I'm now blogging for WildIndiana magazine, check it out at www.wildindiana.com or www.facebook.com/wildindiana.
Posts on those sites will probably be shorter than what shows up here...I can ramble on as long as I want on this site.
Tuesday, September 8, 2015
Tuesday, September 1, 2015
A Group Expedition
Our church small group decided to spend a day at Eagle Creek, and spend part of the time paddling so we offered to supply boats for as many of our group of 23 as we could. Over the years we have acquired several boats; two tandem kayaks, two whitewater kayaks, a rec single kayak and a couple of canoes. We are also currently storing a canoe for some friends, so we loaded six boats on the trailer, and one on the truck and headed south. Sort of the Clampett's go boating...
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Sort of like the Clampett's going paddling... |
One of the other families has two single kayaks that they brought along, to make nine personal boats total. Another family borrowed a bunch of life jackets, so I think we would have had enough for everyone to have two, if that had been necessary.
When we pulled up to the gate and I told the lady I had seven boats she thought I was kidding. We decided to use the "personal craft" launch at the marina for convenience, and since it was a nice day the parking lot was really crowded.
It's a short carry from the access drive to the launch, so we parked near the walkway and unloaded, which went smoothly (lots of help).
Fortunately they let you park in the grass along the road to the marina, or I might have had an extremely long walk back from an unknown parking lot somewhere. While I was parking a guy started asking me about the trailer; where I got it, how many boats could I get on it, etc., so everyone was wondering what had happened to me by the time I got back, and the younger natives were getting restless.
Note to self: With a group this large, making a list of who is going to be in what boat is very helpful. Actually taking that list with you to the lake is even more helpful, because when you have that many people standing around waiting it's a little stressful trying to remember the arrangements you worked out two days before.
We finally got it all figured out, and a couple of people headed to the marina to rent boats for those that ended up without a seat. Eagle Creek Outfitters has a nice selection of rental boats available; SUP's, SOT and sit-in kayaks - both single and tandem - canoes, paddle boats, sail boats and small pontoons.
After we all met up on the lake we had quite the flotilla: four canoes, seven kayaks and a paddle boat.
We all paddled around the north end of the lake for a while, and everyone had a great time. The paddle boat was a nice platform for some of the kids to take a rest from paddling, or to switch between boats if they wanted.
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Everyone was smiling at the end, that's a good sign |
Monday, July 27, 2015
A Non-Indiana Adventure
Location: Benton Harbor, MI/ Paw Paw River
Well, like a lot of blogs done just for fun, it looks like I've neglected this one for a while. I didn't realize how long until I looked at the dates. I have been paddling some, but not near as much as I was, and not anyplace different from the trip reports I already posted, so I haven't been adding anything.
However, that has changed, as I recently got an unexpected chance to go paddling in Michigan. Since it was an unexpected part of a trip completely unrelated to paddling, I'll include the back story:
We traveled to Benton Harbor, MI the week of July 12 to work with Harbor Habitat for Humanity. The first couple of days we worked on existing homes that are being rehabbed for eligible families. Wednesday we had one crew working on landscaping and cleanup around the Crystal Estates neighborhood that is all Habitat homes, built in 2008. The crew I was with worked on a new storage shed at the Habitat ReStore. We worked with Bruce and Nick, who are part of Harbor's "Thursday Crew" a group of retired individuals who get together every Thursday - surprise! - to work on various projects. The Thursday Crew had mostly finished the shed, but we were tasked with building a dormer on the roof. When we broke for lunch we asked Nick and Bruce to join us, and they accepted.
At lunch Bruce was sitting and talking with one of our crew, and he said "Bruce has kayaks". I had noticed a truck in the parking lot with kayak saddles mounted on the roof, but I didn't know who it belonged to. Of course finding out that Bruce was the owner meant we had more to talk about at lunch. Then he slid a business card over to me with a background image of two people in a tandem kayak, and said "I built that boat". Suddenly things were even more interesting, as I have a book on building stripper canoes, but haven't yet attempted to build anything. We talked a bit about trips and boats the rest of lunch, then went back to work for the afternoon.
