Our kayaks are packed away, our PFDs have had their final deep clean, and the sun has officially set on our 6th season. And what a season it was! We are exhausted, grateful, humbled, proud, and feeling more than ready for 2021. It is bittersweet to reflect on these last 8 months. On one hand, like so many others have this year, we suffered many unexpected losses. We had big plans and then suddenly we had to make big adjustments. But woven among the let downs, uncertainties, and periods of mourning were many shining moments of gratitude, kindness, innovation, growth, community, and purpose.

How we started 2020

We first got the gang back together in early March as we assembled our resources to aid in tornado relief. From clearing debris in East and North Nashville, to tetris-packing our RQV vans full of donations collected by Frothy Monkey for the Community Resource Center, we had a busy start! Then, just as quickly as we came together to help and heal, we had to separate and distance. COVID-19 was beginning to make its way to Middle Tennessee, and we prepared for the possibility of a two-week delay to the start of our season. (We were so young then! So naive!) Then, two weeks started to look like two months...and two months started to look like maybe we wouldn’t have a 2020 season at all. And yet, we knew we couldn’t let that happen. As a company founded upon the idea that nature is healing, we knew we were needed now, more than ever. So, with your help, we made it happen! Here are some of the highlights from this season:

Kurbside Kayaks

We were unable to operate in Metro Parks for the first few months of our season, so we pivoted to Kurbside rentals. And y’all loved it so much, we kept it going! Through our Kurbside Kayak rentals, we were able to provide a safe and socially-distant connection to the great outdoors for hundreds of locals! It was a delight getting to show so many of you how to ratchet strap like pros, and giving you the deets on our favorite Middle Tennessee waterways to explore with your “quaran-teams”.

Season Passes

2020 marked our first year of our Season Pass program (our unlimited kayak rental membership) and it turned out to be a saving grace for so many of you in quarantine! It made us beyond happy to see so many familiar faces all season long, and hear all your awesome feedback. (We may or may not have teared up hearing from one family that kayaking was the one thing they looked forward to each week.) Also, we’d love to give a special shout out to our #1 Season Pass holder Jory Roberts, who got on the water with us 14 times this season totaling about $10 a rental! Round of applause for Jory!

Shuttle-less Service

When we were finally able to begin our regular routes on the Cumberland, we had to reimagine our services without our passenger shuttle. It took a lot of pre-planning, learning on the fly, and patience on both sides, but we made it happen. And we’re thrilled to report that between our precautions, our patrons’ abidance, and some good luck, we finished the season without any COVID-related shutdowns and our crew remained healthy throughout the entire season.

Community Outreach

In a year when so many needed it, we were especially pleased to be able to expand our community outreach. We had our inaugural Juneteenth celebration and offered free rentals to our Black community members. Additionally, we ran our “Free Rides for Strange Times” program throughout August and September, and were able to give a moment of respite to members of our community who had been especially impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. If you’d like to learn more about our community outreach or have an idea for us, send us an email!

Special Events

We also added a few new, socially-distant events and routes to our schedule this year! The Halloweekend paddles and our Satur-DATE Skyline Paddle Picnic were two big hits we were thrilled to try out. Our Paddle Pop-Ups—where we paddle different sections of the Cumberland River— were a huge success, and a fun way to keep things exciting for our crew and customers. We also added Lakeside Fridays on Percy Priest at the Hamilton Creek Recreation Area to our list of offerings this year, and it became a fan favorite! We all looked forward to getting a in a late afternoon paddle and kicking off the weekends with so many of you. Fingers crossed we are able to bring some of these into next season!

We cannot thank you enough

Of course, we are so proud and blessed to have had as successful of a season as we did this year despite all of the obstacles- and we truly, truly could not have done it without each and every one of you. Every Season Pass you purchased; every t-shirt, sticker, or mask you ordered; every photo you tagged us in; every friend you told about us; every trip you booked directly helped keep River Queen Voyages afloat. And there’s still so much more to come! We have new merch on the way, our Holiday Gift Boxes coming soon, and we’re doing 50% off all of our existing logo tees (use the code “SAVEBIG” at checkout). None of that would be possible without you. So, thank you, from the bottom of our hearts. Because of you, we can confidently and excitedly say: SEE YOU NEXT SEASON!

Much love,
The RQV Team