Pecos River Journal - Acceptance

[B_Rod]

In case you've been following the story of the search for our kayaks and equipment after it was all taken by a flood on the Pecos River, I've posted the final installment of the search story. To read it, click here: Pecos River Journal - Acceptance

[magicmike]

It will sure make a good book. I'll buy it.-M-

[B_Rod]

Thanks, Mike. You seem to be my number one fan on here. I'll remember that when I'm rich and famous. And first book off the press is yours.

[Cowper]

I don't know if I commented on your earlier entries or not, but I enjoyed reading them. I'm sort of known locally for being the patron saint of lost causes, so I often go out looking for lost boats, lost paddles, etc. The cost of fuel almost frequently exceeds the value of the item I'm looking for, but similar to your comments in your closing chapter, it's not really about the lost property, it is about the journey; seeing things you don't normally see, traveling a path different than your "standard" river trip, meeting and talking to locals that you would have normally just waved at as you drove or floated past.

On your previous installment, when you mentioned the canebrake floats, I even briefly considered contacting my airboat buddy, to see if he wanted to join the search. An airboat would have made simple work of doing better searches of those floating masses. But towing the airboat down there from central Arkansas would have gotten very expensive, so I managed to cool my heals before launching an expedition of our own to assist you. Too much time may have elapsed, but if you get a renewed interest, you might want to post on an airboating or bowfishing forum, surely someone who is only a few hours away has an airboat and might be happy to go joy-riding if you helped buy the fuel.

I've also gone for boat searches in small planes; private pilots just love to fly for any excuse, and again, if someone is helping buy the fuel they'll often assist in a search. Your chance of success depends on the probability that others saw the boat first; if the area is remote enough, maybe your chances are pretty good. I do think that if I was going to fly around that close to the border in a small plane, I'd absolutely call Homeland Security and/or the DEA and let them know what I was up to just to avoid any misunderstandings!

A lot of times the decision to search or not search hinges on simple questions that have little to do with the probability of success; questions like, will I have to travel a part of the creek that I've never seen before? And perhaps the most important thing, "what else was I going to do?" (the maximum fun per day equation)

Thanks for sharing your stories with us!

[okieboater]

B_Rod

Do you have a link for the entire Pecos Trip series to post here?

Have some buds that want to read the entire series of posts.

Thanks

dave

[Crane]

Yes, Dave... We know what's on your mind:)

[ShayA]

Bert's Pecos River trip has been great journey to follow. Fortunately for us here in DFW he is coming to our North Texas River Runners chapter meeting next week to share his story, videos and pics. If anyone happens to be in the Arlington area next Tuesday the 20th and wants to join us at our meeting you are all welcome. We should have a pretty good turnout for this one. Definitely looking forward to it.

[B_Rod]

Thanks Cowper, and everyone else, for the kind comments. We actually did look into renting a helicopter to search the river. Cost: $350 to truck the helo from Uvalde, Texas to Comstock, and $650 for one hour of flight, totaling $1,000. It wouldn't have been bad split four ways, (only one person could have gone on the flight), and my son and I were in, but the other two declined, which proves they had more sense than us.

[B_Rod]

Oakieboater...I wrote a three-part series, called "Back to the Pecos (Parts 1,2,3)," which documented our ill-fated trip from beginning to end. Links here:

Back to the Pecos: Part I - Spills
A group of kayakers begin a 55-mile paddle down the remote Lower Pecos River---what could go wrong? To find out, click here: http://lonestarchronicles.com/back-to-t ... -part-one/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Back to the Pecos: Part II - Wild Horses
Because we lost so much in the flood, it’s easy to forget that the second and third day on the Pecos river trip were actually very enjoyable, punctuated by stunning scenery, easy rapids and a heard of wild horses. To read the story and see some photos of wild horses that live on the Pecos, click here: http://lonestarchronicles.com/back-to-t ... ld-horses/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Back to the Pecos: Part III - The Flood
I think the title speaks for itself. Read it here: http://lonestarchronicles.com/back-to-t ... the-flood/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[B_Rod]

Thanks, Shay. It was good meeting you in person.