Thursday morning we showed up to work, and with our group of six, and the Thursday Crew of about 10 it seemed like there were a lot more people around than Wednesday. Before we started working I jokingly said to Bruce that there were a lot of people around, so we should just go get his boats and go kayaking. He replied by asking what I was doing in the afternoon. Since we finished each day at 3, and all we had planned was dinner, I told him not much, and we made tentative plans to go paddling.
We were able to get everything arranged, and Bruce picked me up at the church for the short drive to the Paw Paw River. It flows southward to Benton Harbor, and empties into the St. Joe River near Lake Michigan.
Bruce brought his 16' boat, and a 15.5' Current Designs boat - whose model name I can't remember - for me to paddle. He even loaned me water shoes, what a great host!
We paddled upstream from a ramp at Riverview Drive and Grant Avenue. It's not on the aerial photos that are currently used by Google Earth, but it's there. The ramp was constructed as part of a development project that included a golf course, hotel, marina, and residential development.
Most of this trip was through the golf course, but it's well above the water in most places, so it didn't feel like we were in the middle of the action. And even though the Paw Paw has a decent current, it wasn't difficult to paddle upstream. We went about 1.75 miles upstream before it started to rain a little, and since the weather had been showing a storm on the lake before we left we decided to play it safe and head back. Once we got back to the ramp it wasn't raining, so we decided to go on downstream and have a look around.
Bruce had mentioned that the water level was high, and as we approached a railroad bridge downstream of the ramp it looked like we would have to duck to get under it. Since there was a moving train on it at the time it was a little intimidating to have that much moving bulk a few feet above our heads, but we made it under and went on. It is only a few hundred yards to where the Paw Paw empties into a channel that flows into the St. Joe, so we paddled east up the channel just to see what we could see.
There are several buildings along Main Street that back onto the channel, and most of them had boats tied up at slips. Bruce noted that it had been a while since there had been boats in that area, so maybe it was a sign of some economic improvement. One building in particular was interesting, it is an older brick building with the back being mostly industrial-looking glass. To the east side of the building is a large garage door that leads to a boathouse incorporated into the building - a pretty cool amenity, I think.
After poking around the marina at the new hotel for a few minutes and admiring some really large boats we decided it was getting dark enough that we should head back. After another duck under the bridge (this time without a train) we were back at the ramp. We got the boats loaded and ourselves in the truck just in time to miss the real rain starting to come down, so we were damp but not soaked.
Anr item of note is that there is a kayak livery right at the ramp. Instead of shuttling you just rent & return to the ramp. If I had known that sooner I might have been out earlier in the week, but then I would have missed the chance to paddle with someone local who was able to tell me about the area we were paddling through.
If you're in the St. Joe/Benton Harbor and looking for an easy paddle this is a nice one. And, you could also easily head downstream into the lake from the ramp. Bruce says the channel can be a bit rough with powerboats going in an out, even though it's a no-wake zone, but that it's not a bad way to get out into the lake.
Maybe next time...
Well, like a lot of blogs done just for fun, it looks like I've neglected this one for a while. I didn't realize how long until I looked at the dates. I have been paddling some, but not near as much as I was, and not anyplace different from the trip reports I already posted, so I haven't been adding anything.
However, that has changed, as I recently got an unexpected chance to go paddling in Michigan. Since it was an unexpected part of a trip completely unrelated to paddling, I'll include the back story:
We traveled to Benton Harbor, MI the week of July 12 to work with Harbor Habitat for Humanity. The first couple of days we worked on existing homes that are being rehabbed for eligible families. Wednesday we had one crew working on landscaping and cleanup around the Crystal Estates neighborhood that is all Habitat homes, built in 2008. The crew I was with worked on a new storage shed at the Habitat ReStore. We worked with Bruce and Nick, who are part of Harbor's "Thursday Crew" a group of retired individuals who get together every Thursday - surprise! - to work on various projects. The Thursday Crew had mostly finished the shed, but we were tasked with building a dormer on the roof. When we broke for lunch we asked Nick and Bruce to join us, and they accepted.
At lunch Bruce was sitting and talking with one of our crew, and he said "Bruce has kayaks". I had noticed a truck in the parking lot with kayak saddles mounted on the roof, but I didn't know who it belonged to. Of course finding out that Bruce was the owner meant we had more to talk about at lunch. Then he slid a business card over to me with a background image of two people in a tandem kayak, and said "I built that boat". Suddenly things were even more interesting, as I have a book on building stripper canoes, but haven't yet attempted to build anything. We talked a bit about trips and boats the rest of lunch, then went back to work for the afternoon.
