Post Group Trip analysis
The group trip came off without a major hitch, although I had forgotten about some of the common knots and tangles of novice organization. No photos; I was kinda busy all day.
One paddler cancelled at the last minute. Or almost the last minute; just as I had finished making room on the Tacoma racks for his canoe. So we were five solo boats.
Arriving at the put in I discovered that two paddlers had forgotten to bring PFDs. I don’t carry that many spares in the truck.
One paddler in a (borrowed) wide SOT had only a very short (borrowed) double blade. A heavy, crappy, off-set frozen ferruled short double. Charlie Wilson would have been proud of the verticality of her stroke. She was quite wet, but for someone who hadn’t paddled a boat since the mid-70’s she picked nice lines.
Five paddlers, including one fisherman who constantly dawdled behind, making cat herding all the more challenging.
When we finished I was about to take the shuttle driver back to her car, which we had left at the launch, while everyone else headed home. I asked about her keys. The keys she put with her gear in one of the vehicles just about ready to depart. I had asked everyone about keys when we set the front shuttle, but left a loophole.
The most tangled knot I had forgotten from organizing novice group trips was explaining the shuttle concept. They simply could not grasp why we needed the car with no boat atop. I nearly gave up trying to explain and agreeing to leave with just three vehicles, all max loaded with boats and no room for extra passengers. I thought it would be a good lesson learned once we got to the put in and I let them figure it out from there.
I finally prevailed, so that lesson was likely lost.
All in all though it was a nice time on the river. One of my companions had extended family at a private take out ramp and the wildlife was excellent, lots of warblers, a swallow tailed kite soaring high (the furthest north I’ve seen one), a river otter. And of course lots of old growth cypress.
But gawd, why is a shuttle scheme so hard for novices to grasp. And why didn’t I remember that from past group trips, patiently waiting while someone explained their “better” shuttle plan before pointedly asking “OK, now how do we get the driver’s back to their vehicles?”. . . . . wait for it. . . . . here comes equally unworkable novice shuttle idea #2. . . . . “OK, how do we get the boats and paddlers to the put in?”
I may bring a bag of Lego cars and boats and people next time and let them work it out as a tabletop exercise.
