"Your favorite neighbors will hit the road in search of work or an upbeat sense of spiritual self-determinism. Pretty soon you'll pack up and leave too, but the gas will cost too much to get wherever you think you're going, and the car will break down. Husband will set off in search of a timing belt and there you'll be, with the kids and your Verizon service down to its final minutes. You will be camped in a strange parking lot, in front of an old Best Buy. "

I paddled over to Prater Flats before sunrise today under clear skies and a waxing moon. We've been getting phenomenal fall weather. It's in the upper '50s before sunrise.

I tend to hug the shore because you see more that way, and I was moving at a pretty good clip when I ran aground hard. I was sitting atop a giant boulder that was just barely beneath the surface. I can't believe I didn't dump the kayak and it proved the hull is pretty strong. I felt it bend when I hit the rock, but there was no damage. I rocked and paddled backward till I managed to get loose.

I spun my kayak around to shoot this photo as I returned to the main channel. It probably was about 6 or 7 miles roundtrip given all the drifting around I did in coves back there.

I managed to paddle about eight miles this morning, which took me past Leaper's Bluff and within sight of the predawn lights in Lenoir City. I wasn't ready to go there yet, but I'm going to give it a shot soon.

As I crossed Loudon to return to the north shore, I saw this pre-sunrise glow above Leaper's Bluff.

Great morning for a paddle. About 60 degrees and clear, starry skies when I set out. Fall definitely is in the air ...

When i started paddling this summer, I sent an initial goal of getting to Concord Park, which is about a 12-mile roundtrip journey from our house. This morning I made it, and I took this photo of sunrise at Concord Yacht Club to prove it.

It took me about three hours to do the entire trip, and the last mile or two was pretty rough. But overall, I'm convinced I can go even farther if I pace myself right.

Lara seemed duly impressed that I'd made it to Concord Park, but when I told her my next goal was to get to New Orleans, she winced. So I think I'll rein in my ambition and shoot for Lenoir City, which is about 14 miles RT from here.

I intended to do one of my usual paddles today, but I was feeling pretty good when I hit the daymark at mile 608 and I kept going. I passed Leapers Bluff and went into a south shore cove that is fed by Cloyd Creek. I've taken the bowrider up there a few times but always stopped at the Unitia Road bridge. Clearance was low and I didn't want to risk banging up the boat going through.

But in the kayak I pressed ahead amid moonlight-lit fog, paddling past trees spun with spider webs. I went as far as I could before downed limbs forced me to turn and head back.

Overall, a great paddle that really helped clear the cobwebs out of my head. I figure I managed about 9 miles this morning.

My friend Tom was over on Tuesday night, and we were marveling at the moon. It's started to wane, and Tom noted it's a gibbous moon and that the light the moon casts across the earth is called the moonglade. Needless to say, that was on my mind before sunrise Wednesday when I was paddling through the light of that gibbous moon as it reflected off Lake Loudon.

I really wanted a photo of the moon. It was impressive. But I had to settle for this sunrise. Not a bad bargain, I guess. But I really wanted a shot of that gibbous moonglade.

I paddled Prater Flats again, focusing on center islands and stumbling across a few shallow coves I'd yet to explore. Probably put in about 6 miles or so.

I came across this odd scene just upstream from Choto Marina during this morning's paddle. One of the little people on the bench was painted white, which I guess was an attempt to mitigate the racial weirdness of the little black dude holding the U.S. flag. The white boy gets to proudly wave the Vols colors. Gotta love the Rock City birdhouse ...

The water was calm this morning, quite a contrast to yesterday, though the wind start picking up as I paddled. I cut to the south shore and followed it up past the entry to Prater Flats. I explored a few coves upstream from the flats and then cut over to the north shore at the daymark at mile 614, so that means I put in at least 8 miles. I didn't see one boat out there the entire time, though I did scare up a bunch of herons.

It wind was gusting today and there was a heavy chop in the cove while I set up the boat rack in this photo. After I was done, I decided to tempt fate and get out in the rough stuff to gain a few paddling experience points.

