Serpentine -Nikomekl 21 June 2020 – Alek
The trip was planned for Father’s Day and the longest day of the year. We met in South Surrey, and while it was quite cloudy, it still was the perfect day for canoeing. After meeting by the McDonalds in South Surrey and chatting about the day ahead of us, we drove to the Serpentine River where our starting point was. Everything was going well—10 of us were split into 5 canoes, and our plan was to paddle through the Serpentine River to Crescent beach. The nature was magnificent! We saw ducks, geese, eagles, falcons, and seals everywhere! There was even an island of oysters, and at one point there was a fish who jumped in our canoe, but my wife managed to put it back into the river. Indeed, it was the perfect first day of summer. We paddled our way to Crescent beach, where we had lunch and where we could regain our energy. After Crescent beach, we went to the Nicomekl River. My wife and I changed positions at first (I was in the bow, and she was in the stern), and when we found out that we couldn’t handle our canoe well with our positions switched, we decided to change positions again. Since we were close to the shore, we decided to switch there. I got out of the canoe while Vesna walked to the bow and … then the trouble started, lot’s of trouble. I got stuck in the mud, and somehow Vesna (in a canoe) started to drift away. The more I struggled to get out, the deeper I went. I thought that this was it—I was a dead man. “Vesna,” I said to her, “tell our kids that I love them.” The mud was already getting up to my bellybutton. I was now sure that this was the end of my life. Thankfully, my wife saw David, whom she thought could help me. Vesna screamed, “Daviiiiiiid!!!” David and Pam came back and gave me two paddles to kneel on them to reach our canoe. That was a nightmare, but I am happy that I survived. After that, (by Simon’s advice), we stopped at the dock so I could wash the mud off. When the rest of our crew asked me what happened, I explained that I had to stop at the spa and rejuvenate my skin with the medicinal mud. Later, we slowly paddled through the Nicomekl River to the end of our trip. This trip was quite an adventure!