2001: William's Creek Odyssey
Day One The flow rate gauge at King’s Bridge was showing just less than 700 CFS on 29 March 2001. Rain was expected during the night and we hoped for an 800 to 900 CFS to begin our 2001 canoe camping trip. On Friday morning the flow rate was a perfect 800 CFS as we loaded our boats at the Cat Den. Steve and I were paddling the green Coleman canoes and Stephen was in his red kayak. William road in the front of my canoe and was taking his first two-day trip down to the Coosa River. I was carrying enough gear for three people in my boat. This amounted to about 80 pounds of stuff in addition to William’s 65 pounds. The Coleman handled sluggish, but the creek was deep enough to provide an easy ride. The sky was overcast, and the temperature was in the 50s. Meg made a few last-minute photos and handed me the camera as we pushed away from the bank and let the current take us down stream. We waved good-bye to George and Meg and rounded the bend be...