Ken Taylor 



ABOVE: Doug Smith, center, leads paddling groups down the Waccamaw, including supporters of the Winyah Rivers Foundation. 



even a few graves. The canoes were made 

 from large cypress trees that he split in half 

 with a saw. He then dug out the trees' cores 

 with an ax. 



"Canoes were better man-made than 

 they are now," says Clewis. "It took some 

 work to dig them. I used a big log and an ax. 

 Gave my last boat to the Scouts." 



The tradition is a dying art because of 

 new types of materials for manufactured 

 canoes and a dwindling supply of cypress, 

 according to Hickman. 



The inside of Clewis' home reflects his 

 simple life on the river. The living room has a 

 wood stove. On the walls are numerous 

 photos of his dugout canoes and mounted 

 deer. 



"I been hunting all my life," he says. 

 "There ain't no deer in the swamp I couldn't 

 get." 



A plank boat with a paddle lies on the 

 floor of the covered porch. 



For most of his life, Clewis fished each 

 day in the river. He walks to the riverbank, 

 drawing a line in the dirt to show the path of 

 the river. 



"The river comes up and then gets 

 narrow and turns again. It goes about a mile 

 and then moves into the lake," he says. 



ECOTOURISM 



With the rich heritage of Crusoe Island 

 and the river's abundant natural resources, 

 Columbus County is an untapped area for 

 ecotourism. 



"Ecotourism has a lot of value in 

 Columbus County because a lot of industries 

 have folded here," says Scott Schmolesky, 

 park ranger/technology instructor at 

 Southeastern Community College in 

 Whiteville. "Lake Waccamaw and the river 

 are such natural gems." 



Spence agrees. 



"When people go to a new area to 



paddle, they usually come down to see the 

 wildlife and beauty," she says. "But more 

 often, they get hooked on the people." 



In eastern North Carolina, ecotourism 

 — which includes paddling and other outdoor 

 activities — has boosted local economies. 



Each year, paddlers contribute more 

 than $148 million to North Carolina's coastal 

 economy, according to a survey conducted by 

 North Carolina Sea Grant extension director 

 Jack Thigpen. Nearly one-third of these 

 paddlers have an annual household income of 

 more than $90,000, and more than two-thirds 

 are professionals or managers, the survey 

 reports. 



"Clean water was the number one 

 reason to choose a paddling location." says 

 Thigpen. 



Because of its remoteness and beauty, 

 canoeists have been paddling the river for 

 centuries. In 1878, Nathaniel H. Bishop wrote 



Continued 



COASTWATCH 9 



