Upcoming Activities
JUNE
12, THURSDAY, please meet 8:45 a.m.
Southeastern Outings Kayak and Canoe
Trip with dinner after
Where: Terrapin Creek near Piedmont, Alabama
Details: Please plan to
come on a relaxing kayak and canoe trip on Terrapin Creek in Cherokee County,
near Piedmont, Alabama. The section we
will paddle is relatively easy with one class I classified rapid (which you can
portage around if you prefer). This is a
scenic stretch of creek located in a very rural area. Twenty-four Southeastern Outings people participated
in this popular outing on May 18, 2019.
Please note
that for this trip you may rent one person sit-upon plastic kayaks for $25 each
from Terrapin Outdoor Center. Rental fees include shuttle service, paddles and life
jackets. Also, the outfitter will
shuttle for a $10 fee per boat all private boats used on this outing. If
you wish to rent a boat from Terrapin Outdoor Center, please call the Center
BEFORE June 12 at 256/447-6666 to reserve your boat. Please be sure you tell the Center you are
boating with Southeastern Outings.
Please note that the outfitter has only 100 one-person sit-on-top kayaks
for rent, so be sure you call to reserve early. Once all their kayaks are reserved for June
12, there will be no more kayaks available to rent!
This outfitter no longer has canoes to rent. However, Dan Frederick’s daughter, Aree,
currently has canoes which she is offering to rent to people who want to canoe
on this trip and who do not have their own canoes. The charge for renting a canoe from Aree is
$40 per boat. Southeastern Outings will
pay the $10 per boat shuttle service fee for people renting canoes from Aree. Again, please notify Dan Frederick, southeasternoutings@gmail.com or phone 205/631-4680 BEFORE June 12 to request a
rental canoe if that is what you want.
We will do our best to fulfill your request.
All
participants must be able to swim to come on this outing!
After the canoe and kayak trip we are planning to go
to a pleasant restaurant in Piedmont for an optional dinner. If you would like to wash up and/or have
dinner with us at the restaurant after the kayak and canoe trip, please bring a
change of clothes and a towel. Outfitter
has four changing rooms. Two are
changing rooms only with no toilets or washbowls, and two are restrooms with
washbowls, toilets and running water, but no showers.
Reservations Required: You must email southeasternoutings@gmail.com or call Dan
Frederick, 205/631-4680 if you plan to come on this outing. Please advise
your name, telephone number, skill level, whether you are bringing a canoe or
kayak or you wish to rent a canoe or kayak.
You may leave a message on Dan’s voice mail if you wish. If you
want to come on the June 12 kayak and canoe trip AND you are renting a kayak
from the outfitter at the site of the trip, you are required in this instance
to call the BOTH the outfitter to reserve your boat AND ALSO
contact Dan Frederick to notify him that you are coming! Please do not just show up for this outing at
the meeting place without making advance reservations! And if you decide to meet us at some place
other than the meeting place specified in this announcement, please notify Dan
in advance and directly of this fact.
Please meet 8:45 a.m. at Applebee’s
Restaurant Trussville. We
plan to depart from there at 9:00 a.m.
For more essential information about this trip, please see Note for
Kayak and Canoe Trips below.
Info. and Trip Leader: If you have further questions, please call Dan
Frederick, 205/631-4680 or email southeasternoutings@gmail.com.
Note
for Kayak and Canoe Trips
The
kayak and canoe outing listed in the announcement above is suitable for
beginner/novice canoeists and kayakers, but each beginner canoeist must
paddle with an experienced canoeist. Life jackets or personal flotation
devices are required and must be worn. Bring your own boat, borrow one,
paddle with a friend, or rent a kayak from the outfitter(s) listed.
Please bring in the boat your picnic lunch, something
to drink, and a towel. Put your belongings in a waterproof dry bag in the
boat. Wear old, thick-soled shoes you don’t mind getting wet (old
sneakers work well). Also bring at least 6 feet of sturdy cord to tie up
your boat if you don’t already have cord attached to your own boat. If
you have further questions, please call the trip leader.
JUNE 14, SATURDAY, please meet 9:45 a.m.
Southeastern Outings River Float,
Picnic, Swim on the Locust Fork River from Taylor’s Ford through Cornelius
Falls in Blount County near Royal, AL
Click for more pictures
Details: Easy river float on the Locust Fork River. Float in the river from Taylor’s Ford through Cornelius Falls and below. We’ll float downstream to the widest waterfall on the Locust Fork River. Enjoy eating your picnic lunch sitting on the rocks overlooking the waterfall. This is one of the prettiest lunch spots we have ever seen in Alabama. As we float, we’ll also view sheer cliffs that rise high above the river. So, enjoy a flowing river, high rock bluffs and a gorgeous waterfall—all along a nearly uninhabited stretch of this river.
