Category Archives: creeks

Clean Alapaha River 2024-10-13

Update 2024-10-18: Clean rivers, dirty Franks Creek 2024-10-17.

WWALS tester Heather Brasell got good water quality for Sunday at two upstream Alapaha River locations.

Valdosta posted, better late than never, its Wednesday results for the Withlacoochee River at GA 133 and US 84, and they were good.

There has been no rain for almost a week, and none is predicted for the next ten days.

The upper and lower Santa Fe River, the lower Suwannee River, and the Alapaha River at Statenville are still in Action Stage (or flood for the Santa Fe at TREPO).

Beware that many parks and public access points are still closed. Avoid getting in the way of ongoing recovery after Hurricanes Helene and Milton.

Other than that, happy paddling, motoring, fishing, and swimming this week and the coming weekend.

Clean Alapaha River and no rain 2024-10-16 Valdosta results corroborate clean Withlacoochee River

The Georgia Environmental Protection Division (GA-EPD) updates its Sewage Spills Report on weekdays, and the same for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP)’s Public Notice of Pollution (PNP), and neither have reported any new sewage spills since Friday. Continue reading →

Audio: GA House Navigable Streams Committee postponed –Suwannee Riverkeeper on WKUB radio 2024-10-10

An old Civil War law in the way of paddling, motoring, fishing, and swimming, on WKUB radio from Blackshear, Pierce County, Georgia, starting at 1:10 in the audio:
https://wwals.net/pictures/2024-10-10–wkub-navigable/2000-thurs-am-news.mp3

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00:00

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A meeting of the Georgia House Navigable Streams Committee scheduled for Friday in Nahunta has been postponed due to the anticipated effects from Hurricane Milton.
It was set to take place at Strickland’s Lodge on the Satilla River in Nahunta.

Georgia House Navigable Streams Committee Postponed 2024-10-10 — Suwannee Riverkeeper on WKUB radio

That committee is currently taking public comment on the legislative efforts to name sections of some of the state’s 64 streams and rivers as navigable and open to the public for boating, fishing, and hunting.

Right now an old Civil War law prohibits a lot of that from happening.

Suwannee Riverkeeper John Quarterman, who was eager to see changes in the present laws, says that postponing the meeting was the right thing to do.

jsq: …which is all sensible, I think. I had thought of asking them, could you, at least, delay this? Because I’ve been asking county commission members and city council members, and naturally they’ve been telling me they’re kind of busy with still doing cleanup, and so this is a good thing, I think.
Continue reading →

Apparently clean Withlacoochee River 2024-10-10

Update 2024-10-16: Clean Alapaha River 2024-10-13.

There has been very little rain since Hurricane Helene. Hurricane Milton brought rain only to the Santa Fe and Suwannee Rivers. By what data we have, the rivers are probably clean.

The weather report is sunny and cool for the next week, although you never know what might blow in off the Gulf or the Atlantic.

Many national, state, and local parks are still closed, especially on rivers.
https://wwals.net/?p=65987

The Santa Fe River is in flood or Action Stage along much of its length, and the Suwannee River is in Action Stage from Branfrod most of the way to the Gulf.

The Withlacoochee River is still in Action Stage at Lee, but below that upstream. The Alapaha River is still in Moderate Flood at Statenville and Jennings, but below Action Stage upstream.

Power is back on most places, but there are still some road obstructions and many put-ins are closed or flooded.

If you paddle, motor, fish, or swim this weekend, be careful.

Afterwards, there will be plenty of more opportunities for pleasant paddles and chainsaw cleanups.

We have a Banks Lake Full Hunters Moon paddle scheduled for this Thursday, but Banks Lake is closed indefinitely due to unstable trees, so we shall see.

Apparently clean Withlacoochee River 2024-10-10 Flooded Santa Fe River and lower Suwannee, Alapaha, and Withlacoochee Rivers

Continue reading →

Video: How Native Americans and Early Settlers used Waterways –Chris Adams, WWALS Webinar 2024-09-12

The wide-ranging discussion included crackers as whip-cracking cow-herding illegal immigrants, ferries, bridges, and Old Coffee Road, when well-known local historian and naturalist Chris Adams gave a WWALS Webinar about how people used waterways in the Suwannee River Basin, Native Americans and Early Settlers, by zoom, Thursday, September 12, 2024.

Video: How Native Americans and, and Early Settlers used Waterways, Featuring Crackers and Old Coffee Road –Chris Adams, WWALS Webinar 2024-09-12

He runs the facebook pages Turtleman Chris Adams
https://www.facebook.com/1GATurtleman/
and Wiregrass Ecological and Cultural Project.
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100079482833584

Here is the video:
https://youtu.be/db0H8D0tsmc Continue reading →

Clean Withlacoochee River, but some stretches flooding, and more rains coming 2024-10-06

Update 2024-10-12: Apparently clean Withlacoochee River 2024-10-10.

WWALS tester Russ Tatum got very good water quality for Friday at Holly Point, on the Withlacoochee River downstream of Allen Ramp, near the Suwannee River.

That matches what Valdosta got for Wednesday at GA 133 and US 84.
https://wwals.net/?p=65999

Even though rainwater from Hurricane Helene has apparently diluted or washed downstream any contamination that washed in, this is not a good weekend or week for boating.

Flooding is still rising downstream on the Alapaha, Withlacoochee, Santa Fe, and Suwannee Rivers; see below.

The weather report has changed. Upstream, it’s spotty rain today (Sunday) and Wednesday. Downstream, it’s rain all week, due to incoming Hurricane Milton, expected to make landfall near Tampa Wednesday or Thursday.

