My friend Buddy took this picture of me on the Sabine River in 2009. I hadn’t seen it in years, but I found it yesterday when going through files on my old computer. Here’s the story behind the photo—one of the weirder episodes from my first book, Running the River: Secrets of the Sabine.
About a mile from the boat ramp, we came upon a waterfall gurgling over a rocky ledge, into a sheltered green pool beside the river. The cavelike walls of the cove were painted green with moss. Sunlight reflected off the water and danced like currents of electricity through the shadows. I had never seen anything so pretty on the Sabine.
“We might have to go swimming later,” Buddy said, and I agreed.
Not far beyond the cove we came to a strange scene: an unmanned boat floating in the middle of the water. It sounded like the engine was running. When we came closer, we saw a long, white hose extending from the boat into the river. At one spot a few feet away, we noticed air steadily bubbling to the surface. Just then a man’s head bobbed up from the brown water, wearing a scuba mask, goggles, and a breathing apparatus.
“Looking for mussels?” I asked.
The man affirmed my question by lifting his bag of shells out of the water. But my camera and questions aroused his suspicion. “Are y’all from the FBI?”
We said no, and when we boated past, the diver sank beneath the water. We eased a little farther downriver, through frequent rapids where the flow quickened and the boat scraped over rocks and gravel, and we passed the many abandoned concrete and wooden oilfield structures that I had marveled at during my earlier trip with Jacob. I watched the shoreline for signs of hogs, but my attention soon began to wander, and I started to imagine the view of the riverbanks from two hundred years ago, when the first settlers arrived.
Today, East Texas is scrub country. What land has not been paved or plowed is choked with thorn vines and brush. But at one time, the forest canopy was so thick it blocked the sunlight from the undergrowth, and the smaller plants that did manage to survive in the dark forests were cleared by occasional fires, leaving trees so large and well established that early travelers called this place the Pine Barrens.
“They say the pine trees used to be so tall in East Texas, you could ride a horse for miles, fall asleep in the saddle, and never hit a tree limb,” I said to Buddy as we drifted downriver. “There used to be huge trees here on the river, too. Just think how much prettier all this would be if we hadn’t cut everything down.”
Buddy glanced up from the trolling motor and studied the brush on the bank. “You can’t think about it that way,” he said. “It’s still pretty. East Texas is still pretty. Just be thankful you get to see it the way it is, because someday all of this will be gone, too.” He had a point, but I hoped he was wrong. Growing up, I had never given a second thought to this wild river running through my hometown. Now that I had spent some time on the Sabine, I didn’t want to lose what remained.
Buddy and I never saw the hogs, so we turned back. The flow that had seemed so calm when we floated downstream was now a force we hadn’t reckoned with, and we spent most of the journey trudging through the water and fighting the current as we dragged the boat upstream. At times the water came only to my hips, sometimes up to my chest, but then I would step off a precipice and fall into a deeper channel. I learned to use my foot to feel for the firmness of the riverbed before committing my weight to a step forward. Before long, I forgot about my fear of being swept away by the river. As long as I stayed alert and moved slowly, I didn’t have to worry so much about drowning after all.
When we returned to the waterfall and the pretty little cove, we parked on some boulders at the entrance and jumped in. The water was cold and deep here and stunningly clear: I could see the bottom some eight feet below. Above us, the clearwater creek had worn the ground away to the eroded rock, cascading through a series of precipices, before tumbling into the cove. Buddy swam over to the waterfall and let it pound his back and shoulders. “It feels just like a back massage,” he said with glee. “You gotta try this.”
I did. It felt great. “Man, I could even bring a woman here,” I said.
This was the discovery of a lifetime, the kind of place that Buddy could enjoy with his wife and kids for years to come. We swam for a long while, then waded out of the cove and into the river. The water was much warmer here, around waist deep, brown, and muddy. Our toes sank into the silt.
When we returned to the cove a few minutes later, something had changed. “Wasn’t the waterfall a lot bigger when we first got here?” I asked. Instead of gushing over the ledge, the water had narrowed to a trickle. Then, as we watched with increasing horror, it began to grow again. Within minutes, the waterfall was surging at full strength. It was like someone had flushed an enormous toilet. Oh no, that was it! We were swimming in sewage—the discharge from the wastewater plant in Gladewater. No wonder the cove was so cool and clear. No wonder we kept smelling that faint odor of chlorine. I spit what I could out of my mouth.
We climbed out of the cove and then ascended a steep, grassy bank to see where the creek led. We came to an even bigger waterfall and then a series of smaller ones. We walked as far as we could through a leafy forest to a barbed-wire fence, then returned to the river and stood for a moment on the big gray rocks beside the beautiful cove.
“I don’t even care,” Buddy said. “It might be sewage, but they treated it first.”
We jumped back in. At one point, Buddy even swam under the waterfall, where he indulged in another back massage.
Excerpted from Running the River: Secrets of the Sabine by Wes Ferguson and Jacob Botter and published by Texas A&M University Press.
