Tag Archives: Alapaha River

All rivers bad water quality 2022-04-07

Update 2022-04-15: Clean Rivers 2022-04-15.

Best to avoid the Little, Withlacoochee, and Alapaha Rivers this weekend. In very unusual results, all three were too high in E. coli at GA 122, and the Withlacoochee was way too high at Nankin Boat Ramp.

The Ichetucknee tested clean for Tuesday at TREPO’s Hodor Park.

You might try lakes that are not downstream from likely rivers, such as Banks Lake and Grassy Pond, and maybe Reed Bingham State Park, but we have no data on those lakes.

In good news, no sewage spills have been reported in Georgia or Florida. Of course, certain cities (Quitman, Ashburn) almost always report a week or more late, so stay tuned on that.

[Chart, rivers, Swim Guide]
Chart, rivers, Swim Guide

The most recent data we have from Valdosta is for Monday upstream, which was before the Wednesday and Thursday rains. So WWALS data is what we have to go on, and the WWALS results are pretty bad. Continue reading →

Pictures: Alapaha River Outing, Hotchkiss Road to US 84 2014-08-24

This was a nice, short, one-mile paddle on the Alapaha River from Hotchkiss Road Landing beyond US 84, past the then-future site of Naylor Boat Ramp. All on the Alapaha River Water Trail (ARWT). Thanks to Chris Graham for leading this paddle.

[Hotchkiss Road Landing, Shoals, Naylor Beach, US 84 bridge, Alapaha River]
Hotchkiss Road Landing, Shoals, Naylor Beach, US 84 bridge, Alapaha River

Continue reading →

Earth Day Rivers Alive Trash Clean Up, Pafford’s Landing, Alapaha River 2022-04-16

Update 2022-05-12: Pictures: Pafford’s Landing cleanup 2022-04-16.

Join us for a cleanup at the white sand beach of Pafford’s Landing on the Alapaha River east of Lakeland, Georgia. This is one of the WWALS events celebrating Earth Day 2022.

When: Gather 9 AM, end 12 PM, Saturday, April 16, 2022

Put In: Pafford’s Landing, east of Lakeland, GA, on the south side of GA 122 and GA 37, into the woods, on the right bank (west side) of the Alapaha River, in Lanier County, on the WWALS Alapaha River Water Trail.

GPS: 31.043011, -83.042564

Bring: Cleanup materials will be provided, but if you’ve got a trash picker, bring it along. No boat is required, but if you want to bring one, you can use it.

Free: This outing is free to everyone!

We recommend you support the work of WWALS by becoming a WWALS member today!
https://wwals.net/donations/#join

Event: facebook, meetup

[Pafford's Landing ARWT signs, beach with view of bridge]
Pafford’s Landing ARWT signs, beach with view of bridge.

Continue reading →

Surprisingly Clean Withlacoochee River 2022-04-01

Update 2022-04-06: Location of Quitman sewage spill 2022-03-20.

Surprisingly after significant rain, all tested locations were pretty clean, including Nankin and State Line Boat Ramps on the Withlacoochee River. So as far as we know, this weekend is good for boating, fishing, and swimming. Me, I’d prefer the Alapaha over the Withlacoochee this weekend.

Oh, last Tuesday Quitman got around to reporting a sewage spill that happened nine days later. It’s long gone now.

[Chart, river, Swim Guide]
Chart, river, Swim Guide

Tests Wednesday downstream by WWALS and upstream by Valdosta were pretty clean. Samples Thursday upstream by WWALS were pretty clean. And samples Friday at Nankin and State Line Boat Ramps were also pretty clean. All were below the 126 cfu/100 mL E. coli average sample limit.

We also saw four Wednesday samples by the Southern Georgia Regional Commission (SGRC), at Reedy Creek and Cow Creek on GA 129 (both enter the Alapaha River downstream from US 84 and Naylor Boat Ramp), and J. Frank Culpepper Road and GA 135 on the Alapahoochee River (which enters the Alapaha River downstream from Statenville Boat Ramp and slightly upstream of Sasser Landing @ CR 150 in Hamilton County, Florida. All those were well below 126, as well. Continue reading →

Earth Day 2022

Update 2022-04-07: Two Mile Branch Rivers Alive Trash Clean Up, Valdosta 2022-04-16 2022-04-16.

Update 2022-04-05: Constitutional Right to Clean Water: RTCW for Georgia, WWALS Webinar 2022-04-19.

Earth day itself is April 22, 2022. WWALS will have several events surrounding that day: two cleanups, a full moon paddle, a paddle race, and a river paddle and cleanup.