Thursday morning we showed up to work, and with our group of six, and the Thursday Crew of about 10 it seemed like there were a lot more people around than Wednesday. Before we started working I jokingly said to Bruce that there were a lot of people around, so we should just go get his boats and go kayaking. He replied by asking what I was doing in the afternoon. Since we finished each day at 3, and all we had planned was dinner, I told him not much, and we made tentative plans to go paddling.
We were able to get everything arranged, and Bruce picked me up at the church for the short drive to the Paw Paw River. It flows southward to Benton Harbor, and empties into the St. Joe River near Lake Michigan.
Bruce brought his 16' boat, and a 15.5' Current Designs boat - whose model name I can't remember - for me to paddle. He even loaned me water shoes, what a great host!
We paddled upstream from a ramp at Riverview Drive and Grant Avenue. It's not on the aerial photos that are currently used by Google Earth, but it's there. The ramp was constructed as part of a development project that included a golf course, hotel, marina, and residential development.
Most of this trip was through the golf course, but it's well above the water in most places, so it didn't feel like we were in the middle of the action. And even though the Paw Paw has a decent current, it wasn't difficult to paddle upstream. We went about 1.75 miles upstream before it started to rain a little, and since the weather had been showing a storm on the lake before we left we decided to play it safe and head back. Once we got back to the ramp it wasn't raining, so we decided to go on downstream and have a look around.
Bruce had mentioned that the water level was high, and as we approached a railroad bridge downstream of the ramp it looked like we would have to duck to get under it. Since there was a moving train on it at the time it was a little intimidating to have that much moving bulk a few feet above our heads, but we made it under and went on. It is only a few hundred yards to where the Paw Paw empties into a channel that flows into the St. Joe, so we paddled east up the channel just to see what we could see.
There are several buildings along Main Street that back onto the channel, and most of them had boats tied up at slips. Bruce noted that it had been a while since there had been boats in that area, so maybe it was a sign of some economic improvement. One building in particular was interesting, it is an older brick building with the back being mostly industrial-looking glass. To the east side of the building is a large garage door that leads to a boathouse incorporated into the building - a pretty cool amenity, I think.
After poking around the marina at the new hotel for a few minutes and admiring some really large boats we decided it was getting dark enough that we should head back. After another duck under the bridge (this time without a train) we were back at the ramp. We got the boats loaded and ourselves in the truck just in time to miss the real rain starting to come down, so we were damp but not soaked.
Anr item of note is that there is a kayak livery right at the ramp. Instead of shuttling you just rent & return to the ramp. If I had known that sooner I might have been out earlier in the week, but then I would have missed the chance to paddle with someone local who was able to tell me about the area we were paddling through.
If you're in the St. Joe/Benton Harbor and looking for an easy paddle this is a nice one. And, you could also easily head downstream into the lake from the ramp. Bruce says the channel can be a bit rough with powerboats going in an out, even though it's a no-wake zone, but that it's not a bad way to get out into the lake.
Maybe next time...
Monday, November 2, 2009
August Paddle
Eagle Creek Reservoir
James had acquired a new kevlar canoe that needed to be in the water so we took it out on a really nice August evening. We also got Mark and Paula to come along, and Paula had her first outing in the Looksha.
The Looksha doesn't have the initial stability of the Breeze that she is used to paddling so she was a little uncomfortable for the first bit. The canoe is also pretty narrow, but after getting the
feel of it we decided it paddles like a dream. With both of us paddling with kayak paddles we could really make it fly.
There is a size limit for paddling this boat, though, as the back seat is fixed in place due to the way the back of the boat tapers, and it's pretty narrow. But it's really fast, if I hadn't mentioned that.
We just went out and paddled around, but it was a really nice evening just about sunset. Unfortunately the Lafayette Road bridge was still not finished so we had to thread our way around construction debris and a silt boom, but once on the lake it was really nice.
James had acquired a new kevlar canoe that needed to be in the water so we took it out on a really nice August evening. We also got Mark and Paula to come along, and Paula had her first outing in the Looksha.
