Waterlines -- A Maine Sea Kayaking Journal

Photo from Maine Wildwater (2006).
Paddled the Souadabscook with Jeff Sands yesterday afternoon. Jeff describes the current level on the Sou as “medium low.” Course that could change in a hurry if the Thursday / Friday storm includes ample amounts of rain. I had never done the Sou before — and was a little too busy to take any photos.

It’s a fun and challenging river — and I certainly was glad to have an experienced paddler to guide me down through. Jeff paddled a 13′ inflatable kayak. I paddled a 16 foot sea kayak. We made an unlikely pair, I suppose, but he bulled his way through the ponds and flatwater at a good pace — and sped up going through the rapids.

For those who haven’t paddled the Sou, it has a number of drops that are Class III plus — I definitely recommend scouting the river throroughly and having someone to guide you on your first trip down through. (And remember to kiss the tree on the Emerson Mill drop on the way by). The Avocet sea kayak handled the whitewater and drops just fine. A very smooth trip overall, thanks to Jeff’s able leadership.

The Ruahine Swallow is now 1 for 1 in Maine following a winning debut at the Passagassawakeag River Race last Saturday. I paddled the Swallow (and managed not to get bucked off her) for a winning time of 45:19 over the 8 mile course. Bangor Daily News article here. Next in was Jeff Owen and Bucky Owen of Orono, paddling a canoe in the rec century division at 46:45. A little research showed not only the winning time, but the average times in all the divisions seemed several minutes slower this year. It’s true that absent from the race were some of the KI-1 heavy hitters — Fred Ludwig, Jeff Sands, Kenny Cushman — who have led the race in recent years. But my guess is that despite the dam release, the Passy ran 4 – 5 minutes slower than in 2005 when Cushman sprinted to a time of 38:05.