Date: 2009-06-05
From: Dublin, VA

To: Dublin, VA
Miles today: 0.0

In the morning, Robin took me to see Michelle at the physical therapy clinic, where she proceeded to hook me up with a steroid electric shock that would penetrate the muscle (explained in previous post). For the rest of the idea, I gathered photos and videos and tried to upload some onto my Facebook account, so that friends and family could see what I have been up to. I continued with my exercises and icing of my leg. When Jeremy returned home from work, the three of us prepared to go kayaking on the New River! We picked up the third kayak and paddle at Adam and Michelle's house and headed off to the river. Arriving at the river, Robin and Jeremy were astonished at how high the water level had risen. It was perfect conditions to go kayaking! The water was a bit cold, but the water was raging very fast and there were several strong rapids that we were able to pass over. On the way, we saw various types of wildlife, including a beautiful Great Blue Heron that gracefully flew above us. We even took a few beers with us and we didn't even have to paddle as the river was so swollen, that it swept us easily downstream. It was a very graceful ride and we chatted away and I listened to Robin and Jeremy talk all about the local terrain and their own plans for joining Peace Corps. At one point, a large and noisy train stormed at the side of the river, nearly within reach. As we had a few brews and I had a large water bottle in order to keep me hydrated, I really had to go to the bathroom. But, there was virtually no place to do it and I couldn't get off as each side was enclosed by steep embankments and jungle-like vegetation. So, I grabbed onto a small branch that was sticking out of the ground, held on for dear life, and did my business to the side of the kayak, as the water raged on and nearly swept me away on multiple occassions. It was quite an impressive feat! On the left-hand side of the river, a beautiful golf course community approached us with an exquisitely well-kept golf course that was 'beachfront' - ehhrrrrrr 'riverfront'. I'm sure that the people in these monstrous houses enjoy the view and the nature, but for people coming down the river, it kind of takes you out of nature's element. At the very end of the trip, there was one really tough rapid area. Determined, I pushed straight through it, navigating the raging water with uncanny skill (or this is how I would like to remember it). Robin totally thought that I was going to tip over and that they might have to swim to grab me. Haha. Once we finished up, the three of us went back to the dock in Jeremy's car to drop Robin off at her car. She went home to get dinner started and Jeremy and I drove to the edge of the bike trail to pick some wild mulberries that were ripe for picking. We managed to get a huge sports water bottle filled; to do so, Jeremy drove his mammoth-sized truck into the tree and we climbed on top of the truck and started picking away. It was so easy to get them down that we filled up the bottle within 15 minutes. The plan was that we would pick 'em and Robin would cook 'em as part of a cobbler. Mmmmmm, I couldn't wait! Back at home, we chowed down on some of Robin's wonderful chicken enchiladas (so good...) and then tried out the mulberry cobbler. It turned out to be delicious, but the mulberries didn't present much of a taste, so we largely tasted the one stick of butter, one cup of flour, one cup of sugar, one egg (if necessary), and two cups of fruit. The combination of hot cobbler, fresh out of the oven, with vanilla ice cream was exquisite!