The Looksha doesn't have the initial stability of the Breeze that she is used to paddling so she was a little uncomfortable for the first bit. The canoe is also pretty narrow, but after getting the
feel of it we decided it paddles like a dream. With both of us paddling with kayak paddles we could really make it fly.There is a size limit for paddling this boat, though, as the back seat is fixed in place due to the way the back of the boat tapers, and it's pretty narrow. But it's really fast, if I hadn't mentioned that.
We just went out and paddled around, but it was a really nice evening just about sunset. Unfortunately the Lafayette Road bridge was still not finished so we had to thread our way around construction debris and a silt boom, but once on the lake it was really nice.
Monday, July 13, 2009
July Paddle Trip and Training
We started this trip from Wabash, Indiana on the Wabash River, intending to paddle to Attica, Indiana. Our plan was to paddle through the night- or as long as we felt like it - as training for the Missouri River 340 coming up the first week of August.
Most of our trips we manage to pick streams that have enough water flowing in them that we can paddle along pretty well. This time we didn't do so well. Not being all that familiar with the Wabash we didn't know how the gauge levels in different areas related to the water being high enough to paddle, so we just loaded up and went. Plus there had been a lot of rain on July 4th, so
Unfortunately the low water level slowed the current to less than 1mph most of the way, so our expected average speed of 5 mph went out the window fairly quickly.
We did see a bald eagle about an hour into the trip, and followed it down the river for a bit, but most of the time we had to paddle steadily to keep moving forward.
Above Logansport we ran aground in the river at one point and decided we might as well stop for a break since we had to get out of the boat anyway. At least the water was fairly warm, so we stood in the river for a few minutes to rest.
After we got underway again we still continued to run over shallow rocky spots and began to worry about the boat. We didn't want to continue to scrape it on the rocks and risk putting a hole in the bottom.
After scraping through a few more shallow areas just before the city, including one that turned us around twice, we reached the public access at the upstream end of downtown. This was not a great place to stop as it was basically a concrete ramp in a neighborhood. I was about done in at this point and pretty much ready to call it quits. We finally decided to paddle on down through town and see if things got any better below the confluence with the Eel River.
But, right after we got back in we found a place where it looked like we could pull out and there might be a place to get a cup of coffee or something. Unfortunately that turned out not to be the case, but at least we now knew what was at the Little Turtle Watershed Park - that information turned out to be handy later.
Since we could hear water on rocks again below the park I scouted if from the bridge nearby and saw that we could make it through if we stayed far to river left. We still scraped a bit, but made it through relatively unscathed.
We had pretty good paddling for a half mile or so after that, and after the confluence the river widened out so it looked pretty good. By this time it was after 2AM, so we were getting a bit tired. Just before the bridge we almost hit a bicycle, it was barely under water. Just after the bridge we hit the last straw...a rock ledge that apparently had no end. As best we could tell the river was 100 yards or so wide, and 3" inches deep. We could see the backs of a lot of fish, mostly carp. What we could not see was where the water got deep again. After sitting in the middle of the river taking it all in for another 15 minutes or so we decided to paddle back upstream to the park and call it quits.
We left the canoe under a bridge and walked a few blocks to the BP...odd that the lady working didn't even give us a second glance when we walked in wearing PFD's and headlights, but by then it was about 3AM - she had probably seen stranger things.
The guy at the attached Arby's told us the dining room was closed, but that the drive-thru was open. When we asked if we could walk through he said no, and asked what we were driving. When we answered "a canoe" he decided he would take our order after all.
After we ate we went back to the park, unloaded the boat and brought it up the stairs to be near all of our gear. We laid stuff out as best we could to dry and laid down; odd that no police stopped by to see what we were doing sleeping in the park. We were going to tell them we weren't camping, just sitting and waiting for a ride.
Around 6 or so James walked back to Arby's to get breakfast...we didn't want to leave all of our gear spread out in the park with no one around. By that time we were starting to get some odd looks from walkers, but the parks people who came through didn't ask any questions. Around 7 we called Julie to ask for a ride home, so she headed out to get us.
Unfortunately we didn't make either our distance or time goals, but we didn't ruin the boat, either.
