[pe2-image src=”http://lh6.ggpht.com/-Rzw3WSL-pKw/VRhJIOr15yI/AAAAAAAAnTw/3NuQ_7CTOkY/s144-c-o/IMG_1811.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage24Brazil7UruguayArgentinaFlorianapolisToBuenosAires#6131731298394695458″ caption=”My poor to be rescued bird hopelessly entangled in the fishing net rests” type=”image” alt=”IMG_1811.JPG” ]

trip days left: 39
straight distance left: 772,7 km
Pos: here
Loc: Lagoad os Patos
Acc: tent
Dist: 47,9 km
Start: 6:10 End: 16:20

I think I really got the envisioned but rather dreaded nandu visit at night!At 11 pm I heard something outside banging around my kayak and tent. As I really couldn’t think of any human out here at night, I banged from inside at my tent wall to chase the animal away, whatever it might be. The noise it make on rushing off was neither a cow nor a small bird nor any cat-like thing. It may have been my two nandus? Despite the mosquito trap I stuck my head with a strong flashlight outside, but sure nothing to see…besides some fat mosquitoes now inside my tent.

[pe2-image src=”http://lh3.ggpht.com/-yhLdzsps5Do/VRhI0FJOQcI/AAAAAAAAnTw/fS-5GcQ79F0/s144-c-o/IMG_1805.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage24Brazil7UruguayArgentinaFlorianapolisToBuenosAires#6131730952236188098″ caption=”My “swan lake” with duck doubles” type=”image” alt=”IMG_1805.JPG” ]

I passed a lovely small fishing village right on the beach, probably Mostardas-beach or such name. About 30-40 small wooden houses line up,but not all of them inhabited today.Some may be rather now holiday houses for part-time fishermen. An artificial harbor wall followed to protect some inner smaller lagoon entrance from where you could reach probably Mostardas-“city”. I decided now to leave the ever so beautiful and lovely coast and to cross over to the nicely visible white lighthouse on the next spit,about 12 km with low east wind in the back.

[pe2-image src=”http://lh6.ggpht.com/-xXIao555FIY/VRhJWlpHV9I/AAAAAAAAnTw/j3MwMVKHQjA/s144-c-o/IMG_1817.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage24Brazil7UruguayArgentinaFlorianapolisToBuenosAires#6131731545075439570″ caption=”The one and only entrance door of the light house is in the second story!” type=”image” alt=”IMG_1817.JPG” ]

The lighthouse was simply square and ugly, and amazingly had the one and only entrance door high up in about 10 meters!In the reed edge besides the beach I was landing to have a closer look at the light house, I heard some thing splashing.It was a young pour bird, about 25 cm, fully entangled in some rests of a fishing net and desperately trying to escape.I was an expert in cutting trapped animals out of fishing nets after the last rescued turtle, I guessed, and walked over to my kayak to get my knife. The bird was not really to be talked calm like a dog may have been, but picking with his beak around, not really happy to see me approaching despite well-meant purposes. As I am not keen on a bird-beak injury, it took a while until I dared to get a grip on its fragile head plus beak to hold him calm while I tried to cut the net off. I noticed a scissor would be the much better idea to use on the small body, and I let go to fetch it.I should have one inside my cockpit! The turtle with its hard shell was to be cut free easily with the knife, but this small bird needed a more fine tuned operation.

[pe2-image src=”http://lh5.ggpht.com/-DaLBigRbuR4/VRhJVkGmwAI/AAAAAAAAnTw/rUFNjUHsTIM/s144-c-o/IMG_1814.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage24Brazil7UruguayArgentinaFlorianapolisToBuenosAires#6131731527482392578″ caption=”Good to know where I am…” type=”image” alt=”IMG_1814.JPG” ]

Once more I waited to get a secure grip, almost thought the neck was already strangled and some wings broken, and started to cut the poor critter free. It looked good, but the more free movement the guy could do, the worse I could cut the rest of the entangled strings perfectly away. Some string was still in a wing, when the bastard managed to get free, pinched his beak into my finger to say thank you and rushed off inside the reed. Well, birds seem to be not the most thankful animals to be rescued!

[pe2-image src=”http://lh5.ggpht.com/-eroxrubJrjQ/VRhJBojeZJI/AAAAAAAAnTw/K8h-1AkpPKg/s144-c-o/IMG_1807.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage24Brazil7UruguayArgentinaFlorianapolisToBuenosAires#6131731185079837842″ caption=”Landing near the local “highway” leading to the light house” type=”image” alt=”IMG_1807.JPG” ]

[pe2-image src=”http://lh6.ggpht.com/-VH0L747K7ys/VRhH4qhbK5I/AAAAAAAAnTw/EvWdB6qFhAQ/s144-c-o/IMG_1790.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage24Brazil7UruguayArgentinaFlorianapolisToBuenosAires#6131729931477658514″ caption=”This size of turtles (20 cm) is living in the sweet water of the lagoon. This one is dried out inside…” type=”image” alt=”IMG_1790.JPG” ]

