I have been asked to post information on the next club trip on July
14th. We are going to do the upper and lower portions of the
Mermanteau River. The upper leg runs from Esterwood to Mermanteau and
is called Bayou Plaquemine Brule which is a nice paddle with a little
current and natural scenery. It flows into the Bayou des Cannes and
then the Mermanteau. It is approx. 11.5 miles in length. The second
leg is from Mermanteau and goes to the North End of Lake Arthur. It
is Aprox. 12.6 miles in length. The current is a little slower and
the route is a little more industrialized but interesting. Depending
on our speed, the upper portion should take a about 4- 41/2 hours and
the bottom approx 5 to 6 hours. This will be a ferry trip requiring
relocation of vehicles. If the group paddles slower, adjust the times
accordingly. It really depends on the current that is running at the
time.

THE PLAN:
Meet at Albertsons on I-49 near I-10 in Lafayette at NO LATER
THAN 6:30 AM for immediate departure. It will take us about an Hour
to get to Esterwood and offload all the boats. One person will stay
at the launch and Guard the boats while everyone else travels down
Hwy-90 to the bridge takeout at Mermanteau. We will drop off cars and
as many people that can fit in the least amount of largest vehicles
will return to put in.

After we paddle the upper leg, we can do another ferry for those who
want to paddle the lower leg and have dinner in Lake Arthur.

Leaving early will give us some cooler temperatures in the morning
but bring plenty of water, food, sunscreen, and a good funky hat
to block the sun.

If you prefer to start teaming up with someone else to ferry with or
we come up with a trailer prior to July 14th....the plan may change
but it will only become more convenient.

If you are not coming from Lafayette we can meet you at the put in
which is just north of the floating bridge on Hwy 91, a mile or so
North of Esterwood which is on Hwy 90 between Crowley and Midland. I
suggest you are there No Later Than 7:15.

For those of you who want a map to cover the area, it can be found on
the Crowley 1:100,000 scale metric topographic map last dated 1985.

Drop me a line if you have any questions at oz472@...

It would be great if we could get a general idea of how many people
are interested in going on this trip, so let me know that as well.
Jim

1 hour wait on ferry from Cypremort Point not withstanding...a great
trip. Jason Donavon and I, ( no other takers showed) found a put-in
close to the Point and received permission to use a boat ramp
frequented by Vietnamese crab fishermen. The wind was blowing good
out of the east and we drifted offcourse to West. (Current could have
help as well). Once Donavan spotted the Island we kicked it a bit
more East. Waves started at 1-2 feet and increased to 3 feet.  A good
challenge. 7 miles later, (confirm this with Donovan)we took the
Great Circle route, we arrived at a shell mound on the island mostly
populated by some form of insect that was all teeth and wings. Deep
Woods Off repelled the little vampires. Had a quick lunch and then
paddled east until we hit an inlet that was about a paddle blade in
depth. We just drifted and relaxed and took in the quiet and sun.
Shrimp were actually jumping everywhere back in the marsh. Really
tranquil. We decided  to return since the tide was starting to run
back out. Our return passage was direct as you could see the Point
from Marsh Island. The wind died, temp went up and it was easy
paddling. Left dock at about 8:00 Am and returned around 5:00PM.

I learned a couple of lessons.

1. When you are with a group, you don't need to pack the
same "contingency" stuff (read that as everything but the kitchen
sink)you carry when you are out alone.
2. Don't take a heavy boat into large waves or you will learn what
its like to be a submarine captain.
3. An open touring boat is best used for inland waters. Even with
bladders and a spray skirt, its just not a sea kayak.   (This will
make Justin happy since I will probably now buy a second boat)
4. Consider both the wind and the current when making open water
crossings. A good GPS, pre-planned route, good map recon and
knowledge of when the tides run all would aid in making your trip a
success. Here is a web site for checking Louisiana tides.
www.rodnreel.com/tides/
Donovan and Jason were good, competent trip mates. I had a great time
and I look forward to additional ventures in the future.

Hello paddle parters,

Sorry for the late post, the last meeting went well, in a relaxed
meeting we just discussed the pros and cons of the aca thing, but all
just decided to go with and let things work out as we go along. here
is a list of names of the people who paid dues and are now official
members of the paddle club

Kathy Knierim
Jim Ousley
Carl Domingue
Donovan Garcia
Marvin Ellis
Justin Mire
Jason Bergeron

Kelia if you would like you can come by the shop to pick up the dues
(and receipts), or let me know where and i can drop them off to you.

