It Just Wasn't my Day: Paddling the Cohocton River l Swift Dragonfly l Northstar Phoenix l Canoeing

What can I say, it just wasn't my day on the Cohocton river. April 21st 2024 myself and friend Marty put in on the upper portion of the Cohocton river at Wentworth Road near Avoca, NY and paddled 8.5 miles to our takeout. We encountered calm water, swift water, tight turns, strainers and some blow down. There were two times where we would have to exit the river and drag our canoes through the woods and brush to get around the blow down.
I got caught in some rapids and the current took the stern of my boat turning me sideways and that is all she wrote. I also had an incident with a downed tree.
My Swift Dragonfly got a whole lot of new scratches on it and Marty's Northstar Phoenix faired ok as well. At least Marty stayed in the boat...LOL..
Despite my mishaps it was a good day on the river nonetheless, cheers!

[@ItsGoodintheWoods]

2 real nice canoes! Good on you for leaving the footage....your editing at that point made me laugh. That must have been cold. What a nice tree to save your pack for you. May not have been your day, but it sure beats being at the office. Dragonfly looks good with some scratches! Great post Joe. Thanks for sharing

[@BackcountryPaddler]

I agree.. I'd rather be there (even in the water) than in the office!!! Sadly I'm in the office. 😂

[@mrgjoe]

Hey this was my first time ever dumping it was bound to happen! The water and air temps were a bit chilly but I did have another set of clothes in my bag that that tree was so kind enough to snag 🤣. I didn't record much more after as my camera was displaying ann error message but all is good now. Glad you got a laugh out of it, I sure did. It is all part of the story!

[@mrgjoe]

@@BackcountryPaddler sorry pal that you are stuck in the office!!!

[@BackcountryPaddler]

@mrgjoe could be worse, I suppose!

[@TR_Swan]

Glad to see that you are OK. I haven't dumped in over 30 years and was saying that I am due. I'll be securing everything to my boat. Thanks for sharing.

[@mrgjoe]

Thank you! That was my first time dumping as well. Been paddling for 15 years now. Yeah big mistake not tying in my bag. Hey you live and learn. Appreciate you watching the video and taking the time to comment. Happy paddling!

[@GeneD283]

Being relatively new to paddling I don't think I would be very comfortable in such a tippy/nervous canoe. I'm very happy with my recent purchase of a Swift Prospector 15 maybe when I'm more experienced I would enjoy a more lively/maneuverable craft. Enjoyed the video thanks for posting

[@mrgjoe]

That P15 is a sweet boat! Hey I’ve been paddling for 15 years and still learning things. Glad you enjoyed the video, hope I can get back out soon. Life has been hectic but in a good way. Thank you for taking the time to watch, cheers!

[@andrewheiman689]

I used to wade the Cohocton near Painted Post. I would catch Fallfish and SMB. I also canoed the Tioga and Chemung R in my Mad River Explorer 17. Now I’m looking for a light weight canoe. Thanks for the video.

[@idlenights]

Two things I notice about your paddling: You are catching the upstream edge of your boat. When you are a little bit sideways and you're broadside to some danger, be it branches, logs, trees, or rocks, you need to lean towards the danger, not away. It is counter intuitive, you have to train yourself to do it. By leaning toward the danger the upstream edge of the boat comes up out of the current and the water lifts the boat and slides under. When you lean upstream, the upstream edge goes down and the water passing under gets more and more of a purchase on your boat, at which point you go over. And then your boat ( and your self) can get pinned or even turned inside out. The force of water is relentless. While your boat is beautiful, it is taking a lot of effort to turn. Try leaning the boat enough to get the ends out of the water, or atleast less deep. This will shorten the waterline and help you spin faster. Sweeping your paddle farther from your boat is a major help too. Bon Voyage

[@mrgjoe]

I truly appreciate your input, thank you! I'm pretty much a flat water paddler who's just starting out enjoying moving water.

[@NikonF5user]

First ever time overboard?!?!? That's VERY impressive!! Especially that it took a Dragonfly to do it! NOTHING to be ashamed of there!!

[@mrgjoe]

Yes sir first time. Lots of learning still to do.... If it was 80 and sunny I wouldn't have cared one bit🤣

[@nunyabidness3075]

A little type 2 fun for the memories.

[@randallteal6408]

Arrrg.....she's a we bit tippy mate,dang tree limb. Glad you made it out ok,i'm sure it was a bit brisk to say the least.

[@mrgjoe]

Water was chilly but really not too bad. I say that now because I'm warm🤣

[@mrgjoe]

⁠I’ve seen the river pretty low around Bath in years past. It also seems to widen as well between Bath and Painted Post

[@smikerparth]

Pine Barrens Functional FreeStyle Workshop October 11-13, Camp Ockanickon, Medford, NJ Apply FreeStyle Techniques on a moving, but not technical river… You’ll learn to love your canoe!

[@mrgjoe]

I already love my canoe!

[@ADKAddicts]

That boat is a beauty

[@mrgjoe]

Thank you

[@KhurshidsChannel]

Nice video. Thank you for sharing. 👍37

[@mrgjoe]

Thank you for taking the time to watch!

[@projectknifehand]

Thats precisely what happened to me on the Mullica man. But the branch was a little lower. It does not take much to tip that center to the point of no return. Glad you are alright and lived to tell the tale!

[@mrgjoe]

Thank you! Yeah and I know better but I let myself get caught🤣

[@projectknifehand]

@mrgjoe yeah you always think it's not going to be an issue until you realize it is lol. Best to not get anywhere near them for me. I love to paddle small windy rivers but they have been kicking my butt lately. I assume it will improve but I also think they were all quite high so it did not help.

