My 22-Month Journey Of Discovery

A lone canoeist crosses America in search of what binds its people together

- Derek Burnett

Neal Moore is descending New York State’s Mohawk River by canoe, approaching the end of a journey that began 22 months and 7,456 miles ago.

His paddle has plied 21 bodies of water so far on his way across the continent. Downstream always means easier paddling, yet he knows that dangers abound—wedge up against a log or rock and the current will flip him and sink his earthly goods.

All the upstream slogs were worse, of course. His eyes would scan the river for the calm seams of flat water, and the points of land that subdued the stream and made the way less difficult. Lest he surrender hard-earned progress, he would dig and dig long past the burning of his shoulders in mid-morning and on into the long and stiflingly hot—or freezing and windblown—afternoon.

His declared objective was to journey along 22 rivers, across 22 American states, in 22 months. He would “string together rivers” and those living along them to see what still connected the people in that divided country.

At evening, sunset often beams upon a chosen spit of sand—the river showing him where to camp. He likes islands for their safety from animals but also from people. An hour before nightfall he unloads his gear, pitches his tent, fixes some supper, maybe cracks a beer. And then he dines in perfect solitude seated upon an overturned plastic bucket, watching the timeless mystery of day becoming night. Music of coyotes, crickets, frogs. The silent coming of fireflies from across the water, piling into the willows above his head.