06/02/2012 - Mississippi State Games Kayak Races

(1) Above left: The 2012 Mississippi State Games Kayak Races were held at Henderson Point Park in Pass Christian, MS this year and was run by Kim and Alicia who did a great job putting together a nice race and awards ceremony. (2) Above right: Racers placed their kayaks near Mallini Bayou where the races began and ended. The short race (approx 2 miles) stayed in Mallini Bayou. The longer race (approx 4-1/2 miles) looped north out of Mallini Bayou into Bay St. Louis and went back into Mallini Bayou on the south side. (Map)


(3) Above left: The Mississippi State Games had a SUP classification (Stand Up Paddleboard) and four SUP racers participated. I can see why stand up paddleboarding is becoming popular - good for the abs. No canoe racers participated today. (4) Above right: This kayaker had a Cobra Surf Ski with an interesting wave deflector nose which I'd never seen on a kayak before. It is built to handle the surf zone and ride the waves. The wide nose helps prevent the nose diving underwater which can be hazardous when the wave behind you is pushing. There was very little wind today meaning no waves.


(5) Above left: We were congregating near the shoreline to hear the safety briefing for the long race. (6) Above right: That long yellow kayak is a Stellar Surf Ski but I'm not sure what model. The longer and narrower the kayak, the faster it can be paddled, if you don't tip over because the narrower the kayak, the more tippy it is. The young lady in the sharp looking yellow/red kayak is racing a Current Designs Suku.


(7) Above left: With very little wind racers were hot after the 4.5 mile race and some took a dip in Mallini Bayou to cool off. That is a Necky Looksha 17 the guy has his legs wrapped around. The Looksha 17 is my favorite paddleboat (mine is yellow) because it is stable, fairly fast, and it will handle some big waves. (8) Above right: The little shelter at Henderson Point Park provided welcomed shade for the awards ceremony. It didn't matter what kind of kayak you raced in or on, almost everyone who participated walked away with a medal. Its a fun event.


(9) Above: Header image is where the kayakers started to line up for the beginning of the race. Stan was racing his new white Epic V10 Sport surf ski for the first time and he was fast!

05/31/2012 - Halls Mill Creek

(1) Above left: Yellow pond lilies are still in bloom making Halls Mill Creek a good kayaking destination right now. (2) Above right: The one hazard on Halls Mill Creek to be aware of is under the Hwy 90 bridge where there is about a two foot drop over a rock dam. You have to drag the kayak over the rocks going upstream. Normally you can paddle downstream over this rapids (if you don't mind scratching the bottom of your kayak on rocks) but recent rains deposited a large log which blocks the smoother path.


(3) Above left: Further up Halls Mill Creek the waters get very clear and shallow enough to walk across in some places. Today I paddled up Halls Mill Creek past Campground Branch behind the Environmental Center lake before running into a small log jam and turning around. What a shame...Mobile has two parks along Halls Mill Creek - Vista Ridge Park and Schwartz Park - neither of which provides public access to launch a kayak. (4) Above right: A spider carrying around a blue ball which is probably its egg sack.


(5) Above left: Not sure what kind of ducks these are. (6) Above right: An osprey eagle is feeding one of its three babies.


(7) Above left: Hippie Beach. Most of the trash is kept in a big pile which occasionally gets burned. (8) Above right: Canal off Halls Mill Creek is still draped with plastic garbage bags.


(9) Above left: Near Vista Ridge Park there were occasional pockets of floating garbage consisting mostly of plastic bottles. Much of the trash looked old. (10) Above right: Header image is a photo of a kayaker on Halls Mill Creek. For those interested in buying a kayak, the key is comfort and this kayaker looks comfortable.

05/30/2012 - Moore Creek

(1) Above left: A large computer monitor rots in Moore Creek. (2) Above right: A horse with no name munching on greens.


(3) Above left: Looks like Chimney Swifts but that is a guess. Some of them were wanting to be fed but it looked like Mom and Dad were ignoring them on purpose. If they are old enough to fly, they are old enough to get their own food. (4) Above right: Obligatory photo of a bird with trash in the background. It is a yellow-crowned night heron.