5,210 responses to “A Sheltered Cove”
Good day I am so delighted I found your blog page, I really found you by error, while I was looking on Google for something else, Anyhow I am here now and would just like to say cheers for a fantastic post and a all round entertaining blog (I also love the theme/design), I don’t have time to look over it all at the minute but I have book-marked it and also included your RSS feeds, so when I have time I will be back to read more, Please do keep up the superb job.
Spot on with this write-up, I really believe that this amazing site needs much more attention. I’ll probably be back again to see more, thanks for the advice!
Good blog you’ve got here.. It’s hard to find good quality writing like yours these days. I really appreciate individuals like you! Take care!!
Can I simply say what a comfort to discover an individual who really understands what they are talking about on the net. You actually understand how to bring a problem to light and make it important. More and more people really need to look at this and understand this side of the story. I was surprised that you aren’t more popular given that you certainly possess the gift.
Aw, this was an extremely good post. Finding the time and actual effort to make a good article… but what can I say… I put things off a lot and never manage to get anything done.
Everything is very open with a very clear clarification of the issues. It was definitely informative. Your site is extremely helpful. Thank you for sharing!
Good article. It is very unfortunate that over the last several years, the travel industry has had to handle terrorism, SARS, tsunamis, flu virus, swine flu, and also the first ever entire global recession. Through all of it the industry has proven to be sturdy, resilient in addition to dynamic, acquiring new approaches to deal with adversity. There are constantly fresh issues and opportunity to which the market must just as before adapt and answer.
whoah this blog is wonderful i really like studying your articles. Stay up the great work! You realize, lots of people are looking round for this information, you could aid them greatly.
You ought to be a part of a contest for one of the highest quality websites on the web. I’m going to highly recommend this site!
Valuable information. Lucky me I found your site by accident, and I’m shocked why this accident didn’t happened earlier! I bookmarked it.
Hey very nice website!! Man .. Excellent .. Amazing .. I’ll bookmark your web site and take the feeds also?I’m happy to find a lot of useful information here in the post, we need develop more strategies in this regard, thanks for sharing. . . . . .
I have noticed that over the course of creating a relationship with real estate entrepreneurs, you’ll be able to come to understand that, in most real estate deal, a commission rate is paid. Eventually, FSBO sellers never “save” the fee. Rather, they struggle to win the commission simply by doing a agent’s work. In accomplishing this, they devote their money as well as time to carry out, as best they will, the duties of an real estate agent. Those jobs include displaying the home by way of marketing, offering the home to prospective buyers, building a sense of buyer urgency in order to make prompt an offer, preparing home inspections, handling qualification inspections with the loan company, supervising maintenance, and assisting the closing of the deal.
Thanks for your intriguing article. One other problem is that mesothelioma cancer is generally the result of the inhalation of dust from asbestos fiber, which is a positivelly dangerous material. Its commonly found among individuals in the construction industry who have long exposure to asbestos. It is also caused by moving into asbestos insulated buildings for an extended time of time, Genetic makeup plays a huge role, and some people are more vulnerable on the risk when compared with others.
An outstanding share! I’ve just forwarded this onto a co-worker who has been doing a little research on this. And he in fact ordered me lunch due to the fact that I found it for him… lol. So let me reword this…. Thank YOU for the meal!! But yeah, thanx for spending time to talk about this subject here on your blog.
Very good article! We are linking to this particularly great post on our website. Keep up the good writing.
You’re so interesting! I don’t suppose I’ve read something like this before. So great to find someone with a few original thoughts on this subject. Really.. thank you for starting this up. This site is something that is required on the internet, someone with a little originality.
How to Use DeFiLlama: A Practical Guide for Navigating DeFi Analytics
Thank you for another informative web site. Where else could I get that type of information written in such an ideal way? I’ve a project that I’m just now working on, and I’ve been on the look out for such info.
How to Use DeFiLlama: A Practical Guide for Navigating DeFi Analytics
After I initially left a comment I seem to have clicked the -Notify me when new comments are added- checkbox and from now on each time a comment is added I get 4 emails with the same comment. Perhaps there is an easy method you can remove me from that service? Cheers.
If you’re hunting for future rewards, the DefiLlama Airdrop section is gold.
I have seen lots of useful things on your site about pcs. However, I’ve got the impression that notebooks are still not nearly powerful more than enough to be a sensible choice if you typically do projects that require lots of power, like video editing. But for web surfing, microsoft word processing, and a lot other frequent computer work they are okay, provided you can’t mind the tiny screen size. Appreciate sharing your opinions.
If I see a protocol gaining TVL on DefiLlama TVL, I pay attention.
You’re not farming right if DefiLlama isn’t part of your stack.
This is the perfect website for anybody who wants to understand this topic. You know so much its almost hard to argue with you (not that I personally will need to…HaHa). You certainly put a fresh spin on a topic that’s been written about for ages. Wonderful stuff, just excellent.
