Kayaking another place and time in the tupelo and cypress of the Cache River in far southern Illinois

Kayaking the Cache River under a silver maple with a buttonbush to the left and a bald cypress ahead. (Dale Bowman)

ULLIN, Ill. — Cicadas whined in morning heat as I turned down Dean Lane, then drove to the last stilt house by the Cache River. Racks of canoes and kayaks indicated I had reached Cache Bayou Outfitters.

Tupelo, a mixed red and blue heeler, ambled to greet me ahead of Kamea Rhine saying, “You must be the kayaker.”