Also if you could get the applications to each person above to fill
out.

You can also drop some hard copies by the shop, so that i can get
some of my customers to sign as new members.

Any person that is a member of this yahoo group who would like to pay
dues and become an offical member of the paddle group are more than
welcome as a matter of convenience to come by Louisiana Outfitters
and pay thier dues (we will write you a receipt, if someone does not
offer you one "please ask for one")and we will get it to Kelia.

We also brought up that if everyone who is a member of this yahoo
group could go in the "profile" section and put in thier full name
and city that they live in it would be nice for other members to see
who you are, its hard to tell who the members are by just looking at
a email address like, "eyrt47jms@gd79" LOL

P.S.  Jim,Jason,Donovan
Did you guys go on your trip, did you have a good time. One of you
( or all of you, Ha!) please post and tell us about it.


Happy stroking,

Justin Mire

Hello group!!

I apologize, especially as the club treasurer, that I was unable to
attend last week's meeting.  I had a prior engagement that evening
and was not able to make it to the paddle meeting.

Justin, thank you for filling in and taking care of the dues.  I
appreciate this tremendously.

The votes have been cast and now we will become members of the ACA
with $30.00 yearly membership dues.  I am still waiting for a
response from the IRS so that we can get the required EIN number to
open up an account in the club's name.  I should receive the number
by fax next week.  I'm leaning towards opening up the account at Gulf
Coast Bank.  I called several other banks (Teche Federal, Hibernia,
for example) and those banks had extra monthly charges and fees for
each check written and deposited.  Gulf Coast Bank does not have
these charges.  I have the membership applications ready.  I will
post the application via e-mail and I will bring hard copies of the
membership applications at the next meeting so we can officially have
a membership roster.

Thanks again!!

Kelia Fontenot

If anyone is interested, myself, Jim Ousley and Donovan Garcia are
going to paddle from Cypremort Point to Marsh Island on Saturday,
June 23.  Jim and I are meeting at the Albertsons on Hwy. 90 in
Broussard at 6:30 a.m.  For those who live south of Albertsons and
don't feel like driving north, Donovan is going to meet us at the
ferry crossing going to Cypremort Point so you can do the same.  The
drive from Albertsons to the ferry is about 30 minutes, give or take
a few minutes.  If you are going to join us, don't be late because we
are not waiting around.  Be prepared for an all day paddle;  bring
lots of water, food, sun screen, etc.  It's going to be fun.  Hope
you can join us!!

Hey Agnes!

Glad to see you're enjoying paddling, even if you can't make the meeting. The
web site is great, isn't it? I think it makes things much easier; we can
handle all the votes, etc. online.
So you dance at Randol's? How cool! My girlfriend and I are taking lessons
with Lou Decoto...it's awkward, though.

Well, hope to see you paddling

James

Agnes B Stewart <agnes_stewart@...> wrote:

> ---------------------------------------------
> Attachment: 
> MIME Type: multipart/alternative
> ---------------------------------------------
James,
I will not be able to make the meeting or the paddle on Wed. I am glad
that you will allow us to vote on the issue of ACA on the web site. I
have a hard time with the meetings on Wed because of previous
engagements. I dance every Wed at Randol's. I like to paddle but I also
love to dance. Bothe are great exercises.

Paddled on Bayou Bernard on Sunday and had a good time. I am growing to
enjoy paddling even more. Look fwd to meeting more to the members
locally. I will give up a few hours of dancing to make some of the
meetings.

New Paddler......Agnes Stewart


____________________________________________________________________
Get free email and a permanent address at http://www.netaddress.com/?N=1

James,
I will not be able to make the meeting or the paddle on Wed. I am glad
that you will allow us to vote on the issue of ACA on the web site. I
have a hard time with the meetings on Wed because of previous
engagements. I dance every Wed at Randol's. I like to paddle but I also
love to dance. Bothe are great exercises.

Paddled on Bayou Bernard on Sunday and had a good time. I am growing to
enjoy paddling even more. Look fwd to meeting more to the members
locally. I will give up a few hours of dancing to make some of the
meetings.

New Paddler......Agnes Stewart

The following lafayette_paddle_club poll is now closed.  Here are the
final results:


POLL QUESTION: How often do you Kayak/Canoe?

CHOICES AND RESULTS
- Once per week, 1 votes, 14.29%
- Every weekend you can get away, 4 votes, 57.14%
- Once monthly, 1 votes, 14.29%
- A few times a year, 0 votes, 0.00%
- Enough to keep your stress level low, 1 votes, 14.29%



For more information about this group, please visit
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/lafayette_paddle_club

For help with Yahoo! Groups, please visit
http://help.yahoo.com/help/us/groups/

Hi everybody!