Please bring a picnic lunch, drink, sunscreen and
something to float on such as a fabric-covered, inflatable vinyl float. See Float Note below for additional
information.
Please wear swimsuit and sturdy
footwear you don’t mind getting wet and dirty.
Old sneakers work well. Bare
feet, flip-flops, slip-ons and thin-soled “beach shoes” are not
acceptable! You must be able to swim to
participate in this outing!
Have fun swimming in the pools in the
river and just sitting in Cornelius Falls.
Well-behaved, properly supervised children age 8 and up able to swim
welcome, but parents are responsible for all risks to their children.
Please bring a friend or several if you wish. Meet 9:45 a.m. at the Cleveland Chevron. We plan to depart from there at 10:00 a.m.
Info. and trip leader: Dan Frederick, email southeasternoutings@gmail.com or call 205/631-4680
Float Note
Substantial, fabric-covered, inflatable, vinyl, rectangular floats like you use to ride the waves at the Gulf work
best. Trip leader Dan Frederick now has 72-inch-long floats for sale for
$23 each and 60-inch-long floats for sale for $15 each ONLY at the start of the river floats. Please pay either with exact change or a check made out to SEO. First come, first served.
Dan will provide hand float pumps to
pump up your float at the start point of the river float.
JUNE 21, SATURDAY, please meet 6:45 p.m.
Southeastern Outings Evening Walk
Where: Hillsboro Trail, Helena, Shelby County, Alabama
Details: Join friendly folks on an easy four-mile evening walk on the Hillsboro Trail in Helena, Alabama. This smooth trail is wide, paved and with only a few short hills. On this particular walk you will be walking on a scenic trail which goes through mostly wooded terrain.
No motorized vehicles are allowed on
your trail! All road crossings are
through three tunnels under the
roads. Note this is a relatively easy
outing, one which should be lots of fun for everyone. Well-behaved, carefully supervised children
age seven and up able to walk four miles without complaining are welcome on
this walk.
After the walk we’ll enjoy going together for frozen
yogurt at Yogurt Mountain in Hoover.
Please meet at 6:45 p.m. in the front parking lot at
the Helena Middle School and depart from that location at 7:00 p.m. to begin
the walk.
Info: Dan Frederick, email southeasternoutings@gmail.com or phone 205/631-4680
JUNE 28, SATURDAY, please meet 9:45 a.m.
Southeastern Outings Kayak and Canoe
Outing, Big Wills Creek near Gadsden, Alabama.
Details: This will be Southeastern Outings’ sixteenth kayak and canoe trip on Big Wills Creek. This is a scenic stretch of river located in a very rural area. This stretch is fairly easy and without classified rapids. Along the river we’ll see wildflowers and stop to investigate islands and beaches. Forty-six SEO people participated in this very popular outing in 2015.
Novice canoeists are welcome and may come on this
trip, but each novice canoeist must
be partnered with an experienced canoeist in their canoe.
Please note that for this trip you may rent canoes and
one or two-person (tandem) sit-upon plastic kayaks and paddles from Big Wills
Outfitters.
Here is the schedule of
outfitter charges-Note cash only!):
1.
solo kayaks each $30
2.
canoes and tandem kayaks $50 each
3.
shuttle fee per boat for owned rather than
rented boats $10
Rental fees
include paddles, life jackets and shuttle service. Also, the outfitter will shuttle for a fee all
private boats used on this outing. If
you wish to rent a boat from Big Wills Outfitters, please call the outfitter
BEFORE Saturday, June 28 at 256/538-3226 to reserve your boat. Tell the outfitter you are boating with
Southeastern Outings. Please note that the outfitter has only 4
canoes and 57 one-person sit-upon kayaks and 5 tandem (2-person) sit-upon
kayaks for rent, so be sure you call to reserve early. Once all their boats of one type or the other
are reserved for June 28, there will be no more boats of that type available to
rent!
If you rent a boat from this outfitter, the outfitter
will take you and your rented boat to the put in, and you will take out at the
outfitter’s property so you will never need to transport your rented boat at
all. Life jackets, paddles and shuttle
fee are included in the rental boat fee for those who rent boats from the
outfitter. You may bring your own canoe
or kayak on this trip, but you must pay the outfitter to shuttle your
privately-owned boat. For more
information about the outfitter and photos of the creek, please visit their
website www.facebook.com/bigwillsoutfitters
When we arrive at the outfitter’s, you will sign a
waiver, pay your shuttle or boat rental fee, use the restroom, and then eat
lunch beside the creek at the outfitter’s take out. After you finish lunch, the outfitter will
transport ALL the boaters and their boats, both rented and owned, to the put
in. We will then paddle down the creek
to the take out at the outfitter’s, stopping along the way as often as we want
to.