[Cleanups and paddles]
Cleanups and paddles

Before Earth Day

Continue reading →

Bad downstream Withlacoochee River 2022-03-24

Update 2022-04-02: Surprisingly Clean Withlacoochee River 2022-04-01.

Swimming, fishing, boating, not recommended on the Withlacoochee River this weekend, due to E. coli tested by WWALS at Nankin and State Line Boat Ramps for Thursday. It may all wash away soon, or it may not.

[Chart, River, Swim Guide]
Chart, River, Swim Guide

Also note that after the previous weekend’s heavy rains, Valdosta tested high Fecal coliform upstream at US 41 and GA 133. Probably that will also show up in Valdosta Friday results when we get them. In between, Valdosta upstream results were OK, but then it rained hard Wednesday and Thursday. Continue reading →

Drainage built over that runs into Grand Bay @ LCC 2022-03-21

This morning the Lowndes County Commission considered and Tuesday evening will vote on letting a subdivision developer replace a detention pond with a built-on lot and some other detention area somewhere unspecified.

[Map: Little Viking Road to Grand Bay, ARWT]
Map: Little Viking Road to Grand Bay, in the WWALS map of the Alapaha River Water Trail (ARWT).

The detention pond is marked by the red ellipse. The most likely drainage from there is where I drew the cyan line. It appears to go into Grand Bay. See below a closeup of the lot and a larger map of how Grand Bay drains into Grand Bay Creek, the Alapahoochee River, the Alapaha River, and then the Suwannee River on the way to the Gulf of Mexico. Continue reading →

OK water quality, Withlacoochee, Little, Alapaha Rivers 2022-03-17

Update 2022-03-26: Bad downstream Withlacoochee River 2022-03-24.

Surprisingly, after the recent rains, the rivers show mostly clear again. Apparently the efforts of the cattle owners in Brooks County, Georgia, to be part of the solution are working.

I would not hesitate to boat, swim, or fish in the Withlacoochee River today. After checking water levels: they may still be high. And the Alapaha and Little Rivers showed even better results. All could change with more rain, but for now it’s a go, so far as we know.

Meanwhile, could people stop stealing our water trail signs? Looks like somebody even stole the signposts at Nankin.

[Chart, Rivers, Swim Guide Map]
Chart, Rivers, Swim Guide Map

The most recent results we have from Valdosta are from Monday, both upstream and downstream. Their Friday and Monday downstream results for Okapilco Creek @ US 84 confirm what our WWALS results for last Thursday at Knights Ferry on the Withlacoochee indicated: contamination coming down Okapilco Creek from Brooks County. However, that contamination apparently was diluted by high Withlacoochee River levels, and E. coli on the river did not exceed limits for Friday or Monday.

Valdosta did get higher Fecal coliform than E. coli for Friday Continue reading →

Bad Knights Ferry heading downstream 2022-03-10

Update 2022-03-18: OK water quality, Withlacoochee, Little, Alapaha Rivers 2022-03-17.

Not a good weekend for boating, fishing, or swimming in the Withlacoochee River. Better stick to the Alapaha River, or the Suwannee upstream from the Withlacoochee River Confluence.

WWALS found very high E. coli at Knights Ferry Boat Ramp for Thursday, and high background Fecal coliform there and downstream at Nankin and State Line Boat Ramps.

[Chart, River, Swim Guide]
Chart, River, Swim Guide

Knights Ferry is where E. coli from cattle manure usually is first detected in the Withlacoochee River after washing down Okapilco Creek out of Brooks County, Georgia. Notice almost an inch of rain on the east side of Brooks County at US 84 on the Withlacoochee River, and 1.4 inches on the west side at Dixie, GA. When there’s more than half an inch of rain on Brooks County, we usually see this problem. Continue reading →

All Rivers Clean 2022-03-03

Update 2022-03-11: Bad Knights Ferry heading downstream 2022-03-10.

All WWALS water quality tests are good for Thursday, including zero E. coli at Knights Ferry, Nankin, and State Line Boat Ramps, on the Withlacoochee River thanks to Michael and Jacob Bachrach. Elizabeth Brunner for her three GA 122 sites got 133 cfu/100 mL at Hagan Bridge on the Withlacoochee River, still well within acceptable bounds, and zero at Folsom Bridge on the Little River and zero at Lakeland Boat Ramp on the Alapaha River.

[Chart, Rivers, Swim Guide]
Chart, Rivers, Swim Guide

Valdosta tests for Friday, Tuesday, and Wednesday at US 41, GA 133, and US 84 were also well within bounds; thanks to Scott Fowler for publishing those today.

So all the tests we have say all clear for boating, fishing, and swimming this weekend. With no rain, no E. coli to speak of has washed into the rivers. With no rain predicted for many days, nothing should. Continue reading →