"First Water," a poem by David Kay (PDF)

David worked with Lou Elliot’s ARTA and wrote some of their first brochures. David’s poetic talent (like Thoreau or Brower) conveyed the river’s beauty and magic and inspired people to flock to the river, well beyond the whitewater lure, thus growing ARTA into the largest companies in the beginning of river running heydays. The Stanislaus quickly became the most popular river west of the Appalachians. The date on this is uncertain.