Travelites' 17th annual canude trip as reported by Triangle Area Naturists

On July 14, the Travelites and their sister club, Triangle Area Naturists, embarked on the 17th Annual Canuding Trip. Several of the participants had arrived at Whispering Pines Nudist Resort a day or two before the event. Others went directly to the put-in site.
There were 22 participants. Two singles were in solo kayaks. One couple was in a double kayak. The remainder were in canoes. Jim and Barbara, who always have made this trip, were out of town, but kindly loaned their canoes to other TAN couples. Our trusty outfitter, Al who generally joins us each year was feeling a bit under the weather and chose not to do so for this one.
Staging was the usual controlled chaos. It took about 15 minutes to decide who would move which cars where and about another 25 to get them there and return, so we were in the water before noon.
The water wasn't very deep. We had to pay attention to following the channel, but the current was strong. Efforts were limited to paddling enough to steer, no need to propel the canoe (until we reached the Little Pee Dee). The shallow water also discouraged other boaters. We saw no one else on the water until we reached the Little Pee Dee.
We made the usual stops:
--The first beach stop was for picnic lunch and swimming.
--The second beach stop was for dessert, liquid refreshment, and swimming.
--The third beach stop was just for swimming.
The water was comfortably warm. It was hard to find water up to our shoulders. When we stopped to swim, we mostly found waist-deep water and went to our knees.
When we started the trip, the sky was clear, and the sun was hot. After the second beach stop, it clouded over. Raindrops began falling, and we became concerned over possible lightning strikes. We paddled hard towards the take-out point, but soon the sky cleared, and the rest of the trip was completed in sunlight.
We finished the trip at about 4:00. Most of the participants traveled back to Whispering Pines for another night.
A few points:
--A really friendly black dog followed us all the way from the put-in point to the take-out point, running on one bank or the other or swimming alongside. You can see the dog in some of the photos. He approached us at each beach when we stopped. Someone (Andy?) gave him a ride back to the put-in point.
--The recent rains created some grass islands. One floated down the river as we were stopped at a beach. A video will be uploaded to the Files section.

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