Llano River Paddle - 3/22/07
Posted: Sun Mar 25, 2007 6:53 pm
On Thursday the 22nd, I met with PatMax, a Hill Country TKF’er and we paddled the Llano river. We put in off of Ranch Road 2389 and paddled to Simonsville Road bridge about a 5-6 mile paddle. The weather was cloudy and threatened rain all day but it didn’t dampen our sprits.
Here is PatMax at the launch.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010001_edited.jpg)
And I am ready to get started.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010002_edited.jpg)
When we launched we had a very small fast water to negotiate and then we hit a long, deep pool. There were high rock bluffs.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010005-5.jpg)
We saw 6-10 houses over looking the water and here it one.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010007-2.jpg)
After paddling about ¼ mile, we decided to swap kayaks as I wanted to try out the Prowler Big Game. Here is PatMax in my X-Factor.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010009_edited.jpg)
My evaluation of the PBG will have to be another post. We swaped back and here is PatMax in his PBG.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010012-3.jpg)
Paddling a little farther we see a bunch of buzzards roosting in tree and rock ledges. How many can you find in this pic?
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010017_edited.jpg)
Although fishing was not the primary objective of this paddle, we did throw a few arties……here is PatMax with a huge Llano river bass.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010019-3.jpg)
I caught about three fish and PatMax caught about 6. None were keepers…..but like stated above, fishing wasn’t our objective.
As we were fishing, I thought I heard a goose. I thought it must be a domesticated goose but as we paddled down the river, a wild Canadian goose flew off of a point of land and landed on a rock in the middle of the river. Can you see her (about on line with the river bank)
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010025_edited.jpg)
I paddled over to where the goose flew up and found her nest. The water was very deep at the end of this point of land so I had to sit in the kayak and hold my camera over my head to take a picture…..but here is a goose nest with a clutch of goose eggs. Can you see the down feathers lining the nest?
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010020-1.jpg)
As we paddled by the goose flew over us and back to her nest. This was amazing, I never imagined a Canadian goose nesting and raising a brood in the wild of the Hill Country of Texas.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010026_edited.jpg)
A little ways past the goose next we come to about a 40 foot drop with a very fast chute draining most of the river.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010029.jpg)
We chose not to paddle down and found a shallow, skinny water down and walked our kayaks down. Soon after that we took a lunch break and here are the X & BG resting during lunch.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010035_edited.jpg)
After lunch, we paddled through some of the most beautiful part of the trip and I was in so much awe, that I didn’t take many pictures ( to be truthful it was thundering and I was paddling fast to get on down the river or to a place of safety). Here is one of a deer blind on the horizon.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010036_edited.jpg)
To me the most beautiful spot was where Panther Creek flowed into the Llano and you paddle past the HL Bluffs. The rock bluffs were a total catacomb of holes and crannies and you got the true idea of what an aquifer is.
Then we hit this long, deep pool and must have paddled ¾ of a mile in this pool. We past this house and later found out the original owner was the author of “Old Yeller”, the Disney movie of the yellow dog!
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010037_edited.jpg)
About ¼ mile from the take out we pass this hill with the cross on it. I thought it was worth a picture.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010038_edited.jpg)
It took us 6 hours to paddle the 5-6 miles and I would guess we had skinny water maybe all total of a mile.
I am going to do the trip again and had a great time paddling with PaxMax and now I need to get him down to the coast to catch some big salt water fish.
Here is PatMax at the launch.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010001_edited.jpg)
And I am ready to get started.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010002_edited.jpg)
When we launched we had a very small fast water to negotiate and then we hit a long, deep pool. There were high rock bluffs.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010005-5.jpg)
We saw 6-10 houses over looking the water and here it one.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010007-2.jpg)
After paddling about ¼ mile, we decided to swap kayaks as I wanted to try out the Prowler Big Game. Here is PatMax in my X-Factor.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010009_edited.jpg)
My evaluation of the PBG will have to be another post. We swaped back and here is PatMax in his PBG.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010012-3.jpg)
Paddling a little farther we see a bunch of buzzards roosting in tree and rock ledges. How many can you find in this pic?
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010017_edited.jpg)
Although fishing was not the primary objective of this paddle, we did throw a few arties……here is PatMax with a huge Llano river bass.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010019-3.jpg)
I caught about three fish and PatMax caught about 6. None were keepers…..but like stated above, fishing wasn’t our objective.
As we were fishing, I thought I heard a goose. I thought it must be a domesticated goose but as we paddled down the river, a wild Canadian goose flew off of a point of land and landed on a rock in the middle of the river. Can you see her (about on line with the river bank)
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010025_edited.jpg)
I paddled over to where the goose flew up and found her nest. The water was very deep at the end of this point of land so I had to sit in the kayak and hold my camera over my head to take a picture…..but here is a goose nest with a clutch of goose eggs. Can you see the down feathers lining the nest?
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010020-1.jpg)
As we paddled by the goose flew over us and back to her nest. This was amazing, I never imagined a Canadian goose nesting and raising a brood in the wild of the Hill Country of Texas.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010026_edited.jpg)
A little ways past the goose next we come to about a 40 foot drop with a very fast chute draining most of the river.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010029.jpg)
We chose not to paddle down and found a shallow, skinny water down and walked our kayaks down. Soon after that we took a lunch break and here are the X & BG resting during lunch.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010035_edited.jpg)
After lunch, we paddled through some of the most beautiful part of the trip and I was in so much awe, that I didn’t take many pictures ( to be truthful it was thundering and I was paddling fast to get on down the river or to a place of safety). Here is one of a deer blind on the horizon.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010036_edited.jpg)
To me the most beautiful spot was where Panther Creek flowed into the Llano and you paddle past the HL Bluffs. The rock bluffs were a total catacomb of holes and crannies and you got the true idea of what an aquifer is.
Then we hit this long, deep pool and must have paddled ¾ of a mile in this pool. We past this house and later found out the original owner was the author of “Old Yeller”, the Disney movie of the yellow dog!
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010037_edited.jpg)
About ¼ mile from the take out we pass this hill with the cross on it. I thought it was worth a picture.
![Image](http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h117/mythman27/P1010038_edited.jpg)
It took us 6 hours to paddle the 5-6 miles and I would guess we had skinny water maybe all total of a mile.
I am going to do the trip again and had a great time paddling with PaxMax and now I need to get him down to the coast to catch some big salt water fish.