I had a lot of fun paddling into the wind and watching the water break over the bow of the kayak. When I got to the main channel, I decided to make a run over to Tom's to do a drive by. I dropped the rudder for the first time since I bought the kayak to help me stay on track in the waves. It worked beautifully. (I've been shunning the rudder for the most part to force myself to learn how to control the boat through paddling, but today I figured I needed to focus on staying in the damn thing and decided the rudder would let me focus on that rather than drifting off course.)

It was a nice adrenaline rush overall. Almost dumped a few times but managed to stay upright and I even stopped by Tom's dock to talk with him for a bit before heading back. I had a harder time paddling with the wind at my back than I did moving into the wind. It was harder to read the waves and roll with things, but once I got the hang of it I managed to "surf" a few times, hopping on a roll and staying with it for a bit.

Overall, pretty minor league stuff in the big picture, but it built my confidence and made me want to get out in the ocean that much more.

As for the dock, I put in a Suspenz rack to organize things. It's designed so the boats rest on straps instead of the cross bars.Very easy to load and unload them. I have the canoe in "backward" to keep water out of it, and I've ordered a cockpit cover for the kayak with the same scheme in mind.

I bolted the entire thing to the dock to make sure it doesn't get blown into the cove. Even in the gusty winds we had today it seemed pretty stable and solid.

After ruining my aging Nikon when I dumped the kayak, I decided a waterproof camera was in order. This is one of the first shots I took with my new Olympus 1030SW. Pretty cool. I pulled i out and shot this as Gilligan was retrieving a stick in the cove.

After ruining my aging Nikon when I dumped the kayak, I decided a waterproof camera was in order. This is one of the first shots I took with my new Olympus 1030SW. Pretty cool. I pulled i out and shot this as Gilligan was retrieving a stick in the cove. It pretty much captures the sound and fury that is Gilligan in the water ...

Maybe it's because today is 9/11, but this sunrise seemed more profound than the others I've witnessed while paddling Lake Loudon. I paused to listen to the herons squawk and watch the light ripple across the water while I reflected on that horrible day seven years ago ...

I covered a lot of ground this morning, paddling upstream on Loudon and then heading up Gallagher Creek, past International Harbor Marina and into a minefield of rocks. I managed to get hung up there for a bit but managed to patiently work my way out of it and decided it was time to head back home.

A few planes ascended from McGhee Tyson as I paddled back, another reminder of 9/11 and that I have to a flight to D.C. this afternoon for the Online News Association conference.

I'm not looking forward to flying again. I've taken particular glee in watching those planes soar above me, heading for Atlanta and Cincinnati while I'm paddling along. I didn't realize how much I hated flying until I had a chance to do a lot less of it. I wish I could paddle to D.C. ...

Riotous weather last night. I wasn't sure if I should risk a paddle this morning, but I didn't hear thunder so I set off under cloudy skies after sponging rainwater out of my kayak.

I paddled downstream along the south shore a few miles and was toying with trying to get to the daymark at mile 606, but I decided not to try my luck and cut across to the north shore to poke around in large cove for a while. I saw a few deer grazing and startled a several herons before heading home.

When I walked in the door, it started to pour. I'd managed to find a space "between the heaves of storm," as Emily Dickinson would say. Perfect.

Here's this morning's sunrise over Prater Flats, just off Lake Loudon in Knoxville. You can see the bow of my new kayak in the frame. Make note of the Steeler black and gold.

This shot was taken with my old DImage Xg digital camera, which I had to resort to when my Nikon Coolpix S1 took an unexpected bath last week. Seems getting out of the new kayak isn't as easy as it would seem, and I ended up in the drink, along with the camera and my Blackberry. I had the presence of mind to enclose the Blackberry in a Ziplock back so it survived unscathed. The camera wasn't so lucky. But the memory card did survive and now lives on in the Dimage ...

