River Review Monday

There was no time to watch a movie this weekend.  My family was here, I had a wedding to go to, and my spouse, the kids, and I floated the river yesterday.  I thought I'd share that little adventure with you instead.

My spouse got a new raft about a year ago.  I'd been out on the old one numerous times, but the boys were a bit too small for me to go on the new one, so this was my maiden voyage.  Unlike our old raft, this one does not leak like a sieve and we don't have to bail the boat every so often.  The floor is self-bailing, and while some water gets in, it stays really dry.  I was impressed.  Also, it has a bow seat, which means I didn't have to sit on a pontoon.  You have no idea how lovely that bow seat is.  Made the whole trip for me.

Anyway, we went up to Casper to float part of the North Platte.  The area has its charm.  It's mainly sagebrush and rolling hills, with willows and other shrubs along the river bank.  We saw numerous antelope along the water's edge.  If you're not a fan of the desert, I doubt you'd enjoy this float.  And it was hot, oh, so very hot.  In the 90s.  Normally, Wyoming winds would be howling constantly through there, but not yesterday.  It was nice.  There was a breeze that came through occasionally, and that was absolutely lovely.

This was the first real float trip the boys had taken.  They'd been on the river before, but not for this long.  The float took us about 3.5 hours, and, trust me, they were ready to get out (I, too, was ready to take them out).  They started the trip fishing, which kept them occupied and excited.  Then, we stopped for lunch, about half an hour into the float.  We pulled the boat onto the bank at a public section and ate sandwiches.  The boys continued to fish, right up until the 3 year old hooked the 5 year old.

Fish hooks are sharp.  They hurt, and they are barbed.  The 3 year old caught the 5 year old on the shoulder, getting the hook buried up until the bend.  The 5 year old screamed like he was losing his eye.  Seriously, you would have thought someone shot him or stabbed him (I think the boat that drifted by at that moment thought that may have happened).  He carried on for a while, even when Daddy picked him up and put him in his lap.  Poor kid, he was crying and shaking and didn't want anyone to touch the hook.  He screamed every time my spouse tried. 

Since the hook when through his shirt, Daddy had to cut the material to get the hook out.  That was fine, until he grabbed the hook again.  I tried to get the 5 year old to take deep breaths, but he was hysterical by this point.  Finally, he held still enough for the spouse to get a hold of it and popped it right out.  There was a little blood, but I've seen the 5 year old bleed more when he got shots.  We got him cleaned up and headed down the river.  The 5 year old cursed his brother for a while.  Of course, there was no more fishing for the rest of the day.  That bummed them out, but the 5 year old said he NEVER wanted to go fishing again.  (He changed his tune after a while and said he wanted to be older before he went fishing again.)

After that incident, the float was smooth.  I thoroughly enjoy sitting at the back of the boat and doing nothing.  I dip my feet in occasionally and stare at the scenery.  Normally, I don't think about anything.  It's fantastic.  It is the ultimate in relaxation. 
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