If you have been canoeing in October or November, you know there is something different about the water.

Water this cold is a little intimidating. You do not want to fall in, as you would very quickly lose your body heat and your ability to swim. Even your life jacket, a necessity and a comfort as well this time of year, will not help much if you have to be in the water for more than just a few minutes. If you have confidence, however, and keep to a shoreline, there is magic in the last few voyages of the season.

The density of water peaks at about 39 degrees Fahrenheitópart of the reason this October water is different. In passing through this special temperature gradient, the river is turning itself upside down, permitting an upwelling of all that has been buried through the summer season, and a sinking of all that has been on top.

In the waterís black reflection I pick up trees that have shed their leaves, and across the glassy surface I can see far into the woods on either side of the channel. I am privileged to see animals I would never see in the summer.

If you paddle in March as well as November, you deal with these same water temperatures, but the experience is altogether different. In March, with the spring thaw, the river is ragingóyou will have no time for subtleties.

Only in late fall can you let the water slide like this off the blade of your paddle. These last drips into the dark, cold river will have to carry you through, until the quiet of winter and the race of spring are over, and summer brings leisurely canoeing again.

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Forest Lake Times
P.O. Box 218
880 SW 15 St.
Forest Lake, MN 55025
651-464-4601
Fax 651-464-4605