I hit the water early today under shimmering starry skies. During the weekend, I added a few new pieces to my kayak paraphernalia, including a flashing strobe that hopefully will stop a bass boat from turning me into a predawn speedbump and a waterproof bag that can hold both my Blackberry and camera.

It was a great paddle. I managed to explore parts of Prater Flats that I haven't been to yet. I'm able to cover a lot more ground in the same amount of time when paddling the kayak. And I even managed to disembark without taking an unplanned bath ...

I finally got my new kayak, a QCC Q500X, and it was love at first sight. After my first paddle, I knew I'd made the right decision.

You can't tell in this photo that Joanne shot while we were out for an early morning paddle, but the boat is Steeler black and gold. Very cool. (Joanne posted other photos from her visit, including more paddling pics, on her Flicker site.)

I tend to labor over big decisions like these, and I spent a lot of time researching kayaks trying to make the right decision. I needed one capable of surviving someone my size, and I wanted one that would be suitable for a newbie but also would challenge me as I add to my skillset. The more I researched the more I became convinced that the QCC was the right yak for me. I test paddled a Hurricane Tracer, but it didn't suit me at all. What it did do was give me a touchpoint for conversations with Steve at QCC about what I found lacking in the Tracer and what I wanted in a boat. After a lot of hand-wringing, I decided to buy the QCC without being able to test paddle it, so I was pretty nervous when it arrived.

A few minutes on the water completely put those concerns to rest. The boat handles beautifully and the switch from a 12-foot canoe to the 16+ foot kayak is like moving to power steering.

I started thinking about QCC and the cult that seems to have grown around the company. The closest thing I can compare it to is the Apple fanatics I've made fun of so often in the past (even though it's a cult I now firmly belong to as I type this on my MacBook Pro). As with Apple, there are haters. But the QCC faithful are quick to defend their yaks. I'm now a card carrying member of the cult ...

I paddled downstream to a large cove on Monday morning, where I caught this sunrise bursting across the lake. It was another amazing paddle that started under a full moon and concluded with the rising sun at my back as I headed back to Duck Cove.a

I finally broke down and ordered a "real" Kayak from a company in Wisconsin that makes boats that are supposed to be great for big people. I have my fingers crossed. I talked to them on the phone for a while, read all the online reviews and decided to go ahead and pull the trigger. I'm hoping to get it in time to do a lot of paddling before it gets cold. My goal is to be confident enough in it to paddle all winter, but I'll need to get a lot of paddling in before the water gets cold if I'm going to be able to pull that off ...

Another beautiful sunrise this morning while I was paddling. Went downstream this time, past the osprey nest and into the cove this photo was taken from. Sadly, the entire, wooded shoreline is littered with for sale signs, so I guess once the economy picks up this will become some sort of subdivision. But for now, it's a great place to paddle amid the smell of pine trees and the shouting of waterfowl.

As I was heading out this morning, I paddled toward a mother duck and her ducklings. She cut away from the youngsters and started flopping and thrashing in the water, trying to convince me she was injured so I'd follow her rather than her little ones. She kept the act up for a hundred yards or so before she finally took off and flew a wide circle back to the ducklings, who were safely in the middle of the lake by that time.

Shot this today during my morning paddle. Another incredible sunrise to complement the weather we've been having. Last week's heat is gone, leaving weather so temperate that we've turned off the AC and opened the windows.

I paddled upstream this morning, just past Choto Marina before turning around and heading back home to Duck Cove.

I rented a Hurricane Tracer 165 for a week, but I decided to stick with the canoe for my morning paddles. The kayak is really tippy at this point, and I'm having a hard time getting it to track straight (the skeg is broken and won't come down, which I think has something to do with it).

The other, bigger problem, is that I really have to squeeze into the cockpit. I didn't fall out during my inaugural paddle this weekend, but I want to make sure there are people around to help yank me out of there if I end up underwater. So for the longer solo paddles, I'll stick with the canoe and play around with the kayak in the evenings.

During Tuesday's paddle to Prater Flats, I used a Gorillapod to secure my digital camera to the canoe's thwart and shot this video.