I have to go to Hammond this Wednesday, so I won't be able to make
the meeting.
I need someone to run the meeting in my absence. Any volunteers?
Some things we need to cover:
1. Are we any closer to deciding whether or not to go with ACA
membership?
2. Should we make the dues $30?

I think we're approaching the time when we need to say, if you've got
a better alternative to the liability-protection issue than ACA,
now's the time to let us know the details.
I would prefer to let the voting itself take place on the website,
because that way people who can't make the meetings can still express
an opinion. If you have questions about the ACA issue, Justin Mire's
post is a good place to start.
We're starting to go on what could be thought of as group trips, so I
think we should move on this issue. How about we wrap this up by July?
I'm definitely open to other suggestions, if anyone thinks we should
explore other options more thoroughly; but right now we're at least
theoretically sticking our necks out when we take trips.

Speaking of trips, how about a shuttle paddle on the Vermilion
Wednesday?

James

Hello

I have called the aca with questions, and here are the answers which
were discussed at the last meeting.

If you have more questions you would like me to answer on this matter
just post "justin,question about aca" and i will be happy to get the
answer.

Sorry it took so long for this post, but had trouble(5 days!) getting
signed up on this site.


1. Everyone who is a member of our club must join the aca. The aca
requires it. (think about it, liability covering a club can not cover
half of the club, etc.)

2. We can have guests on our planned (i will address planned shortly)
trips, but they must sign a waiver (we mail the waviers in every so
often), pay $5.00, and they can be our guest a max of 2 times per
year.(the must sign the wavier thing could fall through the cracks,
so as a club you may want to say, "sorry no guest, would you like to
JOIN").

3. Based on the $30.00 membership fee a family membership would have
to be $35.00, because the aca charges $20.00 instead of $15.00 for a
family.

4. We do not have to be incorporated for "aca" purpose.

5. If we had a clinic of some sort, and a guest or someone trips over
a boat we are covered.

6. Coverage is $5,000,000.00 per activity-aggregate,$1,000,000.00 per
occurrence.

7. Each trip or event has to simply be faxed in to aca to be covered.
no list of names are needed, just that this is a club trip, date,
place.

The club has to decide what criterion makes a trip a "club trip"

Examle: you could say only trips that are posted on the "Lafayette
Paddle Club" Yahoo site be construed as a club trip.


I asked aca this ?-If one club member wakes up on sat. morning and
calls two other club members, or one other club member and one non
club member to go lets say paddle on two o'clock bayou.They said
there is no need for coverage because it is not a club trip.(Or all
that club member has to do is email aca on sat. morning explaining
trip and its now a club trip,according to aca and covered)

If its decided that only posted trips are legit would/should that
make it open to all the group.

If someone wants to take a more personal paddle like the example
above do we say,  those  trips are not club trips, or do we let one
of the members in the examle above email on sat. morning on his/her
own(in the case of the guest, does the wavier get filled out and sent
in)

Whew!!! Anyway I do not think this should stop us from collecting
dues and becoming a club. We can always sort this out in a couple of
weeks.

Happy Paddling, Justin Mire

Thanks for everyones help. I figured it out and had to have an
authorization code in order to be in the group. Did it, got it and
then I voted..

See y'all on the water soon, I hope....

Agnes

Enter your vote today!  A new poll has been created for the
lafayette_paddle_club group:

We've discussed having club dues of
$30, $15 of which would pay for ACA
membership. What's your vote?

   o Yes
   o No


To vote, please visit the following web page:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/lafayette_paddle_club/polls

Note: Please do not reply to this message. Poll votes are
not collected via email. To vote, you must go to the Yahoo! Groups
web site listed above.

Thanks!

Could someone please post some information about ACA requirements for
those of us who missed the meeting last week?  For example, do all
club members have to be ACA members for a club trip to be covered by
ACA insurance?  What about people who are not members of the paddle
club who want to paddle on a club trip?  (I didn't read James' email
about the change in venue before driving to Beaver Park last Wed. -
there obviously wasn't any meeting going on there!)

Kathy

hello paddlers,

          I carl domingue vote yes for aca membership and club dues
_________________________________________________________________
Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com

YOU HAVE TO DO TWO THINGS TO VOTE.

