Brandywine River  – Wyeth Walk #169

I am once again astounded how every time I open up the Letters of NC Wyeth book for purpose of a blog, that the pages more often than not open exactly to a perfect pairing for the day.  Today was no different.  Spent the day kayaking on the Brandywine with my family (today’s photo of me and our son courtesy of my husband).  We got in at the Brandywine River Museum and made our way downstream leisurely for several hours, with lots of stops for the kids to play on the banks and throw rocks in the water.

The weather was glorious, the river serene, the views beautiful, the company wonderful.  A day we will remember for a long time.

When I went to the NC Wyeth book, I opened towards the beginning, because I knew there were some letters about he and his brothers canoeing on the Concord River in Massachusetts where he grew up; I thought I could find one of those for a river/canoeing quote.  Keep in mind this book is over two inches thick and has very little pictures.  Opened the book, and staring up at me on the page I just happened to find immediately, was a picture of Carolyn Bockius (later Wyeth) sitting in a canoe on the Brandywine River, from one of the many canoe trips she and NC made while they were dating.  I’m sure today I was on many of the same stretches of river that they used to frequent 110 years ago as a young couple. What amazes me is the realization that this, on the river, is one of the few places I could be where the views and surroundings probably look very much like they did 110 years ago- there was no view of buildings or roads, just the river and its banks of trees, as if I had transported back in time.

September 5, The Brandywine River