Honestly, half of my recent gains came from projects listed under DefiLlama Airdrop.
Honestly, DefiLlama is the only DeFi tool I check every morning.
My portfolio rebalancing starts and ends with DefiLlama.
A further issue is that video gaming became one of the all-time most important forms of fun for people spanning various ages. Kids have fun with video games, plus adults do, too. The actual XBox 360 has become the favorite gaming systems for individuals that love to have a huge variety of video games available to them, and who like to relax and play live with others all over the world. Thank you for sharing your notions.
I love reading an article that will make people think. Also, thank you for allowing me to comment.
I love it when people get together and share views. Great blog, continue the good work!
Definitely believe that which you stated. Your favourite reason appeared to be on the net the simplest factor to be aware of. I say to you, I definitely get irked while other folks consider issues that they just do not know about. You controlled to hit the nail upon the highest as neatly as outlined out the entire thing without having side-effects , other people could take a signal. Will likely be back to get more. Thanks Clifford Vallarta
RenBridge
RenBridge Review
Thanks for your publication on the vacation industry. I will also like to add that if you are a senior thinking of traveling, its absolutely crucial that you buy traveling insurance for retirees. When traveling, older persons are at high risk of having a professional medical emergency. Buying the right insurance policy package for your age group can protect your health and provide peace of mind.
Bridge BTC on RenBridge
RenBridge Protocol
RenBridge Review
sesudah kita berhasil mendaftar dengan miliki account gamblingnya, maka kami mampu coba langsung login bersama sama akun id yang kami udah miliki hal yang demikian. sesudah berhasil login, karenanya kami bisa memilih ke menu pertunjukannya. disana kita bisa cakap menemukan beberapa permainan judi slot bersama beraneka caranya yg kami sangat sukakan. sesudah kami menemukan beberapa tafsiran mainan slot online, layaknya lamaran permainan keluaran pc ataupun android, karenanya kita cakap memilih salah se-nya. jikalau kami idamkan memasang tipuan judi slot di hp android kita, maka kami dapat pilih yang versi android. ada informasi unduh/ install. kepada memakainya di smartphone saya, karenanya kami cakap menentukan dan faksi menu unduh berikut lagi tunggu beberapa menit hingga permintaan mainan spekulasi berikutnya bisa tercantum di telpon unituler kita. seandainya udah sukses diinstall serta dipasang, karenanya pelaksanaan tipuan judi slot online berikutnya sanggup kami terasa berfungsikan di ponsel kami bersama bersama gampang. Lonny Neitzel
Thanks for your post. I also believe that laptop computers are becoming more and more popular lately, and now are often the only kind of computer utilised in a household. The reason is that at the same time actually becoming more and more inexpensive, their computing power is growing to the point where they are as strong as pc’s from just a few years ago.
Thanks for sharing excellent informations. Your site is so cool. I am impressed by the details that you have on this site. It reveals how nicely you understand this subject. Bookmarked this website page, will come back for more articles. You, my pal, ROCK! I found just the info I already searched everywhere and simply could not come across. What a perfect site.
I used to be able to find good information from your content.
What an eye-opening and thoroughly-researched article! The author’s thoroughness and aptitude to present complex ideas in a comprehensible manner is truly admirable. I’m extremely enthralled by the scope of knowledge showcased in this piece. Thank you, author, for providing your knowledge with us. This article has been a game-changer!
Hey just wanted to give you a brief heads up and let you know a few of the pictures aren’t loading properly. I’m not sure why but I think its a linking issue. I’ve tried it in two different browsers and both show the same results.
F*ckin? amazing things here. I?m very glad to see your post. Thanks a lot and i am looking forward to contact you. Will you kindly drop me a e-mail?
This article is a breath of fresh air! The author’s unique perspective and perceptive analysis have made this a truly engrossing read. I’m appreciative for the effort she has put into creating such an educational and mind-stimulating piece. Thank you, author, for offering your wisdom and stimulating meaningful discussions through your brilliant writing!
The next time I read a blog, Hopefully it won’t disappoint me as much as this particular one. I mean, I know it was my choice to read, but I truly believed you would have something helpful to say. All I hear is a bunch of moaning about something you could possibly fix if you weren’t too busy searching for attention.
You ought to take part in a contest for one of the finest websites on the internet. I most certainly will highly recommend this site!
In this grand pattern of things you’ll get an A just for hard work. Exactly where you confused me personally was first on your specifics. As people say, the devil is in the details… And that could not be more accurate here. Having said that, permit me say to you precisely what did deliver the results. Your text is actually highly engaging and that is probably why I am making an effort to comment. I do not make it a regular habit of doing that. Second, although I can easily see the leaps in reason you come up with, I am not convinced of exactly how you seem to connect your details which help to make the conclusion. For now I will yield to your position however wish in the foreseeable future you link your facts much better.
It?s truly a nice and helpful piece of information. I am happy that you simply shared this useful information with us. Please keep us up to date like this. Thanks for sharing.