Campsite Review:
The Kadunce River campsite sits above the river on a ridge. It is oddly close the trail which suddenly disappears into long grasses making you wonder if you've gotten off target. The site has great trees from throwing up your hammocks and about two comfortable tent pads. The campsite sits in the trees so you don't have much of a view of the river and can barely hear it for that matter but you do get views of the tree tops off in the distance. The highlight of this site is it's proximity to one of the coolest and little well known spots on the trail; the Kadunce River gorge and waterfalls. If you take the trail back to the Kadunce spur trail, that heads south to hwy 61, and follow it till it becomes level with the river you can hop in the river and start heading north in it. It has several large rocks and you can keep your feet dry for the majority of the journey but when it's not possible to stay dry, don't! Keep heading up the river and you suddenly take a bend and the gorge closes in and reveals it's end, a rounded, walled canyon and waterfall. it's amazing, and hard to capture on film, but you'll get the gist. I don't know if this trip is possible in the Spring when the water levels would be much higher so if you're deadset on going, do it in the later Summer, Fall or even winter!
Product Review:
On the trail I brought along the Vivobarefoot Eclipse Sandals. They are an ultralight minimalist sandal that has a strapping system designed for you to size to your foot. I used my sandals to explore the campground once we had arrived for the evening. They were nice because of their weight ( I carry a 21lb fully loaded pack) but that minimalist feel was also why I didn't really care for them. The soles were textured to give you traction but you could feel everything underneath. I know there's a trend towards that exact feeling but I did not enjoy it. I would not have lasted long wearing them out and about. The strappy design was fine but I prefer sandals I can slip on as I step out of my tent vs sandals that take some work. I went onto the Vivobarefoot website https://www.vivobarefoot.com/us and could not actually find this model? I'm wondering if they've steered away from it for the cooler months or others have also had a similar opinion and they've beefed up the soles a bit. There were a few other models that I would have considered had they been available when I ordered. The Primus Light for example seems a bit sturdier but still an ultralight feel. Check out my video review below to see up close the Eclipse model I was sent to review by Vivobarefoot.
