Adventure on the River

STORY BY BETSY ILER & PHOTOS BY CLIFF WILLIAMS

When Chuck Browne retired from the Alabama Cooperative Extension System a little more than seven years ago, the fun loving, jovial people-person that he is couldn’t wait to move to Lake Martin with his wife. They sold their home in Auburn and moved fulltime to a Lake Martin cabin they had purchased in 1993. They had spent vacations and weekends at the cabin for 20 years, raising their children and nurturing the adventuring spirits of family and friends.

“We have made a lot of memories here with our children, our children’s friends, extended family,” Browne said.

They had so much fun at it that they decided to go into the memory-making business at the lake.

Browne owns Off the Beaten Path Alabama, a river outfitting and shuttle service that puts adventurers on the Tallapoosa River and Lake Martin. The Harold Banks Canoe Trail is his most popular route. Above the lake, the Harold Banks Canoe Trail winds through historic lands where the native Creeks thrived in the 18th century. Part of the Alabama Scenic River Trail, the Harold Banks section is designated as one of the top 10 paddle trips in Alabama. Features along the trail include a Native American fish trap, the beautiful but rare endemic Cahaba lily, wildlife sightings and perhaps the country’s most historically significant river bend at Horseshoe Bend National Military Park. At this commemorative park, Andrew Jackson defeated the Red Stick Creeks in 1814, which led to the annexation of most of the Southeastern U.S.

It is along this unspoiled and undeveloped stretch of the Tallapoosa, where eagles fish and the water runs clean and clear, that Browne chose to establish his memory-making business.

“I ran into an opportunity to purchase equipment. There was a kayaking company that was going out of business. The two older guys who had it had aged out. I was just going to buy a few kayaks, but in the end, I bought everything they had. I have tubes, truck, paddles, canoes, kayaks,” he laughed. “I jumped in there with two first feet and hit the ground running.

“Kayaking is one of the many different ways this lake offers so many opportunities to make memories, especially with families. I watch this happen literally every day. “

Browne offers rental equipment and rides to put-in points year round at hours that are convenient to his customers.

“I try to customize my trips to people’s needs. They seem to like that, and it’s not any more trouble for me. If you want to go out there on Jan.1, I’ll carry you out there. I go when you’re ready to go,” he said.

While Browne sets paddlers up with the proper equipment for a float trip through the scenic shoals of

Cahaba lilies bloom in late May and early June on the Tallapoosa River

the upper lake and ferries paddlers and boats up and down the river, his wife keeps the business moving along administratively.

“She takes care of everything business-wise – the clerical, taxes, files, the Facebook page. I just run trips,” Browne said.

He works with a number of river guides and often arranges guided paddling events for groups that might not be familiar with the river. While bachelor parties, clubs and tour groups are frequent customers, he said he is seeing more families sign up for paddling trips, and those are his favorite.

“When I was with the Extension service, I wrote a weekly news column, and I used to write a lot about my family when my kids were young. I promoted family life,” he explained. “It’s families making memories.

“What I’ve seen out here in the last two years is more and more families. Before, it was a group of buddies or a church group, Scouts or good friends. And I still see

those groups, but now, I am seeing dads and moms with their kids. They are bringing their kids out here.” As an Extension coordinator in Lee County, Browne served on the board of tourism there. When he moved to Lake Martin and opened Off the Beaten Path Alabama, his name was thrown in the pot, and he was invited to serve in that capacity here as well. “We’re watching what’s going on, how people are discovering the area. Both of our tourism directors – Tallapoosa County Tourism and Lake Martin Tourism The bridge at Horseshoe Bend National – are doing great things

Military Park is a popular put-in spot letting people know about all that the area has available. It’s not expensive. You don’t have to fly somewhere. Right here, we’ve got trails, camping, watersports, all kinds of ways for families to be together in the outdoors. “I’m not selling kayak rides. I am making memories for people, and that’s rewarding for me,” Browne said. Visit the Off the Beaten Path Alabama Facebook page to plan a river trip.