This stretch is by far the most technical part of the river we have encountered so far. After about 3 miles you come upon "Old Dam" marked by an old concrete wall on river left. As you approach this rapid there is a drop on river left.
The water was pretty shallow on the drop so we decided to take the eddy on river right and portage over the rocks. This approach got us through the first section of the rapid but it did not move us past the swift moving water that heads toward a concrete wall on river right. We attempted to cut the corner and not move into the wall but the force of the water moved us onto the edge of the wall that was slightly submerged. Joy leaned into the wall and was able to push us off of the obstacle after the water spun us around.
As a safe route we may choose to go to river left and portage over the shallow section between the other wall and the shore. Our motto on this section is to play it safe and portage as needed. As rookies to the canoe world we are starting to control the boat and manage obstacles in slower moving water but we are still learning the techniques in swift water. This section of the river has the famous Cottonseed rapids. We portaged right and walked over the concrete wall and down a cow path to scout the rapid as it takes a sharp left curve. The rapid is full of rocks and very swift water. After looking at it we thought it best to avoid the entire rapid by portaging over the wall and down the path.
We portaged Martindale dam and encountered our last large obstacle of the day. The water narrows shortly after the dam and funnels under a bridge. As the water funnels it picks up speed and heads toward a large rock. Bob walked us through the maneuvers required to avoid the rock and safely run this section. He explained that this is the type of rapid that builds character and confidence. He told us to drop into the rapid and then draw hard to the left. Both the bow and stern must do a hard draw to move the boat to the left and away from the rock.
The river is clear of obstacles on the left side and when done properly this maneuver works well and will put you safely downstream. Joy and I were apprehensive of running this and were about to say we would do it another time when Bob said we still had a little ways before we pulled the canoe out of the water.
I handed over my sunglasses and put on my life jacket and said "We Can Do It!" We managed the rapid perfectly on the first shot and finished the last 10 minutes on the water with very little daylight. When we pulled over at the bridge Bob shot a quick ending photo and we carried the canoe up the embankment. As a nice surprise Bob had picked up a pizza and we stood by the truck and had a wonderful dinner after a great paddle.
The water was pretty shallow on the drop so we decided to take the eddy on river right and portage over the rocks. This approach got us through the first section of the rapid but it did not move us past the swift moving water that heads toward a concrete wall on river right. We attempted to cut the corner and not move into the wall but the force of the water moved us onto the edge of the wall that was slightly submerged. Joy leaned into the wall and was able to push us off of the obstacle after the water spun us around. 
As a safe route we may choose to go to river left and portage over the shallow section between the other wall and the shore. Our motto on this section is to play it safe and portage as needed. As rookies to the canoe world we are starting to control the boat and manage obstacles in slower moving water but we are still learning the techniques in swift water. This section of the river has the famous Cottonseed rapids. We portaged right and walked over the concrete wall and down a cow path to scout the rapid as it takes a sharp left curve. The rapid is full of rocks and very swift water. After looking at it we thought it best to avoid the entire rapid by portaging over the wall and down the path. 
We portaged Martindale dam and encountered our last large obstacle of the day. The water narrows shortly after the dam and funnels under a bridge. As the water funnels it picks up speed and heads toward a large rock. Bob walked us through the maneuvers required to avoid the rock and safely run this section. He explained that this is the type of rapid that builds character and confidence. He told us to drop into the rapid and then draw hard to the left. Both the bow and stern must do a hard draw to move the boat to the left and away from the rock. 
The river is clear of obstacles on the left side and when done properly this maneuver works well and will put you safely downstream. Joy and I were apprehensive of running this and were about to say we would do it another time when Bob said we still had a little ways before we pulled the canoe out of the water. 
I handed over my sunglasses and put on my life jacket and said "We Can Do It!" We managed the rapid perfectly on the first shot and finished the last 10 minutes on the water with very little daylight. When we pulled over at the bridge Bob shot a quick ending photo and we carried the canoe up the embankment. As a nice surprise Bob had picked up a pizza and we stood by the truck and had a wonderful dinner after a great paddle. 
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