The Canoe Trip


         


The canoe trip was a rewarding experience and I was glad I was able to attend it in the first place. At first I had my doubts, considering that I was not originally prepared to go canoeing for four hours and had to skip my 5pm class to attend (after all, how many opportunities do I have to go canoeing?). As we went along, however, I found I was having a fantastic time. When we first got to the portion of the Trinity River we were to drop the canoes in, I didn’t realize that we would have to carry the canoes down the riverbank. It was also at this moment when I realized how much canoes actually weighed. Merrill was my partner on the trip, and the two of us were constantly in the back of the group trying to lift this heavy canoe.

I had never canoed before or if there were a time I was forgetting I had, it would have been a long time ago. After getting the canoe itself in the water and setting off, I found that I picked up paddling skills quickly and it didn’t seem as intimidating to me anymore. Granted, this was with Merrill in the back spot of the canoe and I realize that spot has more weight as for guiding the canoe’s direction in the water. Whenever we tried to get up to speed we found we were constantly in the back of the pack at any given time. I still don’t have a reason for this but I suppose we were trying to take in the surrounding scenery more.

While the Trinity River is notorious for not being the nicest-looking river, it was appalling to witness the various forms of trash that made their way down to the water. Bags of chips and water bottles appeared more as we passed by parks and baseball fields. It’s a shame that most people know littering is a problem but will still do it anyway. At some point there was even a tire in the river and I wondered how it got there in the first place. Did it accidentally get there? Did someone actually hurl an old tire into the river?

The stretch of the Trinity River we went on was pretty with multiple trees leaning over into the river, with different types of birds nesting in them. I noticed, however, there were not any fish or anything else living in the water itself. The water had a green tint to it and it would have not been enjoyable had anyone fallen into it. When the sun set and the Fort Worth city lights came on I was in awe of the city we live in and appreciated having this perspective of the city on the water.

Overall, I would recommend this trip; although lengthy, it was enjoyable, and I would consider going on the actual Full Moon Paddles or other canoeing trips that the TCU Recreation Center offers multiple times a semester.

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