Gov. Sam Brownback is hoping that construction of new boat ramps along the Kansas River will draw more people to the waterway and increase its recreational use.

Brownback led more than 100 people in canoes and kayaks Thursday on a roughly eight-mile float trip.

The paddlers set out at midmorning from Wamego and finished about four hours later at Belvue, where a new boat ramp was dedicated.

Pausing on a sandbar, Brownback said Kansans who know the state will be the best salesmen for encouraging more people to use the Kansas River for recreation.

The river stretches 173 miles from Junction City to the Missouri border. Last year, the U.S. Interior Department designated it a National Water Trail, one of about a dozen around the country.