Last year Jay and Aileen called us Sunday morning of Memorial day weekend and suggested we go paddling at Marsh Creek that day. It was a great suggestion and we all had a good time.

This year, to avoid anymore early morning day-of calls, I was more proactive in suggesting a trip down the West Branch of the Brandywine Memorial day weekend and invite a few more friends. Jay & Aileen thought it an excellant idea and we invited Kirch and his wife to come along too (technically we invited more, but they were the only ones who could make it).

So we had a date and an idea of a plan. Jen was responsible for the food and I the outfitting. First I located and borrowed a couple of extra boats, though in the end I only needed one extra boat. The next task was planning the route, so the Saturday before, while Jen was running around figuring and preparing food, I ran around figuring and planning the route.

The Brandywine river starts as two branches in northern Chester county (at least for our discussion here). The East Branch is very close to our house, while the West Branch is a little farther away (still within 15 min.). My plan was to do one of the branches so the folks coming from the city would only have to drive within the vicinity of our house and not all over Chester County. After the branches come together, the river is bigger and offers more water (less boat dragging), but that part is further away from our house (30 - 45 min.). With a little research on the internet and simple observation of my own, I figured out the West Branch was the more attractive option. There are a couple of professional outfitters in the area and do all their trips on the West Branch. Great. So where do we put-in, take-out and how long will it be?

Put-in. Just south of Strasburg Rd. - opposite Brandywine Canoe Co. land.