Camping Story

I'll never forget the one time I went camping and canoeing down the Au Sable River with my church group. Most of the people that went with us weren't experienced in a canoeing. So I tried to help people out when they were having trouble since my dad has been taking us since we were little. Everything in the beginning was going smoothly, which was a good thing because the water was freezing today. Halfway down the river my partner kept moving around in the canoe, causing it to rock. Before I knew it we were both in the freezing cold water! It wouldn't have been so bad if it had just happened the one time, but it ended up happening continuously from then on. After awhile I was freezing and covered with bruises due to falling out of a metal canoe and having to get back in numerous times. Towards the end of the river, I was so fed up that we just ended up staying in the cold water and dragging our canoe to the finish. It took quite some time after that traumatic canoeing experience to get me back on the water. However, now when I do, I never claim to be an expert like I did before. Lauren