Loyalhanna Lake - October 21

This post about Loyalhanna Lake is in memory of my uncle, Rich Lowes. He was much more than my uncle, he was also my mentor and my friend. He taught me a lot about enjoying your family and about enjoying life's simple pleasures. He gave me good advice that I still use today. We spent a lot of time together at Loyalhanna Lake, so this place is very special to me. When I was a teen, Rich and I would paddle a canoe up Loyalhanna Creek then slowly drift back downstream, fishing and talking. He also owned a boat and our families would spend a lot of weekends together at Loyalhanna watersking and tubing. He once told me something that I remembered when we were thinking of buying our kayaks. He said,"Some people think that I'm crazy for buying this boat. They don't think twice about spending more than I paid for this boat on a vacation at the beach, though. They'll drive for hours, stay for a week or two, and when that time is up their vacation is over for the year. I'm on vacation every time I put my boat in the water. I drive 15 minutes and all it costs me is a little money for gas. Who's the crazy one?" Paddling around a place like Loyalhanna is like being on vacation for me. You can put the rest of the world on a shelf for a little while and just relax and soak up the sights and sounds of nature.

My Uncle Rich tried to teach my then 6 year old son, Jeremy, how to water ski. Jeremy wasn't quite strong enough to hold on to the handle as the boat pulled him up. Loyalhanna-1986.


Jeremy and I tubing behind my Uncle Rich's boat at Loyalhanna in 1986


My son Jeremy fishing at Loyalhanna in 1987. "What do I do now Dad?"

Loyalhanna Lake in the fall is a beautiful place. The colors in the leaves and rocks are amazing. This was the last paddle of the year for Robbin and I as a team. We both slipped out of work a little early (I probably shouldn't have included that) so we could enjoy an "Indian Summer" evening before the time change. We paddled upsteam on the inflow area of Loyalhanna Creek and lost track of time. It was a high speed trip back to the boat launch area to beat the darkness (I think Robbin was worried we wouldn't be able to find our way back in the dark). Loyalhanna will probably be the first trip we take in the spring. I'm looking forward to paddling further up Loyalhanna Creek to see what's there.