Susquehanna River Trail

Last year an exciting letterbox appeared on our radar. Jbzfarm planted what was classified as an extreme letterbox, Susquehanna River Trail. I looked at the clues and quickly determined that it was not something I could just paddle out to and back on an inner-tube because there were no access points right by the island on which the letterbox is planted. It is also in the middle of a mile wide river. Rivers have current and larger fish. Larger fish mean larger teeth. That was pretty scary so I quickly determined it was extreme indeed and that I would have to try to find a canoe to borrow. Preferably with someone to show me how to use it.

I threw out some feelers earlier this year and the 4Rhines said that they were in the middle of planning a trip to get the same letterbox with KellyandBen. I stepped up my efforts to find a canoe and started researching the stretch of the river so that RGBisMe and I might be able to join them.

While researching, I foundthe clues to the box have a couple of great links. I had no idea the river is treated like an actual trail, with registers and folks who maintain certain stretches. I enjoyed reading about what areas of the river were preferred for travel and started checking out the gages that gave what level the river was at and the flow rates.

About a month ago, I broke down and asked jbzfarm if they might have a canoe to lend. They were excited to hear that a trip was in the works and suggested we might all go together, the more the merrier. It became clear that this family loves the river and they wanted to share the island that they maintain as a small camping spot. I was surprised, I thought they had pretty much just randomly chose a secure spot on an island to plant a box. These folks clear debris from the river and keep a couple of islands upriver from Duncannon in camping condition.

Maga11 & Toolman Luke had been planning a big yard sale and I remembered they wanted to get rid of an inflatable raft. Since jbzfarm said the river was at a level that it would be more fun to use tubes anyway I thought that trying this old raft might work. I took time to inflate it and leave it for a few days, it held it's air and Toolman Luke assured me the bottom shouldn't have any holes either.

They day before the trip, I wondered if it might not happen at all. Logistics of the excursion shifted a bit radically, the originators of the August 4th plans KellyandBen and 4Rhines had things come up at the last moment. The river was down to a typical August level and we were in the middle of a terrible heat wave. Worst of all, jbzfarm pointed out that I was missing a most important piece of equipment, a couple of closed cell foam... drink coolies. D@ng, where was I to find something like that in less than 24 hours? I had already rented 2 PFDs and a paddle, I hadn't seen anything like that at the outfitter. Joe assured me this was essential as the river gets very hot and how would we keep our lagers, cosmos and mojitos cool?

Thank goodness for old friends! Good ol' noxer, DaBraLaday came through and said she had 3 to bring for a price. DaBraLady wanted to join the party and even wanted to join in the letterboxing! YAY! We carved her a signature stamp and cootied her, first thing that morning. She had see us magically pull boxes from locations over the past years. At times she had just rolled her eyes at us but I could tell as she inked up her stamp and asked just how to huff it that she was going to get the hang of it quickly.

It was hazy and hot as we started our trip. We were a happy group putting in at Montgomery Ferry. The water was surprisingly warm. We had 5 miles to float during a pretty hot time of the day so I could tell there was no way I was going to stay in the raft, big fish or no. It was shocking that the water was usually only waste deep!RGBisMe and DaBraLady took to the tubes first while Evelyn and I took the raft. Evy was a great lookout for rapids and rocks and would let the group know when some appeared on the distant horizon.

There were exciting things to see along the way. RGBisMe and Joe pointed out an immature eagle. We saw a lot of different birds, butterflies, dragonflies and darning needles. The only fish I saw were tiny little ones that liked hiding under the raft. They looked like tetras. After about a mile, Joe called to a flock of geese. They ignored him but he did draw the attention of a fellow from a notorious picnic area along our right.

After another relaxing mile of great conversation, bouncing blown bubbles and fumbled nerf tosses, we stopped to snack a bit and refresh our all important drink coolies. Becky had a wonderfully refreshing mix in her nalgene bottle which she generously shared. Who knew those bottle were good for anything other than water! As we set off again RGBisMe managed to separate himself from me with the drink we had been sharing. He grinned in his quiet way as he lifted the red cup as a salute to me and the current swept him away. I took to my bottle of water and tried some tasty Propel.

I was pleased that the cool map I bought was keeping me oriented properly. This was such a unique experience; no blazes, no trail intersection signs, just islands and the curve of the river to help you know where you were. The beauty of the area just surrounds you. It is like walking a large alpine ridge top, constant views all around you. As we passed under the crackling powerlines, we knew we were about a half of a mile from Island #89. It is one of the islands that river travelers are allowed to camp on and our goal for the day.

As our hosts unloaded their boat and collected firewood, we took out the clues and zeroed in on the expected location of the letterbox. DaBraLady checked out a pile of rocks and soon we were able to shout, "We have decon!" It is pretty funny that the first letterbox DaBraLady has ever stamped into is an "extreme" letterbox. She earned it honestly and deserved the right to stamp in ahead of us. It was a special moment finding a box in the middle of the river. Jbzfarm always have great locations and carvings, this one did not let us down.


Our hosts made a fire and cooked up some grub with no delay. We were all a little fatigued and the meal put us in the mood for a nice nap. Instead we chatted about things around the fire. Danek told us about his week at Boy Scout Camp. It was great to get to know each other even better before we had to pack up and cut across the mighty river once again. A wonderful way to spend a brutally hot summer day. I hope we can do it again, next time perhaps KellyandBen and 4Rhines can join in.