KINGSTON SPRINGS, Tenn. (WTVF) — Businesses along Tennessee's Harpeth River are facing significant challenges this summer as persistent rainfall keeps water levels high and customers away.
The banks of the Harpeth River sit quiet and peaceful - a scene that would typically bring joy to nature lovers but spells trouble for local kayak and canoe rental businesses.
"One of my favorite places in the world," said David Spear, owner of Tip-a-Canoe.
But that quiet brings no peace for those in the kayak and canoe business this summer, with rental operations seeing dramatically reduced traffic.
"That's probably the last rental of the day," said Spear. "On a real busy weekend or holiday day, we'd put out all these kayaks."
Spring showers have stretched well into what should be profitable summer months, causing Spear to sporadically close his doors to paddlers.
"It's been a crazy, unbelievable year. I haven't seen anything like the beginning of this year," Spear said. "It's normal to lose some days in the spring, but here we are well into what we consider summer, and we've barely been open. This is like the 21st or 22nd day we've been open all year out of the whole year, which is really unbelievable."
Running a river recreation business requires careful attention to safety. Water levels need to be just right for the average paddler. So even though the rain may slack off occasionally, Spear says high river levels are keeping his doors closed even on clear days.
"Just from the overall water being higher and overall rain," Spear explained. "This is the worst season we've had, no matter what happens that I can recall. This is hurting business more than it did in 2010, and we had 6 feet of water at the store with water in all our vehicles."
With unexpected free time, Spear has been clearing away trash left by tubers along the river access points.
"This shouldn't be here at all; this is our access," Spear said while picking up debris.
As he looks over the swiftly moving river, Spear can only hope the weather changes in his favor soon.
"It's very apparent that things have changed, and if they change back, hopefully they do quickly," Spear said. "It makes me really worried about the future. This wouldn't be a sustainable thing that happened over and over again."
Spear reports that business was decent during the Fourth of July holiday. He's hoping for a drier July and August, though he notes drought conditions would also keep boats from the water.
Are you a local business owner affected by this season's unusual weather patterns? I'd like to hear from you at Amanda.Roberts@NewsChannel5.com
This story was reported on-air by Amanda Roberts and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
