FREEZING COLD, but amazing in the least.
It was 35 degrees air temp and clear as a bell outside. Saturday was so warm that I planted bulbs in my shirt sleeves :) So it was brutal Sunday morning standing nearly knee deep putting the Willow (the boats all have names) in the water.
Since the water is so cold now, we have to stay close to each other, close to shore and keep watch on each other. There were 9 of us this morning; a quad, two doubles and a single. Each boat beyond a single has to have a person who is "bow certified" to ensure the safety of boat and rowers.
I got the luck of the draw and got my pal Cruise Director.
Since I don't put people's names in here to be respectful, I hope she's OK with that moniker, it is one of affection. And we also make a good team in other ways because we are the same build (good in the boats for a number of reasons) and we share a passion for rescue and dogs. She's a teacher, I was and will always be one at heart. So we are congruent in more than just rowing.
Water like glass, trees just moving toward winter except for the red oaks who drop leaves late. Sky as blue as it can be. Quiet except for us on the river...the rowing and sometimes the laughter and talk along the way.
And it felt amazing.
I have not been rowing as much as my husband. It is an early morning sport and I am NOT early morning. On the summer mornings I am down there to put in at 5:30 (his preferred hour) I am not the one to engage in conversation and not one to get my act completely together well. Like the morning I rowed into the pond and discovered I had the oar locks backwards. You can row, but not far and not well... So early mornings are not my forte. And on our river, if you are not off the river by about 9 AM the idiots are out and they do not care if they race with their wakes or jet ski around you.
Rowing a toothpick in that as a relative newbie, not fun. :P
So later summer and fall rowing later in the morning and the many late afternoon/early evenings we have been out have been my delight! Sunday was no exception.
I felt like I had a spot...you know where it feels like it's falling into place? And this is a sport that takes time for some (like me) to get it in the spot. Slide felt good, squaring blades along with her felt good, stroke felt good, I wasn't tired despite we went the same distance as the other day, approximately 8.1KM.
AMAZING...
We enjoyed the row, we enjoyed each other, we took in the beauty of what has been the most beautiful autumn in the 20 years I've lived here. It was spectacular.
When we came under the bridge into the pond on the last stretch to take the boats in and be done, there was an eagle hunting. To my heartache, he was hunting baby coots (little birds) in the water instead of fish. He soared, he dove, he moved in such majesty that the 3 of us stopped and quietly watched his movement and hunt.
When he obtained breakfast, he swam it to shore instead of flying off. That was a spectacle as well. Watching this huge, majestic bird flap his wings and get his prey onto the beach. We rowed closer to watch him pluck the feathers from breakfast and heard him chirp warning.
Sad as it was that it was a little bird and not the fat fish that had been jumping north of us, it was beautiful to see. Few get this sight, I am blessed and grateful.
Time to go in, last strokes were perfection. They felt like sheer delight. Perfect day. It was the close to a season with a great time and good peeps.
And to make it the perfection I felt, my bow gal said "Sally, that was your best row ever when it's us and with me. You were so relaxed and did so great." AMAZING.
I am so grateful that I have her and the peeps that are good to me. I am blessed and grateful for the experience and time. I am grateful for the beauty I am presented with in my life and where I live. I am blessed that I had such a great day to close out the season and a row that felt like perfection in my space.
Here's to Sunday and everything feeling like PURE JOY AND BLISS!
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