Saturday, May 27, 2017 - Tull Creek & Buckskin Creek - Currituck, NC
First day of Memorial Day Weekend. I checked the traffic going down to the Outer Banks and it wasn't bad so I decided to head down to a boat ramp in Currituck called Poyners Road. It's a standard small North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission ramp. There's a small gravel lot with space for about a 10 vehicles. And there were a bunch of trucks and trailers there when I arrived. There also an area adjacent to the ramp with picnic tables.
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The water was super high. It was all the way up to the boards on the docks. But this allowed me to launch right from the bank.
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Despite all the recent rain, the water in the creek was not muddy. I went out into the creek and went back toward Poyners Road so I could go under the bridge and into the creek on the other side. As I mentioned, the water was high. Probably 2 or 3 feet higher than normal. So I had to put both my flag and GoPro stick down flat and duck down a bit to get under the bridge. The bridge slants from on side of the road to the other, so the clearance got lower as I went under. But it was a short distance and it appears to be a brand new bridge. The concrete was all clean and white. I also knew that it was likely that no one else would be on this side.
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The payoff was worth it. The scenery in the creek was GORGEOUS! Breathtaking. I always take a lot of pictures (yeah, I know), but I felt like I couldn't stop taking pictures. The colors were so vibrant, the sky was so clear, and it was so calm out which made the reflections beautiful.
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I came across several derelict piers along the way. Although there were boats at two of them, none of them appeared to be in use currently. The only sounds I heard other than my paddling were the birds singing and the leaves rustling. Incredibly peaceful.
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There was a gentle breeze at times which was nice as the temperatures rose into the upper 80s. But one advantage of kayaking where there are trees is the ability to get a bit a shade when needed.
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I went back under the bridge at Poyners Road and down Buckskin Creek which leads toward 168. But before I headed down the creek, I heard and then saw an osprey overhead. I quickly grabbed my camera and zoomed in when I realized he was diving for the surface of the water. I was too far away to get a great picture, but I did manage to get several shots of him diving and coming up with a huge fish in his grasp. They are, and will always be, the greatest fisherman.
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I paddled all the way down to 168. The traffic noise got louder and louder the closer I got. Summer traffic has begun for sure. The creek continues for a bit on the other side but there was no getting under this bridge. The water was all the way up to the top and then some.
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I paddled a little bit further than I planned to and was a bit tired when I got back to the ramp. But boy was it worth it.
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Great day today. 3 hours and 33 minutes on the water and 7.0 miles on the GPS. Scroll below the pictures to see the track map.
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Edit: Here's the GoPro video.
Osprey Close Ups
