My Mississippi River story begins with John Ruskey.
Back in 2015, I knew almost nothing about the river. But I was living in the Delta and trying to make it as a journalist, and I knew that John was a legendary Delta character—the guy to go to if you wanted to explore the river. He’d been featured on Anthony Bourdain’s TV show and in Outside magazine. So I convinced an online magazine to let me profile his work.
I was delighted by John—and I fell in love with the river. So I kept on returning. Eventually, I realized what I was doing was writing a book, my effort to understand the geological force that had built up my home. I’ve got more news about the book to share in the coming weeks—tour events, promotions, etc.—but for now I want to return to this beginnings, with John.
His outfit, the Quapaw Canoe Company, is celebrating its twenty-fifth anniversary this year, and was just named the “Mississippi Business of the Year” by the U.S. Small Business Association. But, dismayingly, in the wake of the pandemic, John has been operating in “reactionary mode,” without a sustainable reserve of funds. That is a big risk to his continued operations, which impacts not just his ability to bring out paying customers, but also his work to connect local youth with the river that is their region’s lifeblood. I hope you’ll consider contributing to this fundraiser so that the river can get all the future river rats it needs.
Below the fold: your round-up of Southern nature news…
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