The Beginning

It was May 2024 when John Gibson approached me with a question that would change everything: “Would you be interested in taking over Downriver?” John’s one important condition was that this remains a family business. That resonated with me. With my wife Margo, our kids, my niece, and their partners, we already had our own family. We believed we could honor what John built and keep that family spirit alive.

Discovering What Family Really Means

But as the season unfolded, something beautiful happened—I discovered that this family was bigger than I had imagined.

When our staff arrived—many returning from previous years, some joining us for the first time—I realized this group had become our extended Downriver family. We experienced the highs and lows together—supporting each other through busy weekends, quiet weekdays, celebrating successes, and tackling challenges side by side.

That’s when I truly understood what John meant.

The Heart of Our Family: You

And then I met all of you.

Some of you have been coming here for 50 years—since John first opened these doors in the 1970s. Others discovered this special place just this summer. Many fall somewhere in between, returning year after year for five, ten, or twenty years.

You all know what makes Downriver special.

Whether you’re seeking a getaway from daily life or an adventure with loved ones, this little corner of the world offers something truly unique. And that’s when it hit me: Downriver isn’t just a family business. Downriver IS a huge, vibrant family—and you are all part of it.

Thank You

As we reflect on this past season, I want to express our deepest gratitude. You’ve experienced something crafted with care and passion, something John dedicated decades to building. You trusted us to carry that legacy forward—and we take that responsibility seriously.

Every paddle stroke, every burst of laughter on the water, and every quiet moment drifting downstream has made this season unforgettable.

Looking Ahead

We can’t wait to see you again next year. Spread the word—bring your friends and family. Let’s continue to grow our Downriver family and share what makes this place so special.

Here’s how you can stay connected:

• Follow us on social media
• Leave us a review—your feedback means the world to us
• Share your Downriver stories with others

This winter, we’ll be behind the scenes, working to make your next experience even better while staying true to our roots. Our goal is to keep the heart of Downriver beating strong.

Until April

Thank you for making this summer incredible. We genuinely appreciate each and every one of you.

We’re not going anywhere—we’ll be here, planning and preparing. Enjoy your off-season, stay warm, and we look forward to welcoming you back on the river starting April 1st.

Until then, remember—you are part of the Downriver family. And family is forever.

— Mark and the entire Downriver Canoe Company team

Downriver Canoe Company has been family-owned and operated since 1974, offering memorable float trips on the South Fork of the Shenandoah River in Virginia’s beautiful Shenandoah Valley.

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Example #1:  In 1977 an expansion was being done on the established DuPont plant in Waynesboro, Virginia located on the South River, a tributary of the South Fork of the Shenandoah River.  During excavation workers noticed a silvery liquid pooling in the soil as they dug.  Testing revealed it was mercury, a liquid metal highly toxic to humans.  We are all familiar with the Mad Hatter character from Alice in Wonderland.  Back when it was written, people who worked in the hat industry did tend to go “ mad” as a result of the use of mercury to cure beaver pelts used in fashionable hats of the day.  Mercury poisoning affects the nervous system in humans.

To DuPont’s credit the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality was notified and further investigation ensued.  It was discovered Mercury had been used in the plant and the waste discharged into the river on a regular basis from 1927 until 1950.  Why hadn’t the river carried it away?  Well, it’s simple, mercury is heavier than water and it just settled into and mixed with the sediment on the bottom of the river.  In testing, the fish were found to contain significant levels of mercury in their flesh, all the way from the DuPont plant down the river for thirty miles to the river’s confluence with the North River and Middle River which forms the South Fork of the Shenandoah River.

After two massive flood events in 1985 and 1996 further testing was done on the fish population in 1999.  Not only had the mercury levels increased, but the contamination to the fish had extended downstream for another 30 miles.  It seems the mercury was working it’s way down the river and up through the food chain concentrating in the fish.  Today, there is an advisory against eating fish out of the river which extends the whole length of the South River and the South Fork of the Shenandoah River, a distance of 130 miles.  DuPont eventually paid a $50 million penalty to be used for river improvement projects, but there was no way to mitigate the damage already done.  Prognosis; this is a legacy issue that will continue to haunt us for hundreds of years, perhaps a millennium or more.  Dilution is NOT the solution to pollution.

