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.
3,766 responses to “A Sheltered Cove”
There is something in this. I see, thanks a lot for the information.
I?ve read several good stuff here. Definitely worth bookmarking for revisiting. I wonder how much effort you put to create such a wonderful informative site.
Hey very nice site!! Man .. Beautiful .. Amazing .. I will bookmark your web site and take the feeds also?I am happy to find numerous useful information here in the post, we need work out more techniques in this regard, thanks for sharing. . . . . .
I have been browsing on-line greater than three hours today, but I never found any attention-grabbing article like yours. It is lovely price enough for me. In my opinion, if all web owners and bloggers made good content material as you did, the web will likely be a lot more useful than ever before.
Definitely believe that which you stated. Your favorite reason seemed to be on the web the simplest thing to be aware of. I say to you, I definitely get annoyed while people consider worries that they plainly don’t know about. You managed to hit the nail upon the top as well as defined out the whole thing without having side effect , people can take a signal. Will likely be back to get more. Thanks
Does your website have a contact page? I’m having problems locating it but, I’d like to shoot you an email. I’ve got some suggestions for your blog you might be interested in hearing. Either way, great website and I look forward to seeing it grow over time.
Thanks for sharing excellent informations. Your site is so cool. I am impressed by the details that you?ve on this blog. It reveals how nicely you perceive this subject. Bookmarked this web page, will come back for extra articles. You, my friend, ROCK! I found simply the information I already searched everywhere and just could not come across. What an ideal site.
Thanks for the sensible critique. Me & my neighbor were just preparing to do some research about this. We got a grab a book from our area library but I think I learned more clear from this post. I’m very glad to see such fantastic info being shared freely out there.
you’ve got an awesome blog here! would you wish to make some invite posts on my blog?
One thing I’ve noticed is the fact that there are plenty of beliefs regarding the financial institutions intentions any time talking about property foreclosure. One misconception in particular is the fact that the bank would like your house. Your banker wants your hard earned money, not your property. They want the amount of money they loaned you along with interest. Staying away from the bank will simply draw some sort of foreclosed realization. Thanks for your write-up.
The very next time I read a blog, I hope that it doesn’t fail me as much as this one. I mean, I know it was my choice to read through, however I really believed you’d have something interesting to say. All I hear is a bunch of crying about something you could fix if you were not too busy searching for attention.
What?s Happening i am new to this, I stumbled upon this I’ve found It absolutely useful and it has aided me out loads. I hope to contribute & assist other users like its aided me. Good job.
Almanya’n?n en iyi medyumu halu hoca ile sizlerde çal???n?z. ?leti?im: +49 157 59456087 A??k Etme Büyüsü, Ba?lama Büyüsü gibi çal??malar? sizlerde yapt?rabilirsiniz.
Pretty! This was an incredibly wonderful post. Thank you for supplying this info.
Hiya, I’m really glad I’ve found this information. Today bloggers publish only about gossips and web and this is really frustrating. A good site with interesting content, this is what I need. Thank you for keeping this web site, I will be visiting it. Do you do newsletters? Cant find it.
Good post. I learn something new and challenging on websites I stumbleupon on a daily basis. It will always be exciting to read articles from other authors and use a little something from other websites.
This is a topic that is near to my heart… Cheers! Exactly where are your contact details though?
An interesting discussion is worth comment. There’s no doubt that that you need to write more on this issue, it might not be a taboo matter but typically people do not talk about such topics. To the next! Best wishes.
An impressive share, I simply given this onto a colleague who was doing a little bit analysis on this. And he in truth bought me breakfast as a result of I discovered it for him.. smile. So let me reword that: Thnx for the deal with! But yeah Thnkx for spending the time to discuss this, I feel strongly about it and love studying more on this topic. If attainable, as you grow to be experience, would you mind updating your weblog with more particulars? It is extremely helpful for me. Large thumb up for this weblog submit!
A further issue is that video games usually are serious in nature with the principal focus on studying rather than leisure. Although, it comes with an entertainment part to keep your sons or daughters engaged, every single game is frequently designed to improve a specific expertise or program, such as math or scientific discipline. Thanks for your publication.
Almanya’n?n en iyi medyumu halu hoca ile sizlerde çal???n?z. ?leti?im: +49 157 59456087 A??k Etme Büyüsü, Ba?lama Büyüsü gibi çal??malar? sizlerde yapt?rabilirsiniz.
Hey this is kinda of off topic but I was wondering if blogs use WYSIWYG editors or if you have to manually code with HTML. I’m starting a blog soon but have no coding knowledge so I wanted to get advice from someone with experience. Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Hi, I do believe this is a great site. I stumbledupon it 😉 I will revisit yet again since i have book marked it. Money and freedom is the best way to change, may you be rich and continue to help others.
