So there we were yesterday afternoon, fly fishing the upper Credit River, just a little ways below the former highway 24 (whatever they call that road now), when along come 2 guys each paddling a kayak. They each had a spinning rod ready to cast and they were all set for a leisurely float to the lake.

You guys know about the falls, right?
The falls?

Yes, the falls. It’s where the Credit River tumbles over the Escarpment. It is a very significant landmark, so significant they named the near-by town Cataract.  Hopefully these fellows paddled carefully, heeded the warning roar of the falls, and parked their kayaks and got out well before the abyss.  Now I suppose they might have picked up their kayaks and their fishin’ rods and carried around the falls. It is difficult but possible to get down there without hurting yourself if you’re really careful. But then they’d have to cope with the pocket water below, a dicey proposition, even in kayaks. I wonder how far they got? Did they look over the falls and carry their kayaks for a half an hour’s walk along the railway tracks back to their car? Or maybe they walked back up the river, dragging their kayaks behind? Or maybe they decided to try to portage the falls and navigate the pocket water.  Maybe they carried down the trail past the worst of the pocket water before re-launching.

The blind faith involved in decided to float a river without checking for enormous obstacles is great – but consider this – this was the third time I personally witnessed folks happily heading downstream hoping for a relaxing float to the lake. The best was the 3 guys in a 16 foot aluminum cartop boat several years ago. I was casting a dry fly to a rising brook trout when I heard the bumping and scraping of aluminum on rocks banging toward me. I told them they didn’t have a chance, but they kept on, wrong and strong.