James Patrick McEwan (September 24, 1952 – June 14, 2014) was an American slalom canoeist who competed in the 1970s and then again in the 1980s and early 1990s.

McEwan was born in Olney, Maryland and began kayaking at his family's Valley Mill Camp.

He was married to children's author and illustrator Sandra Boynton, a fellow Yale graduate (class of 1974).

In 1998 McEwan and his brother Tom were members of an expedition to run the Tsangpo Gorge, considered the "Mount Everest" of rivers.

The expedition encountered unanticipated high water and ended in tragedy when teammate Doug Gordon failed to boof a waterfall, missed his roll, and died.