You’re so cool! I do not suppose I’ve truly read through something like that before. So good to find another person with some unique thoughts on this subject matter. Really.. thanks for starting this up. This web site is something that’s needed on the internet, someone with a bit of originality.
Hi, I do believe this is an excellent web site. I stumbledupon it 😉 I am going to revisit yet again since i have saved as a favorite it. Money and freedom is the greatest way to change, may you be rich and continue to help other people.
I need to to thank you for this good read!! I absolutely enjoyed every bit of it. I have got you book-marked to look at new things you post…
Way cool! Some very valid points! I appreciate you writing this write-up plus the rest of the website is extremely good.
Hello there, There’s no doubt that your web site might be having browser compatibility problems. Whenever I take a look at your blog in Safari, it looks fine however, if opening in I.E., it has some overlapping issues. I simply wanted to provide you with a quick heads up! Aside from that, wonderful site!
Your style is very unique in comparison to other people I’ve read stuff from. Many thanks for posting when you’ve got the opportunity, Guess I will just book mark this page.
After I initially commented I seem to have clicked on the -Notify me when new comments are added- checkbox and now every time a comment is added I get 4 emails with the exact same comment. Is there a means you are able to remove me from that service? Thank you.
Howdy! I just would like to offer you a big thumbs up for your excellent info you have got right here on this post. I will be returning to your blog for more soon.
May I simply say what a relief to find an individual who genuinely understands what they’re discussing on the internet. You certainly know how to bring a problem to light and make it important. More and more people should look at this and understand this side of your story. I was surprised that you aren’t more popular because you most certainly have the gift.
Very nice blog post. I absolutely appreciate this website. Keep writing!
I was able to find good information from your content.
Hi, I do believe this is a great web site. I stumbledupon it 😉 I’m going to come back once again since I bookmarked it. Money and freedom is the greatest way to change, may you be rich and continue to guide others.
Way cool! Some very valid points! I appreciate you penning this post plus the rest of the site is also really good.
Almanyan?n en iyi medyumu halu hoca ile sizlerde çal???n?z. ?leti?im: +49 157 59456087 A??k Etme Büyüsü, Ba?lama Büyüsü gibi çal??malar? sizlerde yapt?rabilirsiniz.
Can I simply say what a comfort to uncover someone that actually knows what they’re talking about on the net. You definitely know how to bring an issue to light and make it important. More and more people must look at this and understand this side of your story. I was surprised that you aren’t more popular because you certainly have the gift.
Hi, I do believe this is an excellent web site. I stumbledupon it 😉 I am going to come back once again since I book-marked it. Money and freedom is the greatest way to change, may you be rich and continue to help other people.
Almanyan?n en iyi medyumu halu hoca ile sizlerde çal???n?z. ?leti?im: +49 157 59456087 A??k Etme Büyüsü, Ba?lama Büyüsü gibi çal??malar? sizlerde yapt?rabilirsiniz.
Hi, I do think this is a great web site. I stumbledupon it 😉 I may return once again since i have book-marked it. Money and freedom is the best way to change, may you be rich and continue to guide other people.
I needed to thank you for this good read!! I certainly loved every little bit of it. I’ve got you saved as a favorite to look at new things you post…
Having read this I thought it was rather informative. I appreciate you spending some time and effort to put this article together. I once again find myself spending a lot of time both reading and commenting. But so what, it was still worth it.
I must thank you for the efforts you’ve put in writing this blog. I am hoping to see the same high-grade blog posts from you later on as well. In fact, your creative writing abilities has encouraged me to get my own, personal site now 😉
I was able to find good info from your blog posts.
Hi, I do think this is an excellent site. I stumbledupon it 😉 I’m going to return yet again since I saved as a favorite it. Money and freedom is the best way to change, may you be rich and continue to guide others.
Güven veren en iyi medyumu halu hoca ile sizlerde çal???n?z. ?leti?im: +49 157 59456087 A??k Etme Büyüsü, Ba?lama Büyüsü gibi çal??malar? sizlerde yapt?rabilirsiniz.
I was excited to find this great site. I need to to thank you for ones time for this wonderful read!! I definitely savored every part of it and i also have you book-marked to look at new stuff in your website.
Güven veren en iyi medyumu halu hoca ile sizlerde çal???n?z. ?leti?im: +49 157 59456087 A??k Etme Büyüsü, Ba?lama Büyüsü gibi çal??malar? sizlerde yapt?rabilirsiniz.
I couldn’t refrain from commenting. Well written!