Below are James' blog posts:
25 miles down
Most of our trips we manage to pick streams that have enough water flowing in them that we can paddle along pretty well. This time we didn't do so well. Not being all that familiar with the Wabash we didn't know how the gauge levels in different areas related to the water being high enough to paddle, so we just loaded up and went. Plus there had been a lot of rain on July 4th, so
Unfortunately the low water level slowed the current to less than 1mph most of the way, so our expected average speed of 5 mph went out the window fairly quickly.
We did see a bald eagle about an hour into the trip, and followed it down the river for a bit, but most of the time we had to paddle steadily to keep moving forward.
Above Logansport we ran aground in the river at one point and decided we might as well stop for a break since we had to get out of the boat anyway. At least the water was fairly warm, so we stood in the river for a few minutes to rest.
After we got underway again we still continued to run over shallow rocky spots and began to worry about the boat. We didn't want to continue to scrape it on the rocks and risk putting a hole in the bottom.
After scraping through a few more shallow areas just before the city, including one that turned us around twice, we reached the public access at the upstream end of downtown. This was not a great place to stop as it was basically a concrete ramp in a neighborhood. I was about done in at this point and pretty much ready to call it quits. We finally decided to paddle on down through town and see if things got any better below the confluence with the Eel River.
But, right after we got back in we found a place where it looked like we could pull out and there might be a place to get a cup of coffee or something. Unfortunately that turned out not to be the case, but at least we now knew what was at the Little Turtle Watershed Park - that information turned out to be handy later.
Since we could hear water on rocks again below the park I scouted if from the bridge nearby and saw that we could make it through if we stayed far to river left. We still scraped a bit, but made it through relatively unscathed.
We had pretty good paddling for a half mile or so after that, and after the confluence the river widened out so it looked pretty good. By this time it was after 2AM, so we were getting a bit tired. Just before the bridge we almost hit a bicycle, it was barely under water. Just after the bridge we hit the last straw...a rock ledge that apparently had no end. As best we could tell the river was 100 yards or so wide, and 3" inches deep. We could see the backs of a lot of fish, mostly carp. What we could not see was where the water got deep again. After sitting in the middle of the river taking it all in for another 15 minutes or so we decided to paddle back upstream to the park and call it quits.
We left the canoe under a bridge and walked a few blocks to the BP...odd that the lady working didn't even give us a second glance when we walked in wearing PFD's and headlights, but by then it was about 3AM - she had probably seen stranger things.
The guy at the attached Arby's told us the dining room was closed, but that the drive-thru was open. When we asked if we could walk through he said no, and asked what we were driving. When we answered "a canoe" he decided he would take our order after all.
After we ate we went back to the park, unloaded the boat and brought it up the stairs to be near all of our gear. We laid stuff out as best we could to dry and laid down; odd that no police stopped by to see what we were doing sleeping in the park. We were going to tell them we weren't camping, just sitting and waiting for a ride.
Around 6 or so James walked back to Arby's to get breakfast...we didn't want to leave all of our gear spread out in the park with no one around. By that time we were starting to get some odd looks from walkers, but the parks people who came through didn't ask any questions. Around 7 we called Julie to ask for a ride home, so she headed out to get us.
Unfortunately we didn't make either our distance or time goals, but we didn't ruin the boat, either.
Below are James' blog posts:
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Training Paddle
Posted: 2009-07-05 16:35:24 UTC-04:00
Well its Sunday around 4:30 and Doug and I are just about ready to put in for a 100 mile training paddle on the Wabash. The trip is dual purpose, we're training for our August adventure in the MR 340 race in Missouri as well as scouting for the Wabash 100 race planned for 2010.
So far so good! -
Mile 7.7 Wabash
Posted: 2009-07-05 18:23:55 UTC-04:00
Ok, so with lots of help from a 0.9 mph current, we're slowly plodding along down the wabash. At least its a beautiful day, not too hot but also clearing up for a good night of paddling.
A river runs through it....
Posted: 2009-07-05 19:21:50 UTC-04:00
12.3 into the trip, still slow current like paddling flat water. So far only about 5 fishermen is all for wildlife.
Posted: 2009-07-05 20:54:16 UTC-04:00
The current has picked up a bit, not a lot but at least we feel like we're moving faster. The sun is setting and its cooling off a little.
