Indie Life
Frolicking on the Ohio
Abby Guthrie
Issue date: 11/23/09 Section: Blog
Though the weather is cooling down, the Ohio River in its polluted splendor calls to those adventuresome and independent enough to brave her depths. Coming out of Greenwood Indiana, which is devoid of any body of water, I was thrilled to take advantage of the campus's convenient location on the river. That's not to say that Hanover offers overt opportunities to enjoy water culture, like all the best things at this college, it's something that you have to discover for yourself. Here are the three ways that I have been able to experience the Ohio:
My first interaction with the Ohio was through The Point's entrance to the Happy Valley trail. If you follow it all the way down to the river, and don't mind too much that you're trespassing onto someone's property that likely owns more shotguns than should probably be legal, you will find an exotic location. A barge that long ago collided with the shore acts as a playground harboring tetanus and merriment for the taking. Growing out of this barge is a rusty ladder leading nowhere that will elevate you high enough to the point where the garbage littering the shore looks more romantic than disgusting. My favorite feature is a rope swing nesting in a tree that will fly you out over the river.
If you are not planning on reproducing anytime soon, or are willing to chance a mutant child, then getting a little wetter is always an option. If like me, you are lucky enough to have a few townie friends with boats, the river is yours. I went tubing with a few friends on the Ohio last weekend, and it proved to be both exhilarating and painful. Once you overcome the strange odor and eeriness of having no visibility of your limbs, you are set! The armies of angry ducks and geese that patrol the Madison coast seem to cheer you on as you glide across the world on your thighs. Literally bare thighs by the way, you don't need a high falutin' intertube big enough to keep sensitive parts of your body out of the water. Technology like that is only for "pussies."
My first interaction with the Ohio was through The Point's entrance to the Happy Valley trail. If you follow it all the way down to the river, and don't mind too much that you're trespassing onto someone's property that likely owns more shotguns than should probably be legal, you will find an exotic location. A barge that long ago collided with the shore acts as a playground harboring tetanus and merriment for the taking. Growing out of this barge is a rusty ladder leading nowhere that will elevate you high enough to the point where the garbage littering the shore looks more romantic than disgusting. My favorite feature is a rope swing nesting in a tree that will fly you out over the river.
If you are not planning on reproducing anytime soon, or are willing to chance a mutant child, then getting a little wetter is always an option. If like me, you are lucky enough to have a few townie friends with boats, the river is yours. I went tubing with a few friends on the Ohio last weekend, and it proved to be both exhilarating and painful. Once you overcome the strange odor and eeriness of having no visibility of your limbs, you are set! The armies of angry ducks and geese that patrol the Madison coast seem to cheer you on as you glide across the world on your thighs. Literally bare thighs by the way, you don't need a high falutin' intertube big enough to keep sensitive parts of your body out of the water. Technology like that is only for "pussies."
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