Sadly, Richard Hopley, AKA Oci-One Kanubi, has died. This occurred last weekend, May 24/25, at his home in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. He had just returned from a lengthy trip to the Ozarks, then across Texas and New Mexico to Arizona, where he connected with his brother and his family in Tucson. The family went to Spain for a few weeks, then back to Tucson. Richard then drove across the United States back to his home. In his last few posts, he talked about having a bad cold and taking Sudafed and Dayquil. He also took a Covid test, which was negative. In his last post on Facefook, he noted that it's the second time in a year where he has ended a trip with a nasty respiratory virus. He has had lung issues for some time, and presumably, the combination did him in.
Richard was long active with the Monocacy Canoe club, leading and participating in trips near and far. He led week-long trips on rivers in the southern Appalachians for many years, and it was on one of these trips that I first met him, in 2004. I went on these trips for a number of years through 2019, missing a few years in the middle of that time span. The trips involved folks checking gauges to see what was running, and driving between campgrounds to catch nearby rivers, usually staying at campgrounds for 2-3 nights. The groups ranged in size from about 10 to about 25. Richard was always a pleasure to be around on these trips, which were the best time I ever had paddling. Richard was extremely safety-conscious, always a pleasure to be around, kind-hearted, generous, a great conversationalist, and an all-round good guy, beloved by all that knew him.
In recent years, his health issues had limited his paddling, and he was most comfortable on easier rivers. The last time I saw him, he, Chris Kelly, and I ran an easy but quite pretty section of the French Broad River in North Carolina. It was about Class 2, but he was happy in his element.
There will be a remembrance ceremony at the upcoming Carolina Week of Rivers, and it is likely that there will be a paddling run in remembrance of Richard, and his ashes will be scattered on one of the rivers in the area. For details on this, check with the Carolina Canoe Club, who will be sponsoring the event.
Some of us would like to have a gathering in remembrance of Richard in the DC area as well. It would probably involve paddling a local run, perhaps the GW Canal. Nothing has been planned yet, so please feel free to offer ideas and suggestions. Those who know Richard know that he was all about people getting together and having a good time in each other's company, both on the river and off.