I'm not sure I'm really up for paddling all night.... Oh well, just keep moving, right?-
Posted: 2009-07-05 22:28:33 UTC-04:00
And the bugs are crazy! There are millions on them everywhere. Good thing the moon is nice and bright, we don't have to use headlamps to attract even more....25 miles down
Standing in the river....
Posted: 2009-07-05 23:20:44 UTC-04:00
Since there's no water, we're standing in about 8 inches of water, trying to decide where to drag the boat. We're taking a few minutes as a break in the meantime....-
Good night moon!
Posted: 2009-07-05 23:49:37 UTC-04:00
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Up close with nature
Posted: 2009-07-06 01:03:03 UTC-04:00
Since there's no water to paddle, we decided to do a little fishing.
Of course its not terribly fair to the fish given the water level. Shallows
Posted: 2009-07-06 03:21:25 UTC-04:00
Well the shallows got us. We fought our way through Logansport only to run aground again just past the Wabash/Eel confluence. We were just starting to gain som optimism as the water level surged briefly, but quickly found ourselves looking at about 250 meters of limestone shelf 3 inches under water.
We contemplated things for a bit, sitting there in the middle of a river that was 100 meters across and 3 inches deep. After more discussion, we turned around and paddled back to Logansport, portaging across more limestone to get to a take out.
Walking around Logansport Indiana at 2:30 am makes for an interesting adventure in itself. We found a combined BP/Arby's and convinced the drive through guy to serve us in the closed dining room. I guess he took pity on a couple of guys wearing pfd's and looking like they lived under a bridge.... Well actually for the moment we did live under a bridge, where we left the canoe.
Regardless we have several hours to wait for our ride, so we're hanging out on some sort of limestone steps at the Little Turtle Waterway.
-
Thursday, July 9, 2009
June Trip
White River - Indianapolis Art Center to Rocky Ripple
We paddled as part of the River School that Friends of White River puts on to teach people about water quality and other characteristics of the river. James was the skipper of one of the rafts that the kids were in, and I was one of the safety boaters. Here is an article that was in the Star afterward:
White River group gains friends by leading float trips
Most of the two dozen Arlington Community High School students had never been in a boat before, and some were nervous. "I heard boats are tippy," said senior Montice Smith, 18.
Canoes are, but inflatable rafts aren't, and the students' trip Friday down the White River from Broad Ripple to Rocky Ripple proceeded with nerves that soon gave way to the sights along the waterway.
Their guide, Kevin Hardie, executive director of Friends of the White River, has taken newbies down the White for two decades but has stepped up his efforts as part of the group's attempts to build alliances by exposing people to the river.
"The river sells itself," Hardie says, "and positive uses drive out negative uses. People who see the river up close tend to advocate for it." Winning over high school students is a long-term play,
but some of Hardie's recent trekkers already are in leadership positions. Last weekend, they included Max Anderson, the Indianapolis Museum of Art's CEO; Bob Whitt, White River State Park's executive director; Indianapolis Downtown Inc.'s Tamara Zahn; and Frank Basile, the retired real estate executive and philanthropist.
Basile has lived in Indianapolis since the 1970s but had been on the river just once, briefly. Last Saturday he and the others floated from Broad Ripple to the art museum. "It looked like a wild oasis in the middle of the city," he enthused. "We recently went down the Zambesi River
(in central Africa), and except for the fact there were no hippopotamuses in the White, it reminded me of it. It was exhilarating."
The White, long abused, is cleaner than it has been in 100 years, say experts. But its future is uncertain, with much of the undeveloped banks north of Indianapolis overflowing with commercial potential. Basile said that because of his river trip, not only is he thinking of buying a
kayak, he'd be more likely to oppose development along the river. "It's a remarkable body of water going through our city," Basile said, "and we need to protect it."
The Arlington students paddled down the river wide-eyed. An enormous, gawky blue heron swooped low over the water about 30 yards from Steven Kaba's raft. Kaba had never seen a blue heron before. "That's one crazy-looking bird," he said.
At one point Kaba, 17, paddled past a combined sewer overflow, a pipe that, with Indianapolis' antiquated sewer system, delivers raw sewage directly into the river following a rain. This surprised him. "People dumping stuff right into the water? How could that be?" he said.
"That's a real legitimate response," said Hardie. The city is in the early stages of a $3.5 billion plan that, in 20 years, will remedy the situation.
