Who knew there were pirates on the Delaware River?
We’d just launched our raft from the base in Barryville, NY, a small town in the Catskills, when we spotted him — shirtless, wearing a huge feathered purple pirate hat and fishing from a canoe.
Then he spotted us.
“Arrrr, ahoy ladies!” he hollered (though one of our trio was distinctly male). “Mind if I come aboard and grab your booty?”
And so began our 7-mile rafting trip — from Barryville to Pond Eddy — with Kittatinny Canoes, a family-owned outfit that’s been around for 70-plus years. It offers river adventures — rafting, canoeing, kayaking, tubing — and camping excursions, and it recently added zip-lining and paintball.
I’d driven many times through this part of the Delaware River Valley, about 2 hours northwest of the city. And from the scenic stretch of road known as the Hawk’s Nest, I’d looked down upon the broad, winding river and daydreamed about floating down it come summer.
Now that I was actually doing it, I wasn’t about to let anything ruin my experience. We furiously paddled away, and fortunately, soon hit our first whitewater, which propelled our bright blue raft farther downstream.
Finally we could relax, leisurely dipping our paddles in the crystal-clear water and soaking up the surroundings. To the right, the rugged, heavily forested Pennsylvania side; on the left, the banks of the slightly more developed New York, dotted with cute Victorian houses and summer campgrounds.
Our pace was slow: partly because of the sluggish current, partly because big inflatable rafts just aren’t all that navigable. (We got stuck many times in the river’s shallow shoals.) In other words, we had to paddle a lot more than we’d expected.
But why hurry? The day was warm and cloudless; the water was cool, crisp, perfect for a quick dip. What few rapids we did encounter seemed all the more exciting for their rarity, and prompted excessive cheering.
We never felt crowded. Even on a summer Saturday, the wide river afforded plenty of open water. Everyone — kayakers, canoers, folks in inner-tubes — seemed to be having a fabulous time.
Yet, I was still mildly disappointed; our trip was nearly over and I had yet to see a bald eagle. This area is known as a hotbed for eagle sightings, with more than a half-dozen nests in the surrounding trees.
As we rounded the last bend, we spied a large brown bird diving toward the water’s surface, in pursuit of, we assumed, a fish. Moments later, two enormous bald eagles — white heads, hooked yellow beaks, just like they look in pictures — flew over us and landed just ahead on a nearby tree. They were a couple (eagles mate for life), and the brown bird was their teenager, learning how to hunt.
Hauling our raft out of the water at the base, we were tired and hot — but happy. We might not have been a pirate ship on the high seas, but it was still a great adventure.
The lowdown
Kittatinny Canoes offers rafting trips ranging from 6 miles (about three hours, depending on conditions) to 10 miles (about five hours). Some stretches of the Delaware River have more whitewater than others, so be sure to ask upon booking. Rates start at $39 per person. Kittatinny will pick you up from the Metro-North train station in Port Jervis, NY, (off-peak one-way tickets, $20.25) or from the bus station in Matamoras, Pa., at no extra charge. More information at kittatinny.com; 800-FLOAT-KC.