1) You must have a Yahoo ID (it's free, painless, and doesn't fill your
email with junk mail unless you tell them to).
2) You must sign in once you get to the lafayette_paddle_club website.

There are two links on the upper right corner of the webpage.  One says
"register" and the other says "sign in."  When you sign in, you can also
choose and option that will keep you from having to sign in every time you
go to the website by checking a box just below the password.


	 -----Original Message-----
	 From: James Proctor [SMTP:jamesproctor@...]
	 Sent: Monday, June 11, 2001 5:48 PM
	 To: lafayette_paddle_club@yahoogroups.com
	 Subject: Re: [Re: [lafayette_paddle_club] New poll for
lafayette_paddle_club]

	 Gee, Agnes, I don't really know. The computer shows you're a member,
so that's
	 not the problem. It's possible you need to have a Yahoo i.d.

	 James

	 Agnes B Stewart <agnes_stewart@...> wrote:

	 > ---------------------------------------------
	 > Attachment:
	 > MIME Type: multipart/alternative
	 > ---------------------------------------------
	 I must be doing something wrong, I cannot enter the voting area or
	 screen. What am I suppose to be doing to vote or comm on the yahoo
site.
	 I went to the site and had no idea what to do to cast a vote.

	 Help,......Agnes


	 ____________________________________________________________________
	 Get free email and a permanent address at
http://www.netaddress.com/?N=1

	 To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
	 lafayette_paddle_club-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com



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http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/

Enter your vote today!  A new poll has been created for the
lafayette_paddle_club group:

Should the ACA membership be optional
when joining the paddle club?

   o YES
   o NO
   o UNDECIDED


To vote, please visit the following web page:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/lafayette_paddle_club/polls

Note: Please do not reply to this message. Poll votes are
not collected via email. To vote, you must go to the Yahoo! Groups
web site listed above.

Thanks!

Gee, Agnes, I don't really know. The computer shows you're a member, so that's
not the problem. It's possible you need to have a Yahoo i.d.

James

Agnes B Stewart <agnes_stewart@...> wrote:

> ---------------------------------------------
> Attachment: 
> MIME Type: multipart/alternative
> ---------------------------------------------
I must be doing something wrong, I cannot enter the voting area or
screen. What am I suppose to be doing to vote or comm on the yahoo site.
I went to the site and had no idea what to do to cast a vote.

Help,......Agnes


____________________________________________________________________
Get free email and a permanent address at http://www.netaddress.com/?N=1

Lafayette Paddle Club:

Two questions-What about family membership dues?  Will we be
considering if people want to join as a family and will the dues be
different?  Also, do you want to make the ACA membership mandatory
because of the whole liability situation?  This was some of the stuff
we discussed at the last meeting.  Perhaps we should have a pole and
vote on it online? Ray, could you organize this since you seem to be
the poll king! :) Yes, I do have the applications ready.  I just need
to know what we want as a group.  I second your motion, Carl.

Kelia

Hello Paddle Club Members,
   As we all know in order for the Lafayette Paddle Club to become official,
I Carl Domingue am making a motion to set club dues at $30.00 per year.
These membership dues will be collected at the June 20th meeting. The
meeting will be held at Louisiana Outfitters at 6:30 p.m. Kelia has
applications ready to fill out. The break down of these dues is as follows:
$15.00 will make you a member of ACA, and $15.00 will make you a member of
the Lafayette Paddle Club. As  a member you will also receive a 10% discount
on all items purchased at Louisiana Outfitters. With this order of business
out of the way, we can organize our July calendar of events!! I ask that
someone please e-mail me with a second for this motion.


Thank You,
Carl Domingue,
A Proud Member of The Lafayette Paddle Club

P.S.  Lets Geaux Paddling!!!!
_________________________________________________________________
Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com

hello lafayette paddle club,

         paddling places-- lake martin,horn island over night,cypermore
point,hendreson,indian creek,
_________________________________________________________________
Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com

I must be doing something wrong, I cannot enter the voting area or
screen. What am I suppose to be doing to vote or comm on the yahoo site.
I went to the site and had no idea what to do to cast a vote.

Help,......Agnes

Enter your vote today!  A new poll has been created for the
lafayette_paddle_club group:

Where would you like to paddle in the
near future?

   o Lake Martin
   o Horn Island  (overnight)
   o Cypermort point state park
   o Chico State park
   o Lake Fausse Point


To vote, please visit the following web page:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/lafayette_paddle_club/polls

Note: Please do not reply to this message. Poll votes are
not collected via email. To vote, you must go to the Yahoo! Groups
web site listed above.