The trip ended happily for Kaba. He saw a great horned owl. He learned how to steer the boat, sitting in the back, or stern, and using his paddle like a rudder. "The whole trip was cool," he said. "I'd do it again."
We paddled as part of the River School that Friends of White River puts on to teach people about water quality and other characteristics of the river. James was the skipper of one of the rafts that the kids were in, and I was one of the safety boaters. Here is an article that was in the Star afterward:
White River group gains friends by leading float trips
Most of the two dozen Arlington Community High School students had never been in a boat before, and some were nervous. "I heard boats are tippy," said senior Montice Smith, 18.
Canoes are, but inflatable rafts aren't, and the students' trip Friday down the White River from Broad Ripple to Rocky Ripple proceeded with nerves that soon gave way to the sights along the waterway.
Their guide, Kevin Hardie, executive director of Friends of the White River, has taken newbies down the White for two decades but has stepped up his efforts as part of the group's attempts to build alliances by exposing people to the river.
"The river sells itself," Hardie says, "and positive uses drive out negative uses. People who see the river up close tend to advocate for it." Winning over high school students is a long-term play,
but some of Hardie's recent trekkers already are in leadership positions. Last weekend, they included Max Anderson, the Indianapolis Museum of Art's CEO; Bob Whitt, White River State Park's executive director; Indianapolis Downtown Inc.'s Tamara Zahn; and Frank Basile, the retired real estate executive and philanthropist.
Basile has lived in Indianapolis since the 1970s but had been on the river just once, briefly. Last Saturday he and the others floated from Broad Ripple to the art museum. "It looked like a wild oasis in the middle of the city," he enthused. "We recently went down the Zambesi River
(in central Africa), and except for the fact there were no hippopotamuses in the White, it reminded me of it. It was exhilarating."
The White, long abused, is cleaner than it has been in 100 years, say experts. But its future is uncertain, with much of the undeveloped banks north of Indianapolis overflowing with commercial potential. Basile said that because of his river trip, not only is he thinking of buying a
kayak, he'd be more likely to oppose development along the river. "It's a remarkable body of water going through our city," Basile said, "and we need to protect it."
The Arlington students paddled down the river wide-eyed. An enormous, gawky blue heron swooped low over the water about 30 yards from Steven Kaba's raft. Kaba had never seen a blue heron before. "That's one crazy-looking bird," he said.
At one point Kaba, 17, paddled past a combined sewer overflow, a pipe that, with Indianapolis' antiquated sewer system, delivers raw sewage directly into the river following a rain. This surprised him. "People dumping stuff right into the water? How could that be?" he said.
"That's a real legitimate response," said Hardie. The city is in the early stages of a $3.5 billion plan that, in 20 years, will remedy the situation.
The trip ended happily for Kaba. He saw a great horned owl. He learned how to steer the boat, sitting in the back, or stern, and using his paddle like a rudder. "The whole trip was cool," he said. "I'd do it again."
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
May Paddle Trip
Location: Eagle Creek - Lions Park to 96th Street
This is monthly trip #33 in a row, and it was a lot of fun. We got a good group of people together to paddle one of our favorite stretches of water. We all had things to do later in the day so we met at 7:00, it was worth it as you can see in this photo.
It was a
day for a couple of new people to join us (welcome to Michael and Cristal), and it was also Paula's birthday.
The creek was at a really nice level, with only one spot we really had to squeeze through at the old railroad bridge. This has been getting tighter all the time with trees stacked up against the piers, one of these days it may close off completely, or we may have to do some chainsaw work.
Cristal managed to turn over her boat, but was the only swimmer of the day.
This is monthly trip #33 in a row, and it was a lot of fun. We got a good group of people together to paddle one of our favorite stretches of water. We all had things to do later in the day so we met at 7:00, it was worth it as you can see in this photo.
It was a
day for a couple of new people to join us (welcome to Michael and Cristal), and it was also Paula's birthday.The creek was at a really nice level, with only one spot we really had to squeeze through at the old railroad bridge. This has been getting tighter all the time with trees stacked up against the piers, one of these days it may close off completely, or we may have to do some chainsaw work.
Cristal managed to turn over her boat, but was the only swimmer of the day.
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