Floating down the Big Blue River was so much fun that even the family whose canoe flipped three times wants to do it again next year.

On Saturday in Henry County was the third annual "Canoe the Big Blue River," sponsored by Friends of Big Blue River. The purpose of the event is to provide fun while raising awareness of the river and the importance of keeping it clean and safe.

"We rented 16 canoes and eight kayaks, but there were many people who brought their own boats," said Lee Ann Wallen of the Friends of the Big Blue River. Kathy Rogers, another organizer of the event, estimated that there were at least 50 people. Canoe Country of Daleville provided the canoes and kayaks for rental.

The trip went from the bridge on County Road 125W north of New Castle, to 600S and Mill Road near Knightstown.

"One woman and her nephew had their canoe overturn three times," Wallen said. "We had to retrieve the canoe each time and once had to recover her waterproof camera. But she was still smiling after it was all over."

"The little boy wasn't scared," Rogers added. "He said that he wanted to do it again next year."

The heavy rains that pelted central Indiana for much of June stayed away for this day. The river was quite swift - and muddy in several places - from the after-effects of the recent storms.

The boaters got to see some wildlife, including a plentiful nest of blue herons, among some sycamore trees.

"Those young birds were making a lot of noise," Wallen said.

There was one rough spot, due to a recently fallen tree.

"We try to keep the river cleared of those trees, but this one had fallen the night before," Wallen said.

Rogers pointed out that the Friends of Big Blue River removes logjams only for safety purposes.

"It's important that some of those trees and limbs be left in the river for the benefit of fish and turtles and other creatures," she said. "We don't want to disturb it too much. We remove one enough to get the boats through."

It was an enjoyable and enlightening day for many.

"There are many people in Henry County who aren't aware of what a nice river we have," Wallen said. "Even some people who lived nearby told us they didn't know much about it before."