Jamie, her friend Cory and I went kayaking upriver from Georgetown today. We left from Fletcher's Cove, where you can rent kayaks for an hour at a time. We paddled upstream through a throng of Latino families fishing and playing by the muddy riverbank. After a short bend we passed one small fishing boat and entered a section where there were more guys fishing, this time all African American men. The fact that the banks were clearly segregated was not the main topic of discussion.
We were more surprised that there were people there at all, since the banks on both sides are quite steep and lined with highways. How in the heck did these people get out there with picnicking gear, fishing poles and even grills. Amazing!
Sadly, our experience on the water was not as pristine and refreshing as I fantasize. Although the Potomac is cleaner than it was decades ago, it's covered in a layer of bubbly detergent that laps brown against my boat. Instead of enjoying the water trickling along my paddle, I made a wholehearted attempt to keep the water from touching my body. I imagined what the river looked like 200 years ago, before we messed with it.
No comments:
Post a Comment