Day one of my trip started late in the day. It's about a 4 hour drive to meet up with the shuttle and additional hour to get down to the river's edge. I arrived to the river just before sundown, with just enough light to unload the gear and set up the tent. Light quickly faded and I was joined with a few of the natives. Mosquitos, not just one or two but I think everyone in the county. But thank goodness I was a smart camper, because I packed my sunscreen and insect spray in a special bag that is still laying on my kitchen counter. So with the swarms as dark as the sky and bug spray back at home, I spent the rest of the night laying in my tent reading a book. What is an adventure without a few bug bites? - Dan. #adventureon #anywater #devilsriver #lifeofadventure #whatsyour20

A photo posted by Adventure On Outdoors (@adventure_on_outdoors) on Nov 10, 2015 at 6:01am PST

Day two started off early. Packed up camp, a warm cup of coffee, and rigged up the board for a day on the water. Water was flowing triple its normal flows and along with an incoming front I was set on cruise control up in till my first roadblock began to be heard. Dolan falls, the most spectacular feature on the river. My stop here begins with a portage, breakfast, and a moment to absorb the view. This is the moment that my day to day fades and my river life begins. It's a truly soothing place of wonder. #dolanfalls #adventureon #anywater #whatsyour20 #devilsriver

A photo posted by Adventure On Outdoors (@adventure_on_outdoors) on Nov 11, 2015 at 5:27am PST

After my portage of Dolan falls my next stop came at three tier rapids. This rapid I have run many times prior in my kayak, yet on this occasion I decided to scout. Being on a paddle board, I decided it was bit more than I was willing to risk being alone on the river. It starts off as a narrow cane filled shoot and takes a hard 90 in to a multi tiered fall that if I chose the wrong line would have made for one long hike home or worse. With that said, I was back out of the water and to the land I went. Portaging river left I made my way through a Labyrinth of flutes, shallow pools, and down a ledge all while fighting the thick flora to enter the river once more. But before I was back paddling, that's when disaster struck. My paddle was sacrificed to the river gods once again, but more on that in a future post! - Dan. #adventureon #anywater #devilsriver #lifeofadventure #whatsyour20

A photo posted by Adventure On Outdoors (@adventure_on_outdoors) on Nov 12, 2015 at 6:05am PST

So back to the snapped paddle, coming down to the end of my portage I had to go through a tight channel filled with boulders and vegetation. Carrying the board, I risked a sprain or worse. the water was coursing through, so I utilized sticks and created a bridh to slide it over the rocks and through the trees. This allowed me to keep my footing. It worked perfectly until I got to the end where I still needed to lower it an addition four feet to get it down in the water. I was kinda in a bind so I utilized my paddle to support the board, that's when I heard carbon fiber shaft snap in two. Not sure why this happened, but I guess now I am in the market for a new paddle!#adventureon #anywater #devilsriver #lifeofadventure #whatsyour20 #paddle #paddlefaces

A photo posted by Adventure On Outdoors (@adventure_on_outdoors) on Nov 13, 2015 at 5:28am PST

Came to my second camp along the waters edge past three tiers rapid on river right. When choosing a spot on the Devils It's important to keep in the gradient boundary of the river as the property along the Devils is private property. Land owners make this very known by purple markings and trespass warnings along the rivers edge. There are plenty of stories of the local law enforcement posting up at the takeout to issue trespass tickets to violators that where captured in photos disregarding the property owners warnings. But when the weather was like it was, it was nice when I happened to catch some cell service up along a ridge to get a weather report from @drodphoto. Few drop came down but nothing like what was forecasted. Flash floods happen, and that's one of the true dangers of these Texas rivers. #adventureon #whatsyour20 #letscamp #getoutstayout #optoutside #adventureanywhere

A photo posted by Adventure On Outdoors (@adventure_on_outdoors) on Nov 14, 2015 at 8:25am PST

The next morning I woke up to some pretty fierce winds kicking up to 25 mph. With many challenging sections ahead and some pretty sweet fishing grounds I didn't waste much time at camp. Packed up camp, ate breakfast, whipped me up some coffee, and on to the river I went. The morning was going truly great until I came to the cane maze. These sections are at the end of long lake like pools that the drop into chutes that are anywhere from 1 to 4 foot wide. Lined with 10' cane to create a maze of intertwined boulder strung Rapids that dead end or narrow and dump into larger pools. Listening to the river and watching it flow is how to determine the best route. They typically stay the same course, but after the recent flood, the old channels had been blocked and new ones opened. I picked a chute that looked very promising and that i knew wouldn't dead end, it was about 3' wide with a truly swift current, was a pretty solid run! I entered and as the river shot me down an old ATV bridge appeared out of nowhere and with some quick maneuvering I managed to keep a major disaster from becoming a reality. Shaken and puckered, I decided to toss a few lines to clear my head before I ran the next few sets of Rapids. #adventureon #whatsyour20 #letscamp #getoutstayout #optoutside #supfishing

A photo posted by Adventure On Outdoors (@adventure_on_outdoors) on Nov 16, 2015 at 5:32am PST

After the near miss of a broken leg, I begin to hit the technical section of the river. Running Boulder strung rapids, small drops, and swift water for the majority of the day, fishing was truly out of the question for most of the stretch I had left. I made a final push to my last camp site about 10 miles down where a large pool of crystal clear lake like water and spectacular views of bluffs reaching for the heavens lay and wait. I would spend two days here for fishing and exploring. I reached camp early enough to set camp, get in a hike, and a nice evening paddle prior to calling it a day. #adventureon #anywater #whatsyour20 #paddleboarding #adventureanywhere

A photo posted by Adventure On Outdoors (@adventure_on_outdoors) on Nov 17, 2015 at 8:43am PST

Getting to my last camp, a since of accomplishment overcame me. I stood and looked back up river and gazed at the high bluffs in the distance and remembered paddling in their shadows. The overwhelming feeling of accomplishing my goal was a realization that my goal was just a waypoint in my true journey. Being alone on the river was eye-opening, it made me cautious, it made me understand my true limitations, it makes you focus on each step, the ever changing movements in the river, and a look inward to your mind. It made me look past the comradery of a group trip and listen to the sounds of the wild. Life changing, not sure, but I did experience a river in a way that I haven’t seen before! #adventureon #anywater #whatsyour20 #paddleboarding #adventureanywhere

A photo posted by Adventure On Outdoors (@adventure_on_outdoors) on Nov 18, 2015 at 8:01am PST

The final night of my journey came to a close and as the light faded, campfire dwindled, and the chill set in, a memory was etched in stone. #adventureon #staywild #optoutside #adventureanywhere #exploremore #rei1440project #whatsyour20

A photo posted by Adventure On Outdoors (@adventure_on_outdoors) on Nov 19, 2015 at 6:25am PST