Many national, state, and local parks are still closed after Hurricane Helene, especially on rivers.
https://wwals.net/?p=65987

Afterward the new Hurricane Milton, there will be plenty of more opportunities for pleasant paddles and chainsaw cleanups.

Clean Withlacoochee River, but downstream Alapaha, Withlacoochee, Santa Fe, and Suwannee Rivers rivers flooding from Hurricane Helene, and more rains coming from Hurricane Milton.

The Georgia Environmental Protection Division (GA-EPD) updates its Sewage Spills Report on weekdays, and the same for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP)’s Public Notice of Pollution (PNP), so if there have been any new sewage spills since Friday, we don’t know about them. Continue reading →

Clean Withlacoochee River after Hurricane Helene, but much flooding and storm damage 2024-10-02

Update 2024-10-06: Clean Withlacoochee River, but some stretches flooding, and more rains coming 2024-10-04.

Valdosta’s Wednesday water quality samples show the Withlacoochee River clean after Hurricane Helene. Valdosta’s Wednesday a week ago samples corroborate clean before Helene, matching WWALS testing.

There are no new WWALS test results, because none of us have had electricity, which is needed to incubate the samples at 95 F for 24 hours. Two WWALS testers have power back, so maybe some new results soon.

The weather report is sunny for the next week, although you never know what might blow in off the Gulf or the Atlantic.

Many national, state, and local parks are closed, especially on rivers.
https://wwals.net/?p=65987

Upstream rainfall now running downstream is causing widespread river flooding. See separate report on the Alapaha River.
https://wwals.net/?p=65990

If you can, please stay home until the power and road situations are better.

Afterwards, there will be plenty of more opportunities for pleasant paddles and chainsaw cleanups. Continue reading →

Hurricane Helene Sewage Spills 2024-09-27

Update 2024-10-06: Corrected location of Valdosta Ponderosa Lift Station (1001 Ponderosa Drive).

Update 2024-10-04: Clean Withlacoochee River after Hurricane Helene, but much flooding and storm damage 2024-10-02.

Tifton spilled 1.375 million gallons of raw sewage during Hurricane Helene, 950,000 into a creek that goes to the Little River, and the rest into creeks that go to the New River above the Withlacoochee River.

Sycamore spilled 350 gallons above Hat Creek, above the Alapaha River.

According to Valdosta Utilities Director Jason Barnes, Valdosta spilled 9,000 gallons due to a tree falling on a lift station, above Knights Creek, which goes to Mud Swamp Creek, the Alapahoochee River, and the Alapaha River. He said he has reported it to GA-EPD. Perhaps it will appear Monday in the GA-EPD Sewage Spills Report.

Tifton spilled 1.375,000 gallons, Sycamore 350, during Hurricane Helene. Valdosta spilled 9,000 gallons, tree on lift station.

I would avoid the directly-affected creeks. But these are all so far upstream of their rivers that the rivers were probably not much affected.

But you might check with Reed-Bingham State Park for their latest lake contamina tion report before swimming there. Continue reading →

Are the rivers rising? 2024-10-01

Somebody asked: has the Suwannee River crested after Hurricane Helene? Yes, upstream from the Alapaha River (Nobles Ferry Gauge) and downstream from the Santa Fe River (Rock Bluff Gauge). In between (Nobles Ferry to Branford Gauge) it’s still rising, although nowhere near Action Stage.

Flooding: Little, Withlacoochee, Alapaha Rivers 2024-10-01 Not flooding: Suwannee, Ichetucknee, New, Santa Fe Rivers

The Santa Fe and New Rivers were mostly unaffected by the storm.

The Little, Withlacoochee, and Alapaha Rivers are or were all in flood upstream, rapidly heading downstream.

So if you must go boating, the Santa Fe River or the Middle Suwannee River are your best bets. But if you can, stay off the roads and let emergency vehicles, road crews, and utilities work.

Details below, taken from the NOAA National Water Prediction Service. NOAA is the first option in River water levels in the Suwannee River Basin 2024-08-07. Continue reading →

Rack Cards, ARWT and WLRWT 2024-09-30

After we asked several weeks for input on water trail signs and rack cards, the WWALS Outings Committee provided many opinions.

Rack Cards for the Alapaha River Water Trail and the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail 2024-09-30

Here are the images that went to press Monday, September 30, 2024. That’s 10,000 copies each for the Alapaha River Water Trail (ARWT) and the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail (WLRWT).

They’re the same size as the WWALS z-fold brochures for the same water trails. But rack cards are a single sheet, front and back. They are much less expensive to print, so more appropriate for Interstate highway welcome centers and such.

They each have a QR code and a URL for finding more information.

I especially like the ARWT front. Continue reading →

Probably clean rivers before Hurricane Helene, but please stay home 2024-09-25

Update 2024-10-04: Hurricane Helene Sewage Spills 2024-09-27.

Please stay home and let emergency responders, electric utilities, and road crews work.

The rivers were probably clean before Hurricane Helene. And even that unprecedented storm may not have caused many sewage spills, since rainfall many places was not as much as in previous hurricanes. But wind was extreme, and damage is widespread.

I called Valdosta Utilities Director Jason Barnes this morning and asked if he knew of any spills. “No, we’re good,” he said. Since rain on Valdosta was less than in previous hurricanes, that makes sense.

No new sewage spills were reported in the past week in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia or Florida. But once again, Ashburn, Georgia, reported late, showing up in the September 23 GA-EPD Sewage Spills Report below.

With the hurricane rains, some contamination may have washed into the rivers. And there may have been sewage spills elsewhere not yet reported.

The weather prediction is sunny for the next week.

The rivers are rising. The Withlacoochee River at Skipper Bridge Road above Valdosta is already in Minor Flood, and that water is heading downstream.

Meanwhile, please stay home until the power and road situations are better.