Tag Archives: Big LITTLE RIVER Paddle Race

Winners, BIG Little River Paddle Race 2022-04-30

Adel, GA, May 3, 2022 — Nineteen canoeists and kayakers set out on a beautiful blue-sky morning on Saturday, April 30, 2022, and one from far away won the BIG Little River Paddle Race.

[Carl Fuller, First Prize Winner]
Carl Fuller, First Prize Winner

They paddled three miles from Red Roberts Landing to the Colquitt County boat ramp on Reed Bingham State Park Lake.

[Five boats]
Carl Fuller already in the lead.

The overall winner was Continue reading →

Videos: Trash and river paddles, Suwannee Riverkeeper on Scott James Radio 2022-04-29

This morning, Valdosta Mayor Scott James and Suwannee Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman talked trash and river paddling on 92.1 FM talk radio.

[Movie: BIG Little River Paddle Race, Reed Bingham State Park 2022-04-30]
Movie: BIG Little River Paddle Race, Reed Bingham State Park 2022-04-30

Get your tickets today to join us tomorrow (Saturday) morning for the annual 3-mile WWALS BIG Little River Paddle Race down the idyllic blackwater Little River from Red Roberts Landing into Reed Bingham State Park Lake.

And another paddle next Saturday, May 7, 2022, on the Withlacoochee River from Langdale Park Boat Ramp to Sugar Creek. The Mayor promised to bring nets for trash. I’ll bring sawzalls for any deadfalls.

We mostly talked about the trash situation, in which the Mayor of Valdosta promised to get trash cans set out on the city’s own parking lots, starting with the ones across from City Hall. We discussed the cleanup award from GA-DNR I picked up in Atlanta Wednesday. Cleanups are great, but not enough. We also need trash traps to stop the stuff from getting out of the creeks into the rivers. And we need parking lot owners to keep trash from getting of their lots and to set out and clean out trash cans. Continue reading →

Tickets ’til Friday for Saturday’s BIG Little River Paddle Race at Reed Bingham State Park

Adel, Georgia, April 28, 2022 — For the 8AM, Saturday, April 30, 2022, BIG Little River Paddle Race, ticket sales remain open until 5PM Friday, available only online. Join us for a three-mile paddle down the idyllic blackwater Little River into Reed Bingham State Park, between Adel and Moultrie, Georgia. Tickets are $30 per boat online only at wwals.net. See
https://wwals.net/pictures/2022-04-30–blrpr/

You could win in any of a dozen categories, including $100 First Prize. But you are not required to race: it’s a nice spring paddle anyway! Lunch will be provided. You can just paddle along this scenic three-mile stretch of tea-colored river on the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail among cypress trees, turtles, birds, and yes, alligators. (Don’t pet the alligators and they aren’t likely to bother you.) This race also has fierce competitors, with one past winner finishing in barely more than half an hour.

Nobody beat the previous fastest winning time, so this year if somebody does, they will get an additional $200 prize. Winners in other categories each get a special gift.

Photo: Gretchen Quarterman, of Clay York finishing BLRPR 2019
Photo: Gretchen Quarterman, of Clay York finishing the BIG Little River Paddle Race 2019.

The race will start Continue reading →

Suwannee Riverkeeper on Scott James Radio 7AM Friday 2022-04-29

Update 2022-04-29: Videos: Trash and river paddles, Suwannee Riverkeeper on Scott James Radio 2022-04-29.

Friday morning at 7 AM, Suwannee Riverkeeper will be on Scott James Talk 92.1 FM radio, about the annual 3-mile BIG Little River Paddle Race down the idyllic blackwater Little River from Red Roberts Landing into Reed Bingham State Park Lake.

No doubt we’ll also talk about the trash situation and how you can help stop a strip mine far too near the Okefenokee Swamp, and ask GA-EPD to stop that second wood pellet plant in Adel while you’re at it. We may also talk about water trails, water quality testing, and who knows what else.

[Location, Radio]
Location, Radio

When: 7 AM, Friday, April 29, 2022

Where: Talk 92.1 FM radio, Scott James drivetime show
https://talk921.com/
Or come buy coffee at Continue reading →

Ten days until the Tenth BIG Little River Paddle Race at Reed Bingham State Park 2022-04-30

Adel, Georgia, April 21, 2022 — It’s 8AM, Saturday, April 30, 2022, at Red Roberts Landing in Reed Bingham State Park, between Adel and Moultrie, Georgia. Join us for a three-mile paddle down the idyllic blackwater Little River into Reed Bingham State Park. Tickets are $30 per boat online only at wwals.net. See https://wwals.net/pictures/2022-04-30–blrpr/

A previous press release had an erroneous date. Please ignore that and come on down Saturday, April 30, 2022.

