I hadn’t planned to take a canoe trip on the Potomac River this late fall day. But as I drove over the Rumsey Bridge on my way home from running errands, the clear calm water of the Potomac seemed to call me over for a visit, much like a friend would invite you over to shoot the breeze for a while. Based on this offer, I planned a morning trip downriver the next day to see how my old friend was doing.

There are a number of different ways to take a canoe or kayak trip on the Potomac near Shepherdstown. You can put in at the boat ramp at North Princess Street and head up or downriver, then return to Shepherdstown. Or you can launch in Shepherdstown and head downstream to the Antietam Creek Campground on the C&O Canal towpath. You also can put in at Damn #4 or Snyder’s Landing upstream from Shepherdstown.

I called a buddy of mine who tends to be receptive to last-minute canoe trips, and we planned a quick outing We would put in on private property near the National Conservation Training Center and paddle to Princess Street. We estimated the trip would take about two hours.

It was a perfect day for paddling. The air was a little cool, but the sun on this bright, nearly cloudless day quickly warmed us. The water was unusually clear, and felt nicely warm for this late autumn morning. On the first part of the trip we saw only one loan fisherman flipping a surface lure near the shoreline. We did, however, see great blue herons. One was sitting in a tree over the water. The bird let out a loud squawk as we got too near his fishing area. We spotted another heron stealthily looking for small fish in the shallows along the shore. We tried to catch this adept fisherman in action, but he was too wary for us to get close enough for a good photograph.

A little farther we spotted a kingfisher flying overhead, calling out in a loud voice to let us know that we were invading his fishing territory. We saw several groups of Canada geese cruising the shallows as we quietly floated downstream. At one point a large hawk circled overhead, riding the warm breeze over the water. The river was quiet and peaceful, and we felt like we had the whole river to ourselves.

I was curious to see how the river was doing. There has not been much rain recently, and I expected to see a low, cloudy river. But I was pleasantly surprised to find the flow rate was good and the clarity was great. In a former career I taught volunteer stream monitors how to identify the aquatic insects found under and attached to submerged rocks in rivers and creeks. So whenever I visit a stream or river, I instinctively pick up a few rocks and look for life. I found several caddis flies, one indicator of good river health. This evidence, along with all the visual indicators, helped me feel good about our river trip. And I was reassured the Potomac was doing well.

As we approached the boat ramp on Princess Street, we encountered a dozen or so paddlers in brightly colored kayaks. The group was cheerfully talking and paddling up the river in happy river bliss. A great blue heron took flight from the shore right in the middle of the group. We stopped to talk to the kayakers and learned they were part of a group called the Potomac River Paddlers Club. They shared their photograph of the heron. Later at the boat launch, a club member enthusiastically described the merits of different kayaks and shared some of his favorite kayak routes in the area.

The Potomac River is a great resource, and provides a fun way to visit our natural aquatic world. Check out www.nps.gov/choh/ for information on public boat ramps maintained by the National Park Service and the State of Maryland along the C&O Canal. Whether you are out for a long tour or a short trip, the Potomac River has much to see, and provides a nice escape.