Cairns by the riverside

Monday
Another hot, summer-like day - perfect for canoeing on the Little Miami. There are two canoe liveries on the river, Morgan’s, that we usually use, and Little Miami. By this time of year, they would both normally be operating only on weekends, but today is a partial holiday, Columbus Day - most federal government offices are closed, as are post offices and many banks. Schools in general are open, though some have it as a teacher development day. Most other businesses are open as usual. Bearing this in mind, Roger thought that maybe the canoe liveries would be open, and suggested yesterday that we made the most of the weather and go canoeing. I was skeptical, and checked Morgan’s website and found they were closed, but didn’t think to check Little Miami. So this morning, Roger decided to give them a call, and discovered they were open, but operating a limited service - they were only running the six-mile trip and at specific times, so he booked us in for the 12 noon departure - they bus you up stream and you canoe back to the base. It was a lovely trip - so much quieter than when you go on weekends, and the weather was gorgeous, with the river running at a perfect level. The water would alternate between being very still and placid, beautifully reflecting the trees and the clouds in the sky, and with fallen leaves floating on top, and short sections of gentle “rapids” where the water would be running a bit faster, and be more ruffled. We took a picnic lunch with us, and pulled up on a stony “beach” to enjoy it. As we were going back to the canoe, Roger noticed a couple of rocks had fossils in them - see extra. At several of the rocky areas, people have been busy building these little cairns as shown in my blip. We saw loads of turtles sunbathing themselves on fallen branches, turkey vultures soaring overhead, and right at the end I’m pretty sure I spotted a belted kingfisher flying overhead. We wrapped up a perfect afternoon by sharing a Pumpkin ice cream sundae at Graeters on the way home!