Paddling the Neuse: Wary of a severe weather forecast, keeping an eye on the river and one on the sky

By Richard Adkins, WRAL photojournalist

Kinston, N.C. — We left Kinston knowing storms were brewing. With most of eastern North Carolina under threat of severe weather, we kept our eyes on the radar and weather pages.

It was a few hours into our trip when hard rain hit. We pulled to the bank and waited out the heavy rain for a few minutes. It didn’t last long, and we were under way among the sprinkles.

We wanted to make camp by early afternoon to get settled before the storms really came in the evening.

We pulled into camp just as the river started rocking and rolling. We made land while slicing through small white caps.

We’ve pulled the boats far up on shore, not knowing how much the river will rise.

On Saturday, we’ll paddle the final 27 miles to New Bern, where there a good chance we will celebrate with a beverage or two.