Devil's River Kayak/Camping Trip

I just got back from one of the best trips I have ever taken and if you know me very well you know that is saying a lot because I love to travel to fun places. James Garner, Zach Knight and myself took a kayaking/camping/fishing trip to the Devil's River in West Texas. This was the first time any of us had been there and we were blown away, to say the least. I think the most repeated phrase of the week was "This place is amazing". Everytime we would hit a new stretch of river we would witness a new level of beauty in God's creation.
We took off on Wednesday and met up at the "Who Cares B&B" north of Del Rio. After spending the night there we loaded up for the two-hour ride to the drop-off point for our three-day and 25-mile journey down the Devil's River. The river is surrounded by private land so you can't camp on the shores the first night. Instead we found a rock island large enough to hold us and all of our gear. We slept out under the most amazing number of stars after covering 10.3 miles in our kayaks the first day. Day 2 was more of the same - a lot of kayaking and fishing and being amazed by our surroundings. It was like being on a river in Colorado but with water from the Carirbbean Ocean. The water got clearer and the scenery more beautiful as the trip went on. We covered about 7 miles on Day 2 and camped at the State Natural Area where we used out tents. The first morning we woke up and our gear was soaked from the dew so we had to delay our fishing and departure in order to dry everything out before packing it. We caught fish for dinner on Day 2 and accompanied it with potatoes, corn and green bean casserole. We have all had our fair share of outdoor adventures so we were able to eat extremely well on this trip. We needed to cover about 7 more miles on Day 3 in order to get to the pickup point for the ride to our trucks. We didn't do whole lot of fishing because most of the trip was spent traversing rapids or paddling through mile-long deep pools. It was amazing. After portaging our kayaks around Dolan Falls - the largest waterfall in Texas - we took on about eight sets of rapids including Three-Tiers that is rated as a Class 3. It was a blast! I wish I had more pics to show you but the memory card on my camera was wiped out so I had to get all of my pics from James. I am waiting for Zach to send me his pics as well. We have already pledged to make this a yearly trip - at least. I think Zach and James are going back in the spring but my schedule will not allow me to go at that time - I may have to quit my job. :) Enjoy!
The windmill and water tank at the "Who Cares B&B"

Kickin' it at the B&B

The kayaks all geared up.

Lunch on day 1. A rock island on the Devil's River.

Checking out the scenery with Zach.

Kayaking through the canyon.

Reading on the rock island we camped on the first night.

A view of our campsite. This is all the room the three of us had. It was awesome.

Beautiful morning scenery.

James and I at bedtime. We slept out underneath the stars the first night.

Morning view from our camp.

Kayaking in the morning fog.

More morning kayaking.

The morning fish.

Rock cave on the river.

With Zach night on some rock structures. These were all over the river.

With the big black bass. It was about 17-18 inches long. The biggest bass I have ever caught.

James and Zach at Dolan Falls.

Dolan Falls - the largest waterfall in Texas.

Three Tiers Rapids - this was a Class 3 rapid that we took the kayaks down.

Check out the crystal clear water.

A big boulder had fallen from the nearby cliff and rolled in to the river.

James with a self-portrait.