Kelsey Bracewell and her classmates from North Carolina were in Augusta on Monday getting in touch with the Savannah River.

Ms. Bracewell, 20, a rising senior at Brevard College, was among a dozen or so who have spent the past 10 days in kayaks floating down from the headwaters of the river in the mountains. The students in the Voice of the River 2008 trip will continue down to Savannah and Tybee Island, Ga., around June 4.

"They're just experiencing the river in a way that most people don't, from the headwaters all the way to its port," said Ken Chamlee, a professor of English at Brevard, who is accompanying the students.

The trip counts as two three-hour classes at the school, one on wilderness skills and one on river literature. The students will learn about water conservation and read appropriate works by environmental writers such as Henry David Thoreau and Edward Abbey, Dr. Chamlee said.

Students also are responsible for learning about historic projects on the trip, such as the Augusta Canal, which they discussed Sunday night, he said.

"We're trying to get a little bit of the historical flavor as well," Dr. Chamlee said.

Living in the Atlanta area, Ms. Bracewell said she is familiar with the drought and the need for water. But the trip opened her eyes.

"I didn't realize why water means so much and how valuable it is," she said. "Especially being on this trip, seeing the water and its uses and its changes, the way people view it and how valuable it is. I really have some appreciation for it, more than I had two weeks ago."

Some of the students, however, might not be quite as appreciative. Approaching the lock to enter the Augusta Canal from the river, two of the students got their kayaks stuck and got dumped in the water, Dr. Chamlee said

"They're fine, got 'em rescued," he said.