What started as a relaxing evening paddle quickly turned into one of the toughest kayaking adventures we’ve had yet.
Our Journey to Middle Lake tested patience, endurance, and determination as the Oak Hill Crew tackled winding streams, endless beaver dams, shallow water, wildlife encounters, and eventually… darkness.
Setting Out for Middle Lake
We launched around 5 PM expecting a fun paddle with some exploring along the way. The route looked simple enough on the map, but it didn’t take long before we realized this trip was going to be much more challenging than expected.
The stream leading toward Middle Lake had almost no current, meaning every inch of progress had to be earned through constant paddling.
At first, the twisting river and calm scenery made for a beautiful adventure. The weather was perfect, the water was calm, and spirits were high as we worked our way deeper into the wilderness.
Beaver Dams Everywhere 🦫
One of the biggest obstacles throughout the trip was the constant beaver dams.
Some we managed to scoot over with enough momentum. Others forced us to climb out, drag the kayaks across, and relaunch on the other side before continuing deeper into the winding stream system.
Every time we thought we were making good progress, another dam appeared around the next corner. We came across their feeding area which reeked of dead fish an where littered around for 20 feet.
Incredible Wildlife Encounters 🦅🐸
Despite the challenges, the trip delivered some incredible moments.
At one point, we came across a stunning bald eagle family with multiple birds soaring above the trees and perched along the riverbank. We only managed to capture a little bit of footage, but seeing them in person was unforgettable.
As if that wasn’t enough, a giant frog suddenly jumped directly onto one of the paddles during the trip, giving everyone a good laugh in the middle of the chaos.
Reaching Middle Lake
Eventually we reached Middle Lake and crossed over the dam, thinking the hardest part of the trip might finally be behind us.
We were very wrong.
The Final Mile and a Half
After crossing the dam, the river became extremely shallow and rocky. What looked manageable on the map turned into nearly nonstop walking through the stream while dragging the kayaks behind us.
The final mile and a half became an exhausting endurance test.
There were brief stretches where we could paddle for maybe 30 seconds at a time before climbing back out to continue pulling the kayaks through shallow water and slippery rocks.
By this point, daylight was disappearing fast.
Darkness, Slips, Falls, and Injuries
Around 8:45 PM, darkness started setting in while we were still far from the final pull-out point.
The slippery rocks made every step difficult. Several slips and falls happened throughout the final stretch, and injuries started adding up as exhaustion set in.
Real Rookie had a time of it only having prescription sunglasses being unable to see more than a foot away, unable to see the rocks trudging through the stream one very slow step at a time. At one point around the 3rd slip and fall on the rocks, his foot go caught and he smashed a knee on the rocks. Even in pain there was really no choice except to keep moving forward because there simply wasn’t another way out. Real Rookie forgot all about recording or documenting as things were went downhill so fast it was to rough that video content wasn't even thought about by anyone.
What should have been a short final section (1 to 1.5 miles) dragged on for hours.
We were not prepared for this... moving in darkness no flash lights, no cell phone signal with the sun down temperature started dropping fast.
There was no choice but to keep taking that next step forward, mistake had been made now we just had to finish.
Finally Reaching the Pull-Out
We didn’t finally reach the end until around 10:45 PM.
By that point everyone was exhausted, sore, soaked, feeling froze and completely drained.
What started as a simple kayak trip turned into a full-blown adventure none of us will forget anytime soon.
Overall Thoughts
This wasn’t just a relaxing paddle anymore.
It became:
- an exploration trip
- an endurance challenge
- a survival-style adventure
- and another unforgettable Oak Hill Crew memory
Sometimes the best adventures are the ones that don’t go according to plan.
