Seeing the Ottawa Through Colorado Eyes - Keegan Parker

Hey everyone! I'm Keegan Parker, a first year keener, and 17 years old. Coming from the creek riddled state of Colorado, you might imagine that a river like the Ottawa would be something very, very new to me. If that's what you're thinking, then you're right. It was 12:30 pm when I first stepped out of the car after a gruelling 27 hour drive. The moon was high and my energy level was low. After setting up camp, Emma, my Dad, and I set out to get our bearings and look around to see what the place was like. After walking for 15 minutes or so we found ourselves on a small path with an absolutely massive body of water laying there before us, shrouded in darkness, lit only by the moon, it could only be one thing. The Ottawa River. It was the next day that I got my first paddle strokes on this monster river and the only way I could think to describe it was surreal. With water so warm, nearly no rocks to break myself on, and huge waves littering the first rapid, I almost didn't know what to do. So, Logically, I did the first thing that came to mind. I set out into McKoy rapid to surf what I later learned to be Phills Hole, the very same place that is the subject of "big water beat down thursdays". After being thrown around like a rag-doll for what was probably only a few short seconds, I popped out the other side with a huge smile on my face. It was in that moment I realised that this river is special. Nowhere have I ever kayaked that I could get so violently thrown around and come out the other side in just as many pieces as I had when I went in. I'll never forget my first experience on the Ottawa and with two and a half more weeks to come, I expect to have many more unforgettable moments.