A curation of memorable moments.
No Bad Light
A Place For Beginnings
Spring on the river. A good place to begin.
It’s widely understood that spring is the time for beginnings. The natural awakening of the earth as streams begin to flow, the flowers and trees begin to bud, and birdsong floats along the breeze. Spring is the return of longer days, a reminder that the sun does shine. Yes, spring is the time for beginnings, but that tells me nothing about the place to begin.
Let’s say this story begins on the river. It’s where I feel most like myself and the place that first called me to photography and filmmaking. Photography and writing felt like a way to share my experiences on the water with my friends and family who didn’t paddle. Over 15 years later, I’m doing the same things, they just look a little different.
The New Haven Ledges near Bristol, VT represents one of the finest samplings of whitewater imaginable. It features nearly every type of rapid, from ledges and slides to boulder gardens and slot moves. A late November mis-adventure involving a late start and an even later finish led to my first published article, “Racing Daylight” in American Whitewater Journal. In many ways, that article and this river changed the course of my life. This spring, I’ve visited the ledges a number of times. My appreciation for this river and the community surrounding it continues to grow.
There’s no shortage of rivers to run in the High Peaks region either. From the mighty Ausable to the elusive John’s Brook, this spring season has proven to be one for the books. While many of my friends have been lamenting the rain and muddy trails, I’ve been enjoying the high water with laps on the local classics and fact-finding excursions to rivers farther afield.
