Eric Jackson’s (Unwise) Run of the Niagra Gorge
“We hiked our Funs into the woods the night before, and hid them, knowing that we wouldn’t be able to successfully walk around in public during the day with the kayaks and not get noticed.* Not to mention that the border guards were literally 50 yards away and in full site of our drop off point. In the morning we managed to get into the gorge below the fall under tree cover without getting noticed and get our boats to the river’s edge…We all successfully stayed on the right of center and made it through the rapid and eddy out the bottom (a big task), and then we were home free (in terms of whitewater). This is where we bolted to a cave for cover. A cave gave us cover after the run so we could let the storm blow over before paddling out past the major hydro dams, in full view of security cameras, etc. We got into legal waters again, took out, and reflected on a day to remember forever.”
*I bolded these passages
The above was written by the best known face of the kayak industry, Eric “EJ” Jackson. These excerpts come from a trip report on his website, describing a run through through the “3 miles of whitewater from the base of Niagara Falls to below Devil’s Hole.” Now, this run is illegal, but has been completed by several relatively unknown groups over the past 30 years, none of which then took a description of their crime to the press/Internet. EJ, on the other hand, is (was?) the most respected and recognized paddler out there today. It’s like the difference between when a regular driver gets a speeding ticket, and when a senator is caught going over the speed limit. Even then though, the senator doesn’t brag about it on his website. EJ is supposed to be representing our paddling community, and while some give him the thumbs up because “Someone has to push back (EJ) to get access…” (quote from my local message board), I give him the thumbs down for casting a shadow on the rest of us. We do have to fight for access, but that doesn’t mean committing criminal acts and making the rest of us look bad. I welcome all responses, especially those from Team (Gang?) Jackson. If you can change my mind, bravo. In closing I’d just like to share an equation with you all:
ILLEGAL ACT (running the Gorge) + WELL KNOWN PERSON (EJ) =SCREW UP
SYOTR
Sunday, September 23rd, 2007 @ 7:28 pm
um. The Gorge is illegal because of cross border risk (heightened security since 911) as well as too many years of idiots hoppin’ in barrels and riding the falls. This section can be run, and should be open for boaters willing to run… like the all the rest. The more who run this section cleanly and the quicker cooperation happens between authorities facing a difficult task of keeping the US and Canada secure and the paddling community, the better. Please remember that many of the rivers we run today are now legal, some classics were illegal for many years due to those who truely didn’t understand… it took pioneers to get that momentum going.
Friday, March 7th, 2008 @ 3:55 pm
Yes, but that doesn’t mean EJ couldn’t have talked to authorities about a possible run. They probably would have let him have it, and there would be bridges built between the kayaking community and those who control the Gorge.