Recently, Troop 161 participated in a fun canoeing campout on the river in Bastrop State Park. We stayed in the campsites at the park which were located only about 10 minutes away from the launch point. Before departing, we ate breakfast and packed our lunch. We paddled the El Camino Real Paddling Trail, launching from Fisherman’s Park in Bastrop and travelling around 6 miles before taking out at a nature preserve in the Tahitian Village. Bastrop River County provided transportation back to our starting point.
In the beginning there were some difficult rapids to overcome. One canoe was caught in a strainer and flipped over, however, everyone was okay after the scouts successfully conducted a boat-over-boat rescue. Afterwards, everything went much better as scouts worked together and navigated through the river. Towards the end of the trip a canoe tipped over again when entering the water offering the other scouts an opportunity to practice.
For any other troops planning a similar campout, we suggest reviewing canoe safety and rescue procedure preparation beforehand. The weather, river conditions, and overall experience were great.
Texas Paddling Trails Website (great for planning trips):
https://tpwd.texas.gov/boating/paddling-trails/prairies-and-lakes/bastrop-el-camino-real/
Some resources for watching river flow rates:
https://dashboard.waterdata.usgs.gov/app/nwd/en/?region=lower48&aoi=default
https://hydromet.lcra.org/
