Tag Archives: Lowndes County Public Works

Whatever is amiss at Langdale Park, it’s not Sugar Creek, which is downstream. It could be Cherry Creek or Stillhouse Branch coming out of the Country Club. Or it could be coming from septic tanks west of Valdosta and the Withlacoochee River in Lowndes County. Or something else that washed in with the spotty rains Wednesday.

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

No rain is predicted until Monday.

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

Filthy Langdale Park, Withlacoochee River 2025-02-22, Clean upstream and downstream

Or join us this weekend at Florida Folk Festival in White Springs, Florida, on the banks of the Suwannee River.
https://wwals.net/?p=67238 Continue reading →

Videos: Mayor and Chairmans Paddle 2025-04-19

Here WWALS videos of the Mayor and Chairmans Paddle by Suwannee Riverkeeper, and the talks before the Mayor and Chairmans Paddle 2025.

We didn’t get video of Gretchen Quarterman giving the host talk, but she got video of Gee Edwards giving the Safety Lecture as the leader of this expedition.

Videos: Mayor and Chairmans Paddle, Withlacoochee River 2025-04-19, Langdale Park Boat Ramp to Sugar Creek

And of the two elected officials: Valdosta Mayor Scott James Matheson, and Lowndes County Commission Chairman Bill Slaughter.

And of Suwannee Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman, who thanked Phil Hubbard and Phil Royce for the then most recent WWALS chainsaw cleanups between Langdale Park and Troupville. TJ Johnson also led three of the ten chainsaw cleanups on the Withlacoochee River since Hurricane Helene.

Here are the videos:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKwQ5xfKf-QwGbCYD8RS6O2a9Gbde6KiW&si=3AXMuak4qXkl4DB5

Also thanks to Joe Brownlee and Georgia Power for the grant that kept this paddle free to everyone.

And thanks to Paul Batts and Valdosta-Lowndes County Parks and Recreation Authority (VLPRA) for the two shuttle vans and drivers. And to Lowndes County Fire Rescue for paddling. And to Lowndes County Public Works for grading the access road to Langdale Park Boat Ramp.

Thanks to Steve Miller and son for bringing a golf cart to the take-out at Sugar Creek. They and WWALS President Sara Squires Jones held the fort at Sugar Creek while the rest of us were paddling.

Here are the individual videos in this playlist: 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 →

Hurricane Helene Damage, Langdale Park and Country Club Road at Three Mile Branch 2024-12-02

Update 2024-12-20: Langdale Park back open 2024-12-17.

On my way to collect some water quality samples, I looked in at Langdale Park towards the Withlacoochee River and Country Club Road at Three Mile Branch, both in Valdosta.

Nope, no driving in those places.

Langdale Park still inacessible, Country Club Road closed 2024-12-05, Withlacoochee River, Three Mile Branch

No doubt there are higher priorities for Lowndes County Public Works and Valdosta-Lowndes County Parks and Recreation Authority (VLPRA). Continue reading →

Langdale Park still closed, Withlacoochee River, Valdosta, GA 2024-10-23

The gate is open, but there is room for improvement on the access road.

Deadfalls on entry road, 2024:10:23 17:52:25, 30.8860860, -83.3192000

Those deadfalls from Hurricane Helene are not even halfway down to Langdale Park Boat Ramp.

I will mention them to Valdosta-Lowndes County Parks and Recreation Authority (VLPRA) and Lowndes County Public Works, but I doubt this park is high on their priority list. Continue reading →

Entrance cleared to Langdale Park Boat Ramp 2023-10-10

Langdale Park is back open to drive in, since Monday. Join us at Langdale Park Boat Ramp on ~~Saturday,~~ Friday, October 20, 2023, for a boating cleanup. Don’t worry: if you don’t have a boat or don’t want to use one, you can clean up on land.

You may recall that back on September 28th I thought I’d collect a water quality sample at Langdale Park, and I found downed trees all along the entrance road.

A week later, I checked again, and all that Hurricane Idalia debris was still there.

So I called Lowndes County Public Works. They agreed they did maintain Hyta Mederer Road, and they would open a work order. They asked if it was urgent, or would Monday do? I said Monday would be fine.

Thanks to Lowndes County Public Works for reopening Langdale Park

And on Monday they got all the impediments off the road. Gretchen Quarterman tood these pictures Tuesday. She got there in her low-slung Prius C.

On the way back out, she took a video.
https://youtu.be/mbIY1uMhzos

Continue reading →

Lowndes County Litter Crew, JLH Beach, Folsom Bridge Landing, Little River @ GA 122 2023-08-23

I caught the Lowndes County Litter Crew on site, at Folsom Bridge Landing, on the Little River west of Hahira on GA 122, on the WWALS Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail.

Lowndes County Litter Crew and beach deadfalls, Folsom Bridge Landing, Little River @ GA 122

Earlier this year they won a Georgia statewide award. They pick up weekly at all the public river access points in Lowndes County, also on the Alapaha River Water Trail (ARWT). I thanked the litter crew for doing that.

And I thank Lowndes County Public Works for their longstanding agreement with WWALS that they will pick up bagged trash we leave at boat ramps after cleanups.

The Litter Crew was using their RV down towards the river. Continue reading →

Freezer full of meat at Clyattville-Nankin Boat Ramp 2023-07-05

Suzy Hall found this smelly trash yesterday, July 5, 2023, at Clyattville-Nankin Boat Ramp.

Ravine, freezer, Withlacoochee River under Clyattville-Nankin Road Bridge –Suzy Hall 2023-07-05

She says it’s in the “infamous ravine”, which I’m assuming to be the one south (left) of the boat ramp, about here: 30.674710, -83.394021. Continue reading →

Chainsaw cleanup pictures, Withlacoochee River 2022-05-29

Update 2022-06-01: Chainsaw cleanup again, Withlacoochee River 2022-06-05.

Some chainsawed, others cleaned up, on the chainsaw cleanup at the Withlacoochee River.

We met at the Salty Snapper parking lot, but we did not actually go to Sugar Creek. We headed straight for the biggest Withlacoochee River impediment, the infamous NSRR Deadfall, a stack of deadfalls (downed trees) across the river downstream of the Norfolk Southern Railroad Bridge.

That took the allotted time of nine to noon. We’ll probably do it again next Sunday; stay tuned.

Logjam, Sawing, Cleanup, Banners

Thanks to Phil Hubbard for sawing and Jan Krysa for helping in the boat and in the water. Thanks to Elizabeth Brunner and family for cleaning up.

Also, we did not see much trash actually in the big deadfall, presumably because Continue reading →

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