Sugar River above the Albany Dam
It's a 2.24 mile upstream paddle to Rueben's Cave on the West Branch of the Sugar River. I put in just above the dam at Albany and paddle upstream where early on I encountered a lot of sediment from years of holding back the river by the dam. The first mile or so is an area where at one time a lake deep enough for recreational use but now the sediment has filled in the lake and there are places where you can't navigate even with a kayak. Once I entered the flow of the river channel the depth the rest of the way to the cave was not an issue. I saw Eagles, Seagulls, Robins, Blue Jays, Ducks (not sure type), and other water birds that sadly I have seen all my life but haven't taken the time to identify. The stream to the cave was amazing. As I wound my way upstream their were many trees down and you could just get by with a kayak. In some places I noticed where a chainsaw was used to cut away larger trees. The cave itself was pretty small. I understand sometime in the recent past the City of Albany dynamited the cave to prevent access so what I saw was only the entrance. The trip back was an easy paddle as the stream pushed me along nicely and all I had to do was steer my way around the fallen trees and the natural curves in the river. On the way back I had some Woodford Reserve whiskey and a couple of beers which seemed to enhance my already wonderful state. Near the end I drifted while listening to Kirsty McGee's newest album "The deafening sound of stars". As light light approached I slowly drifted down the Sugar River and experienced such a calm and blissful state.
posted by CountryYuppie @ 11:27 AM
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