Cole Watkins Tours

05/27/2026

15 years. 8,000+ paddlers. Countless memories on the water.

What started in 2011 with a college business project and a few kayaks has grown into something I’m truly proud of.

Thank you to every person who has supported us, recommended us to a friend, or shared a day on the water with us. Huge shout out to my guides over the years and of course my supportive family. From early morning launches to rope swings, wildlife encounters, family adventures, and peaceful floats through the CSRA, this business has been one of the greatest blessings of my life.

Here’s to 15 years of local roots and lasting adventures.

Thank you for paddling with us!

05/26/2026

We had a great mid-day paddle to Stallings Island on Sunday and were able to dodge the weather. The donkeys were extremely happy to see us, and met us on the South Carolina side where we had plenty of room to spread out and let them go from boat to boat to boat. The water snakes were out taking advantage of the brief glimpse of the sun we were afforded, and we saw 13 on one of the Hissing Trees, alone. On the return portion, we were treated to even more wildlife as a family of 3 or 4 otters were playing between Otter Landing and Stallings Island on the Georgia side, and then we saw a muskrat swimming up river. To cap it off, we saw a large group of barn swallows, a pair of Canada geese with 4 goslings in tow, and then an adult white ibis and what we believe is a Limpkin (the brown speckled bird). It's never a bad day on the water, but this made the extra day of waiting even better.

📸: MA4 Productions/Milledge Austin Photography

05/10/2026

Stallings Island Saturday Afternoon Tour

Round two Saturday was just as fun as around one. We were happy the rain held off on this tour. We had a group of young girls coming out to paddle for their first time. It was fun watching them point out the wildlife and feed the donkeys thanks to all that came out on Saturday.

05/10/2026

Stallings Island Saturday Morning Tour

All week we were worried about rain coming in on Saturday and screwing up our two tours luckily that changed we were able to get on the water with some overcast. We enjoyed feeding the donkeys and seeing a large amount of birds and snakes.

05/08/2026

🫏🌎 Happy World Donkey Day! 🌎🫏

One of the best parts of paddling out to Stallings Island is getting to visit the island’s famous donkeys. They’re curious, friendly, and always ready for a snack 🥕

Fun fact: Donkeys have an incredible memory and can recognize places and other donkeys they haven’t seen in years! They’re also known for being gentle, loyal, and surprisingly smart animals.

If you’ve joined us on a kayak trip before, you know the donkeys are usually everyone’s favorite part of the adventure 💙🚣‍♂️

05/04/2026

This is awesome!

A new pedestrian bridge will give walkers, cyclists and paddlers a new public access point to the Augusta Canal, linking the historic Augusta waterway with one of the city’s busiest shopping and living areas.

👉 Click to read the full story:� https://theaugustapress.com/pedestrian-bridge-to-create-new-access-to-augusta-canal/
👉 Join our digital subscribers for just $1 per month and stay ahead of the headlines. https://theaugustapress.com/register/annual-subscription-2026/?coupon=TAP2026Annual

Transparency matters. Get informed.

04/29/2026

The Augusta GreenJackets are bringing back their River Donkeys alternate identity! Check out this great giveaway!

The Official Site of Minor League Baseball web site includes features, news, rosters, statistics, schedules, teams, live game radio broadcasts, and video clips.

04/27/2026

Had a wonderful Stallings Island Tour yesterday! Highlights included our 8,000th kayaker, an aerial fight over a fish between an eagle and osprey, feeding our donkey friends, and counting a new tour-record of water snakes (non-venomous) with 30 🤯🛶🫏🐍🦅

04/26/2026

8️⃣,0️⃣0️⃣0️⃣ Kayaker Milestone reached!

Congrats to Lori C. of Aiken on being named our lucky 8,000 kayaker she will receive a CWT T-shirt and gift certificate to come join us again! Thank you for coming out today Lori and friends!

04/03/2026

We would like to thank Nick Lovett of Augusta Good News for doing a piece on our Stallings Island itinerary. Please share!

Join Nick Lovett for a journey to Stallings Island.