The stories have reached almost rural-myth status in Colorado’s high country: rocks being thrown at paddlers, wires strung across rivers at head height, even occasional shots fired. The problem? Some private landowners really don’t like it when rafters or kayakers float through their property. Colorado law says boaters have a right to navigate rivers and streams crossing private land — as long as they don’t touch the riverbank—but some landowners have interpreted a 1979 Colorado Supreme Court ruling to mean land rights extend to the river itself. Others have simply taken the law into their own hands. State Rep. Kathleen Curry of Gunnison wants to remove the ambiguity this coming legislative session with a bill that would allow licensed outfitters to not only raft, kayak or fish on rivers and streams crossing private property, but also make contact with the riverbank without trespassing.