Bill Berry, from Valdosta, Georgia, accompanied by Luke Smith,
played his song “The River”
and won Best Americana Song in the Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest 2024.
Bill Berry wrote about himself,
“I’m 67, a native of Valdosta, a solo singer/ songwriter, and
play guitar. I’ve been playing and writing for about 45 years.”
Update 2024-10-09:
Rescheduled due to impending Hurricane Milton.
New date: Thursday, November 21, 2024, from noon to 1 PM.
Larry Woodward, Deputy Refuge Manager, Okefenokee National Wildlife
Refuge, will give a WWALS Webinar on the Suwannee River’s Water,
Wildlife, and Wilderness, and the importance of the 3 National
Wildlife Refuges of the Suwannee.
WWALS Board President Sara Jay Jones will give a brief introduction, Larry Woodward
will speak for about 45 minutes, and we will have questions and answers. Continue reading →
Hahira, Georgia, September 9, 2024— the First Prize winner in the Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest is from Lake City, Florida, with Best from Inside the Suwannee River Basin from Adel, Georgia, and Best from Outside the Suwannee River Basin from Palatka, Florida.
Everyone listened to the two main speakers, the talks about WWALS,
and the headliner at the
WWALS River Revue.
More about all that later.
Then the three judges listened to the
five finalists
of the Seventh Annual Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest,
and picked these winners.
The Winners, Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest, WWALS River Revue 2024-09-07
Center top: Rachel Grubb of Lake City, Florida, won
Best Americana Indie-Folk Song for “Cruising Down the Suwannee”
and First Prize, with $300.
Top left:
Sweet William Ennis from Palatka, Florida, won Best Blues Song for “Catfish Stew (Suwannee River Blues),” and Best Song from Outside the Suwannee River Basin, with $50.
Top right:
David Rodock from Adel, Georgia, won
Best Pop Country Folk Song for “Moonlight Echoes,” and Best Song from Inside the Suwannee River Basin, with $50.
Bottom left:
Robert Thatcher from Signal Mountain, Tennessee and Tom Brown from Dalton, Georgia, won
Best Folk / Americana / Bluegrass Song for “Roll On, Echo River.”
Bottom right:
Bill Berry from Valdosta, Georgia, won
Best Americana Song for “The River.”
Well-known local historian and naturalist
Chris Adams will give a WWALS Webinar about how people used waterways in the Suwannee River Basin, Native Americans and Early Settlers.
That will be by zoom, noon to 1 PM, Thursday, September 12, 2024.
WWALS Board President Sara Jay Jones will give a brief introduction, Chris Adams
will speak for about 45 minutes, and we will have questions and answers. Continue reading →
The Withlacoochee River tested clean for Wednesday and Thursday,
but Franks Creek upstream of Hahira tested dirty;
that’s upstream of the Little River.
No new sewage spills were reported in the past week
in the Suwannee River Basin in
Georgia
or
Florida.
There’s been little rain for a week, so no contamination is expected.
The weather prediction shows high chance of storms starting today.
The lower Ichetucknee River, and the Suwannee River downstream from the Santa Fe are in Action Stage, and the Santa Fe at TREPO is still in flood.
The Little, Withlacoochee, and Alapaha Rivers are now below Action Stage.
The Alapaha is actually getting too low, as is the Withlacoochee upstream.
So if you can avoid the rain, happy fishing, swimming, and boating this weekend.
Be sure to join us tomorrow, Saturday, September 7, 2024, for the WWALS River Revue,
5-8 PM at the Turner Center for the Arts in Valdosta.
It’s a sit-down fundraising dinner with speakers from Florida and Georgia, a silent auction, and the Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest.
https://www.betterunite.com/WWALS-wwalsriverrevue2024
Some of the WWALS water trail signs have been stolen, others shot up,
and some places and rivers we never placed any.
Due to generous grants from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (GA-DNR)
and the Hamilton County, Florida, Tourist Development Council (TDC),
we are working up new signs.
After spending many months rationalizing river miles and icons,
we solicit your input as we start designing the new signs.
What landmarks or interesting sites do you think should be mentioned on the signs?
Update 2024-12-13:
The raffle drawing will still be on Sunday, December 15, 2024.
However, it will be later in the day, at 4:45 PM,
and at
Banks Lake Boat Ramp,
307 Georgia 122, Lakeland, GA 31635, in Lanier County,
on the
Alapaha River Water Trail (ARWT).
You have until noon Sunday to get your tickets.
WWALS is raffling this slightly-used 12-foot 9-inch sit-on-top kayak with paddle,
a Hurricane Skimmer 128.
Join us on a leisurely paddle on the Ichetucknee and Santa Fe Rivers, starting at Ichetucknee Springs State Park North Entrance, past many springs, taking out at the US 129 Boat Ramp.
When: Gather 8:30 AM, launch 9:30 AM, end 4 PM, Saturday, November 30, 2024
![[Bill Berry, The River, Best Americana Song, Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest 2024]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2024-09-07--bill-berry-the-river-best-americana-song/fbmany.jpg)
![[Buy-now sale, Silent Auction, WWALS River Revue, Remaining items]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2024-09-10--silent-auction-sale/fbmany.jpg)
![[Rescheduled: Water, Wildlife, and Wilderness: The 3 National Wildlife Refuges of the Suwannee River, Larry Woodward, WWALS Webinar 2024-11-21]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2024-10-10--water-wildlife-wilderness-nwrs/fbmany.jpg)
![[The Winners, Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest, WWALS River Revue 2024-09-07]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2024-09-07--winners-suwannee-riverkeeper-songwriting-contest/fbmany.jpg)
![[Now Native Americans and Settlers used Waterways, Chris Adams, WWALS Webinar 2024-09-12]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2024-09-12--chris-adams-settlers-waterways-wwals-webinar/fbmany.jpg)
![[Clean Withlacoochee River Above and below Valdosta, Dirty Franks Creek Above Hahira and Little River 2024-09-04-05]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2024-09-04--wq/many.jpg)
![[Input Solicited for Water Trail Signs on the Withlacoochee, Little, Alapaha, Alapaha, and Suwannee Rivers in Georgia and Florida]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2024-09-05--water-trail-signs/fbmany.jpg)
![[Raffle: Hurricane Skimmer 128 Sit-On-Top Kayak with Paddle]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2024-05-24--skimmer-128-hurricane-kayak/fbmany.jpg)
![[Water Protectors Meet and Greet, Sunday, 10-11 AM, 2024-09-08, Ichetucknee Springs S.P. North Entrance]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2024-09-08--water-protectors-meet-greet/456592692_874340434606782_4087561503827164546_n.jpg)
![[Ichetucknee River to Santa Fe River 2024-11-30, Ichetucknee Springs S.P. North to US 129 Boat Ramp]](https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2024-11-30--ichetucknee-santa-fe/fbmany.jpg)