Despite spending a great deal of my time camping, fishing, and hiking, my first time canoeing wasn't until I was an adult. We went to Grand Lake Saint Mary's for a weekend and rented a canoe. I quickly fell in love with it and from that day forward, longed to be in a canoe again.
Needless to say, when my husband and some friends from work planned a canoeing trip in West Milton, Ohio, I was definitely on board.
We live about 20 miles away from Barefoot Canoe in West Milton, so the trip took us about 30 minutes. Because it was Memorial Day, there was quite a long wait (about three hours), but it was worth every second. We had an absolute blast! Everyone was so kind and accommodating. At one point during our wait, I had to use the bathroom and one of the women was kind enough to drive me so that I didn't have to walk in the heat.
We were going to do the long trip the first time, but by the time we reached the halfway mark, everyone was pretty worn out, so we decided to call it a day. We were able to get refunded since we only took the short trip and it was much appreciated. Barefoot Canoe is an honest company, one that I highly recommend.
After getting off at the halfway mark, we were picked up by a bus and transported back to the park. Someone on the bus stood up and announced that it was his wife's birthday and everyone sang to her. It was a fun moment. When we got off of the bus, we were greeted by employees with popsicles! It was a perfect end to a warm, summer canoeing trip!
Because we had so much fun, we decided to take our children two weeks later to see how they would do on the river. This time, there wasn't a long wait. As a matter of fact, we were on the water within twenty minutes of arriving.
Our children enjoyed canoeing just as much as we did!
Barefoot Canoe is located off of 571 in West Milton, Ohio. It is a laid-back canoeing spot situated on the beautifully scenic Stillwater River. The long trip is approximately 7 miles with several "islands" to stop at along the way (to rest, swim, or just splash around). We took the short trip both times which equals out to about 4 to 5 miles. It's only $28 for one canoe on the short trip. One canoe fits two adults, or two adults and two small children.
You'll know you're almost to the halfway point when you see this rock formation. I don't know the history behind it, but I know that it is somewhat of a "landmark" at Barefoot Canoe and everyone who has been there knows what it means.
If you're into the great outdoors and are in southwestern Ohio, call some of your best buds, grab a cooler, and head to Barefoot Canoe!
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