It began as a normal camping trip. There were five of us, my husband, myself, our son, our son’s wife and his daughter. We camped side by side in a beautiful place and went hiking among Mansfield sandstone cliffs. Mansfield sandstone is ancient sand compacted and cemented for millions of years, exposed under the bedrock by erosion caused by glacial meltwater. The park was stunning, and there were many creeks nearby including one that was hailed as the most beautiful scenic waterway in the state.

My husband, Billy, and our son, Joseph, had decided they wanted to canoe down this scenic waterway. We studied the maps and they decided on a 14 mile stretch down the creek. They picked two spots with easy access to the water, a dropping off point and a pick up point. They packed some water and snacks and we drove to the dropping off point. Joseph really wanted his daughter, Nora, to join them on the canoe trip, because it would be a beautiful trip and a lot of fun. Nora was five years old at the time. She agreed to go.

Joseph’s wife, Trisha, and I dropped the guys and Nora off and watched them launch the canoe and begin paddling down the creek. We went back to the campsite to wait for the time we had determined they would arrive at the picking up point, about two hours later. Cell phone service was non-existent, but we could sometimes text each other, so we told them to text us if anything went wrong.

Everything went wrong! It was September, and usually the water level would not be a problem, but the guys encountered many places along the way that were so shallow they had to carry the canoe. There were also places where the water was very deep and because the creek flowed very quickly, these spots became white water runs. The canoe was tipped over more than once. Nora was hungry, tired, and so unhappy. The 2-2 1/2 hour trip took a little over 5 hours. Trisha and I were worried sick. We thought of Deliverance. We thought of all that could go wrong. We sat at the pick up point for almost an hour before we finally decided to return to the campsite and wait until we heard from them.

Joseph’s pitbull, Bailey, went with the guys on the canoe trip and she ran along the bank, keeping her eyes on them and Nora for all 5 long hours. Nora was such a trooper, and she was so good and tried to stay positive. They saw gorgeous scenery and fish swimming in the crystal clear water. When they finally finished the trip, we were all so happy to see each other! Billy and Joseph were exhausted and Nora was starving, Bailey was done.

After all that, Joseph grilled us all steaks for dinner and we had a very delicious dinner. Oh yes, and every night, the racoons raided our campsite and got into everything they could. It was a memorable trip!

Nora has only been in a canoe once since then.

Copyright ©️ 2025 Lisa Paul.

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