(5) Above left: Conveniently trapped collection of plastic garbage under a private dock from a past heavy rain, ignored as usual. Mobile doesn't care what is in the water. (6) Above right: Header image is a sunset photo of a Father and his Daughter, both on stand up paddleboards also known as SUPs.

05/27/2012 - Three Mile Creek Watershed

(1) Above left: Happy Memorial Day Weekend. I thank those heros who sacrificed their life so that we in America have the freedom to turn our waterways into trash and chemical dumps. Government has contaminated our groundwater with Perchlorate, among other chemicals. Ever wonder why there are more Drug stores on street corners than grocery stores? Greedy Corporations are expecting there to be a lot of sick people. Apathy about water pollution makes them happy. (2) Above right: A green heron stands in Three Mile Creek as the sun rises.


(3) Above left: Thankfully nature produces a plush bank of wildflowers flowers that hides most the trash during the summer months. (4) Above right: Coreopsis tinctora flowers droop into the water.


(5) Above left: Huge shrubs of mint like flowers grow along the bank of Three Mile Creek. (6) Above right: The reason why there is no trash in the background in this bird photo is this was taken in old Three Mile Creek, currently clogged by vegetation so litter is rare in this area. Unfortunately, local biologists want to unclog old Three Mile Creek and once that happens it will receive litter from Three Mile Creek canal.


(7) Above left: Trash in Maple Street Canal continues to fill up the waterway. This water is connected to your drinking water supply via ground water. You can ignore the rotting garbage in this downtown Mobile waterway forever but you can't ignore the negative consequences it may have on your body, or your children's bodies. (8) Above right: A blackbird looked like it was hunting insects hiding in the water spangle and duckweed.


(9) Above left: Great birding in the Three Mile Creek watershed right now as the birds are tending their young. A yellow crowned night heron can be seen in a nest overhanging the garbage filled creek. (10) Above right: Closer view of the yellow crowned night heron with its babies.


(11) Above left: I think this is a young green heron. (12) Above right: A couple of black crowned night herons with one of its babies.


(13) Above right: Cute baby little blue herons peeking through the leaves. (14) Above right: Dragon Fly intimacy aka sex on the fly.


(15) Above left: There are times while kayaking that plastic trash causes a second look due to its shape and location. This piece of garbage was worthy of a photo. (16) Above right: Eyes be seeing you later.


(17) Above left: Header image is the obligatory photo of ducks with shoreline trash in the background.

05/24/2012 - Dog River

(1) Above left: The City of Mobile refuses to remove the shoreline trash at Dog River Park. Sure wish I could afford to idle my car while taking a lunch break like these City of Mobile employees are doing in their City truck. They City of Mobile apparently has plenty of gas to waste. (2) Above right: That City of Mobile truck parked on the grass (see photo #1) was breaking the City of Mobile Code, which isn't even correctly identified on the sign. But I guess it does not matter because there are so many rules that the City of Mobile can't even get their Municipal Code numbers right much less enforce any of them. Mobile needs new leadership. Get the Jones out of Mobile!


(3) Above left: Mobile is facing a budget crisis and is already saving big bucks by ignoring the trash in the water so why not just shut down public works entirely and save even more money? Let everyone in Mobile live in their own trash like they are forcing some waterway residents to do. (4) Above right: The herons take it one day at a time.


(5) Above left: A great egret. (6) Above right: A Muscovy duck with several baby chicks behind it. Welcome baby chicks to Mobile, just ignore the trash like the City of Mobile, the County of Mobile, the State of Alabama and the Federal Government does.


(7) Above right: School must be out for the summer as there were quite a few young people out on the water today, some of who were in kayaks. (8) Above right: How did Dog River get its name? There must have been a Dog involved.


(9) Above left: Some of the youngsters were being towed by power boats. Who is the best knee boarder? (10) Above right: How do you cool your butt off on a hot day in May? Ahhhh.


(11) Above: Header image is a photo of baby Muscovy ducks. One of them looks like it received a head injury.