Well-behaved, properly supervised children age 10 and
over welcome.
After the canoe and kayak trip we are probably going
to a restaurant in Gadsden for dinner.
Our going to dinner depends on what time we finish boating. If you would like to have dinner with us at
the restaurant after the kayak and canoe trip, please bring a change of
clothes. A changing room is available at
the outfitter’s.
Reservations Required: You must contact
Dan Frederick, email southeasternoutings@gmail.com or call
205/631-4680 if you plan to come on this kayak and canoe trip. You may leave
a message on Dan’s voice mail if you wish.
If you want
to come on the June 28 kayak and canoe trip AND you are renting a boat from the
outfitter at the site of the trip, you are required in this instance to call
the BOTH the outfitter to reserve your boat AND ALSO contact Dan
Frederick to notify him that you are coming!
Please do not just show up for this outing at the meeting place without
making advance reservations! Please meet 9:45 a.m. at the Applebee’s in
Trussville. We plan to depart from there
at 10:00 a.m. For more essential
information about this trip, please see Note for Kayak and Canoe Trips below.
Info. and trip leader: If you have questions or would like additional
information about this outing, please call Dan Frederick 205/631-4680 or email southeasternoutings@gmail.com.
Note
for Kayak and Canoe Trips
The
kayak and canoe outing listed in the announcement above is suitable for
beginner/novice canoeists and kayakers, but each beginner canoeist must
paddle with an experienced canoeist. Life jackets or personal flotation
devices are required and must be worn. Bring your own boat, borrow one,
paddle with a friend, or rent a kayak from the outfitter(s) listed.
Please bring in the boat your picnic lunch, something
to drink, and a towel. Put your belongings in a waterproof dry bag in the
boat. Wear old, thick-soled shoes you don’t mind getting wet (old
sneakers work well). Also bring at least 6 feet of sturdy cord to tie up
your boat if you don’t already have cord attached to your own boat. If
you have further questions, please call the trip leader.
When you make your reservation with the trip leader, please be absolutely
certain to provide ALL of the following information:
1. Whether you want to kayak or
canoe
2. Whether you are renting a boat
and what kind or bringing your own boat (kayak or canoe)
3. Your name
4. Your telephone number and/or
email address
5. If you are also making a
reservation for someone else coming with you, please give the NAME of that
person. Don’t just say, “My daughter, my friend, my wife”.
6. If you are canoeing, please give
your skill level.
7. If you have already selected a canoe
partner and you are making a reservation for your partner, too, please give the
name and skill level of your partner.
8. Please do NOT just show up at
the meeting place for a kayak and canoe trip without making an advance
reservation!!
9. If you have made a reservation
to participate and then decide to cancel, please be absolutely sure to call and
notify the trip leader 1 ½ hours or more before the event departure time.
Don’t just tell your friend if you intend to cancel!!
10. If you have made a reservation for a friend
whom you have invited to come on this trip and your friend is not
coming, you must notify the leader of this cancellation 1 ½ hours or more
before the event departure time!
No-shows cause considerable logistical complications for the leader and
for the outfitter!
Float Note
Substantial, fabric-covered, inflatable, vinyl, rectangular floats like you use to ride the waves at the Gulf work
best. Trip leader Dan Frederick now has 72-inch-long floats for sale for
$23 each and 60-inch-long floats for sale for $15 each ONLY at the start of the river floats. Please pay either with exact change or a check made out to SEO. First come, first served.
Dan will provide hand float pumps to
pump up your float or tube at the start point of the river float.
Note
for Kayak and Canoe Trips
The
kayak and canoe outings listed in the announcements above are suitable for
beginner/novice canoeists and kayakers, but each beginner canoeist must
paddle with an experienced canoeist. Life jackets or personal flotation
devices are required and must be worn. Bring your own boat, borrow one,
paddle with a friend, or rent a kayak from the outfitter(s) listed.
Please bring in the boat your picnic lunch, something
to drink, and a towel. Put your belongings in a waterproof dry bag in the
boat. Wear old, thick-soled shoes you don’t mind getting wet (old
sneakers work well). Also bring at least 6 feet of sturdy cord to tie up
your boat if you don’t already have cord attached to your own boat. If
you have further questions, please call the trip leader.
JULY 4, FRIDAY
Southeastern Outings Independence Day Picnic: Band concert, Fireworks, Potluck Dessert. More information will be forthcoming, here or by email.
