When I ended part 2, Brody was looking for chipmunks. He's still at it in the photo below. He sure has an adoring look on his face, but it's not for me, it's for the chipmunks! He can be very still and intent when he is focused on chipmunks and squirrels!
Here is another photo of Brody. He looks like he posed for this one. He's such a handsome boy!
Here is a the campsite where we stopped for a break and a picnic lunch. It was a perfect spot.
After we ate lunch, we relaxed under the trees. I took some more photos of Brody, including this one, which would have been better without my knee in the shot!
And this is a look at the trees from a different perspective!
I like this one of the dark tree trunk and branches with the bright green needles and the sun shining through with the bright blue sky in the background.
My husband took this one of Brody hanging out with me after lunch:
And I enjoy the patterns made by branches. These reminded me of the shape of an eye.
And here is one of Mr. Brody's back paws!
Here is another shot of the river below the campsite. We could have stayed here for hours enjoying the trees, the sun and the gentle flow of the water below us.
Brody and I took a walk along a path in the woods. The white trunks of this paper birch and the brilliant colors took my breath away.
You can almost see a mountain behind the bright trees in the middle of the photo.
I think I mentioned liking dark trunks and branches, didn't I? This is a perfect example of the type of scene that catches my eye:
We finally decided it was time to get back on the water and enjoy some paddling along this beautiful river. Since we'd spent so much time relaxing after lunch, we decided to head back upstream toward Axton Landing.
The views were just as pretty on the way back, though the angle of the sun and a bit of a breeze meant less reflections to capture.
I believe that is Seward Mountain's point, just above the trees in the middle of the photo. I've tried to be sure which mountain it is by checking maps, but since the river twists and turns at times, Seward is only a guess!
Here is Brody again. He's got his gaze on the bank of the river. Not sure what he saw over there. Since it was the middle of the day, we didn't see much wildlife at all. My husband is up ahead, ready to take another bend in the river as we paddle back to the landing.
I paddled past this natural frame and had to turn around and go back to it for the shot. I like how the mountain is framed with the tree trunks and branches.
We paddled a short way past Axton Landing upstream. Here you can see the mountain peaking out above the trees.
And here is a zoomed in photo once I got up near the bend in the river:
Brody, in his customary position as navigator:
This is one of my favorites of the day, even though I got some great reflection photos. I love the colors, the sun shining through the trees, and the bent shapes of the tree branches, especially the tree in the middle of the photo.
I got a few more reflection photos at the end of our paddle when there was a lull in the slight breeze:
We headed back to Axton Landing, having enjoyed one of our best paddling days of the season.
Brody had a pretty good time, too.
I would recommend Raquette River to anyone looking for a nice paddle. We paddled here in July when it was busy and it was still peaceful for most of the trip. Paddling here in the fall was even better. We had a great time and plan to return and hopefully make it upstream to Raquette Falls from Axton Landing.
Join me here in a few weeks for a post on another location. I still have lots of places to tell you about and lots of photos to help me remember what we saw along the way.
Happy Thanksgiving!