Shenandoah to Watermelon Park

Saturday, August 8, 2015

We launched under the Route 50 bridge which is called Berry's Ferry.  Easy launch and no launch fee.

Our plan was to paddle to Lock's Mill boat ramp (about 10 miles) and meet some friends who were at Watermelon Park for camping and tubing.  We started about 10:30 am and paddled leisurely for 3 hours and 45 minutes to Lock's Mill in Berryville, VA.  According to the Fitness Tracker app, our avg. speed was 2.6 mph, with our fastest speed being 10 mph.  I didn't stop the tracker during our stops on the river so the speed stat is slightly skewed.

We first stopped at the Spout Run waterfall off to the left of the river about 3.5 miles in.  After the first set of wires that go over the river, start listening for the sound of the falls.  If you hit the 2nd set of wires you went too far.  The falls are tucked away but you can definitely hear them.  The water from Spout Run was almost painfully cold compared with the river water.  There is an awesome swimming hole back there too but other folks were diving off the waterfall so we just watched for a few minutes.

Along the way we saw a couple of adult bald eagles.  Such beautiful animals.  The trip is interesting, good tranquil spots mixed with small rapids that were deceivingly difficult to run.  The water level was just under 2 ft. at Millwood when we left.  I think much lower and we would have been walking our kayaks through some spots.

Our second stop was about 7 miles in.  We found a good swimming spot that is across the river from a large rock wall.  The water in the swimming spot was moving but not too fast and it was about chest high there.

Once we got to Lock's Mill, there were large groups of tubers that were dropped off from Watermelon Park.  We happened to paddle up to some friends and floated the last bit of river to our campsite at Watermelon Park.

I love this route and like to do it at least once a year.  10 miles in about 4 hours at a very leisurely pace.

Occoquan Reservoir

Sunday July 12, 2015

A group of friends decided to rent kayaks at the boat rental at Lake Ridge Park in Woodbridge, VA. The park was about a 50 minute drive from DC.  The park opens up onto Occoquan Reservoir.  There are other places to rent in the vicinity but this was the cheapest of them.

I met the group with my kayak around noon and had to pay a $3 launch fee, carrying my boat from the parking lot to the ramp (very short distance).  The park charges $6 if you unload the boat at the top of the ramp.  The distance between the parking lot and the top of the boat ramp is minimal so it is odd that they charge you that extra $3.  You can also rent john boats, SUPs, paddleboats, canoes.

The people I was with did a 2 hour rental so we were somewhat limited on time. Next time I go here, I will venture further.  Apparently you can paddle to Fountainhead from where we put in.  One of the other paddlers with us used an app called "Strava" (I think) that maps the route you paddled/time on the move.  We ended up paddling for about 45 minutes, going a distance of 2 miles and floating the rest of the time.  The app looked interesting and I will research using it.

Once you get out of the little cove where the boat launch is, you can either go left towards Fountainhead or right towards Sandy Run Regional Park.  We went left. If you go right, you will eventually hit the Occoquan Dam which limits the distance in that direction. Because this a reservoir there is no swimming as it is a source of drinking water.  Also, there is no current so you have to paddle to go anywhere.

The area was much more populated than yesterday's trip down the Monocacy, however since it is such a large space you didn't feel cramped.  There are some nice homes you paddle past and we saw a family of Canadian Geese floating by.  We also saw an impressive dive by an Osprey catching a fish.

Definitely will go back here.