Example #2:  In the late 1980’s random testing of fish in the Shenandoah River revealed high levels of PCBs in their flesh from Front Royal down.  Further testing of the sediment in the river pointed directly to the wastewater outfall of Avtex Fibers, the one time largest rayon plant in the world employing up to 3,000 workers.  The owners of the plant were full of denial, so the Virginia Attorney General shut them down for environmental reasons.  There was a lot of finger pointing, but the fact is, the PCB problems in the river persist to this day.  FMC Corporation, a previous owner of the plant, eventually paid a significant share of the $140 million to rehabilitate the site along with help from the government’s environmental Super Fund.

Now here’s the back story from my local sources:  The plant was in very poor condition and was being run into the ground, eking out production with virtually no maintenance.  A number of old electrical transformers were being loaded on to rail cars, but were too heavy for the crane to lift them, so to make them lighter the foreman instructed the workers to drain the PCB oils into buckets and pour them on to the railroad tracks.  And thus, a new environmental legacy was born.

In 1971 the Environmental Protection Agency was established, and in 1972 congress passed the Clean Water Act, but today these measures are under threat, and one wonders what other environmental legacies await.  

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The Shenandoah Valley is one of the richest and most concentrated farming areas in the East. One major source of these excess nutrients comes from over fertilized farm fields. Soil can only take up so much nitrogen and phosphorus. A good portion of the excess ends up washing off the land and into the river. Fertilizer is expensive though, and farmers are not going to intentionally apply more than what’s needed, but if you get a hard rain right after application, or seasonal timing is off, everyone loses. Application timing is important as is how much to put where. Many farmers today are testing the soil in grid patterns, then programing that information into the GPS systems on their tractors to vary the amount of fertilizer application for different areas thus saving money and reducing nutrient run off. Another effective technique for capturing excess nutrients is to maintain a vegetative buffer of 35 to 50 feet along the edge of rivers and streams which helps absorb excess nutrients washing off the land.

A second major source of excess nutrients is run off from confined livestock feeding operations (such as cattle feed lots or commercial chicken houses which concentrates nutrient rich animal waste). Chicken litter waste from commercial chicken houses is the biggest problem. Most of this litter is spread on the land as a nitrogen rich fertilizer, but more litter is produced in the Shenandoah Valley than there is available farm land on which to spread it. With government cost share assistance most chicken farmers have built chicken litter storage buildings to help manage the waste and keep it from leaching into the river, and a fledgling system of shipping nutrient rich chicken litter out of the Valley has been established, but chicken litter is still consistently over applied to farmland in many areas out of convenience.

Using government cost share plans, most dairy farmers have constructed large storage tanks to store and manage the animal waste from their herds. And cattle farmers with feed lot operations need to locate those feed lots away from streams and in areas with vegetative buffers.

A third major source of excess nutrients comes from people themselves every time they flush the toilet. Older sewage treatment plants remove harmful sediment and bacteria from waste water, but most of the nutrients in the water pass through the system and end up in the river. And as the population increases, the nutrients increase. Fortunately, most sewage treatment plants in the Valley are being upgraded (with government help) to remove most of these nutrients from the waste water which is a big step in the right direction, but comes with a hefty price tag and will take time to complete. Many rural residents depend on individual septic systems, but these systems require periodic maintenance and eventually may fail resulting in untreated sewage leaching to the surface and running into creeks and streams which feed the river. Unfortunately, most home owners in rural areas have a poor understanding of maintenance requirements for septic systems. Out of site, out of mind.

