Author Rick Van Noy took a canoe trip down the Delaware River with his dog, Sully, and chronicles their journey in his new book, Borne by the River, writes Jason Nark for The Philadelphia Inquirer. 

Van Noy is a New Jersey native who grew up by the river but later moved for school and work to Colorado, Washington, and Ohio. He has spent the last two decades teaching American literature at Radford University. 

In 2021, after he suffered a stroke, he decided to return to his roots. With Sully by his side, he paddled around 200 miles south, from Hancock, N.Y., to Trenton, N.J. 

“This was always sort of home,” said Van Noy. “I always thought I would come back.” 

Rivers have been an inspiration for many authors, wrote Van Noy in his book, from the Epic of Gilgamesh to A River Runs Through It by Norman Maclean. They are always moving, changing, and evolving. 

“Rivers carry people and goods but also meaning,” he wrote. “And this one means something to me.” 

Read more about Rick Van Noy’s new book about the river in The Philadelphia Inquirer. 

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