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Day 3 was not spent on the Neuse. Instead, Jill, Sam and Emily took a break from the river due to the stormy conditions brought about by Hurricane Ian. They’ll be back on a very different Neuse River tomorrow! But here’s what they had to say about today’s off day:

Day 3: We spent our third day of the #NeuseRiverRising paddle journey off the river hunkering down from the intense rain bands of Hurricane Ian, and counting our blessings that the hurricane didn’t come full force to the Neuse watershed. The day off was unexpected, but we were grateful to have an extra day to reassess our plans and repack all of our gear after two full days of learning what works and what doesn’t on the river. While we were confined indoors with heavy rains all day, we kept busy organizing, packing, monitoring weather and flooding, and keeping our support crews updated with our plans. We have to admit that the comfortable beds, warm running water and overhead lights were not small perks to this unplanned stay off river. After assessing the weather this evening and seeing that predictions are for clear skies and water levels far below flood stage for tomorrow, we made the call to get back on the water tomorrow morning. Despite the undeniable comforts that being in a cozy warm home provides, we couldn’t be more excited to be back on the Neuse.

Our plan is to launch again tomorrow at the Ferry Bridge Road boat ramp near Goldsboro, only a few miles from where we took out of the water yesterday. We’re excited to be joined on our journey for the next few days by a Sound Rivers ally and local kayaking outfitter who knows this section of the river like the back of his hand. Allen will be a fun and helpful addition to our crew of riverkeepers and river pups.

Putting in the river tomorrow, we’ll be thinking a lot about safety. With the higher water levels (predicted to be 11+ feet), and faster moving water, we can expect more hazards on the river. As we launch we’ll be making sure to don our life jackets (for both the humans and pups), tie down all of our gear and keep our wits about us as we navigate the swift moving water.

We look forward to sharing more updates on tomorrow’s journey!