Swift River

Thinking about it, I realize that there are a lot of rivers in my life that hold great importance: The Kennebec River, since it is, to me, truly the heart of Maine, running through "my middle" of the state, and providing some fantastic paddling and rafting, is up near the top of my list. Also up there is the Kennebago,, in Rangeley, since we have had some rich family experiences on the river, and also the Moxie River, since that is the home of Moxie Falls. But probably at the top of my list must be the Swift River in NH--the Swift, for those who dont know, is the river that runs adjacent to the Kancamagus Highway in NH, a gorgeous stretch of highway connecting Conway to Woodstock NH. I believe the "Kanc," as they call it, was an ancient Indian hunting path that became a highway. Why not?

As kids, we spent a LOT of our family vacations--with both my mom and my dad--in North Conway et al, and spent a lot of time going back and forth across the Kanc. Sometimes, even if there was no destination, we'd drive across the beautiful byway just to check out scenery and the amazing river. All along the 32 mile stretch of highway there are ample opportunities to pull off and park so that one can go exploring the river. It doesnt lend itself well to actual "swimming," since it is, well, so SWIFT.....and incredibly shallow and rocky. But what it does lend itself well to--and probably so richly so that it captures the hearts of all little kids--is simply EXPLORATION. As kids, Kristin and I used to traverse huge boulders and flat rocks, trying to see how far out we could get without a) being swept down the river to certain death or b) getting yelled at by Hank and thus banished to the back of the pickup truck so that Nugget, the dog, could sit up front (oh wait...that really happened to me ANYWAY...hehe)

There were places to sit benath little waterfalls, and there were rocks up against which you could lean and get one powerfully hydraulic massage. It was just great and we have lots of fantastic childhood memories there.

One day last weekend, while on our NH trip, when the Favry family and my mom went to Clark's Trading Post, the Goldsmiths decided to skip Clarks and, instead, take a ride along the Kanc and pass theh "Swift River Tradition" along to Callum and Maira. And, even though it was excruciatingly rainy outside, we found a pulloff, discovered a little trail, and explored the riverbanks, rocks, mosses, and plants that adorned this beautiful section of New Hampshire....