Hello friends it is good to be back, I have finally got a computer. Single parenthood has also kept me very busy, but last week I was finally able to wet my keel in the Grand River. Since last March, when we lost our home in Bolckow to fire, canoeing was in fact the furthest thing from my mind. But a kind fate led me to Albany, and with the insurance I purchased us a great home with a huge yard on its outskirts.

So it was only natural that the Grand become my new river. And with the ongoing drought, I was pleasantly surprised that while quite low, it is floatable unlike the Platte or 102 which are now well west of me. I put in at the bridge a few miles SW of Albany, intending to take out at Elam Bend CA. Approaching darkness, a sluggish current and low water would see me taking out at the Highway A bridge 12 miles south of Albany instead.

The stretch of Grand that I covered cannot be mistaken for its cousins to the west. It is a wider river, and very sandy. While floatable I had to watch for the channel, several times I was grounded on the bottom. It is a winding and meandering stream, very wild looking and scenic as it wends its way through lush green woods. In the short stretch I covered, I saw dozens of deer and several bald eagles, amongst other wildlife. And it is obvious the Grand deserves its reputation as a fishing stream, for the fish were quite active.

My impressions of the Grand as a float stream are immensely favorable, and I look forward as time permits to exploring more sections. Also as my Erin is over 14 months now, I am hoping to introduce her to the river very soon. It seems to be, for a NWMO river, quite clear and clean.

We did a clean-up at Brunswick this May, downstream of you. We really enjoyed our time there and I'm curious what stretches you guys know are less channelized and a bit wilder. I've heard that both exist on the Grand.

Steve Schnarr
Missouri River Relief