Looks like plenty of water at Pafford’s Landing to do another leg of the 2018 Alapaha Quest.
Upstream, Sandbar
The Statenville Gauge showed Continue reading
Monthly Archives: April 2018
Berrien County about ARWT Landings
WWALS would like to thank the Berrien County Board of Commissioners and staff for years of cooperation about the Alapaha River Water Trail (ARWT) and the many landings on it in Berrien County, as well as the one landing in Berrien County on the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail (WLRWT).
Here is a letter from September 2016 granting WWALS permission to put signs on county property at all the water trail landings it names, and a Commission vote to change two access points from having Landing in their name to be called instead Sheboggy Boat Ramp and Berrien Beach Boat Ramp.
Letter from Berrien County 2016-09-14
Thanks to Continue reading
Pictures: BIG Little River Paddle Race 2018-04-28
Update 2018-07-05: All the winners. Update 2018-07-16: All the paddlers.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Hahira, GA, April 29, 2018 — With the first-ever winner from Florida and a new record time, the next two categories one each from Tift and Lowndes Counties, Georgia, and a record number paddlers from 4 to 67 years old, the BIG Little River Paddle Race at Reed Bingham State Park Saturday was a fun time and a successful fundraiser for Friends of Reed Bingham State Park (FORB) and WWALS Watershed Coalition (WWALS).
Trophy, The winner: Lloyd Reeves, Crescent City, FL
Lloyd Reeves drove three hours from Crescent City, Florida, with a very fast kayak, to become the first-ever Florida winner, and he proved himself a winner in another way with the prize.
In addition to the First Prize trophy, winner Reeves got a hundred dollar bill from race organizer Bret Wagenhorst of WWALS. and a matching hundred dollar bill from Dianne Walters of FORB. Reeves then Continue reading
Lakeland Boat Ramp road signs planted 2018-04-26
Thanks, GDOT, for planting the ARWT road signs!
Here are the signs for Lakeland Boat Ramp on GA 122 for the Alapaha River Water Trail, put in the ground by the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) the other day, along with signs for eight other landings. You can help pay for these signs.
Turnoff in sight, Eastbound
Gretchen Quarterman on Scott James 92.1 FM radio 2018-04-1626
Yesterday WWALS Executive Director Gretchen Quarterman talked about
- the BIG Little River Paddle Race, coming up tomorrow morning at Reed Bingham State Park near Adel, GA, Saturday, April 28, 2018,
- the Wild & Scenic Film Festival, in Valdosta, GA, 7PM May 31, 2018, and
- WWALS Outings, at least one a month.
Here’s the video: Continue reading
Valdosta Committee meeting, Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest 2018-04-29
Sunday 2PM in Valdosta, the Committee meets about the First Annual Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest. And song submissions are open!
When: 2-3 PM Sunday 29 March 2018
Where:
Cheddars Scratch Kitchen, 270 Norman Dr, Valdosta, GA 31601
aka Cheddar’s Casual Cafe,
Off I-75 Exit 16, US 84, West Hill Avenue.
What:
More judge candidates, and event logistics including sponsors, food, beverages,
and the crawl afterwards, when finalists will play at local venues in Cedar Key.
Like every committee meeting, you can also participate by telephone;
inquire within for how.
Event for the committee meeting: facebook, meetup
Event for the songwriting contest: facebook, meetup
Map: Google Street View
The Contest
Continue readingAlapaha River Beauty should not be hidden 2018-04-07
Randy Patten used to say he’d never seen an alligator on the Alapaha River in Lanier County, but he just saw a log with eyes and a tail.
He also changed his mind about something else:
I have been against the publication and the making public of our river for people kayaking it, due to the fact that we couldn’t get people out of the river if they got in trouble.
Well, after a couple of years of planning with the assistance of the county commissioners, and volunteer firefighters, and everybody that would assist, we now have signs, 24 actually, up and down the river, from Atkinson County to Echols County. So every few miles you’ll see a sign with a phone number. And later on, when I get close to one I’ll go live again and show you what they look like.
But it makes it a lot nicer to know that if we have people looking at its beauty, which should never be kept a secret, but if something does happen, we have the ability to come get you. Continue reading
WWALS, Paddle Race, Film Festival, and Songwriting Contest on Scott James Radio 8:30AM 2018-04-26
WWALS Executive Director Gretchen Quarterman will be on the radio 8:30AM this Thursday April 26th with Scott James on his Talk 92.1 drive-time radio show, out of Valdosta, Georgia, talking about:
- The Sixth Annual BIG Little River Paddle Race, this Saturday April 28th, at Reed Bingham State Park between Adel and Moultrie, GA. You can just paddle, or you can join the people seriously training for the There are prizes in a wide range of categories (solo, double, male, female, ages, etc.).
- The Wild and Scenic Film Festival May 31 at Mathis Auditorium in Valdosta.
- The First Annual Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest, June 23 in Cedar Key, Florida.
- and many other things!
When: 8:30 AM, Thursday, April 26, 2018
Where: You can listen on the air, or through the radio show’s own website, or through several online listening services.
Register: Don’t forget to register for the race, either online now or at the site Saturday.
Event:
facebook for the radio show;
facebook and meetup for the BLRPR.
-jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®
You can join this fun and work by becoming a WWALS member today!
Video: Suwannee Riverkeeper on Steve Nichols Drive-time Radio 2018-04-24
This morning I was on The Morning Drive with Steve Nichols on 105.9 FM WVGA, Valdosta, Georgia, which Steve says reaches 100,000 people. We talked about all the things we said we would: Troupville cleanup, water trails, paddle race, film festival, songwriting contest, outings, and more.
Here’s the video extracted from WVGA’s facebook live.
Suwannee Riverkeeper on Steve Nichols Drive-time Radio 2018-04-24
Video by Black Crow Media for WVGA 105.9 FM, Valdosta, GA
I don’t know why the video is mirror-flipped, but below are a few stills right-way around.
If you want to see the whole morning’s video, it’s on the show’s website. This interview runs about -23:40 to -1:20.
-jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®
You can join this fun and work by becoming a WWALS member today!
Troupville cleanup, Interview
Hi, Helen, Interview
Tires and a boat, Interview
Metal signs, Interview
Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail, Interview
BIG Little River Paddle Race, Reed Bingham SP, 2018-04-28, Interview
Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest, Cedar Key, 2018-06-23, Interview
Wild & Scenic Film Festival, Valdosta, 2018-05-31, Interview
Newsletter: Tannin Times, Interview
Canoeing the Alapaha, April 2018
Received April 21, 2018. I’ve added some links. -jsq
Seven of us drove down from north Georgia to the Alapaha for a long weekend paddling trip starting April 12. I had long thought of making this trip, especially because the Canoeing and Kayaking Guide to Georgia rated it as one of the state’s most scenic rivers, “A+.”
We chose the upper stretches, between Willacoochee and Lakeland. One of our group arranged, through extended family, to “camp” the night before putting in, at a house in Lax, just a few miles from the GA-135 bridge where we we started out the next day.
We launched with four boats, three canoes and a kayak, and found the river every bit as scenic as the guide described. We enjoyed the forests of cypress, tupelo, pine, oaks, maples, birch and willow. And the wildlife was equally magnificent: ibis, geese, egrets, herons, buzzards, woodpeckers, beavers (evident through their marks on the trees), and deer and raccoon tracks on the beaches.
First Camp: a beach on a point
The paddling was nice and easy, making about 3 mph without breaking a sweat. We had a few tight spots, including Continue reading