Backyard Adventures

6C PIKE PUBLISHING BACKYARD ADVENTURES 2018 1999 S State Rd. 57, Washington and S. 57 in Petersburg 812-698-1428 • www.dunlookinrvwholesaler.com Before you buy, stop by our lot in Washington, IN. Also coming soon to Petersburg, IN. When you see our prices, you will be dun lookin! Sales • Service • Parts • Mobile Service FINANCING AVAILABLE Used Fifth Wheels, Travel Trailers and Motorhomes Owners: Rob & Millie Hansen SALES • SERVICE • PARTS AND REPAIRS M-F: 9am-6pm Sat: 9am-1pm REPAIRS OF ALL KINDS MONROE CITY RV SR 61 SR 61 Vincennes Petersburg SR 241 812-743-5267 4091 S. SR 241 • Monroe City 12 miles from Petersburg on SR 241 www.monroecityrv.com No job too big or too small! ONSITE SERVICE CALLS Serving families for more than 26 years! STORY AND PHOTOS BY ANDY HEURING FLOATING an idea Chris Clement's love of kayaking on the Patoka balloons into large community event. CLOG THE PATOKA II Clog the Patoka II is scheduled for Saturday, July 7. The Patoka River float for any and all com- ers was a huge success last summer and the idea came out of one guy's love for floating the river. In a matter of months of Chris Clement going for his first kayak trip down the Patoka River, 340 people showed up with kayaks, rafts, wives, kids, coolers, pets and even an oxygen tank to make their way down the Patoka River into Winslow. This year's event will start at the Old Iron Bridge over the Patoka River on CR 650 E., just east of the back side of the Pike State Forest, and end at Riverside Park in Winslow. It is about a six-mile trip. The short route will go from McCord's Ford off of CR 400 S. It is about a 1.5 mile float. Clement said the long route can take from a couple of hours to six hours, and the short float from 45 minutes to a couple of hours. "It depends on the current and what level the river is at," said Clement. Last year, they had a rain the day before the event and it raised the level of the river and sped up its current just enough to make the trips a little quicker, but not to pose any danger. Last year was a big surprise to Clement and other members of the Kayak Mafia, which puts on the event. The Kayak Mafia grew out of Clement talking his friends into going kayaking with him. He said as people would take their first plunge into kayaking on the Patoka River, they liked it nearly as much as he did. Many of them bought their own kayaks. Clement bought a handful of kayaks and would take newbies with him and let them use his spare kayaks. Often they enjoyed it so much, they went out and bought their own boats. The Kayak Mafia posted on Facebook that Clement was going to go kayaking and invited anyone who wanted to join him. The circle of friends grew and the river trips happened more often. Eventually, they decided to have an event and see how many people would show-up. Clement said he posted the idea for the trip and within two days, the number of those interested had exploded to 1,500 people. "It scared me and the rest of the group. I thought maybe we might have 100 people from Pike and close by be interested. I no idea it would create this kind of interest," said Clement. The number people who showed up grew to 340 people and it was a huge success. "We had a really good time. I thought it was enjoyable, it was just kind of nice and peaceful," said Trisha Bottoms, who went on the trip with her sons, mother and a few friends. "We saw maybe three or four people and it took about two hours," said Bottoms. One of the more amazing stories of the event was Annette Sharp, who was awaiting a lung transplant operation. She climbed in a single raft with her oxygen tank and made the float from Mc- Cord's Ford down to the Winslow Riverside Park. "It couldn't have gone better," said Sharp. "I have seven grandkids and I want to make all the memories I can with them. You never know how long you are going to have," said Sharp. "I can't wait until next year." The event stayed family-friendly, even law enforcement was complimentary. Conservation Officer Duane Englert, who was on the river in a boat much of the day, said there were very few problems. He didn't see any excess drinking and there were no problems with trash in the river. "It really did go much better than we thought it might," said Englert. He added most people were wearing life jackets or had them nearby. "We saw a lot of life jackets." Winslow officials praised the event as well, saying several merchants were thrilled with the boost in business on that Saturday. Street Supervisor David Gayhart said on Sun- day he went down to the park to check on it. "You wouldn't have found so much as a cigarette butt there. They cleaned it up better than it was when they got there," said Gayhart. Clement said this year they know they are going to have big numbers and they are trying to plan better. He said one of the few complaints they got last year was no porta potties. They plan to have those in place this year. "The biggest headache is trying to figure trans- portation," said Clement. They have two alternatives: either have people park at the beginning of the route and transport them back to their vehicles at the end of trip or have people come to Riverside Park, where they are going to end both distances of the trip, then transport people up to the start. So when they get to the park, their vehicle will be there. Clement said they are leaning toward having people park their vehicles in Riverside Park and nearby lots, and then be transported up to the start. Last year, the only fee was asking kayakers to give the volunteers driving shuttles $2. Another anticipated change is going to be the time of day. Last year, it was in the morning. Clement said he thinks they are going to move it back to about noon. He said they will have those details worked out in the near future. Anyone interested in the trip can go to the Kayak Mafia's Facebook page to register and get details as they are finalized.

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