As modern farms become ever more specialized and concentrated, it is important to factor in the environmental impact. Farmers receive a lot of criticism simply because they physically control a disproportionately large chunk of God’s green earth as compared to the rest of us. And generally speaking I think it would be safe to say most farmers are conservative and suspicious of government, but most farmers I know love the land and want to do the right thing for the environment. It’s a process, but in the end I think everyone realizes, “If you poison the environment, the environment will poison you”.

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After a significant rain event we can follow the surge in flow by monitoring the river gauges up stream of our location and predict when and how high the river will get.  Typically a rain event in our upper watershed (which can be 100 miles or more up river) will take a several days to reach us, but a big, local rain event can be upon us in hours, so it can get tricky.  For us, the river gauge system is a vital tool in river safety and we use it constantly.  Back in the day, before the internet, we used to call a toll free number in Maryland and listen to a long recording giving the gauge readings for the region (and the line was often busy).

So for today, the flow of the South Fork of the Shenandoah River at Luray is 523 cfs.   There are 8 gallons of water in 1 cubic foot, so the flow is currently 4,184 gallons per second and by extension 361,497,000 gallons per day.  That seems like a lot of water, but we place the river level in our “Low” range for today.  The highest recorded river level was about 27 feet at Luray during the flood of 1870 when the Valley was pretty much denuded of trees from the civil war and the then flourishing local iron industry’s insatiable thirst for charcoal.  The lowest was during the great drought of 1930 when the river was a sea of rocks with little pools of water in-between (I’ve seen photos).  

What did the fish say when it swam into the wall?  Dam!  Yes, there are a number of surviving low production power dams along the South Fork of the Shenandoah River at 3 locations, in the town of Shenandoah, near the village of Newport, and near Luray.  Built in the early 20th century these dams are 18 to 20 feet in height and are constant generation dams that are required to maintain a veil of water flowing over the top so the natural flow of the river is maintained.  Both the Shenandoah and Newport dams have portage paths around them, but the Luray dam does not (due to property rights restraints).  Fortunately, none of these dams are located in our operational area.

These dams do not generate a whole lot of electricity, but there they are, and as long as they are productive and are maintained by the power companies that license them, there is no reason to alter the status quo.  Some day their usefulness will end, and a decision will have to be made.  Dam removal, returning the natural flow to the river would be the obvious choice, but would cost at least several million dollars for each dam.  In fact, the diversion dam at Lynnwood was destroyed by the flood of 1942, and the shattered concrete with imbedded rebar was a life threatening hazard to paddlers until removal of the remains of the dam was undertaken in the early years of the 21st century.  

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So, one weekend to go, and we had received just one raft reservation via telephone (the caller had a strong accent and was a little hard to understand) for one large raft, 6 to 7 people.    We set two untreated large rafts aside (always plan for success I say) and spent most of that week cleaning, treating, deflating, and cramming the rest of the rafts into our storage bus being careful to place all the large rafts on the bottom of the pile.  Saturday morning dawned overcast and kind of cool, so we didn’t expect a busy day (a smattering of canoes and kayaks, on one raft).  In fact, I was kind of kicking myself for being overstaffed (that “plan for success” thing sometimes bites you in the ass).  Things were slow until 10:30 am, exactly the time slot for the one large raft reservation.  Suddenly a string of cars came down the hill and began turning into our business.  We counted: one, two, three, four, five, six, …… twenty-two, twenty-three cars pulling in to our parking area, every car disgorging happy Koreans dressed for the elements.  The leader of the Korean Hiking Club strode into the office to pay for the rafts, and when he saw his name beside the one raft reservation he said, “No, not six or seven, I say sixty-seven”, and that’s exactly what he had, sixty-seven people exactly.  Okay, don’t panic, there might be a solution, improvise.

