

[skylarker.livejournal.com]

It sounds like a lot of fun! I'm sorry I couldn't pry myself out for it. (I tend to cling like a barnacle to the air conditioning when it gets very hot/humid out.)

[mmagidow.livejournal.com]

So glad that you proved me wrong! It sounds like you had a marvelous time - happy that it was a success.

[dreamshark.livejournal.com]

If you think you might like tubing with deeper water and no crowds, I'd be up for another tubing trip to the Cannon River.

[carbonel]

Me, too!

[dreamshark.livejournal.com]

What with one thing and another our party did not get to Float-Rite until after 1pm, so I'm glad you didn't insist on sitting in the hot sun and waiting for us. I tried calling you a couple of times as we were driving over, but you had obviously left by then.

As for flotation devices, I love the big tubes. I consider them big toys, and like to hop in and out of them, changing from butt down to face down for faster paddling, and feet down (in deeper water, not possible on the Apple) for fastest travel. That's probably why I'm so tired. :-)

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

No streakers, though?

K. [let's plan an overnight junket to The House on The Rock in September. Camp someplace near there, or half-way back, or something]

[dreamshark.livejournal.com]

I don't know. I wasn't wearing my glasses. I'm told that some young ladies were flashing their breasts, but apparently not all that many.