02/22/2025 ICW Day 53 : The Love Song of J Ashepoo Coosaw

by Brian · Published February 22, 2025 · Updated March 5, 2025

We waited out the below freezing temperatures yesterday and started late today on a brisk morning. The sailing was easily fun for the first half as we talked about current events and didn’t think much about what we were doing. The second half of the day, we had head currents and a chilly head wind. We tacked for a while, but sometimes brute force is better than tacking against a current. We doused the sail and pedaled straight on. The sun dropped behind the clouds and then the wind picked up from a slightly favorable direction. We were now wind-over-tide; a condition that makes for short steep waves and a wet ride (for me). Ever since Janet was getting soaked up front, I have traded spots with her. Since I’m the one who is more interested in sailing, this works well; the person who is already on-the-edge about something should have the prime seating. Meanwhile, I love it so much that I’m willing to put up with a bucket of cold water in my lap every 10 seconds in exchange for the ultimate goal of…. getting this section the hell over!

Trying to emulate Janet’s positivity, I remarked, “well it is so cold and windy, at least there won’t be bugs!”

I swear to you that whatever I say outloud to others, the universe conspires to make my statement flat out wrong, meaning you can’t always trust what I tell you. The good news, at least, is that I’m not doing it on purpose! We got the absolutely most-buggy piece of land we have ever encountered! But land it was, and we trudged our equipment up a tedious compilation of boards and rusted I-beams to a higher portion of earth. This was the first time I agreed to use the headnets that were loaned to us by Deb Bond. Wow, those things really work! Amazingly, about 47 no-see-ums (a nano nibble of the ones outside) managed to make their way inside the net. Interestingly, once inside the net, they seem to change their priorities about pestering humans, and instead focus on escaping- which is good enough for me. Thanks, Deb!

Photos:

As we were approaching the drawbridge, another sailboat radioed to have it open. Janet and I listen to the radio communication, and even though I have read over all the protocol, it is nice to get additional “practice” by listening in on real examples. The last transmission from the bridge was, “I like your boat.” So not totally formal!

It looks so calm here, but we really did bash through waves to come across that bay to get to land.

Janet “walks the plank” - transporting gear from the boat up to higher ground. We saw ungulate footprints, raccoon foot prints, and also poop with lots of berries in it (reminds me of bear poop, but probably is something else).

From all the beating, we took on water, which Janet evacuates in this photo.

I know you can see them, even though they are called “no-see-ums”. Thanks to the head mesh, they were not that bad. There are many other uncomfortable things I have to deal with that make the bugs kind of a 2 on a scale of 1 to 10.

Ah, but the reason we do these trips is for moments enjoyed like this. Admittedly, This particular enjoyment was brief.

Tides are mellower today and tomorrow before they start to become more exaggerated again in the upcoming days. Hopefully I got the boat high enough!

And tomorrow, we head up that waterway. It is very narrow, but it is the official ICW. I wonder what the bigger boats do? Likely take another route.

Strava Comments:

Janet W.

Even the worst campsites turn out to be ok - after we escaped the bugs into our tent hideaway. Good captain-ing today on our first day back out on the ICW.

Ann L.

Pretty pics.

Corrine L.

Those bugs are Alaska bad!

Rod G.

We’re enjoying your adventure and feeling glad we’re warm and not being bugged except by the outside Trump world! Glad you’re feeling better 👍

Nancy P.

I hope you get extra credit for navigating the AKTUAL ICW😉 (EFI)

Nancy P.

Intrigued by your title 🤔 something to do with the tides and location but can you sing 🎶 it?

Roberta G.

Amazing sunset

Mark G.

Lots of tent time I am sure --- maybe even with head nets on in there. My son-in-law Leonard Ward has a fully body net which came in handy on the islands in northern Minnesota. Venturing outside the tent at night perhaps a "no-go" as well. When do the bugs end their season?