We have cancelled the insurance and stored our busses, so we only have two vans saved out as shuttle vehicles.  And it’s going to take some time to dig out and inflate 8 additional large rafts.  I set every available staff member to start dragging all the rafts out of the bus and blowing them up while my lovely wife and I greeted everyone, directed them to the bathrooms, and let them stretch their legs.  We then gave them a lengthly and most thorough orientation using the two available untreated rafts allowing them to practice their new paddling skills in the parking lot while the rest of our crew was scrambling.  After about half and hour of orientation we directed them back into their vehicles and sent them up river to our riverside campground to eat their packed lunches and we would bring the rafts, paddles, and PFDs to them and let them float back to our base.

In the end we had them all on the water two hours and fifteen minutes from the time they drove onto our lot, quite an accomplishment from our prospective, but less than efficient from their prospective I am sure.  When they finished we still had to transport the drivers back to pick up their vehicles.  Over the years we have many groups that return year after year, but this group has never been back (though they were lovely and understanding).

To this day, whenever we are faced with a logistical challenge, we look at each other and wink, and say,”remember sixty-seven”.  Plan for success!

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Legend has it bass were introduced to the river by a railway worker who was an avid fisherman and hailed from up state New York where bass are native.  He loved fishing for the feisty bronze backs that put up such a fight.  They say in the 1880’s he loaded a passel of bass into the water tender of his steam locomotive, transported them to Virginia, and dumped them into Overall Creek as the engine passed over the trestle (I know, sounds like a fish story to me too).  Be that as it may, the bass somehow found their way to the Shenandoah River in the late 19th century and there they thrived, ….to a fault.  Today, the small mouth bass is unquestionably the king of the river, to the point of total dominance.  As a result the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources maintains a long standing slot limit for bass.  All bass between 11 and 14 inches (ideal breeding size) must be returned to the river, but you may keep up to five fish smaller than 11 inches or greater than 14 inches.  The population is not particularly stable either with alternating population surges and crashes, even after a century of adaptation.

Even though the Shenandoah river appears healthy and clean, significant fish kills have occurred over the years.  In the 1940’s a kill was caused by industrial pollution from the new Rayon plant in Front Royal (now defunct).  In 1977 up to 80% of the fish in the river succumbed, cause never determined.  In 2003 there was a major fish kill starting on the North Fork of the Shenandoah River spreading to the South Fork and Main Stem the next year and then on to the James River in 2007.  The die off lasted about two years and primarily affected mature bass and red breasted sun fish with losses of about 70%.  In 2014 there was a similar event with losses in the 30% range, and smaller annual die offs occur fairly regularly.  Is this something new or something we have just not noticed before?  No one knows.

The state of Virginia has spent a lot of time and effort (and money) trying to solve the riddle of these fish kills, but no obvious chemical or environmental smoking gun has been found.  Scientists have determined a combination of factors have combined to stress the immune systems of the fish making them vulnerable to attack by Aeromonas Salmonicida, a cold water bacteria which is toxic to fish (and helps explain why die offs occur in early Spring when the water is still cold).  The bacteria causes lesions and general tissue deterioration.  Some fish will recover as the water warms in summer suppressing the S A bacteria.

Fish immune systems can be degraded by a number of factors.  Some chemical compounds and heavy metals have been shown to suppress the immune system and influence development of certain aquatic organisms.  These contaminants are referred to as “endocrine disruptors”.  Natural and synthetic forms of the hormone estrogen fit into this category, and elevated levels have been detected in the Shenandoah River.  At this point the effect on fish health is speculative, but alarmingly, a significant number of male bass in the river have actually developed female eggs in their testes.

  Currently, the fishery remains fairly stable with usually good, and sometimes spectacular fishing, but pressure on river water quality remains with increasing human population in the Valley and enhanced agricultural production.  In fact, Rockingham County (located just up river) is the most productive agricultural county east of the Mississippi River. Some progress has been made by upgrading sewage treatment plants and adopting best management practices in agriculture.  Can science save us?  Do we have the will to do what needs to be done?  I guess time will tell, but for now the river remains an incredible resource.  Small mouth bass still rule.

