Tag Archives: Little River

Update 2025-04-30: Better retested Sugar Creek water quality 2025-04-25.

Sugar Creek was filthy again this week. Something is not right near the old spill site. And there was no rain to cause this extremely high result from Valdosta Utilities.

Two Tifton Creeks, the Withlacoochee River, and the Alapaha River were clean.

No new sewage spills have been reported in the past week in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia or Florida, although somebody spilled 50 gallons of diesel fuel at the I-75 mile 449 Hamilton County Agricultural Inspection Station in White Springs on Wednesday.

No rain is predicted until Monday at the earliest.

The rivers are all down to boatable levels. The top of the Santa Fe River at Graham is now too low.

So avoid Sugar Creek, and happy paddling, swimming, fishing, and boating this weekend!

Clean Alapaha River 2025-04-20, Filthy Sugar Creek 2025-04-22, Clean Withlacoochee River, Mostly Clean Tifton Creeks 2025-04-21

Join us tomorrow on-land for Another Clean up One Mile Branch at Azalea City Trail, Valdosta, GA 2025-04-26.
https://wwals.net/?p=67224

For more WWALS outings and events, see: https://wwals.net/outings/

Sugar Creek

Valdosta Utilities got 375 cfu/100 mL E. coli for Tuesday at Baytree Road on Sugar Creek. That’s below the 410 one-time test limit.

But downstream of the former sewage spill, at Gornto Road, they got TNTC, which is Too Numerous to Count, as in far above the 1,000 alert limit. Continue reading →

Clean Rivers and most creeks; dirty Sugar Creek 2025-04-16

Update 2025-04-25: Clean Alapaha River 2025-04-20, Filthy Sugar Creek 2025-04-22, Clean Withlacoochee River 2025-04-23.

Sugar Creek was not as clean this week.

But two Tifton Creeks and Franks Creek were clean.

As were the Alapaha and Withlacoochee Rivers.

No new sewage spills have been reported in the past week in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia or Florida.

No rain is predicted for the next ten days.

The rivers are all down to boatable levels, even Santa Fe River.

So happy paddling, swimming, fishing, and boating this weekend!

Clean Alapaha and Withlacoochee Rivers 2025-04-16, Clean Tifton & Franks Creeks, Dirty Sugar Creek

Join us tomorrow for the Mayor and Chairman’s Paddle on the Withlacoochee River, with a surprise route change.
https://wwals.net/?p=67456

For these and other WWALS outings and events, see: https://wwals.net/outings/

Little River

WWALS Tester Samantha Carr tested two Tifton Creeks that run into the Little River and got clean results. Continue reading →

Reroute: Chairman and Mayor’s Paddle: Sugar Creek to Troupville, Withlacoochee River 2025-04-19

Same date, slight reroute: Sugar Creek to Troupville.

Please be at the bottom of the Bertas Kitchen parking lot by 8AM so we can try to be on the water by 9AM.

Join us for a leisurely paddle with Valdosta Mayor Scott James Matheson and Lowndes County Chairman Bill Slaughter on the Withlacoochee River.

Chairman and Mayor’s Paddle, Sugar Creek to Troupville, Withlacoochee River, 8 AM, April 19, 2025

Thanks to a generous grant from Georgia Power, this outing is free for everyone.
Thanks to Valdosta-Lowndes County Parks and Recreation Authority (VLPRA) for shuttle vans.
Thanks to Valdosta Boys & Girls Club for bringing youth and boats to paddle.

Thanks to Steve Miller for bringing a golf cart to help put in and take out.
Thanks to Gee Edwards for leading this expedition, Phil Royce for being sweep, and to Phil Hubbard and Phil Royce for chainsawing the route.

When: Gather 8 AM, shuttle ASAP, launch 9 AM, end 2 PM, Saturday, April 19, 2025

Put In: Salty Corner Landing, at the bottom of the parking lot for Bertas Pizza Kitchen, 1405 Gornto Rd, Valdosta, GA 31602.

GPS: 30.8625, -83.31875 Continue reading →

Clean Sugar Creek and Little River 2025-04-09; Dirty downstream Withlacoochee River 2025-04-10

Update 2025-04-18: Clean Rivers and most creeks; dirty Sugar Creek 2025-04-16.

Drum roll, please!

The long-awaited, yet unexpected: clean Sugar Creek!

Even after the rain Monday.

Also the Little River was clean upstream and down, and the Withlacoochee River was clean near Valdosta.

But downstream the Withlacoochee River was dirty. Makes me wonder what happened in Quitman?

No new sewage spills have been reported in the past week in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia or Florida.

No rain is predicted for the next ten days.

The rivers are still down to boatable levels (except for the Santa Fe at the Ichetucknee River Confluence).

So happy paddling, swimming, fishing, and boating this weekend!

