Winning!

       Did I mention how heavy my gear is?

    My kayak, alone, weighs 68 lbs.  I have a slightly lighter 14' kayak but it is older with no storage wells and the hull is too flimsy to handle the trolling motor...the trolling motor which weighs 17 lbs and its battery which weighs 25 lbs.

      I am a fairly strong woman but let's get down to brass tacks:  I only have so much upper body strength and I am 48 years old and I am an intrinsically lazy person.

     Many of the places I launch the kayak from do not come with a boat ramp and some areas include steep sand banks.  Dragging a laden kayak down to the river is relatively easy but getting that same load back up the hill at the end of the day is a different story.  The old guys would help me lug gear which, while appreciated, grated on my independent sensibilities but when I would fossil alone...forget about it!  I needed several miserable trips.  That got my little brain working.  There must be a better way...

    That's right, bitches!  The mother of invention rules again!

     A trip to the hardware store allowed me to puzzle out this simple rig.  There is another carabiner on the other end of the rope and I attached a U bolt to the bow of my kayak for the connection.  I back my truck to the edge of the slope, uncoil the rope down to my yak, hook it up, and then slowly drive forward until I see all my gear pop over the edge of the bank onto the flat land.  Works like a charm!

     Pam immediately recognized the value of this system as I would drag her gear up at the same time, simply keeping our kayaks tethered since I had usually towed her back with the trolling motor.  She hauls everything in a car so is still trying to figure out the best way to accomplish this setup for herself.

     The men were a different story.  The word I most commonly hear when men see me motor past them in my kayak or pull my gear up from the river with a rope is "Cheater!"  That makes me laugh.

     Cheating?  I'm winning! 

      And I have been gratified to spy some other fossilers I know emulating my idea.  Makes me feel warm and glow-y inside.

     Mike, alway alert to my needs, just hooked me up with this luxurious coil of rope for next season.  Might as well do it with style.

     And what would a Zookeeper Fossil post be without a pic of a fossil?

     One of the first times I went on the river by myself I found this perfect tapir tooth.  No one to shout it out to.  Dang!