As we huffed and puffed dragging kayaks toward the Chesapeake Bay, I looked at my friend Bill Cochran and made an offer.
“Just leave it and I’ll come back and get it for you,” I said. “You don’t need to wear yourself out before we even get to the water.”
Cochran hesitated, gave me a wry smile and said, “I’ll be just fine.”
We kept dragging, launched our craft and spent the afternoon paddling through salt marshes as we cast for spotted sea trout, puppy drum and flounder.
Even in his mid-70s, Cochran had no trouble setting the pace and catching the most fish. He was more than fine out there on the water, doing what he loved.
Cochran, the retired and beloved outdoors editor at The Roanoke Times, died Sunday at the age of 86, after a lifetime during which he not only spent as much time as possible outdoors, but did a masterful job of sharing that love colorfully and accurately with legions of adoring readers.
Bill Cochran, 1937-2024
Preston Cochran said his father had slowed over the past couple of years and had suffered several falls recently. About two weeks ago doctors discovered that he had an aggressive, untreatable form of bladder cancer, after which he entered palliative care at Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital.