Immersive
After a workshop at Green Tara Yoga last month, a student and I were chatting when she mentioned that she saw me promoting my upcoming Wild & Scenic River Retreat as immersive and cracked a smile. There was the briefest of pause before we both had a good belly laugh — the trip she went on with me certainly was an immersive one. Years ago, she had booked a private river trip for three with me — her fellow paddler had recently had a good belly laugh about the term immersive too. On their trip, they’d had a mishap that left two of them clinging to hanging river foliage with legs in the water as a paddle washed away, and miraculously the kayaks did not. At the time, it was not funny; it was, however, one of those potentially dangerous situations that makes it memorable for the rest of your life (and its only funny now because they got way wetter than planned because they were immersed in the river and because everyone came out safe and sound). It got me thinking about all the unique experiences I’ve had on the Loxahatchee River: mishaps & challenges, beautiful & magical moments, socially and as a guide, how passing through a truly wild space is so magical.
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In high school, my class (FHHS ESA 1999) took a trip down to the second damn and back; forty-five teenagers and the only thing that sticks for me is the snakes-and-baby-gator-speech (SBGS). The SBGS is where they — the school facilitators — tell you not to panic if a snake falls on or in your watercraft or slithers past you. They also tell you that you are banned from all future trips if you pick up a baby gator. I share both sentiments of the SBGS during orientation for my river retreats too. While its nostalgic and a nod to my formative years, its also a good rule of thumb. Last year, Austin exercised extraordinary restraint when our group spotted a fresh clutch of baby gators — they even made that cute barking noise.
By and large that high school trip was my only experience with the upper reaches of the Loxahatchee River until I moved to Jupiter in 2011, where I mostly played mermaids and paddle guide in the inlet and estuary spaces.
For awhile, I did freelance marketing for the Loxahatchee River Historical Society and in 2018, they hosted a staff river trip. It was the first time I’d paddled through to Trapper Nelsons and it blew my mind to be so deep in the jungle, yet so close to home. It was lush and it was wild. Our trip was during the dry season, the water level was low, and our guide yanked us over logs and through shallows. One of the best parts was the shuttle boat that picked us up a few turns down from Trapper’s and transported us to dock space near the inlet. We got to see so much of the watershed that day, I remember it being the first time I had the opportunity to see the transformation from inland (fresh) water (cypress, ferns, palm and vines) to an estuary (brackish) ecosystem of mangroves.
Then, one year, I was invited on the EDACK — the Epic Day after Christmas Kayak (trip) with the Jupiter Paddle Club (JPC). I declined and decided that I would go the next year. I trained with a fellow club member, taking several trips over a couple years, when we needed a day to really immerse in nature, and our schedules aligned. One time, we went with his cousin; once with his client; and once or twice solo. On one of the solo trips we cranked jazz music though a speaker and made up stories about a paddling gang of musicians called the Loxahatchee River Rats as we raced through the densest parts of the river jungle.
My memory is flooded with stories: the time PBC Parks tried to charge me $500 for an event permit (a big reason that I do not mention our launch location in any of my marketing); that time Deb was stung by a hornet; the time there was a rainbow at the first damn; on the largest group I ever hosted, someone lost their phone and dove into the tea colored water looking for it; the time a friend’s son saw a manatee for the first time; the time Ruthie was injured by a tree branch and high waters; the time the water level was so low that we walked as much as we paddled; the time I paddled on the coldest day of the year and fell in; the time it was just couples; the times that have been with my closest girl tribes girlies; the time Austin caught an orb-weaver with his hat; and so many more…
But the real MVP’s of the river trip are the people that help with transportation. Last year and this year’s river retreat, employs my dad and Austin as dedicated board jockeys; the years prior, we had board delivery from Blueline; for awhile, Michael worked for UBER and offered chauffeur service to paddlers; and then there are all the peeps that have scooped me up: paddle buddies, surf buddies, my dad; my favorite transport stories are always drop-offs with the JPC, whereby we load a dozen or more vessels onto a trailer and the tops of cars to get a ride to our start point as a group — the camaraderie and festiveness is unforgettable.
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If you are interested in joining this year’s Wild & Scenic River Retreat, shoot me an email!
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Footnote: In 1985 a portion of the Loxahatchee River (Riverbend County Park to Jonathan Dickinson State Park) was federally designated as a National Wild & Scenic River. The only other river with this designation in Florida is the Wekiva, designated in 2000. You can read more about how Wild & Scenic Rivers are designated on their website.
Another Footnote: Austin is the safety officer and brings a pretty rugged and well stocked first-aid kit.