[@mrgjoe]

@@projectknifehand 🤣🤣 I do love those small twisty rivers!

[@mattdecker9691]

I want to say that the strainers have definitely gotten worse over the last couple of years - particularly about a mile below where you put in. But I don't' think I had to portage at all between Wallace and Kanona a month ago. It's nice to see folks highlight this beautiful stretch of river!

[@mrgjoe]

This was our first time ever on the Cohocton. Had no idea what to expect. I truly enjoyed this adventure. Would love to do some more at some point.

[@mattdecker9691]

I typed the comment above... and then remembered at least one portage and a 'probably should have portaged' spot. Bath to Campbell is a lot less problematic but never feels quite as peaceful.

[@TheWhiskeyCowboyLife]

I still have not gotten out on the water yet... .been too many other things happening. At least you were not hurt. Cheers.

[@mrgjoe]

Life is busy here as well, hope you get a chance to get out in the near future! Nope I wasn't hurt just aa little damp..LOL Believe it or not it was a good day just wasn't my day.

[@johnsomers8269]

What fun! Fond memories of canoeing in early Spring waters. Thanks for the realism😯

[@dontall71]

Some times it's the peaceful looking little creeks that will clean your clock if you're not careful. There's a stream called Thompson's Creek near St, Francisville, La. with lots of sandbars. It looks innocent from a distance but claimed the lives of the unsuspecting because of undertows and submerged logs.

[@mrgjoe]

I totally agree with this. As you say sometimes these things are unassuming.

[@vincentperagine]

No shame there Joe...happens to all of us at some point. What's with the guy dragging his lovely canoe on the ground!? Yikes! Cool spot to canoe though....

[@mrgjoe]

Thank you, it definitely was a fun day with some challenges!

[@northern_wilderness_adventurer]

Great video, thanks for sharing. I'll be taking my new Swift Cruiser on it's maiden voyage in just a few weeks. Looking forward to more videos!

[@mrgjoe]

Congrats! Which model Cruiser did you get? I was in Algonquin back in September with Bill Swift and one of the days we all paddled Cruisers. I was in a 15.8 pack version and I really loved it. Definitely on my radar for the future. Thank you for your compliment and for taking the time to watch, cheers!

[@northern_wilderness_adventurer]

@@mrgjoe I got the 15.8 pack, expedition kevlar with basalt on the outside. Looking forward to getting it on the water soon.

[@mrgjoe]

@@northern_wilderness_adventurer sweet! Sounds like a beautiful ride, enjoy all your adventures!

[@robertbeirman107]

L I V I N G Joe...... Thanks for the early morning Content..

[@mrgjoe]

Thank you for taking the time to watch!

[@MeetMeOutside]

It’s amazing how fast that can happen ! Been there before. Marty’s North Star with the wooden gunnels is sexy ! New sub here !

[@mrgjoe]

Thank you so much for the sub, I greatly appreciate it. Hemlock Canoe also did the gunnels for Marty.

[@MeetMeOutside]

@@mrgjoe Awesome !

[@johnnyoh63]

The Cohocton is a decent trout stream. (Until someone falls in and scares the fish : ) )

[@mrgjoe]

🤣😂 sorry but they will be back....

[@BackcountryPaddler]

Since I can't get out myself...I'm living vicariously through you. So when you fell in, I did the "ice bucket challenge" and doused myself in ice water. 😅😂

[@martycuff257]

Good video wish the camera hadn't crapped out there was more excitement to come 🤣 all in all a good trip - could have been warmer 🤣

[@mrgjoe]

It was a fun trip I will admit and yeah just a touch warmer would have been great🤣

[@ADBAGGUY]

What paddle do you use ?

[@mrgjoe]

My go to is a 54" straight shaft Foxworx Paddles "Roka" it weighs 18 ounces

[@jalford5089]

Man, that Dragonfly seemed tippy. Do they have a reputation? I would have been in way before you……….

[@mrgjoe]

Their initial stability is pretty tender but firm up with secondary

[@canoeingcentralnewyork239]

Hi Joe. Nice swim and recovery! I remember watching a video by Canandaigua Lake Trout Unlimited a couple of years ago regarding their stream improvement projects on this river. I commented that what they were doing might be great for trout but hazardous for paddlers (paraphrasing). I don't know if you were encountering their manmade obstacles or not, but I'm glad you survived with only a soaking. 🙂 kzbin.info/www/bejne/d3euXpKsZbOJm7Mfeature=shared interesting part starts about 31:20. It's nice to know that it's your fellow man and not the beavers and ash borers that are trying to kill you!

[@mrgjoe]

Thanks for the info, I'll give it a look. To be honest I/we did not see anything out of the ordinary while on that river, just about 5 people fishing.

[@mrgjoe]

Ok saw the tree plantings but the not the boulders. Maybe they are in another section from what we were on? The one complete blockage appeared to be blow down and trees from higher water.

[@lindamacfarland8468]

BRrrr, that's all I got to say...

[@T3PinR]

No possible influence from bourbon the night before? hahahaha

[@mrgjoe]

😂 I wish there was…LOL

[@josepheurto4410]

“Please stick to the rivers and the lakes that you’re used to. I know that you’re gonna have it your way or nothing at all, but I think you’re moving too fast”. (TLC). Burr!!!

[@martycuff257]

No body ever got better just doing what they already knew. Yeah it was cold but if we waited until it was mid June there wouldn’t have been enough water. We had plenty of extra clothes and could have made a fire to warm up if necessary. For the first time out in a real squirrelly boat on a challenging stream Joe did real good.