Carhartt Catharsis

The Carhartt Catharsis – Seacow’s Origin Story

When preparing for an overnight canoe excursion, it is important to properly plan and execute a gear loadout. Equally important to the loadout is the clothing apparel choices we make, as well as backup plans for the clothing you may forget. On numerous occasions, the Chupacabra have been held hostage by poor campsite attire decisions. This entry reflects on the shortcomings and miscues of the paddlers and how to properly avoid these mistakes as you prepare for your trip. Specifically, we will discuss when, and where, Carhartt clothing is acceptable on a summer trek.

A Carhartt-less Seacow and Summer Sausage Sailor navigate the roaring waters

Whether it be a missing sleeping bag, a single pair of tennis shoes, or your only pair of shorts being your swim trunks, many Chupacabra have persevered through their poor decision making and came out better for it. In this referenced instance, I mistakenly donned my Carhartt coveralls to stay warm and, hopefully, afloat as we loaded our canoes on a cool morning. This decision will come back to haunt me forever as it is where I earn my namesake: Seacow. The tale is told to all who will listen, and not a trip goes by where it is not alluded to.

It’s a very rainy night on the Clarion, 2014 with an impending launch the following morning. The river has risen and is flowing very quickly along the riverbanks. It is a very chilly morning, roughly 55 degrees. I pack up my belongings at the site and to retain body heat, put on my Carhartt overalls. I step down to my canoe and lose my footing on the bank. I fall into the mighty Clarion and in my effort to remove myself from the river, I find my overalls suddenly filling up with the rushing water. I immediately turn into a floating deadweight (many Chupacabra members will say this is nothing new, but I digress…). I call out for help, fearful for my life, and attempt to shed the overalls. I am not effective and as a result, I find myself reaching out, hoping a helping hand is near and praying that I will live to see another river. I soon find my footing in the 3-foot-deep muck, and with the help of my fellow Chups, I can crawl back to safety. I am shaken, but in time I will come to appreciate the lesson learned from this experience.

In reflection, the overalls should not have made the trek gear list. There are many other alternatives to heat retention – sweatpants, sweatshirts, long johns to name a few. The Carharrts are bulky and, effectively, endangering. They take up valuable space and, in the event they need to double as waders, they will result in turning into weighters. Leave them behind. This decision has been one that will stick with me through many more trips and years to come. I am not embarrassed, nor ashamed, but I hope by sharing this experience and the tragedy that could occur with it, better decisions will be made by future paddlers.

– Soggy Seacow