The Ottawa is Huge! by Jack Flemming

When I was coming to Keeners, I thought that we were going to paddle on a river comparable in size to that of a large river in the southeastern United States. When I arrived and we got on the water for the first time, I was blown away by the scale of the river. Not only did it have many islands creating channels, but humongous flats between rapids that make it feel like a lake. On our first couple of days, I had fun playboating on some of the biggest water I have kayaked. As my friend and fellow keener, Max, put it,” It is like a lake with rapids.” My experience around Keenerville and Wilderness Tours has also been different from what I thought it would be. First of all, I did not expect there to be so many Keeners! It has been awesome to meet people from all over the United States and Canada. Also, I did not expect to see so many people on the river, whether they are kayaking or rafting. The first day that we were on the water, there were so many people at McCoys that I was scared it was always going to be like that anywhere on the river. Thankfully, as the weekend traffic died down while the week went on, the river became much less crowded and more enjoyable. Overall, I am stoked to be here and I can't wait to see how the rest of the session continues to blow my mind! The end.