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RULE OF THUMB #1:  Do your homework.  Use an outfitter, or know where you’re starting, where you’re finishing, and what’s in-between.  Check river gauges or contact an outfitter to ascertain river conditions.  And check the weather report while you’re at it.

RULE OF THUMB #2:  Be observant when launching!  Scan the river.  If you can see a place where it looks like it will be difficult to get through due to low or shallow water, then there are bound to be many more just like it along the way, and the river may be too shallow to run today.  If, on the other hand, the river is into the brush along the shore, and the current is fast, and there are sizable branches and logs floating, and the river is muddy, then the river may be too high to float safely today.

RULE OF THUMB #3:  Avoid strainers!  A strainer is any obstacle through which water passes, but you may not, such as a fallen tree, a debris pile, or a low water bridge.  Look ahead to spot these obstacles, especially in swift current, and give them a wide berth.  Sometimes these obstacles can be stream wide and require a portage.

RULE OF THUMB #4:  If the river is high and the current strong, stay near the middle of the river to avoid strainers or overhanging limbs along the banks.  I watched a protruding log from the bank sweep everyone off a raft in swift current one day.  They were all fine, if a bit shocked.  Also, you can often sneak a strong rapid along its edge to avoid the rough water.

RULE OF THUMB #5:  Go with the flow!  In low water follow the current.  You will want to go where most of the water is going.  It’s flowing that way because there is a passage for it (and for you).  And learn to spot an eddy (a place of calm water out of the current, usually below a rock or ledge).  A good paddler can eddy hop up a mild rapid without much effort, and eddies make a good place to pause and wait for the rest of your crew to catch up.

RULE OF THUMB #6:  Keep the boat aligned with the flow of the river.  Basically, keep the canoe or kayak pointed downstream.  Floating sideways dramatically increases you chance of hitting a rock or snag (and taking an unexpected swim).

RULE OF THUMB #7:  Follow the “V”.  Water flowing through an opening in a ledge or between rocks will often display a distinct “V” pointing down stream.  That’s your passage to paradise.

RULE OF THUMB #8:  Look for water disturbance, also known a whitewater.  Water disturbance may mean water flowing among rocks (don’t go there), or it could be the sign of water moving through an opening and over a drop (you may want to go there).  Be observant and learn to tell the difference.

RULE OF THUMB #9:  Take wind and current into account.  Canoes and rafts have a high wind signature and are subject to being blown about (kayaks less so).  Paddling on a windy day is a lot of work let me tell you.  Learn to take into account how the prevailing wind in that instant combined with the current under your boat is affecting where you want to go.

Learning to read a river is an art and with practice every trip will become easier and less frustrating (except when it’s windy).  

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Kayaks come in many forms each designed to fit a certain niche so to speak.  Kayaks were historically used by indigenous peoples of the northern latitudes for hunting and fishing in their icy costal waters.  A traditional Eskimo kayak would be made from seal skins sewn together stretched over a driftwood frame and paddled solo with a double bladed paddle.  Most of today’s recreational kayaks follow the same basic form.

SIT INSIDE KAYAKS:  Following the form of the traditional Eskimo kayak, the paddler sits on a small pedestal seat on the floor in the center of the kayak with legs stretched out and feet resting on adjustable foot braces.  This creates a very low center of gravity and gives the paddler great stability and a wonderful feel of control over the boat.  Solo kayaks are swift and maneuverable making it easy to zip around and explore the river.

SIT ON TOP KAYAKS:  The kayak itself is a sealed unit with a seat molded on to the top.  These boats have the advantage of being “unswampable” and easy to get on and off, but have a higher center of gravity and lack the feel of a sit inside.  Equally maneuverable, sit on tops are  good in low water if you have to unweight your boat from time to time to dislodge it from a rock or ledge.  Please note: we use mostly sit inside kayaks, but we do stock some sit on top kayaks for those who prefer them.

