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Pamlico-Tar Riverkeeper Katey Zimmerman, Water Quality Specialist Taylor Register and Volunteer Coordinator Emily Fritz stepped back into the not-so-distant past this week to recount their epic paddle journey: the Piedmont to Pamlico Paddle.

“It was so much fun,” Emily said of their presentation to the Carolina Nature Coalition, held at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in New Bern on Wednesday night.

“This was definitely one of the most fun presentations we’ve done,’ Katey said. “There was a lot of laughter, especially talking about the struggles of the first couple days.”

There at the request of club President Michael Schachter — who issued the invitation last fall when they embarked on the 12-day, 170-mile kayak trip from Oxford to Washington — it was the first opportunity since that all schedules aligned.

The trio of Piedmont to Pamlico paddlers started with why they chose to go on the paddle. Their preparation and practice paddle followed.

“Then we kind of dove in day by day,” Emily said. “Talked about the highlights, the wildlife we saw, if we saw any pollutions red flags, and just kind of broke it down day by day.”

Plenty of photos accompanied their recounting of the journey—as did the lessons they learned along the way.

“As we covered the first few days, we kept saying, ‘As soon as you make plans for anything, you know everything is going to wrong,’” Emily laughed. “There were a lot of lessons, but everyone was impressed that we started the paddle as friends, and we ended the paddle as friends!”

After their presentation, they chatted with club members.

“Many people commented at the end about how great it was to hear about our trip and that they are happy to see a younger generation enjoying and protecting our local waterways,” Katey said.

“And it was really great to talk with everyone afterward and find out what their connection is to the river — how they enjoy it,” Emily said. “It was a blast. I’d definitely do it again!”

Interested in hearing about their adventures on the Piedmont to Pamlico Paddle? Check out “Piedmont to Pamlico,” the latest episode in our podcast “Sound Rivers: Riverkeeping Tales of the Neuse & Tar-Pamlico.”

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