Old pals find adventure on icy creek

Along the banks of Sugar Creek, these guys rough it out during a cold-weather canoe trip. From left to right are Jon Breiner, Jeff Breiner, Dan Foreman, Scott Calwell and Sean Eastes. Tom Weisenbach and Jon Breiner, who were classmates at Bishop Chatard High School, organized the trip and have been doing it annually for 30 years. - Photo provided by Jon Breiner.

Boys in high school often form lasting friendships with their classmates. But there is a group of local guys -- Northsiders and Hamilton County residents -- who have taken that concept to a new level.

These guys take a three-day, two-night canoe and camping trip down Sugar Creek every year during the first week in -- yes, it's true -- January.

The originators of this adventure, Tom Weisenbach and Jon Breiner, were classmates at Bishop Chatard High School and have been doing it annually for the past 30 years, along with other friends.

"You really have to have a screw loose to do three days and two nights (in the middle of the winter)," said Weisenbach, a 47-year-old insurance agent. "This past trip (Jan. 5-7) we had 26 (participants)."

What's the draw? "I would say the love of the outdoors and the friendship," Weisenbach said. "After Chatard, everybody went to different colleges, and this was a way to get old friends back together for a collective few days."

While the years have seen many new faces join in the fun, Weisenbach said he estimates 65 percent of the 57 people who have participated at one time or another over the 30 years all were friends from Chatard.

"This year was great hypothermia weather, about 38 degrees, and very wet for most of the trip," Weisenbach said. "One of the reasons we go at this time of year is that you can drive an hour and a half and feel like you're in the middle of Montana. There aren't many people on Sugar Creek (in January).

"If you try this in the middle of July, you'll find that the city of Indianapolis has beaten you there. It's like sitting on I-465 in a canoe."

Carmel resident Breiner is the keeper of the records, maintaining a spreadsheet of facts about each trip -- participants, canoes, highlights, etc. Weisenbach and Breiner are the only ones who've gone on all 30 trips, and every trip elicits a story.

Breiner tells of one such event on the 19th trip.

"Things were going relatively well until we rounded a bend and came across (some) deer crossing the creek. The right bank was level farmland with the left bank being an almost sheer cliff.

"Two of the deer had no trouble scaling the cliff, the third made it about half way up before stumbling and tumbling down into the water. Just as we all thought the deer was injured, it sprang to its feet, took a deep breath, and bounded up the cliff.

"When it reached the top, the deer looked straight at us with contempt, snorted and disappeared over the ridge."

And there have been other adventures.

"There have been years when the stream was frozen or there wasn't enough water. About 23 of the 30 years we were actually able to canoe, and most all have been on Sugar Creek.

"One year we had to motor the group down to the Smokey Mountains where we did a backpacking loop in some incredibly cold conditions. It took 24 hours to get there because of an ice storm we ran into," Weisenbach said.

"Every year there's a story to be told out of this silly trip, just creating memories and keeping old friendships alive."