Surfing Soapbox: A trip down river in Tennessee

It’s been quite a while since the last time I slept for 12 hours straight, but that’s what I did after taking a canoe 180 miles down the Atchafalaya River, along with legendary river guide John Ruskey of Quapaw Canoe, author and writer Steve Chapple, photographer Erika Larsen of Readers Digest (who is doing a feature story about the river expedition). Also along for the trip were the co-founders of the nonprofit organization Below the Surface, Kristian Gustavson, Jared Criscuolo and Guy McClellan.

My sleep came easy that night.

In all of my travels, this trip stands out the most to me. Mostly because I was more nervous about this trip than any other, including my trip to Japan to protest the killings of dolphins and small whales two and half years ago.

I’ve never been much of a camper and the last time I checked, I had never seen the likes of an alligator, or a water snake for that matter, while out surfing. However, I knew this was a chance of a lifetime and in my mind was a good old-fashioned American adventure like Huck Finn going down the Mississippi River, and that was something I could not resist.

However, the minute I landed in Memphis, Tenn., I knew I was in for one wild ride. Most everyone I spoke to said it would be too cold, along with weather reports.

I nearly tried to get back on the plane in Memphis, it was that cold. In fact, it snowed on us while we camped on the side of the river one early morning, followed by frost the next morning. You could say we had all forms of weather, including lots of rain, thunder, lightning, sleet, snow, frost and even two days of sun, which felt like heaven on Earth.

Our coldest day on the river was 28 degrees and a water temperature of 37, which, ironically, was the same day that I fell six feet into the river — after the tree under me broke. Soon we had to stop on the side of the river to build a fire because within two hours I was becoming hypothermic. In conditions like that, things can turn tragic very quickly.

Each day we would break camp and be on the water by 8 a.m. for eight hours, getting off the water by 4 p.m. so we had enough daylight to set up camp. It was an incredible feeling being on that river each day — one of God’s greatest creations — and among bald eagles and beavers and the power of the river itself. All the while being unreachable by cell phone or Internet.

It’s amazing how clear one’s mind becomes during a journey like this. How thankful I am for such an amazing opportunity and the inspiration to continue giving back to something that has given me so much — the environment.

Peace.

JAMES PRIBRAM is a Laguna Beach native, professional surfer and John Kelly Environmental Award winner. His websites include AlohaSchoolofSurfing and ECOWarrior Surf.com. He can be reached at Jamo@Aloha SchoolofSurfing.com