'Freeland' Tells Steep Creeking Blackwater Story

The origins and evolution of steep creeking on West Virginia's Upper Blackwater River are explored in a documentary, "Freeland – A Blackwater Story," available on YouTube. The film features interviews with legends of the sport of extreme kayaking, and breathtaking footage of Class IV-V+ paddling. 

"I chose to build the foundation off three main ideas," the director, Justin Harris, writes on the Mountain River Media website, "utilizing a descent of the river as a historical timeline, mixing footage from the 80s and 90s with modern day drone and SLR footage to tell a story, and recording the history of our sport through the storytelling of the original generation of creek boaters.... Rarely in history do athletes of a given sport have the opportunity to share experiences and stories with those who pioneered the sport. I felt it was of vital importance to document these times properly."