WHITEWATER KAYAKS:  True whitewater kayaks are very round on the bottom and have lots of rocker which gives them great feel and makes them highly maneuverable, and very unstable.  The paddler constantly has to have a paddle in the water just to keep from flipping over.  Mounted with spray skirts, these kayaks are designed to roll back up if they do flip, unlike the kayaks described above that are not designed to roll.   It takes practice and skill to paddle one of these suckers, but the thrill of the ride is worth it.  (Please note, we do not rent whitewater kayaks).

TANDEM KAYAKS:  These two person kayaks do take some practice to paddle correctly and require the three “C’s”, cooperation, coordination, and communication.  We call them divorce boats (Would you like a lawyer with that?).  Tandems, like canoes, are steered from the stern or aft position, are not particularly maneuverable, and are slow to respond.  Tandems are fast in a straight line, but don’t do particularly well in low river levels which require a lot of maneuvering.  

KAYAK PADDLES:  Kayak paddles are fairly long for better reach.  We use mostly 220 cm double bladed paddles (just over 7 feet).  We use paddles with fixed position blades on the same plane (like traditional Eskimo paddles).  Most experienced kayakers use paddles with about a 60 degree right or left hand offset which are more efficient but take some getting used to.  Many paddles today have adjustable offsets, but this creates a weak point which makes the paddle less durable.

STEERING:  Kayaks can be steered by dragging your paddle in the 4 to 5 o’clock position to turn right, or the 7 to 8 o’clock position to steer left.  By using a combination of strong or double strokes on one side, and weaker or even back strokes on the other side, solo kayaks can turn on a dime and then have quick acceleration, so they do great in low water conditions where maneuvering is a must.  Shorter kayaks are easier to maneuver, but need irritatingly constant course correction and are usually lower volume.  We favor longer, sit inside kayaks.  They don’t turn as fast, but they float higher because or their higher volume, and they have a lovely glide.

So kayakers, you have your choice.  Sit inside for maximum feel and stability, Sit on top for easy on and off, or tandem for you and you’re soon to be former spouse.  Whichever you choose, the Shenandoah River is a great learning and practice venue for kayaking.

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One of the most beautiful and most interesting sections of the river is the South Fork of the Shenandoah as it flows north through the narrow Page Valley from Luray to Bentonville.  Through this remarkably remote twenty eight mile section the river is pinched between Shenandoah National Park to the east and the George Washington National Forest to the west with mostly forest and farmland and little development.

The scenery is breathtaking as the river bounces back and forth between the Blue Ridge and Massanutten Mountain walls as it seeks its way north.  Many interesting geologic features are exposed in the cliffs and rock outcroppings along the way, interspaced by low, tree lined farm fields.  And, being situated between two huge protected wilderness areas, the wildlife is exceptional.  Beaver, muskrat, river otter, mink, foxes, and of course deer are common, with an occasional black bear and very occasional bobcat.  And it is a bird watchers paradise with ducks, geese, osprey, bald eagles. kingfisher, all manor of woodpeckers including red headed woodpeckers, and the occasional scarlet tanager and indigo bunting.  Bigfoot is also rumored to venture through these parts although I wouldn’t swear to it.

The river itself flows over a solid rock bottom creating may interesting riffles and small rapids which also creates a wonderful fish habitat.  The South Fork of the Shenandoah is legendary for its small mouth bass fishery.  Catches of eighty fish or more per person are not uncommon.  My friend Ken Arnold reported catching a fish on thirty seven consecutive casts one September day.  On the thirty eighth cast he hooked a fish but didn’t land it, so he ended his count.  Of course there are skunk days as well.  They say that’s why they call it fishing, and not catching.

Normally, the South Fork maintains a near ideal level for paddling, averaging about 3 feet in depth and alternating between riffles and pool, riffles and pool.  Occasionally, after a big rain, the river will be too high to paddle safely.  And sometimes after a prolonged dry spell the river will become “boney”, still navigable by canoe but with some bumping and scraping.  And the water temperature will hang in the upper 70’s to low 80’s through the summer making for a refreshing occasional swim in one of the deeper pools.   

