Paddling Horicon Marsh TR

“Saturday a group of six from the Milwaukee area got together to canoe in Horicon Marsh, which is the largest, freshwater cattail marsh in the U.S.

It consists of a National Wildlife Refuge in its north part, but the south part is Wisconsin DNR land. The latter area is open to canoes, kayaks and even boats with motors.

Horicon Marsh is great place for watching birds of all types. And of course at this time of year they're migrating.

We used the Blue Heron outfitter in the town of Horicon. They shuttled our three canoes up to the East Branch of the Rock River to put in. Our goal was to canoe through the marsh and back down the Rock River into Horicon and the outfitter's place on the river (and since this is WISCONSIN, it was preceded by a couple beers at this great tavern with a riverside landing, lol. I just hate it when you're forced to pull over and only have five minutes of the trip left!!! LOL)

We were on the water around 4 hours. While we should have been floating and having an easy paddle, well, NOOOOOOOOOOoooooooooo(!!!). The wind was making us paddle, paddle, paddle. We even had little waves in some places.

I'll give a partial list of birds seen, cuz I' m not the birder of the group: cardinals, ducks, Canada geese, a sandhill crane that I could hear but really didn't get a good look at in flight, blue herons (there's a heron rookery on an island that's closed to the public. From a distance you can see the freaky, scary lookin' poles like something out of "The Blair Witch" in a giant version!)

We hoped to see migrating pelicans and did. They flew and cirlced and danced in the air. One group we estimated had 30 or so! It's so cool they way they circle and at a certain angle just disappear from view, then showing up again as they turn. Also, as we were about to leave the marsh to go into the final stretch of river, we saw a group of around 10 on the water in the marsh. And then, due to the freakin' winds, we found oursleves floating right toward them. LOL!

We raced a Canada goose on the water (and won), had a blue heron take flight from a tree right by the canoe I was in (did I get a picture?? Can you say, "Paranoid lizs had the camera mostly in the waterproof bag???" lol), saw a few woodpeckers and also saw a TON of red-winged blackbirds.

Great time! Thanks spalpeen, scottevil, schmoopie, Dr. Atomic and friend (hey, she doesn't have a trail... or, in this case -- canoeing -- name yet!) A few photos were taken and will be posted later.

(lizs considers the fact that her canoe didn't capsize a good omen for the Upper I-O-WAnna canoe trip in June!!! LOL)”

“PICTURES!!!!”

“Hey Lizs, sounds like an awsome trip. I'm sitting here in Baghdad, and everyone back home keeps telling me what an awsome spring their having back in WI. Oh well, I should be home in time for the fall colors.”

“PICTURES!!!! (I hope I don't get killed. I don't know some of these people very well and they don't quite know my WARPED sense of humor!!! LOL)


http://community.webshots.com/album/325244201rqxUxV?874”

“Other birds were cormorants,blue and green winged teal,canvasback,harrier,osprey,turkey vulture and a couple types of swallows”

“Any more comments, spalpeen? Are you ready to put me in that plastic bubble and float me down the river? I suppose you could weight it down so that on the opposite side you could have air holes.

Now I'm thinkin'!!!! lol”

“as a matter of fact i also saw the worlds biggest urinal”

“spleen's a showoff with the birds. :-) lizs - nice pics. But I am in the witness protection program, remember?? :-)”

“The photos aren't THAT good shmoope (OK, so that is the spelling)

Hey, I wanted to see the urinal that dwarfs everything in it, but was shushed away by the same people that brought us "shrinkage!" >8-O”

“ouch”

“LMFAO! I mean the Seinfeld writers, of course! They woulda had a field day at the world's largest urinal.”

“couple types of swallows”
~spalpeen

Yeah, Lizs already mentioned the dockside tavern - lol!

Lizs -
You're becoming quite the canoe conneseuerrerer. Cumberland Queen my arse!

Thank God for the ban on DDT. Otherwise you'd seen little more than cattails...”

“still bein used here in SE missouri.

canoe queen!!!! hahahaha...she's barely a backpacker, and now you want to elevate her to canoe queen status...thats great.

congrats on your trip, it really does sound awsome. and keeping you digital camera in its case...good idea...my new one got splashed and no longer works...sheesh...freekin disposable digital cameras. use em once and then toss em away.

4th july float with my mom on the points...come on down.”

“Nobody dumped? Could not have been that great of a trip. Maybe you need more liquid refreshements.”

“Nice pics and report. I will say one thing about all your flatland country around there... I'M SO GLAD I LIVE OUT WEST! :^D”

“the only reason that you aren't a bigger dick than me, is cause A. you work at REI and everyone feels that that would be a dream job, and B. you've got everyone so hyptomized with your photos...but I see right through you casper, oh yeah, I do.”

“hey gojo itwas more than a couple swallows at the dockside tavern”

“You put a "TR" in the subject line and I missed it anyway. oh well, to day is my day of making up on reading all the TRs.

Looked like fun, BUT someone had to say it...Those are ALL the pics you took?? Come on now! Bring 'em out!!”

“Gem's holding a gun to my head. "Bring out those photos, we know you, you can't NOT shoot a ton of photos!!!"

lol, yep that's IT!

I am not only paranoid of water myself, but especially paranoid of water where my *expensive* camera is concerned. I'll have to remember to take a cheap-ass couple disposables on future water trips.

Well, then I got to see Lake Michigan and all in Milwaukee and I forgot my camera on the sightseeing trip. DOH!”

“Just mad cuz ya could'nt take pics of all those guys butts in their cycling shorts”

“Hey, how long have you been on THIS forum?

LOL! ;-P”

“long enough”