JIM THORPE, Pa. — Rafts line the waterfront along the Jim Thorpe boat launch as hundreds of people looked to get out onto the Lehigh River.
Kathy Babb and her family were among many who decided to take a river trip with Pocono Whitewater.
"I'm super excited to be whitewater rafting. I've never been before, and they've been. My brothers have been taking the kids when they were little, so this is my first time here," said Babb from Middletown.
Sierra Fogal is the operations manager of the rafting company.
She says while many people booked with her company during this holiday weekend, the beginning of the season was a rough one.
"It started out kinda dry. We didn't have much snow this winter. So we had not a lot of water in April, but since then, we've been able to get some rain. The same been storing water, and now we're up and running," Fogal said.
The river's been so low here at the Jim Thorpe boat launch that this is actually the first time in a couple of weeks that the rafting company has been able to send rafters along this section of the river.
"We had rain last weekend, so we are able to do our full family style sections, which is an 8-mile section that puts in at Jim Thorpe and takes out in Bowmanstown," Fogal said.
It's a business that Fogal says relies heavily on good weather, rainfall, and the right amount of water in the river.
"We are always watching the weather to look at water levels and how we might need to adjust our trips if the waters are too high or if the waters are too low and also looking at the weather," Fogal said. "When the weather is really nice, it's hot and sunny, we have a lot more people that want to come out. So we're always trying to balance if it's hot or if it's cool with the rainfall and the water levels in the river."
As long as mother nature cooperates, Fogal's hopeful it should be a great season.
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