Aside from my horror movie heavy breathing that dominates the sound, it came out better than I expected, but i didn't count on the fact that the bow of the canoe would ride so high in the water that most of the view from the thwart is canoe instead of water.

I'll make adjustments next time ...

His most recent post might be his best yet, even though it's utterly gut wrenching. Is black culture "allergic to intelligence"? he asks.

"Of all the interviews I’ve had the most stupid was from a fellow Jamaican who couldn’t think of something more profound than 'did you write the book to get girls?' I complained and was told that it was all about publicity and fun and sometimes one had to play the game. What game was that actually, pin the tail on the dumb-ass-sex-mad Negro? I was offended by the question. I’m as irreverent as anybody and pride myself on a perverted sense of humour, but I bristle at stupidity and go apeshit at dumbness commoditized and thrust upon me."

Wow. Just wow. Great read.

Anyone who knows me knows my interests become obsessions pretty quickly. Enter my latest obsession: paddling.

I've been going out in the canoe one or two mornings a week, slipping out of the cove before sunrise and exploring the Tennessee River as day breaks. This morning I saw my first truly transcendental sunrise after a series of cloudy, brooding paddles. This photo barely does it justice. I had to stop and drift for a while just to drink it in.

As I paddle, I leave a trail of croaking, pissed off herons in my wake. Often they're dead asleep on a dock or a rock as I approach and I get incredibly close before they awaken and take indignant flight. Other times the warily watch my approach and move on only when it's clear there is no alternative.

This morning I cut immediately over to the south shore at Parks Bend after exiting Duck Cove and paddled downstream about 2.5 miles to Sequoyah Heights. There's a red buoy there that I set as my goal, and when hit it, I crossed to the north shore and passed the osprey nest on Coulter Shoal daymark as I headed back upstream. An osprey chick and one of the adults were in the nest, taking off and flying around for a bit while I passed.

I'm going to start uploading my paddling pictures to a Flickr photoset called, appropriately enough, Paddling Pics.

Voting is open in the latest installment of Root Clip. I posted a note on the Maroon Ventures blog about this, so I won't ramble on here. Just go vote. It's very cool and worth checking out.

It rained last night. Hard. So this morning when I got down to the dock to launch the canoe, there were wisps of fog everywhere. It made for a great ride.

I've been taking the canoe out several mornings a week to try to break up my workout routine. I started by exploring neighboring coves, and then moved on to seeing how far up or down river I could go with a 1.5 hour total trip time. I went down river today, toward Lenoir City, and managed to get as far as the Osprey nest that's on the Coulter Shoal Light and Day Mark (608.3).

Watching the Osprey chicks rise up and screech out of their nests was pretty cool. The water was like glass and there was a lot of fish action. I guess last night's rain created plenty of breakfast opportunities.

After I got as far as the nest, I turned the canoe and paddled home. I'm using a used Old Town 12-foot canoe with a pretty wide beam. Instead of an oar, I'm using a kayak paddle to propel it, and I'm starting to get pretty confident. I'm really wanting to rent a kayak soon to see how much of a difference there will be ...

Reading recommendation: The Kayak Companion by Joe Glickman. Very readable and informative. It's helping tons with my paddling technique and when I'm ready to make the switch to a kayak I think I'll be well-prepared.

Site recommendation: Paddling.net. Awesome forums. Decent classified section. Lots of useful information.

Shameless -- This might be the coolest thing I've ever seen on TV. Part soap, part British comedy, totally hilarious and always off-the-wall. At times, even I'm appalled and offended. That ain't easy to pull off. Kudos to Sundance for having the balls to air it in the U.S.

Mad Men -- I stumbled across this in the iTunes store when I was looking for something to download to my iPod to ease a mind-numbing flight to Montana. It worked. The second season just started on AMC, but I'm only about half-way through the first season, thanks to my iPod and Apple TV. It hooked me with the Pete Campbell character. It would have been so easy to make him the stereotypical oily villain, but the writers gave his character complexity and actually manage to make you feel sorry for him at times. It's also amazing how different today's world is from the 1960 Madison Avenue setting of the show. The characters are constantly drinking and smoking in a creepy patriarchy that makes you wonder how anyone ever came to idealize the '50s and early '60s. Great stuff.

