Fun in the Sun from April McEwen!

Hello all! Hopefully everyone has been enjoying this wonderful sunny spring and summer. While early spring brought some higher water levels and some nice creeking action, the mid early summer has brought beautiful weather, peaceful days on the river, with the ever-intermittent summer showers and occasional creeking day. The flowers are blooming, birds are chirping and greenery abounds in the watershed. Whether I am guiding a raft down the river, boofing down the Green, or taking a nap in the hammock, everything is exactly as it seems...just perfect at the moment. This sort of weather makes me feel lucky to just be alive.

I've decided this summer to take a different approach to living. I feel like the world of kayaking has evolved rapidly since I first started. The sport itself has grown and the number of paddlers has also. Back when I began, paddlers all waved to each other on the road or stopped on the river to say hi and chat a little. With more exposure and commercial attention, the sport has evolved into more of a mainstream flow with more attention being put on the athletes and less on the environment that makes our lifestyles a possibility.

No matter where my paddling takes me, I wish to never forget my roots which grow from the river. I want this update to be a reminder...a reminder of the past and also a reminder to take a positive approach to our future. As paddlers we all live our lives like the currents flowing down a river. Sometimes we need a break in life and our kayaking so we catch an eddy and hang out for a little while until we get that inspiration to continue on downstream.

There are so many small streams that flow into one another to make our existence as paddlers a reality. My personal goal as a kayaker is to never pretend the river was put there for my use but to be thankful I am able to recreate on such a beautiful valuable resource. Without respect for the environment and the rivers we paddle on, we become just another nuisance to people trying to enjoy the peace and tranquility the river environment offers.  

I have realized that kayaking is the door that leads me to the escape of societies' illusions, my own illusions, and closer to the realities of water, air and sky. I hope we as kayakers never forget to say hi to one another, put the river's needs above our own recreational needs, give thanks to Mother Nature, and constantly try to devoid ourselves of unrealistic illusions.  

Happy summer!!

May you be in the water and the water be in you!!