As for paddling on the Shenandoah, I am partial to the canoe.  This incredibly versatile watercraft is light, maneuverable, easy to paddle, does well at almost all river levels, and can easily carry your cooler and other gear.  Solo kayaks are also very popular and fun to paddle with each person the captain of their own vessel.  Tandem (two person) kayaks are fun as well, but they do take a certain amount of coordination, communication, and cooperation (we sometimes refer to them as divorce boats).  Some folks prefer a four or six person commercial raft so the whole family can go in one watercraft, although rafts do tend to get hung up and stuck in low water conditions.  Finally, the float tube has become very popular where you just drift along and DO NO WORK, for some the best way to go.

People often pull me aside and remark they had no idea there was this level of wilderness experience so close to Washington, and I tell them to thank our ancestors who created Shenandoah National Park and the National Forest system for preserving the land and wildlife therein.  And I tell them to support their local “Friends of…” or “Riverkeeper” river conservation organizations so their children can continue to enjoy the legendary Shenandoah.

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So I was leaving work one Tuesday evening.  All our boats and tubes were in and the parking lot was empty.  This was years ago, before the age of cell phones.  As I was locking the front gate, I did notice two olive drab painted busses idling quietly at the boat landing across the river.  Out of curiosity I drove across the bridge to see why they were there, it was so out of place.

The driver said they were waiting for a platoon of fully outfitted National Guard troops doing a training exercise on the river and they should be finishing any time now since they had started around noon.  What were they paddling?  Rubber rafts.  Where had they started?  He didn’t know, some bridge, he was only the driver.  Knowing the next bridge up river was a distant 28 miles (and the river level was low) I pressed him for more information.

He indicated that the second lieutenant in charge planned to do a ten mile float.  The bridge in front of our base in Bentonville was to be the finishing point.  So he instructed the driver to drive ten miles up river from Bentonville along the parallel road, then turn right until reaching the river again and start the float.  Mistaken assumption #1:  ten miles of road equals ten miles of river.  It does not.  The road is engineered to go straight.  The river follows the lowest point of the valley which is never straight.  That ten miles of road actually covered thirty-five miles of river.  Mistaken assumption #2.  there are no obstacles.  Oh, you mean like that 18 foot high power dam with no portage path around, or that partially washed out low concrete bridge choked with debris?

I cheerfully waved goodbye as I bid them adieu.  Not my boats, not my customers, not my problem I was thinking.  “See you in the morning”.  I heard later they actually hooked up around midnight about half way through their route.  I’ll bet they were some tired puppies, and not too happy with Lieutenant Assumption.

Some years later I was paddling a canoe near where the soldiers had ended their ill fated float and ran across the receiver of a military M14 rifle minus the stock, stuck barrel first into the muddy bank.  It was in terrible condition and obviously would never shoot again, but It made me wonder if this was a relic of that incident.  The Army tends to frown on soldiers who miss place their weapons I have heard.

Today that souvenir hangs proudly on the wall behind our counter along with a 12 gauge Remington 270 shotgun and a Red Ryder Daisy BB gun also recovered from the river.  And at the end of the counter is our “Jar of Shame”, a large glass jar full of car keys, cell phones, cameras, binoculars, knives, and all sorts of stuff recovered from the river.  “Don’t take it with you if you can’t afford to lose it or get it wet”.

I think our most unusual river find was a 1950’s era Naval 500 pound aerial bomb (currently hanging on our front porch).  It’s totally empty, and you can just read the letters “practice bomb) on the outside.  We speculate someone had it in their yard as a lawn ornament and a flash flood washed it into the river.  Nonetheless, we like to tease children by striking the nose with a hammer to see if it will go off.  “Hold you ears” we caution.  

When she gets exasperated with me my lovely wife suggests tying it on top of my car and driving into DC at a high rate of speed taking bets on how far I will get.  But in this day and age, that ain’t happening.  

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