Monkeying Around

Day 288: One of the things I love about kayaking on Lake St. Clair is that you never know what you're going to find. It might be Warblers or bass in the lily pads. It might be Round-leaved Sundews, the highlight of this naturalist's career. It might be pirates or a new friend. Today, it was a cute monkey up a maple tree with a chainsaw who offered a smile for his portrait.

People on the lake are a cordial lot. Some, who by now recognize the bright orange kayak flying the Jolly Roger may ask, "How's the fishing today? Catchin' any?" I give them a true and accurate account. "Not since about ten o'clock. I think they've all gone deep in this heat." Today, one fellow inquired whether or not I lived on the lake. When I told him I drive down from Mount Rainier, he said, "You can moor your kayak at my dock if you'd like. That way you wouldn't have to haul it out so often." He was serious. I thanked him, but declined.

After tracking down the source of the sound of chain-sawing, I engaged the monkey by pointing out the branch over the homeowner's dock. "That's the one you ought to cut off, that bent one." He told me it was in no danger of falling, and explained that the one he was removing had a huge split in it. "Got some good firewood there," I said to the homeowner.

Humans aside, I visited my other little friends as well. Can't go out on the lake without saying hi to the Sundews. Caught a pair of trout, paddled nine miles, and I've drawn a conclusion: people buy lakefront property so they'll have someplace to wear those outfits they wouldn't be caught dead in at a public beach! I love Lake St. Clair.