Junior Matt Steible will spend his entire spring break outside, but it won’t be on a tropical beach and he won’t appear on MTV. Instead, he will paddle the 110 mile Haw River to raise awareness that the river exists right in our backyard.

On March 16 Steible will begin his week-long journey. It starts north of Greensboro at the Haw River State park and continues until the Pittsboro area where it feeds into Jordan Lake. Steible plans on arriving at the lake on March 25.

“Matt is a really outdoorsy kind of person, so this paddle really fits him well,” sophomore John Edgington said.

Steible’s love for the outdoors started at a young age. He spent nearly every summer vacation with his family camping, fishing and canoeing up and down the east coast. When he arrived at Elon, his interest only grew. He says he finds something unique and different about the outdoors beceause there is something special about it.

Steible he has such a great appreciation for the outdoors and would like others to think the same way. He doesn’t see the trek as a struggle but an adventure instead.

“I’m not looking to set the world on fire,” Steible said, “I just want people to know what they have in their backyard.”

The Haw River runs through much of Alamance and Chatum counties. Some recognizable places near the river include Duke, UNC Chapel Hill, Western Alamance High School and Elon. Steible would like the residents of these areas to become familiar with the river and how much it has changed throughout the years.

The water quality of the river has changed the most because it was abused by textile mills in the past. Steible said he has heard stories about the water changing colors daily.

One way to celebrate the positive river changes is to carry a jug of the water throughout the trip and pour it into Jordan Lake. This was actually done 25 years ago by Chuck Brady, an original founder of the Haw River Assembly and Robbins, North Carolina native who flew with the Blue Angels and later became an astronaut. He passed away last summer. Steible is hoping to mimic his journey. Brody also stopped along the river to talk to people who lived, worked near or who simply enjoyed it.

Shortly after Brady completed his paddle, a local conservatory group, The Haw River Assembly, was started. This group works to improve the water quality, add recreational access points along the river and have activities for people to enjoy, including hiking.

Steible said that he has gone to a number of their meetings and they say it is “refreshing to see a young person so involved in the river.”

After deciding to complete this paddle, Steible found that he has met so many new people within the community and made an attempt to “break the Elon bubble.”

“This paddle really speaks to Matt’s character to go out and actively pursue something that he feels strongly about instead of sitting back and waiting for someone else to take action,” Edgington said.

Steible has always appreciated what nature has to offer and in starting this paddle and the planning process for the celebration, his appreciation of the Elon area has only grown. He spends a lot of time on the river and looks forward to experiencing parts he hasn’t already seen throughout his spring break.

Reporter: Laurie Craft - 03/08/07