Category Archives: Blueway

Clean Withlacoochee River until next big rain 2020-05-05

2020-05-13: A clean week, Withlacoochee River 2020-05-08.

More good news! The Withlacoochee River is still clean. Of course, all these posts are advisory, because conditions can change at any time, it takes 24 hours to process a sample, and everyone’s reactions are different to E. coli and other pollution.

We can guess the Suwannee River is clean, although nobody is testing it, and it seems to have its own sources of contamination.

This clean spell will probably last until the next big rain, which may be some weeks away. So now’s a good time to get out there on our rivers, where you can easily stay 50 feet apart on the water and six feet on land.

WWALS continues water quality testing, and you can help.

[State Line Boat Ramp]
State Line Boat Ramp Photos: Suzy Hall, downstream, John S. Quarterman of 2019 WWALS Boomerang paddle race, and of Waterkeepers Florida toast to Earth Day, all at State Line Boat Ramp.

We’re even thinking of taking down our yellow diamond Caution signs for now.

[Clean with no rain]
Clean with no rain
For context see wwals.net/issues/testing/.

Thanks to Madison Health for the most recent results, from Continue reading →

Clean Withlacoochee River, less bad Crooked Creek 2020-05-02

Update 2020-05-08: Clean Withlacoochee River until next big rain 2020-05-05.

Good news! WWALS testers found the Withlacoochee River clean Saturday from US 84 (33 cfu/100 mL E. coli) to the state line (zero), and the Little River at GA 76 (also zero) and Okapilco Creek at US 84 (33), too.

Conn and Trudy Cole remarked, “Things were much better this week! We could actually count Crooked Creek. ”

WWALS keeps testing, and you can help.

[Suzy Hall: State Line Boat Ramp, Withlacoochee River 2020-05-02]
Photo: Suzy Hall, State Line Boat Ramp, Withlacoochee River 2020-05-02

The Coles counted 3,100 at Devane Road.

[Crooked Creek @ Devane Road]
Crooked Creek @ Devane Road

That’s way above the Continue reading →

Winner: Within these WWALS #2 2020-04-18

The winner of the second Within These WWALS contest is…

Shirley Kokidko, of Pearson, Atkinson County, Georgia!

She got a packet of WWALS photo notecards for Swamps and Springs from WWALS charter board member emeritus Bret Wagenhorst.

WWALS notecards, Swamps and Springs

Because all these plants and animals are found in the Okefenokee Swamp, headwaters of the Suwannee River.

Remember to send a comment to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers about the titanium strip mine proposed near the southeast corner of the Swamp.

[Map: Floyds Island middle of Okefenokee Swamp]
Map: Floyds Island middle of Okefenokee Swamp
on the WWALS Suwannee River Wilderness Trail map.
The proposed Twin Pines Minerals Mine site is towards the lower right.

Quiz #4 will start shortly, but first, here are the answers to Quiz #2.

Name the flower: Continue reading →

Withlacoochee River good despite dirty creek 2020-05-01

Update 2020-05-04: Clean Withlacoochee River, less bad Crooked Creek 2020-05-02.

Update 2020-05-03: WWALS tester Suzy Hall says she got zero (no) E. coli at the GA 31 bridge (State Line Boat Ramp) for yesterday, Saturday, May 2, 2020.

Good news, boaters, fishers, swimmers: apparently the Withlacoochee River is clean this weekend. This is because of much river and Okapilco Creek water coming downstream; flow matters.

WWALS continues sampling, and you can help us afford testing supplies.

[WWALS Water Trail signs]
Photo: John S. Quarterman, WWALS Water Trail signs at Nankin Boat Ramp, Withlacoochee River 2020-05-01

You may have some difficulty getting a boat into the water, but if you do, it appears that the small rain in Brooks County, Georgia, Thursday, April 30, was not big enough Continue reading →

Bucket surfing the Withlacoochee River 2020-05-01

That bucket needs to be clean before I get a water quality testing sample out of it.