On a tiny sandbank just besides the beach I saw a lot of cow pads, but where were the cows? I haven’t seen any for a while here…? I came carefully closer, but just now a larger 30 cm fish decided to jump in a high arch just over my kayak, if I had my mouth open I may have been able to catch him. My mouth rather opened too late and with a noisy squeak which suddenly made the cow pads alive and sliding into the water. It were about 20 smaller 20 cm turtles sunning themselves on the sand bank! Really cute! A picture from the fish and the turtles would have been nice…

[pe2-image src=”http://lh4.ggpht.com/-QzLBQpX72XU/VRhJVffeQSI/AAAAAAAAnTw/kZCumb37FnM/s144-c-o/IMG_1810.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage24Brazil7UruguayArgentinaFlorianapolisToBuenosAires#6131731526244516130″ caption=”Cobwebes in the reed straw” type=”image” alt=”IMG_1810.JPG” ]

Some other fish did the same jump, but I got him so exact with the back of my paddle he made a perfect volley loop in best tennis style right to my bow. Fish tennis…my new sport.

[pe2-image src=”http://lh4.ggpht.com/-dyljDWpPICw/VRhKOBvXeyI/AAAAAAAAnTw/VYolNxojz6o/s144-c-o/IMG_1833.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage24Brazil7UruguayArgentinaFlorianapolisToBuenosAires#6131732497510660898″ caption=”Each pine tree stem has a long and wide scar from harvesting the tree resin long ago” type=”image” alt=”IMG_1833.JPG” ]

[pe2-image src=”http://lh5.ggpht.com/-ZROLYzgcTQ0/VRhKMMTQDhI/AAAAAAAAnTw/ddGSkSjzDu0/s144-c-o/IMG_1828.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage24Brazil7UruguayArgentinaFlorianapolisToBuenosAires#6131732465985785362″ caption=”A dense carpet of long soft pine tree needles and large cones” type=”image” alt=”IMG_1828.JPG” ]

[pe2-image src=”http://lh6.ggpht.com/-AKb3TCLUEc4/VRhJkah8aaI/AAAAAAAAnTw/Nxu70ALzzxg/s144-c-o/IMG_1826.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage24Brazil7UruguayArgentinaFlorianapolisToBuenosAires#6131731782610741666″ caption=”A pine tree plantation on the beach” type=”image” alt=”IMG_1826.JPG” ]

[pe2-image src=”http://lh6.ggpht.com/-51-q5nZPdGI/VRhJs8dG-JI/AAAAAAAAnTw/WMrHvHssiFo/s144-c-o/IMG_1824.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage24Brazil7UruguayArgentinaFlorianapolisToBuenosAires#6131731929156221074″ caption=”Pine trees are getting more common now on the beach” type=”image” alt=”IMG_1824.JPG” ]

The pine tree plantations and wild ones along the beach had a marvelous scent, I was hoping when it was time to make camp I would still be in this forest area. It worked! 10 hours are enough paddling…it was calm or low side-following wind all day. Some waves on the short crossing, but less than yesterday. And it was sunny, really nice! The paddling jacket disappeared again into the hatch. The pine trees in the plantations had all about 1,50m and 20 cm wide scars on the bottom, they may have collected the oily pine juice for some industrial purpose? It doesn’t really look they harvest the wood? No idea, but the scars and the juice collection must have been done by a machine. I heard heavy tools working somewhere in the forest, but haven’t seen anyone.

[pe2-image src=”http://lh4.ggpht.com/-dbjk3rIG9qc/VRhKh-Ag3yI/AAAAAAAAnTw/feEcHpxksQY/s144-c-o/IMG_1835.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage24Brazil7UruguayArgentinaFlorianapolisToBuenosAires#6131732840106221346″ caption=”Pine trees with long soft needles live on the beach” type=”image” alt=”IMG_1835.JPG” ]

[pe2-image src=”http://lh4.ggpht.com/-JhtdDP-Z1Ic/VRhKPZomyTI/AAAAAAAAnTw/kb_t5wFFOWE/s144-c-o/IMG_1834.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage24Brazil7UruguayArgentinaFlorianapolisToBuenosAires#6131732521104623922″ caption=”A small river flowing into the lagoon” type=”image” alt=”IMG_1834.JPG” ]

[pe2-image src=”http://lh3.ggpht.com/-d3936diles8/VRhJ12UHhbI/AAAAAAAAnTw/FOPiLqfkPkk/s144-c-o/IMG_1831.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage24Brazil7UruguayArgentinaFlorianapolisToBuenosAires#6131732082126718386″ caption=”These trees must have been living for long in a higher water level” type=”image” alt=”IMG_1831.JPG” ]

[pe2-image src=”http://lh3.ggpht.com/-MUZnKHRB9pA/VRhJnAiy1bI/AAAAAAAAnTw/3Y4Z_KgIzWs/s144-c-o/IMG_1827.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage24Brazil7UruguayArgentinaFlorianapolisToBuenosAires#6131731827174593970″ caption=”Sand, small reed fields and pine trees now make the shore” type=”image” alt=”IMG_1827.JPG” ]