Hayes Carll -- I've been hearing his stuff on WDVX and never seemed to be able to catch his name. During a drive from Crested Butte to Denver, "She Left Me for Jesus" came on XM's X Country station and I caught his name and realized he's the one who also sings "Good Friends" and "Chickens" of WDVX fame. I've been downloading his stuff ever since. Twangy-ass country goodness.

iLife '08 -- I resisted buying this upgrade for a while but finally broke down when I wanted to synch photo libraries between my laptop and desktop. I didn't realize how much cooler iMovie is in the upgrade. They've finally taken the same approach with iMovie that iPhoto has been taking almost from the start. It allows you to create a library of all your video. That alone was worth the price of the upgrade.

Led freakin' Zeppelin -- I loved these guys when I was a kid, but I grew tired of them and drifted away. My rediscovery came from the strangest of places -- John Baker. I never thought Zeppelin would be his thing, but he's a total convert, preaching the gospel of Plant and Page while sipping a Cold Smoke microbrew. I was dubious at first, but then I burned a few of their CDs, including a copy of "Jimmy Page & Black Crowes Live at the Greek" and "How the West Was Won." (To show how far I'd drifted from Zep, my iTunes library had only Led Zeppelin III in it.) I'd forgotten how good this band could be when they were hitting on all cylinders. Total rock. I even had to dust off my air guitar ...

While I was in Colorado last week, I managed to snap a few HDR shots, most of them at Oh Be Joyful campground (with a name like that, how can it not be an incredible place?). But I think my favorite is this one of Mt. Crested Butte, taken off the deck of the house we rented in town.

I've posted photos of my Colorado trip here on Flickr, and I added several new shots to my HDR collection during the Montana and Colorado trips. They're at the bottom of the set ...

What's HDR? Here's an explanation.

I went to the land of the Mountain Hippie last week and learned the ZenDog ways of Crested Butte.

During a cold, early morning hike on a trail in the shadow of Mt. Crested Butte, I saw some sort of cattle-dog cross maniacally yapping and circling a mountain biker while the dog's owner tried in vain to recall the mutt. The cyclist calmly dismounted, putting the bike between him and the frenetic canine until it drew tired of the game and ran back to its owner of its own volition.

As I approached the cyclist, I fully expected a rant on idiots who let their dogs run loose and don't control them. It's what I was thinking. But he calmly looked at me while he fiddled with the earbuds of his iPod and beamed "Good morning."

"Without a doubt," I replied.

"Do you go far up the mountain."

"Only about 45 minutes walk. I'm still getting acclimated to this 9,000 foot stuff."

"Where are you from?"

It continued like that for a few more minutes and I was on my way. In a short encounter, I'd learned the way of the Mountain Hippie and the effect the incredible beauty of Crested Butte has on everyone touched by it.

And any town this nuts about dogs has to be OK. Witness Gunther (pictured), the coolest dog in Crested Butte. In this photo, he's frolicking in a stream at Oh Be Joyful Campground just outside of town. Gunther is known to sleep in the street in front of his house. He's so well known and people are so dog friendly, they just slowly steer around him ...

I took this HDR shot of the camper on John's land at sunset. The camper has survived one vicious attack by Mountain mountain rednecks and it still provides solid shelter from the bears. We didn't see any bears while we were there, but I'm pretty sure we heard one rumbling around at sunrise. That made me glad I heeded John's advice to sleep in the back of his truck rather than in a tent. I did see two spectacular redtail hawks soaring in the morning breezes and startled a buck while I was lurking around out in the woods that morning. That piece of land is an amazing place.

This is the view from John's land east of Missoula. It's an amazing spot bristling with pine trees, mountain wildflowers and assorted critters. I took this HDR shot around sunset. If you look closely, you can see a pinpoint of light that is the waxing moon.