June 20, 1999

Weather Reports

Trip #29

MAP

10.8 miles

Blast it. How hard could it have been for me to take 2 extra minutes before leaving the house to check the weather? The night before the weather forecast was just cloudy, so when I walked out the door to a pouring rain I should have marched back in to get the latest prediction.

After the half-hour drive to Mason Neck in the rain, I unloaded as someone else already in the water was putting on a raincoat. I remember discussions on how a raincoat can trap a lot of water in a capsize and work against you, so I quickly started kicking myself for not bringing my paddling jacket.

Just as I got ready to get in my kayak two cars with four kayaks on top showed up destined for Kanes Creek. I chatted for a few moments and bid them farewell. The rain was cool, bordering on too cool while standing there preparing to launch, but I quickly forgot about it as I headed straight across Belmont Bay for the Occoquan River.

The rain was more off than on for most of the mile and a half across the bay. The wind was blowing out of the north and small six-inch waves were starting to kick up. Across the bay the rain became more consistent and I drew a lot of curious looks from fishermen who also did not have enough sense to stay home. As I got near the US-1 Bridge I decided I would wait for the current shower to pass by holding tight under the bridge and watching the fishermen.

The shower lasted longer than I expected and I soon became bored with sculling sideways to keep myself in the rain shadow under the bridge. I paddled out towards the I-95 Bridge looking at all the big boats tied up to their moorings. At the I-95 Bridge I again took a break from the rain. Not much sculling was needed to stay under this 8 lane bridge, but there were more fishing boats to contend with. Again I got bored and continued on towards the dam.

I spent a lot of time admiring the big boats. On a sunny day this would be a hazardous area for a kayaker, but today what little traffic there was were returning from their overnight campouts on the water. About half way between I-95 and Route 123 I passed Hoffman's Marina. A fairly large marina I noticed, but just how big I didn't really comprehend until the return trip.

Beyond Route 123 the River narrows considerably. There is a smaller marina in this area and the channel is marked with red/green markers. Pay attention and stay in the channel if you can. Ten feet outside the channel in one area I almost ran aground 100 feet from shore! Five feet from the end of a dock with boat slips was a huge boulder just under the surface of the water. I wonder how many hulls this rock has claimed.

I passed 8K Horn Pumping Station (I'd really like to see the tanker or barge that maneuvers up this far to load/unload) and had to stop just even with the water treatment facility at the base of the dam. Further up towards the dam was blocked by HUGE boulders, testament to what is just below the surface outside the marked channel.

I stay to the right as much as I can on the way out. A large portion of Hoffman's was hidden from view but as I passed a few breaks in the trees I see this place is huge. I spy a large warehouse stacked to the ceiling with boats like items in a cupboard. Something in this area smells like raw sewage. I'm not sure if it was the marina or the huge flock of geese that had taken up residence. I stopped and chatted with a young lady who was manning the gas pumps for the marina. It was obvious she was bored, having few if any customers today.

Under the bridges again only stopping to contemplate if the rain will stop or not (it didn't) and back across Belmont Bay on the flattest water I've ever paddled. Even boat wakes are quickly beaten flat. I beach at the park and load the kayak on my truck...and the rain stops.