River float supports area veterans

CHUCK BANDEL | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 4 years, 9 months AGO

Montana state auditor candidate Troy Downing (with paddle) heads out from the Paradise landing starting point during last weekend’s VFW float on the Clark Fork River. (Chuck Bandel/Valley Press)

Army veteran Jesse Raymond enjoyed his time in the Horse Plains VFW river float last Saturday. (Chuck Bandel/Valley Press)

There were 23 adults and 8 kids in the float,which including everything from large multi-person rafts to kayaks and paddle boards.

Troy Downing, GOP candidate for State Auditor, participated along with his wife.

The float lasted about 3.5 hours down six miles of the Clark Fork. Floaters put in at the fishing access site just outside Paradise and landed at the beach area near the Sanders County Fairgrounds.

Started off windy and cloudy but soon gave way to lots of sunshine. Participants were given river current and depth advice in pre-float safety meeting.

After the float participants gathered at the Plains VFW for a free hamburger/hot dog feed put on by the VFW.

The float was not a fund-raiser and no entry fees were involved. Just a way of the VFW, Joint Operations Mariposa and the U.S. of Hope giving vets and their families a fun break during the summer.

They typically have three or four of these kinds of floats each summer around Montana.