Monday, December 31, 2018

2018 Year End Review

Ice-out on the Quinebaug 
2018 was a funny year in terms of weather. The rivers froze up early, so I didn't get out for my usual New Year's Day paddle. I did a hike with Bill instead. After bone-chilling cold in early January, the rivers iced-out in mid-January, and were open for the rest of the winter. I did a lot more paddling in January and February this year than I had ever done before. Then we had the second wettest fall on record – great weather for paddling. 

Lincoln Woods with Michelle
I did 62 trips, which is a little better than my nine-year average of 59 trips. Little Suncook was the only new river this year, but I did paddle two new sections of the Sudbury River in Sudbury and Wayland. I led BVPC trips at River Bend Farm and Chocolatville, and one RICKA trip on the Pawcatuck from Richmond to Bradford. I also ran a tandem canoe training for the June RICKA meeting, organized the RICKA SUP Night, and did a RICKA Sea Kayak trip with Tony in his tandem sit-on-top at Fort Weatherill.

Stokers on the Scantic
I did couple of Tville trips, the Scantic, and Otter Brook with the CTAMC. I did the Upper Winni and Little Suncook with the NHAMCI had two swims this year – the bottom of Staircase on the Scantic and the play hole at Tville

Here are some of the more significant trips:
Here are some of my favorite trips from the 2018 RICKA Movie Night.


I paddled almost every day of my summer vacation in South County - we had some rainy days and fog this year.


I did two camping trips on the Upper Connecticut River with Bill and Jonathan - Canaan to Bloomfield in the spring.


And Woodsville to Orford in the fall.


Papa Joe crew at Borderland State Park
I also got in a few hikes with the Papa Joe hiking group.
In terms of my resolutions from last year, I didn’t do so well on rolling practice, but I did get some camping in. Resolutions for next year;
  • Step-up my whitewater paddling - I need to get on some more challenging rivers
  • Get back to the Dead this summer
  • Do another Connecticutt River camping trip – maybe Lunenburg to the Woodville
  • Practice rolling – I’ll keep including it until I do it - need to go to a rolling clinic
Overall it was another great year, and there are still plenty of rivers to paddle, plenty of trails to hike, and plenty of places to go camping. Unfortunately, today I am fighting a cold, so the last day of the year will be spent on the couch resting up so I can paddle on New Year's Day 2019! 

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