‘Lots and lots of people’: Thousands pack American River over Memorial Day weekend
Memorial Day has always been about remembering military personnel who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces, but this year many sought reminders of what life was like before the coronavirus pandemic.
Some carried meats and big bags of ice out of grocery stores en route to backyard barbecues. Others towed boats to rivers and lakes as temperatures soared to 100 degrees.
Tens of thousands of people converged on the American River Parkway during Memorial Day weekend, packing waterways more than usual, according to park rangers. One of them was Marquis Wilkins, a 30-year-old Pinole resident who stood under a shady tree tossing a football to his son Monday while his wife went inside to fill out registration forms at American River Raft Rentals.
“Just getting out of the house – something to do for Memorial Day,” Wilkins said. “This whole pandemic thing has been crazy, so wifey wanted to come out and do something. We looked at Lake Berryessa, but everything was booked. She made some phone calls and this place had some availability.”
American River Raft Rentals opened May 9 as California officials began to ease COVID-19 restrictions. Inside the rental center, employees wore masks and customers are directed to remain 6 feet apart. Groups of six or more are not recommended and each raft should only hold members of the same household.
“Everybody’s been pretty happy,” manager Sarah Hahn said. “I think people are just happy to find a safe way to get outside.”
Hahn said only 10 reservations were allowed per hour. Shuttle buses were being filled to half capacity with rows of separation between each group.
“We’re letting everyone know to continue to social distance out on the water,” Hahn said. “Today we actually have a couple employees staged at the main places where people stop on the river to keep our rafts moving so they don’t pull over and pile up on the beach.”
Out on the water, park rangers were on lookout for all forms of misbehavior with an emphasis on alcohol consumption, but they were not enforcing social distancing guidelines.
“We’re looking for voluntary compliance on the health orders,” Sgt. Paul Nanfito said. “It’s supposed to be families only on the rafts and it’s up to the raft companies to make that assertation. We’re hitting the alcohol violations very, very hard this weekend. We’ve been issuing citations for alcohol at just about every access.”
.JPG "SAC_DMK_6314 (1).JPG")
Nanfito said Saturday there was a DUI arrest following a hit-and-run and an incident that caused a boat to capsize at Discovery Park, and a fight involving about 10 people at River Bend Park. There were no other major incidents as of Monday afternoon.
“Lots and lots of people, lots and lots of boats, and a lot of management of people for us,” Nanfito said. “This weekend, following COVID-19 events, we are definitely much busier than a normal Memorial Day weekend.”
Jessica Carter, 30, came from Lodi to rent a raft and soak up the sun after adhering to stay-at-home orders for the past few months.
“It sucks having to sit in the house, so this is a nice change,” she said.
A small percentage of rafters wore masks outside the rental center, but most did not.
“We brought some just for safety or in case they require us to have them, but other than that we’re not too concerned,” Wilkins said. “I keep them in my car just because. I had my son grab a handful and put them in his backpack just in case, but we’re not scared. It feels like things are getting back to normal a little bit. It definitely feels good to be out.”
This story was originally published May 25, 2020 at 4:42 PM.
