Taylorville Pond, Part One

Back in June, my husband and I paddled on Taylorville Pond.  This is the place we also paddled in September and really enjoyed it.  So, when there's a good paddling spot that is less than a few hours from home, we tend to re-visit it!  It is part of the Beaver River, which has a number of dams along it's length.  There is an entire "Beaver River Canoe Route" with many carries, allowing for days of paddling and camping if you are interested! 


Here is the put-in.  It isn't as gradual a bank as we like-- made more for fishing boats, but it works!

I took a few photos before getting in my kayak, which is the yellow one in the photo above.


Below is the main part of Taylorville Pond.  If you look closely you can see the evergreen studded island in the left 1/3 of the photo.

I loved the morning light brightening up the moss on this rock near the put-in.

Brody in his now iconic position as Navigator.

Here is the pretty island, studded with pines, on the main part of Taylorville Pond.

And here is Brody, watching my husband as he paddles ahead of us on our way to the island.

Near the island, Brody became interested in some birds in the bushes.  We never saw them, and I could not identify them by their calls, but Brody sure did perk up his ears to listen!

There are some pretty wildflowers which are the bushes in the photo above.  I used to know what these are called but I've forgotten...

We did not get out to explore the island, but it is fairly flat and would make a good picnic spot!

 

There's even a path up from the water.  That is a rock, not sand in the foreground, but as you know, a kayak can be beached on a rock that is fairly flat, as this one is.

After checking out the island, we paddled away.  The morning was pretty with a bit of a breeze, and my husband decided it was time to relax and stretch out his legs.

We saw a loon and a Great blue heron on this paddle, but both were too far away for good photos.  I did snap away but the birds are too small to bother posting the photos.  It's always fun to see the herons and loons.  We watch them and try not to startle them or get too close.  The loons are smart and will observe the direction you are traveling, then dive underwater and surface 4 minutes later very far behind you.

I'll end part one with a photo of Brody, still interested in the birds on the island! 

Thanks for reading and Happy Kayaking!