Speaker: Josh Matthews
In 2015, encouraged by Jeff Rasley, I pushed off from his modest White River dock and set sail for New Orleans. 1400 miles later I arrived and was greeted by NOLA Coast Guard and was told that I wasn't allowed to be kayaking on the Mississippi. The talk will focus on the real and potential dangers I faced: misleading maps, Silver Carp, barge and river traffic, dams, alligators and mosquitos, night fall, sun exposure and dehydration, inclement weather, and many more!
Josh Matthews was raised in Indiana. The day after he graduated from Marian University in 2013, he booked a one-way flight to Kathmandu with Scientech Club members Jeff Rasley, Jerry Williams, and David Culp. He taught in Vietnam before returning to the US a year later to teach elementary and high school.
He has lived in New York city where he learned about real estate. He has traveled Europe including walking El Camino de Santiago - a 500-mile pilgrimage across Spain.
He has had a lot of adventures on his way to becoming a real estate agent, a husband and a father to Andril and Sophia.
Program: The Perils of Kayaking to NOLA
Speakers: Josh Matthews, adventurer, real estate agent, and more including STC membership
Introduced By: Jeff Rasley
Attendance: NESC: 96; Zoom: 24
Guest(s): Mike Hodgins, Paul Kennellp, Maria Nesterova, Ethan Romba, Nicholas Timperman, Terri and Tom Vahey
Scribe: Ruth Schmidt
Editor: Carl Warner
Talk’s Zoom recording found at: https://www.scientechclubvideos.org/zoom/09292025.mp4
Jeff Rasley introduced our speaker, Josh Matthews. Josh and Jeff met when Josh was a student in the philanthropy class Jeff was teaching. Josh and Jeff went on a trek with several other Scientech members to Nepal. Josh volunteered at a leper colony in India and taught English in Hanoi, Vietnam. Today he spoke about his experience paddling a kayak starting from Jeff’s backyard on the White River and ending 1,400 miles later in New Orleans.
After graduating in philosophy from Marian College, Josh tried the seminary life but found it didn’t suit him. However, he continued to feel that a long retreat from technology would give him new perspectives. He undertook his river adventure with one book: Walt Whitman’s Leaves of Grass. He traveled alone in a sea-going kayak for 213 miles on the White River, 75 miles on the Wabash River, 133 miles on the Ohio River and 954 miles on the Mississippi River.
He explained the anatomy of the river with its bends and straight portions. The bends bordered with bluffs are good for growing corn. These have a fast current on the outside of the bend. The quiet bends have flat land and are flood zones. These are the best for camping. He found it challenging to plan each day to end before sundown. Go on to the next quiet bend or just stay here?
He shared many stories. He described the river people: bar hoppers, fishermen, hunters, barge handlers, Army Corp of Engineers, Coast Guard, and more. On the Wabash, he was scared when the fog was so thick he could hardly see his hand in front of him. How will he see the barges? How will the barges see him? One time he got in the way of a barge which angrily honked at him. He found fishermen who equipped fishing rods with bows and arrows to catch the invasive Asian carp. They simply enjoyed the sport of it since the fish aren’t good for anything. Hospitable strangers had seen Josh’s sendoff on RTV6. They invited him for a hotdog roast and an impressive (illegal) tire fire that really stank. Sometimes he ‘ramped’ or surfed the wake from the barges. He lost his cell phone and some other gear causing his mother great anxiety during a couple days of no contact.
In New Orleans he was greeted by irritated Coast Guard officials who told him his trip was illegal. He said: too late. Somehow Josh can charm anyone, and the Coast Guard took a great picture of him at the end of his river adventure.
He concluded with his life lessons from the rivers. Singing, meditation, and prayer contribute to his radical optimism, positivity, and ability to encourage others.
Josh Matthews
