Spring came early this year and I talked the kids into joining me on the downriver half of a 16 mile paddling workout. On the upriver half it was 70+ degrees, windless, and there were all kinds of cool bird and wildlife sightings. A mile into the downriver part, the wind whipped up to 15+ mph into our faces, the temp dropped into the 50's, it started raining, then pouring, and we saw almost nothing cool. The kids learned a new term, SUFFERFEST, and they both did an incredible job of maintaining their composure while slowly sliding towards hypothermia. The end came before any of us got dangerously cold and the truck ride home was full of "boy do you owe us Dad!!!" And I do!