Clean Sugar Creek and Little River 2025-04-09, Clean upstream but Dirty downstream Withlacoochee River 2025-04-10

Continue reading →

Clean Little & Withlacoochee Rivers, Filthy Sugar Creek 2025-04-01

Update 2025-04-04: Dirty upstream, clean downstream: New and Withlacoochee Rivers 2025-04-03.

Avoid Sugar Creek after rains, at least downstream from Baytree Road.

I sampled Tuesday, hoping to get low E. coli so we could all put that long-term Sugar Creek sewage spill behind us. But the results were very bad, as in Too Many to Count (TNTC) at Gornto Road and 4,933 cfu/100 mL at the WaterGoat. The alert limit is 1,000, so many times that.

Why? Most likely the banks and bed of Sugar Creek are still contaminated from the sewage spill and the rains washed some of that into the creek. Valdosta Utilities Director Jason Barnes assures me the sewage bypass is working. Even though its pump wasn’t running when I went by there, he says it turns on as needed.

The good news: the Withlacoochee River downstream at GA 133 was pretty clean. Apparently rainwater in the river diluted the contamination from Sugar Creek. The Little River at Troupville Boat Ramp was even cleaner. So downstream on the Withlacoochee River you should have no problems this time from Sugar Creek.

After rains, Filthy Sugar Creek 2025-04-01, Clean Little River &, Withlacoochee Rivers

The usual weekly WWALS water quality report will be published tomorrow (Friday). Continue reading →

Installed: Troupville Boat Ramp water trail signs 2025-04-01

New water trail signs replace the old, shot-up ones at Troupville Boat Ramp on the Little River just downstream from GA 133.

Installed: water trail signs at Troupville Boat Ramp, Little River @ GA 133, Thanks, VLPRA & GA-DNR 2025-04-01

Thanks to Herman Gordon of Valdosta-Lowndes County Parks and Recreation Authority (VLPRA) for coming down to help install the new signs for the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail (WLRWT).

Herman is preparing for the April 19th Mayor and Chairman’s Paddle. I think he was relieved that WWALS, Valdosta, and Lowndes County rescheduled it because of high water on the previous date.
https://wwals.net/?p=67242

Thanks to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (GA-DNR) that paid for (most of) the cost of these and other signs.

GA-DNR’s own signs about “Clean Your Gear” and “Don’t Release It Here!” have also been shot up. Gordon and I are contacting them about that.

And I’ve already left a message for Lowndes County Public Works about the large potholes on the entrance road. Continue reading →

Clean Withlacoochee River and Ty Ty Creek 2025-03-19

Update 2025-03-29: Clean Withlacoochee and Alapaha Rivers 2025-03-26.

It’s a good weekend for boating, if you are experienced and like water high and fast.

WWALS and Valdosta Utilities got good water quality results both upstream and downstream of Sugar Creek for Wednesday, and there has only been a sprinkle of rain since.

No new sewage spills were reported in Georgia or Florida.

No rain is predicted until Monday.

The Withlacoochee River at Pinetta is too high to paddle, as is the Suwannee at Fargo and the Ichetucknee and Santa Fe Rivers near where they join.

Avoid those spots, and happy high and fast water fishing, swimming, paddling, or boating this weekend.

If you are experienced, join us on Saturday, March 22, 2025, for the Expert paddle with jon boats: Troupville to Knights Ferry, Withlacoochee River.

The Mayor and Chairman’s Paddle has been rescheduled to April 19th.

For these and other WWALS outings and events, see: https://wwals.net/outings/

Clean Withlacoochee River and Ty Ty Creek 2025-03-19, No new sewage spills, No rain this weekend

Continue reading →

Rescheduled: Chairman and Mayor’s Paddle: Troupville to Spook Bridge, Withlacoochee River 2025-04-19

Rescheduled again due to high water, this time to April 19, 2025.

Join us for a leisurely paddle with Valdosta Mayor Scott James Matheson and Lowndes County Chairman Bill Slaughter on the Withlacoochee River. You can choose 3 miles or 11 miles.

Chairman and Mayor’s Paddle, Troupville to Spook Bridge, Little River, Withlacoochee River 2025-04-19

When: Gather 8 AM, shuttle by 9 AM, launch 10 AM, end 4 PM, Saturday, April 19, 2025

Put In: Troupville Boat Ramp, 19664 Valdosta Hwy, Valdosta, GA 31602. I-75 exit 18, west on GA 133 (St. Augustine Road) away from the Valdosta Mall, at the traffic light for Val Tech Road, turn left down to the boat ramp, in Lowndes County.
By the boat ramp, see the WWALS water trail signs about the WWALS Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail (WLRWT).

GPS: 30.851842, -83.346536 Continue reading →

WWALS Watershed Coalition (WWALS) is Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

A healthy watershed with clean, swimmable, fishable, drinkable water.