Facing danger on Ol' Man River

Published online on Tuesday, Aug. 19, 2008

The first time Ethan Johnstone went kayaking, he paddled around Monterey Bay for two hours.

"Just to make sure I liked it," he said.

A couple months ago, Johnstone went kayaking for a second time. The 21-year-old Fresno native paddled 1,704 miles down the flood-swollen Mississippi River from Minneapolis to New Orleans. The trip, which ended July 9, lasted 59 days.

Johnstone wasn't alone on this fantastic voyage. Joined by Justin Blomgren and Tim Cahill, college buddies from California Baptist University in Riverside, they raised $14,000 for the International Justice Mission, an organization that fights illegal sex trafficking throughout the world and provides relief to its victims.

Fun, adventure and a noble cause, all rolled into one epic journey. The friends named their effort Upstream Battle.

"It's so easy for people to sit around and say, 'There are so many injustices in the world, nothing I do can make a difference,' " Johnstone said. "It's important to pick one and do something about it."

Johnstone, Blomgren and Cahill matched intention with action. Packing their 16-foot sea kayaks with camping equipment, clothing, books and a few days' supply of food, they floated from town to town, at first camping on sandbars in the middle of the river before eventually accepting the hospitality of folks they'd meet along the way.

By Johnstone's count, they stayed at 43 different homes and churches. As word spread downstream about the trip, residents welcomed them with open arms. Some even rented trailers and drove 20 miles out of their way in order to ferry the men and their boats from the river to their homes.

"We expected to meet some nice folks," Johnstone said, "but we never expected that kind of Southern hospitality every day."

Every Sunday, the trio took a break from paddling and spoke to various church groups about their cause. They found a captive audience, who by and large were surprised to learn that the commercial sex trade has ensnared nearly 2 million children worldwide, according to the IJM.

Upstream Battle collected many "huge checks" for the cause. But the donation Johnstone will remember most came from a homeless woman woman in Winona, Minn., who handed him a $10 bill.

"She looked at me with watery eyes, told me she was homeless for several weeks and this was her last $10," Johnstone said.

He immediately thought shoving the bill back in her hands -- who wouldn't? -- but then thought better of it.

"Who am I to rob that lady of her blessing?" Johnstone said. "It was a pretty helpless feeling."

It is memories like these, along with their adventures on the river, that Johnstone, Blomgren and Cahill will carry with them.

Despite their lack of paddling experience (only Blomgren had spent much time in a kayak prior to the trip), they managed to avoid major mishaps. That is, if you don't count sunburn, bug bites and sore shoulders.

"We had plenty of room in the budget for aloe vera," said Johnstone, who gained 10 pounds from all the food he ate.

Though the waters of the Mississippi were running dangerously high due to recent floods, Johnstone said it wasn't an issue because they didn't know any better. But things got sketchier the further South they went. They dodged barges and tugboats that threw wakes up to 6 feet high -- more than enough to swamp a kayak.

During one afternoon near St. Louis, complete with heavy rain, lightning, 40-mph winds and tornado sirens, a wake engulfed Blomgren's kayak. Because their bilge pump was broken, Johnstone and Cahill bailed water from Blomgren's flooded boat using an empty chili can before they took refuge underneath a bridge.

"Later, we found out that is one of the worst spots to wait out a tornado because of all the suction," Johnstone said.

Back home in Fresno, Rich and Rhonda Johnstone anxiously awaited nightly phone calls from their son.

"We were both more than a little relieved when it was over," Rich Johnstone said.

Upon arriving in New Orleans, they received a congratulatory phone call from the staff of IJM, which is headquartered in Washington, D.C.

"People are always doing interesting things to raise money for us, but what these kayakers did really stands out," IJM spokesperson Lori Poer said. "They're a real encouragement and inspiration to all of us."

Only one question remains: Why?

To Johnstone, who in 2006 spearheaded a cross-country bike trip for a similar cause, the answer lies in his deeply rooted faith.

"So often the church can become all about itself and kind of neglect the rest of the world," he said. "It comes from the belief that the church is supposed to look and act like Christ when He was on earth."

To read more about this remarkable adventure, check out their blog at www.upstreambattle.blogspot.com. Donations are still being accepted.