Llamas, Anyone?
by Robert Langley

Hawks and Snakes
by Ken Barnard

I was on a HCC trip on Oyster Creek several years ago. The put in was Highway Six at the bridge near the Airport. There were eight of us all in solo Rec. Canoes and we were on the return leg of the trip. We spotted a large hawk and when it flew off its perch I twisted and leaned to better observe its flight over our boats. Unfortunately, I leaned a bit too far and fell out of my canoe – which stayed upright and no gear was lost. When I surfaced sputtering muddy water my BFF Rudy Rivers paddled a little closer and in a booming voice said, “ Hey Ken, not everyone in the group got to see that. Would you do it again? “ I almost died of embarrassment and learned that it’s good to bring a change of cloths in a dry bag even on a flatwater trip

Several years ago Marlyn Kirkus and I took a trip down Buffalo Bayou to Allen’s Landing. About halfway there we came to a small logjam. I was pushing small logs and brush away trying to clear a way through when I felt a sharp pain in my index finger. I lifted my hand out of the water and there was a small 6 or 8 inch green snake attached to my finger. Well, I don’t like snakes and I let out a scream and jerked my hand up FAST. The shake went flying almost straight up and for a moment it looked as though it was going to come back down in the boat with us. I yelled again and prepared to abandon ship. Fortunately for all concerned the snake missed the canoe and we soon continued our trip.