[Bucket]
Bucket

Here’s a YouTube video Continue reading →

Contamination at Running Springs, Suwannee River, near Mayo, FL 2020-04-28

WWALS member Patterson Wall reported Tuesday: “River looks muddy here and there is a strange foam washing up on the bank. It looked this way when the first big wave of sewage sludge passed by.”

[Brown water with foam]
Brown water with foam

Running Springs is a bit downstream of the Hal W. Adams Bridge between Luraville and Mayo, and downstream from Dowling Park, as well as from the Pilgrim’s Pride chicken plant outflow pipe into the Suwannee River. It’s more than 34 river miles down the Suwannee River from the Withlacoochee River Confluence, and that is almost Continue reading →

Winner: Within these WWALS Contest #1 2020-04-11

First, remember the fourth Within These WWALS contest is still in progress, and you can answer here by midnight May 2, 2020:
https://forms.gle/SSPeLzniUxgQbqFL9

Meanwhile, the winner of the first contest, which ended April 11, 2020, is….

Deanna Mericle, of Hamilton County, Florida!

WWALS charter board member emeritus Bret Wagenhorst sent her a packet of WWALS photo notecards from that watershed.

Alapaha River and Banks Lake notecards

Each of the pictures on the cover shown above appears on a separate notecard, each with an envelope.

The answers to Within These WWALS #1 are: Continue reading →

Video: Waterkeepers Florida toast Earth Day 2020-04-22

The facebook livestream didn’t happen, but here’s YouTube video of yesterday’s Waterkeepers Florida Toast to Earth Day. Most of the fourteen Waterkeepers of Florida spoke.

And you can still pick up trash for Earth Day and post pictures or videos with hashtag #SuwanneeCleanup, as some WWALS members already did.

The Suwannee Riverkeeper segment is at 6:35.

[Intro]
Intro

I was at the Withlacoochee River at State Line Boat Ramp, 6461 Madison Hwy, Valdosta, GA 31601. You can’t see in the video, but only a few minutes before, the place was hopping with activity: a guy on a very loud four-wheeler, people in SUVs with beers, two trailers pulling out boats, the former police chief of Live Oak, Florida, and a group of young people hiking back from down the river. All declined to get on the boat ramp to be in the video. They were mostly staying apart from other groups.

[Caution signs]
Caution signs

We put up these Caution signs because Continue reading →

Earth Day online with Waterkeepers Florida 2020-04-22

Update 2020-04-23: Video of WKFL Toast to Earth Day and examples of #SuwanneeCleanup.

Join Suwannee Riverkeeper and all of Waterkeepers Florida tomorrow evening to toast clean water in the fiftieth anniversary of Earth Day.

WWALS is also celebrating with a distributed cleanup. Go to any convenient river, creek, spring, or swamp, pick up trash, and post pictures or video with the hashtag #SuwanneeCleanup.

When: 5:30 PM – 6:00 PM, Earth Day, Wednesday, April 21, 2020

Where: Facebook livestream in the facebook event.
We will start a watch party.

Also on Zoom: https://zoom.us/j/91684283854
Dial in: +1 929 205 6099 / Meeting ID: 916 8428 3854#

[WKFL Earth Day Toast]

Physical: State Line Boat Ramp, 6461 Madison Hwy, Valdosta, GA 31601
That’s where Suwannee Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman will be speaking.
You can come help clean up, provided you keep six feet apart.
Post pictures or video of yourself, and use #SuwanneeCleanup. Continue reading →

Flower, bird, event, water, waterway: can you name them? 2020-04-21

Third quiz! Please answer by Saturday, through this google form:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf7q9TdVJ0t4m8g4Pwh5XrIuan9ieYD92O_Rj-DW2Q9iP_UFw/viewform

[Four images]
Four images for the third quiz.

Continue reading →