Gay and Frank White on the Buffalo River
It all began with me, a dewy-eyed newlywed, being called an SOB by the man I had recently pledged my life to. It did not end well. At least in the moment.
It happened on the Buffalo National River in a canoe. My new husband, Frank White, wanted to introduce me to the beautiful outdoors of Arkansas. He loved camping, hiking, and canoeing and wanted to share the joys of those adventures in the Natural State. As a new transplant to Arkansas, it was all new to me!
On my inaugural voyage on the Buffalo River, I was a novice, not knowing “come here” from “sic’em.”
As it happens in floating, we encountered a bend in the river and the current headed us for a rather large rock! From the booming voice in the stern, I was not paddling correctly. Of course I wasn’t! I was a bit panicked thinking my life was about to end with a faceplant and drowning on that big rock! It seems Frank panicked too because he raised his voice (in fear) and unable to tell me what to do said, “Paddle you SOB!” At that moment, I was willing to lose life and limb at the insult. I turned around in the canoe, threw my paddle at him, and told him “DO IT YOURSELF!!!” Thankfully, the river took pity on me and somehow the “sweet current” delivered us safely around that rock.
It was a frosty finish to the trip and a silent drive back home. Within a few days, I enrolled us in the American Red Cross a couple’s canoe class which took place on the Mulberry River. I’ll NEVER forget the first words from our canoe instructor! “If you don’t hear anything else in the next two days, remember this: YOU PADDLE YOUR HALF OF THE CANOE.” Wiser words were never spoken. I’m happy to say that those few days of instruction began many, many years of happy paddling for Frank and me. We enjoyed the Buffalo, the Mulberry, the Spring, the Caddo, the Big Piney, and the Eleven Point in Southern Missouri. Through the years we hosted many friends on these beautiful rivers. For many it was their first time and we delighted in sharing our beautiful state with them.
One year Frank and I planned to take some friends on a day trip on the Buffalo. It was April and spring was abloom! So were Frank’s allergies. The morning of the trip Frank told me he just felt awful, and I’d have to take the group by myself. I told him no problem! Now I had never soloed in a canoe. How hard could it be? Problem was I only knew how to paddle my half! We pushed off, I sat in the stern and for many river miles struggled to keep the darn thing straight. Nearing my exhaustion point, we saw a sandbar up ahead and I yelled for the group to pull over. There was another group on the bank and I heard someone yell my name! It was my longtime friend Bill Steward greeting me. I began to tell him what a hard time I was having and he very gently, quietly advised me to move to the center of my canoe. It worked and he saved the day! I learned a valuable lesson.
Frank and I often canoed alone. He always sang to me from the stern! His favorite serenade was to the tune of “Indian Love Call.” He sang the words,” Oh I’m loving you, oooooh, oooooh, oooooh, with a love that’s true, oooooh, oooooh, oooooh.” Well, I hope you get the gist! Ha, just listen to the original by Slim Whitman in 1952! You’ll get the idea!
Frank introduced me to camping as well. We camped at Gunnar’s Pool on Sylamore Creek, Kyle’s Landing, Rush and I can honestly say I’ve never slept better than in a cozy sleeping bag on the banks of those rivers! Frank also introduced me to America’s National Parks. We loved them! Our first adventure was visiting Grand Canyon National Park. We did a small bit of hiking, but something at Grand Canyon lit a fire in me and I returned later to do three rim to rim hikes. I loved it!
On Frank’s 50th birthday I surprised him with an 8-day rafting trip on the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. It had been a longtime desire of his and it one of the most amazing trips we ever did. Sleeping under the stars in Grand Canyon compared with nothing we had previously experienced. The myriad of twinkling stars against the dark velvet sky took our breath away! AND seeing the silhouette of the rising canyon around us against the night sky helped us know just how truly small we were and how large a “cathedral” we slept in. The side hikes each day of the float were amazing! We especially loved Havasupai Canyon. The stunning turquoise blue waters invited us to jump right in.
Of course, I cannot talk about a Colorado River trip without mentioning the RAPIDS! Frank and I floated in a 4-person raft with an oarsman. When we headed into the rapids our guide always had Frank hanging off the front of the boat…to add his weight so we wouldn’t flip backwards! With every rapid Frank would come up laughing at the top of his lungs! The exhilaration of being slapped in the face by those cold, cold canyon waters and just the excitement of the rapids made us feel like two little kids again! We had an absolute blast!
Our love of rivers took us to other raft trips on the Middle Fork of the Salmon River through the River of No Return Wilderness and the Colorado River through Cataract Canyon.
Our love of National Parks took us to Hot Springs, Yosemite, Yellowstone, Zion, Bryce, Channel Islands, Shenandoah, Everglades, the Smokey Mountains, U.S. Virgin Islands, Smokey Mountain, Glacier, Rocky Mountain, Mount Rainier, Cascades, Arches, Acadia, Death Valley and list goes on and on! BUT, it all began with that first canoe trip on the Buffalo National River, right here in our beloved state. I’m happy to say I was never, ever referred to as an SOB again!