Thanks!

Hello paddlers,

I'm writing to forward information posted on the Louisiana Hiking Club
e-group about a draft master plan for Lake Martin.  Some of the items in
the draft Master Plan would significantly alter the environment at Lake
Martin; it is just too small an area to support major tourist
facilities.  Although there is a need for some improvements in the area
to handle the increasing number of visitors, if improvements (roads,
parking, public buildings, etc.) are made which destroy the wilderness
character of the lake, it will lose its appeal as a tourist attraction.

I spoke with one of the local residents involved in the planning
process.  As indicated in the enclosed attachment, a group of residents
and consultants worked extensively on plans for managing tourism at Lake
Martin that would maintain the wilderness character which makes the area
such an attraction.  A master plan draft containing significant
alterations to the recommendations made by the planning committee has
been published with a deadline of June 20, 2001 for receiving written
comments at the state Department of Natural Resources.

The enclosed attachment lists concerns expressed by the citizens who
worked on the committee making recommendations for Lake Martin.  These
points can be used in writing letters about your own concerns for the
preservation Lake Martin. Letters should be addressed to Sandra Thompson
Decoteau of the Department of Natural Resources at the address given in
the attachment.  Other officials to send coppies of your letter are also
listed.  There are only 2 weeks left to send written comments, so
letters need to be sent promptly.

Kathy Knierim

Hey everybody!
This came in from Darryl Pry, of the Bayou Haystackers and chair of
the Atchafalaya Basin Master Plan's paddle trails committee:

In order for the committee to have its "boats in a row" for the next
formal meeting (June21st) with the Corps, DNR, and ABP interested
parties we are going to have an informal planning session.
Wed. June 13th 2001   7:00pm
Bill Hagar's house
2633 Kleinert Ave.
Baton Rouge, La. 70806
225-387-3717

Volunteers?

Someone to work with Deirdre Hewitt  of the  NPS  RTCA program  &
Matt Rovira of the  La. Office of Rural Development.  They can
provide/locate  funding for trails programs.

Some one to contact Elinor Craven   Director of Outdoor Recreation,
Office of State Parks.

Someone to contact the Everglades NP and discuss camping platforms
and water level changes.

Do we need a trails name?       Do we need a trails logo?    You know
PR stuff.

We have at present 41 people who have expressed interest in working
on the committee.

Y'all come y'hear

Darryl Pry

We would like to remind you of this upcoming event.

Club meeting at Beaver Park

Date: Wednesday, June 6, 2001
Time: 6:30PM CDT (GMT-05:00)

Meeting
Vote on ACA or other membership
Vote on dues
Other business as required
Paddle!

Ladies!  For those of you who have not heard, on Sunday, June 3rd,
we're doing a woman's paddle at Two O'Clock Bayou.  Jenny Hernandez
is the coordinator.  You can e-mail her at:
hernandez_jennifer@...  or call Louisiana Outfitter's and ask
to speak with her.

We will be meeting at Albertson's (Northgate Mall) at 8:00am on
Sunday and drive to Two O'Clock Bayou.  It's about a 30 or 40 minute
drive.  We will then paddle our heart's content!  It is a 7 mile trip
total.  3.5 miles going and 3.5 miles coming back.  Don't forget to
bring a lunch, bug spray, sunscreen, and water!  Hope to see you
there!

Kelia Fontenot

Enter your vote today!  A new poll has been created for the
lafayette_paddle_club group:

What type of enviroment do you prefer
to Kayak/Canoe in?

   o Mild surf on a beach
   o Calm water with lots of trees/wildlife  (Lake Martin type of enviroment)
   o Fast moving river currents
   o Whitewater


To vote, please visit the following web page:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/lafayette_paddle_club/polls

Note: Please do not reply to this message. Poll votes are
not collected via email. To vote, you must go to the Yahoo! Groups
web site listed above.

Thanks!

Enter your vote today!  A new poll has been created for the
lafayette_paddle_club group:

How often do you Kayak/Canoe?

   o Once per week
   o Every weekend you can get away
   o Once monthly
   o A few times a year
   o Enough to keep your stress level low


To vote, please visit the following web page:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/lafayette_paddle_club/polls

Note: Please do not reply to this message. Poll votes are
not collected via email. To vote, you must go to the Yahoo! Groups
web site listed above.

Thanks!

I think that this message board was a great idea and i hope everyone
uses this board on a regular basis. We can even use this message
board to vote on certain topics so i think everyone should put this
site on their favorites list.


See ya,

Ray