Boy, do I know how to ruin a perfectly good weekend….
Paddling the Forks …. was not exactly what they made it out to be, the write-up said it was for novice and experienced paddlers, well I am here to tell you they painted a pretty picture.
Number 1. The B&B was not what it was cracked up to be, the lady running it was very nice, but the facilities were terrible. The house was in great need of repair and TLC. The owners were in a foreign country and came home only several months a year and it showed. The house was still decorated for Xmas and things were falling apart and dying a slow death. Am I being hard ..yes, but if you are going to advertise and run a B&B, then I think you should keep it up.
We didn’t breakfast on either morn, we got up and left Sunday at 4:30 am. Our Bathroom was stopped up and we had to use one down the hall, thank goodness we were the only people up there.
Sorry Swann Hotel and B&B, but you should close until the place is redone.
Here are a few pictures and I realize it does not look too bad, but….
Number 2. When we arrived at the launch site for the canoe trip, we were told that this trip was NOT for novice and remember this is my first time in a canoe and I don’t have a clue as to how to paddle,etc.
Topping off that little bit of info was the fact that there would only be 4 canoes and 7 kayaks and these don’t mix well.
We left about 8:15 and took 2 breaks totally about 35-40 minutes all day. We ate lunch with me sitting in the canoe and Roy standing on the bank and we used the front of the canoe for our table. There was one gentleman, age 73, that came by himself and he couldn’t paddle against the wind and keep up with the kayaks. I realized about lunch time, that I was going to have to help Roy paddle, the wind was blowing in our face, the sun was beating down and most important the kayaks were setting a pace that was almost impossible for the canoes to keep up with. Our lady from the park service was a darling person, but was very ineffective and the guide was not sure at times which fork to take until he sat and studied it.
As my kind husband said, Barbara we have made a memory…boy what a memory.
I do want to say that once this little woman started paddling, I almost killed myself, but brother we were headed to the dock as fast as I could help Roy get us there and by golly we were the first ones and out of our canoe and headed to our cool car before most of them got to the dock. Time 2:00pm. We had been on the river about 6 hours and paddling like heck for at least 5 and I mean paddling, never being able to slack off for fear of falling too far behind.
I was going home (to B&B) to shower and go get food and a cool drink.
I am usually not real critical,I go with the flow, and try to fine the good in everything, but this was really bad. There was little if any planning and no guidance hardly at all.
Our trip home was great, we did finally began to laugh and still complain about the Trip from Hell, but now that we are home at the best B&B I know, we are laughing a lot.
Yes, we did make a memory. It was kind of like child birth…you forget the pain….HAHAHA!
If you are interested in going, just call me and I will be happy to give you the phone number.
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IT’S THE OLD PADDLER, BARBARA
7 comments:
Talk about being up a creek without a paddle. Oh my! I bet your arms were sore for a week after that. Remind me if I ever say I want to go there to just say no!
Debbie
Glad you were able to laugh about it later...and yes, that was definitely a memory maker.
These adds make everything sound so romantic and fun.
A B&B is suppose to be the best of best....if a person wanted second rate and to bathe down the hall they would go to a cheap hotel....I'm really sorry you had such an experience but I know Roy appreciated what you tried to do for him and that exceeds the horrors of it all. Can't you see him out with the boys bragging about his beautiful barbara that went on a canoe trip...bless you for going through with it.
hugs and love
debbie
Barbara, that does sound like a tough trip. When a girl paddles all day she needs a nice place to stay!
I've been canoeing a couple of times and it's not always what you expect. One time we went and the water was low and not moving. I never thought we would get where we were going. The water was so slow you could flop out in the water too cool off then climb right back in. Hmmm. Not what we had in mind.
glad you got home safely...
that's hard work
Bless your heart, Barbara ... I'm so sorry your trip didn't turn out the way you had it planned (been there, done that!), but at least you and Roy were able to laugh about it.
I went canoeing only once....never again! I have stayed at B&B's like the one you described.....never again.
The worst thing is you had to spend money to try and have a good time. I am so sorry...I bet you ache in places you didn't know you had! Glad you did not lose your sense of humor..You gotta laugh to keep from crying!!
That story is so funny (in a painful sort of way)! Glad you made it back safe and sound.
Christi
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