Almost two decades ago, friends Craig Pruett and Ron Miller were enjoying martinis and discussing life. The two had met while Pruett worked for the city of Lawrence. Miller’s grandchildren were the same age as Pruett’s kids and enjoyed hanging out together. Miller had even started calling Pruett “Puppy,” and he was known as Uncle Ron.
That fateful evening, Miller asked, “Hey, Puppy. Can you get ahold of a canoe?”
When Pruett said he could, Miller replied, “We’re going to make this the summer of the canoe.”
“It was my first experience on the river,” Pruett remembers. “I’d gone to KU, been in Lawrence for years, but never out on the river. I’m literally wearing lace-up work boots and jeans. We started floating down the Delaware River. When we came out of the Delaware confluence and hit the Kansas River, I was like, this is just amazing!”
The two started taking their kids out on the river, and then friends went with them, too. Afterward, they’d buy pizza and go to Miller’s home in Perry, where they would put out a tip jar and ask everyone to contribute what they thought the float trip was worth.
“It was a terrible business model,” Pruett laughs.
The friends eventually established Up a Creek Canoe and Kayak Rental. The goal is to highlight the fun of being on the river with the motto, “If you have a bad time, it’s your own fault!”
“It’s a great way to raise kids and be out in the environment and also to bring awareness to this thing called the Kaw, or the Kansas River, and what a great resource it is for us,” Pruett says.
Up a Creek (UAC) rents out both kayaks and canoes. You can pick up the equipment or pay extra to have them do the drop-off and pick-up. Use of the rivers in Kansas is free. UAC has agreements with some private property owners to allow them access to the Kansas River in areas where community access is limited.
The company holds single-day float trips, from sun up to sun down, and sunset floats where you paddle to a certain point, get out and start a campfire, watch the moon come up, and then paddle off under the full moon. Pruett, a certified yoga instructor, leads two-hour floats where you paddle to a sand bar, get out, and go through a guided yoga and meditation class.
“I love being outside and then being able to share it in such a manner that it’s pretty cost-effective for a family to come out and have an adventure,” Pruett says.
All skill levels are welcome on the float trips since the Kansas River is a low-flow class one river. However, Pruett still wants people to have at least some swimming experience. All of the kayaks are entry-level models. The broad base makes them more stable and not easy to flip.
Pruett advises, “The canoes are great, but I always push people to get into the kayak because it’s a more balanced creature. It sits in the water better, you sit in the water better, and you’re the captain. You don’t have someone sitting in the back steering you the wrong way. If you’re watching yourself and watching out for others around you, it’s really a grand day.”
For people who purchase a kayak, Pruett recommends taking it to a local lake or swimming pool before going into the river. He says, “Get into your kayak and test it out. Toss yourself over. Get some experience in it because once you get on the river and you’re moving, having water and currents push you, you want to be aware of what the experience is. Then, when you do get on the river, take some general precautions. Wear a life vest. Take some water with you. Educate yourself. YouTube is great for many things, and go to the Friends of the Kaw website. And then go out and really enjoy it.”
Miller stepped away from the float trips a few years ago, so Pruett doesn’t get called Puppy nearly as much. He says with a smile, “The name doesn’t get thrown around as much as when he was screaming at me a quarter mile away on a sandbar, ‘Hey Puppy, hold up!’”
“Kansas is unique. Unlike Colorado or some other states, we get to use this water at no-fee costs. And if you’d ultimately like to use us, we’d be happy to take you out there.”
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