Continue reading →

It’s back! The Tenth Annual BIG Little River Paddle Race at Reed Bingham State Park 2022-04-30

Adel, Georgia, April 12, 2022 — After pandemic and bad weather the previous two years, the BIG Little Paddle Race is back this year.

You could win in any of a dozen categories, or up to $300 if you beat the previous winning record time. But you are not required to race: it’s a nice spring paddle anyway! On Saturday, April 30, 2022 24, 2021, in Reed Bingham State Park, between Adel and Moultrie, Georgia, it’s the ninth tenth annual BIG Little River Paddle Race. There will be lunch and tickets will be available for the annual kayak raffle. You can just paddle along this scenic three-mile stretch of tea-colored river on the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail among cypress trees, turtles, birds, and yes, alligators. (Don’t pet the alligators and they aren’t likely to bother you.) This race also has fierce competitors, with one past winner finishing in barely more than half an hour.

After having to cancel the event last year due to severe weather, we are hoping for sunnier skies this year. This is a great opportunity to learn about the joys of paddling canoes and kayaks, to see the natural beauty of our region’s blackwater rivers, and to have fun while getting some outdoor exercise with family and friends.

[Tandem female canoe, orange (BW)]
Photo: Bret Wagenhorst, of 2019 First female tandem kayak: Megan Robinson & Lily Robinson, of Tifton, GA.

WWALS President Trudy Cole said, “BLRPR is a great opportunity to meet like minded folks and paddle a pristine section of the Little River, while supporting a great organization.”

There are several categories in which you could win, Continue reading →

WWALS first President Dave Hetzel 1936-2022

Dave Hetzel will be missed. He was the first President of WWALS, a longtime board member and WWALS Ambassador (a Vice President), promoter of solar power, opponent of pipelines, a fixture at festivals for WWALS from Cedar Key, Florida to Alapaha, Georgia, loved to paddle on our rivers and to promote the Alapaha River Water Trail and the BIG Little River Paddle Race; friend to all.

[Dave Hetzel]
Dave Hetzel

Also, Dave was a good sport. On his very first paddle outing with WWALS, he got dunked completely underwater in the Alapaha River, but he popped right up and never complained.

Before the obituary, here are a few pictures. 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 →

Clean Little River and Withlacoochee River clean again 2021-04-22

Update 2021-04-27: Very bad water quality: Withlacoochee River 2021-04-26.

Clean as a whistle: the start of tomorrow morning’s BIG Little River Paddle Race, Red Roberts Landing at Rountree Bridge, upstream on the Little River from Reed Bingham State Park Lake, according to a Thursday sample by WWALS tester Elizabeth Brunner.

Postponed due to weather to 2PM, Sunday, April 25, 2021: BIG Little River Paddle Race.

And clean Thursday from Knights Ferry to FL-6 on the Withlacoochee River, according to WWALS testers Michael and Jacob Bachrach and Madison Health.

So as far as we can tell, happy paddling, swimming, and fishing!

[Clean week, agate, Withlacoochee River, Little River @ Red Roberts to Suwannee River Clean]
Clean week, agate, Withlacoochee River, Little River @ Red Roberts to Suwannee River Clean

We have nothing from Valdosta for any day since Monday, but that showed clean at US 41, GA 133, and US 84 on the Withlacoochee River. Continue reading →

Videos: BIG Little River Paddle Race with Kraken on WAAC 92.9 FM 2021-04-22

Update 2021-04-25: BIG Little River Paddle Race is cancelled due to weather.

Postponed due to weather to 2PM, Sunday, April 25, 2021: BIG Little River Paddle Race.

Thanks to Kraken for telling his Rivers Radio audience about the BIG Little River Paddle Race, coming up at 8AM this Saturday, April 24, 2021, at Reed Bingham State Park, between Adel and Moultrie, Georgia. Get your tickets online only for $30, and boat rental is $10 per boat:
https://wwals.net/pictures/2021-04-24–blrpr

The weather prediction keeps improving, currently saying no rain until afternoon Saturday. Bring a light rain jacket just in case.


[BIG Little River Paddle Race]
BIG Little River Paddle Race

Kraken is a radio host, owner of Southern Ocean Sports, has an Amazon Prime video series about retrieving old logs from the Withlacoochee River, and runs the Lowndes County, GA, emergency dive rescue team. And he likes WWALS, FORB, and the BIG Little River Paddle Race. Continue reading →