Fri 17/01-2014 Day 568

[pe2-image src=”http://lh4.ggpht.com/-tyNyrlUZGpI/UuEU8_oD_TI/AAAAAAAAZMU/zZ-ZD0OwoTE/s144-c-o/P1170058.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage17GuyanaSurinameFrGuianeGeorgetownToCayenne#5972077618974162226″ caption=”A small crocodile head – they seem to live in the wetland behind my beach camp?” type=”image” alt=”P1170058.JPG” ]

 

Rest day

Pos: here
Loc: across Oxford
Acc: tent

I may have missed a chance this morning to get to the next and maybe last beach before the big river, about 25 km. But my thoughts were:

The forecast showed the next three days very strong wind at least in the afternoons, and today with rain. I woke early at 4.30 am, heard not a single breeze out there, and the water already lapping on the sandy part of the beach. I could have gone out at that one hour before high tide, and in no wind I may have reached that beach in at least five or max six hours – if the wind stayed low long enough. But if I could have still landed there about three or two hours after high tide, who knows, to make this kind of paddling around high tide I’d have needed to start even earlier which I didn’t have planned and was not really rested enough for that. If I’d not have been able to land after that relatively short paddle, I would have to sit there in the mud, with possibly a lot of rain and wind all afternoon until the tide would be high enough again around 4 pm or such to land, depending on the beach steepness,which I couldn’t estimate from the sat images.

[pe2-image src=”http://lh6.ggpht.com/–YCwffowo6E/UuEVCDqMqHI/AAAAAAAAZMU/AVxfIq0m_ZU/s144-c-o/P1170057.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage17GuyanaSurinameFrGuianeGeorgetownToCayenne#5972077705956206706″ caption=”My beach at low water – behind the good shell sand just mud.” type=”image” alt=”P1170057.JPG” ]

 

I won’t cross the big river, a minimum distance of 30 km, with that strong wind forecast until Sunday, so Monday would be the day to cover that distance of 30 km plus current ferry gliding, starting from that beach, ending in an unknown territory with a slight chance to hit a tiny beach spot I may have discovered on the satellite images. So I had today, Saturday and Sunday in which to reach that starting beach in 25 km distance, and as I was really ready for a rest day after eight days of headwind paddling. I had paddled long hours the day before, soi I decided to stay and would give it it another early morning chance.

The true situation was that I was surely guilty about my decision all morning where there wasn’t a single breeze until 11 am, just s storm of millions of mosquitoes and no-seeums around my tent which made the green outer wall black in some spots. As I had hung out my clothing in the apsis to dry, I was not even ready dressed once I had to open the doors… you better keep all possible covering options clean, even if wet inside, plus the head bug net and bug spray. Or you would be killed before reaching the water!

[pe2-image src=”http://lh4.ggpht.com/-oD4NpHfR9zA/UuEVVJNCvUI/AAAAAAAAZMU/J9CSnTh9AHE/s144-c-o/P1170062.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage17GuyanaSurinameFrGuianeGeorgetownToCayenne#5972078033862049090″ caption=”Poor girlie…” type=”image” alt=”P1170062.JPG” ]

 

So I stayed in a half sleepy delirium all morning, dozing to the humming of the bugs, sometimes reading, mostly sleeping. My dinner was so big last night I had breakfast only at 11 am, but surely my digestion called early morning as usual. You do NOT want to open the tent door at all, not to talk about displaying your bare backside to those millions of bloodsuckers! So you poop into a plastic bag, which I just about was able to at least dump outside, well knotted, without catching too many bugs inside. Amazing that such a bag is still smelly through the plastic…but better a bit of smell close by than eaten alive. The liquid went into the potty all night anyway as usual.

[pe2-image src=”http://lh5.ggpht.com/-ucO04uuwtWE/UuEVWUYOBHI/AAAAAAAAZMU/xcbN2m3X8i4/s144-c-o/P1170060.JPG” href=”https://picasaweb.google.com/112133179186774955122/SouthAmericaSection3Stage17GuyanaSurinameFrGuianeGeorgetownToCayenne#5972078054041584754″ caption=”This beach end of my shell beach is gone on high tide.” type=”image” alt=”P1170060.JPG” ]

 

Between 11 am and 1 pm it was moderate wind, when the tide turned the wind breezed up to the forecast 18-20 knots, but no rain at all. If I’d have gotten up earlier with that plan, I noticed now I could have gone off this beach about three hours before hight tide, and then may be reached the other beach in no to low wind after 25 km in time, to still get out with no mud – possibly.

If tonight the wind goes down again, I may take exactly that chance, high tide is at 6.30 am tomorrow, to get out at 3.30 am or later if at night the tide is not pushing in so fast. See how the wind goes down at night or not… moon is at least in the second half of the night, and the mud bank before me is calm water. If it doesn’t look good, I may have to stay another day or even two, which I don’t really like. The temperatures are better than in November, but still hot with sun and no wind in the morning. I could at least get out of the tent in the afternoon strong wind, as the bugs were blown away, and I made a longer beach walk. I found the head of a small crocodile… and an ominous track almost all along the beach, looking like some one had dragged a stick behind. No footprints or claw prints next to this track though… what made that?

The sea shows white caps now on the shallow water, it is really blowing like you won’t like to paddle against. What pleasure would it be to paddle the other direction!!!

 

I decided to not turn into the river route after some thought, so when I go out, the next visible landing is in about 90 km only, so I need to be prepared to either paddle through the night, depending on the wind and mud stuck situation, or to stay on the mud on purpose maybe two nights, if I don’t find a suitable landing spot. Good to have had one or two rest days for that!

8 comments on “Fri 17/01-2014 Day 568

It’ѕ a pіty youu don’t have a donate button! I’d definitely donate to this outstanding blog!

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I loolk forwаrd to neww updates and will share this websie with
my Facebook gгoup. Chat soon!

When someone writes an piece of writing he/she retains
the idea of a user in his/her brin that hhow a
user can understand it. Thus that’s why this post is
outstdanding. Thanks!

Randall Lackey

Been there, done that too. You do what cha gotta do. Keep your paddling decisions wise. I know you will. Safe Paddling.

Hartmut Boegel

Immer dieser Schlamm.. Ich würde gerne wissen: woraus dieser Schlamm besteht? Und ist er immer an dieser Küste?
Für die menschlichen Notdurft habe ich immer eine leere Flasche mit an Bord. Nun werde ich auch immer einen leeren Beutel mitführen. Guter Tipp!
Für die weitere Fahrt wünsche ich weniger Wind Toi Toi

You have come so far. Caution at this point is good. People tend to take greater risks as the objective gets closer and as a result are robbed of their goals. Be steady and sure and you will make it! You are in our thoughts.

Scott Evans

I paddled 100 miles in 19 hours in a race off the outer banks of North Carolina, but can’t even imagine doing it back to back with the days you’ve paddled. My paddling hat is off to you.

Karen

Well I had a few chuckles watching the meandering of your mind.
Glad you had a rest and a walk today.
It is great that you are listening to your body’s needs.
You know most people are sleeping more this time of year as we are hibernating in the north.

Frances Price

I cannot imagine looking at a 90km paddle in one go! But I am not Freya, either. When I was a child my schoolmates and I used to wonder how the astronauts used the bathroom, so I appreciate your being honest about how you manage that very human activity in your surroundings. Having been caught in that inconvenient circumstance a time or two while kayaking, I find it nice to know that such things can be done without capsizing one’s boat or getting eaten alive by hoards of biting insects. Happy paddling!

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