Photos by Trina and Greg
We floated down a stretch of local river. Two of us and two dogs. Two friends. Scenic. Pleasant. Just a little splashy in spots. Not exactly an Adventure with a capital A. Still, I managed to survive the four hour float IN MY ANTIQUE PACKRAFT.
I had a new inflatable camp mattress for a seat, raising me up somewhat and out of the depths of the boat. And I'd managed to patch it up enough that the depths of the boat weren't nearly as deep as the first test float. All my patchings and repairs worked pretty well. For the first half of the float.
Sure, there was a little sagging as we bobbed along. Wasn't sure if there were some actual holes I'd missed, or if it was just from a general seepage through the old fabric. But it was all very manageable. Until after lunch, when an old patch worked its way loose and air started bubbling out one side. No problem, though. I just leaned over and huffed it back full as we paddled along. Just leaned over every four or five minutes and hyperventilated into the valve. Just leaned over with my hat in the water or with my face -- if there was a wave -- in the water and huffed and puffed it back to buoyancy. No problem!
So we floated our whole run, and I floated my whole run IN MY ANTIQUE PACKRAFT. Which was at least a tiny little bit like Adventure. With a capital A.
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