Lazy Rivers and Not So Lazy Days

Boy, I love summertime. I love the sounds of cicadas in the trees, the drone of air conditioners, and the light golden glow of color my arms take on each year. And I love water. So I was delighted when yesterday, the esteemed Mr. Howes arranged for the family to engage in a canoe trip along the Green River in Cave City, home to Mammoth Cave National Park.

Located in the heart of Kentucky, we pulled up to Mammoth Cave Canoe & Kayak at roughly noon. By 12:30 we had been driven about 2 miles down the road to a Mammoth Cave National Park water entry point. From there we were launched into the Green River for a 7 (seven!) mile water cruise that would bring us to the exit 3.5 hours later.

Now, I've been canoeing before but never on the Green River. My earliest canoe experience was on the Merimac River when I was very young and all I recall from that trip is my parent's canoe tipping over in a strong current and my mom yelling "SAVE THE BEER!" to anyone within earshot. And I also remember dear dad's gushing laceration as a result of saving the beer. So to me, canoeing always was associated with excitement, and the occasional beer.

Unfortunately, yesterday's canoe trip wasn't expertly captured on camera because I experienced a lot of "operator error" on the camera (one with which I'm unfamiliar), however Mammoth Cave Canoe & Kayak has been gracious enough to allow me to use some of their photos.


While the Green River is truly the epitome of a lazy River, the trip was enjoyable as the river passes right through the Mammoth Cave National Park. We saw deer, duck families, woodchucks, a chipmunk, and several turtles sunbathing on logs. There was a small cave we entered where the water was quite chilly, and at the end of the tour there's a waterfall you can walk. I was wonderful to set work aside for several hours and enjoy what pleasures there are to be had in the heat of the Summer.