Kayaking From Monte Rio to Villa Grande and Back

Monday July 15, 2013 Monte Rio, CA.

Another feeling lazy day

When I got in gear this morning and went outside, it was on the cool side, so I put another shirt on. This kind of weather made me feel on the lazy side, at least I’m going to blame that on the lazy stuff. :O)

I was thinking I’d go to Monte Rio and help a friend with an electrical problem, but I passed him on the way there taking his mom to the senior center, so he wouldn’t be home for awhile, so I put that off and decided to put my kayak in the water at Monte Rio. It was overcast and on the cool side when I arrived and put my boat in the water at the boat ramp.

I was still feeling real lazy so I headed very slowly down the river toward Villa Grande, a mile or so down the river from Monte Rio.

This is what it looked like as I approached the Villa Grande hole. There is a guy in a canoe down there that you can barely see. He got my attention because he was doing something weird in his canoe. I pulled up a bit closer and just sat and watched.downview

 

See, I told you he was doing something weird in his canoe. I’m not sure exactly what it was he was doing, but he lost his balance several times and that canoe almost put him in the water. canoeguy

 

When he saw me he quit and headed on up the river in a more normal fashion, although he did stand up to paddle.

I spied Andrew and his dog coming down onto the Villa Grande Beach. I paddled over and talked to him for quite awhile about things on the river and fishing. Andrew fishes the river a lot, more than most people do, so I see him often.andrewsdog

 

While we were shooting the bull, the sun came out and it warmed up just a little. Eventually Andrew left, saying he ought to come back and fish as they were jumping. I paddled down the river another half mile and then turned around and came back to the Villa Grande hole where I sat around for quite awhile enjoying the day.

The below picture is my view from the hole, after the sun came out, looking up the river. Villa Grande beach is on the right.view

 

Just above the hole is this place where the weeds are nice and thick that I like to sit in, it’s in the sun.  It’s the green stuff on the left in the above picture. This is looking up the river, just above the Villa Grande hole. It’s the view I have in my kayak when I’m kicked back taking it easy.myview

 

There is a big osprey nest at the Villa Grande corner, which is very active. There are a lot of osprey nests along the river in the big trees.ospreynest1

 

I think there is only one young bird in this nest, the one you see in the below picture. It should be getting close to it’s first flight soon. It seems to screech mostly all the time. I think it is screeching,………………………..feed me, feed me. It never seems to let up.ospreynest

 

While I was out there Andrew wheeled his fishing kayak down to the water and put in to do some fishing. I followed him around watching him fish. We headed up the river toward Monte Rio. He saw some fish and got some bites, but no luck getting any on the hook. He said he saw small mouth bass, I think, and some hard mouth fish too. When he headed back down the river I said good bye and headed on up to the Monte Rio boat ramp and took my boat out of the water and went on home for the day.

Here is Andrew fishing at the Villa Grande hole.andrewfishing

 

That was my lazy day, a good one too. :O)

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