Stevens Creek 8/7/04

08/07/2004 - Stevens Creek(Lake): We canoed the lake part of Stevens Creek down to Sportsman's Corner. We put-in at the end of Forest Service road 680C which was badly washed, requiring high ground clearance vehicles. There was a steep bank to the water, with no level place near the water to get in the canoe. In the process of getting in, one canoe floated away to the other side of the creek leaving its paddler sitting in a mudpie. We had lunch up a side creek where we were joined by snowy egrets chowing down on the thousands of small fish in the creek. Little Blue Herons, Great Egrets, and a hawk (probably a red-shoulder) also stopped by while we ate lunch. Back on the creek, a curious little otter checked us out momentarily before disappearing. We also saw a Mississippi Kite, Anhingas, and Wood Ducks. This six mile currentless run with numerous side-trips and a leisurely lunch took about 5 hours. The water level (which on this whole section is dependent on dams) was a little low but presented no problems. From the water lines on the trees, it had been about 2 feet higher just recently.