Tag Archives: Outing

WWALS Alapaha Quest starts Saturday, January 6th27th, 2018

Update 2018-01-19: First leg rescheduled again, due to low water, to become a hike to the Dead River Sink, still on January 27, 2018.

Update 2018-01-01: The first leg of the Alapaha Quest is rescheduled to January 27, 2018! Follow this link for the revised details of that outing.

Join us to explore the entire Alapaha River Water Trail on the 2018 Alapaha Quest!

The Alapaha River is described as unspoiled, wild, and scenic. Add these remoteness features, some the dark reddish-brown waters with occasional shoals and it becomes a gem to paddle.

Landings, ARWT

What is the Alapaha Quest?

Continue reading →

Valdosta Wastewater Signals Uncrossed

Thanks to new Valdosta Utilities Director Darryl Muse, we think we have communication channels clarified between Valdosta and WWALS, and we have a proposal for the state of Georgia to do what Florida and Alabama are already doing to prevent communication issues in the future.

Especially since we expected paddlers from Atlanta and Gainesville, Florida, at the Saturday October 14 Withlacoochee outing and Rivers Alive Nankin Landing Cleanup in conjunction witih KLVB, I called upstream the Thursday before to check with Valdosta Utilities, and was told no spills in October.

Much to our surprise after the outing, WWALS E.D. Gretchen Quarterman noticed this online: Thomas Lynn, Valdosta Daily Times, 13 October 2017, Sewer blockage causes city pill,

A sewer line blockage caused nearly 4,000 gallons of sewage to spill earlier in the week.

The City of Valdosta Utilities Department staff responded to a sanitary sewer spill at the 400 block of Connell Road around noon Thursday, according to city officials Friday.

Map: Hydrologic Unit Boundaries, Overview
Hydrologic Unit Boundaries, Two Mile Branch Sub-Basin, Valdosta Master Stormwater Management Plan.

That’s in the top center edge of the Two Mile Branch watershed.

Noon was an hour before I called; keep reading for what happened.

The VDT story continues: Continue reading →

Cleanup and Outing: Nankin Landing to Madison Highway: Withlacoochee River 2017-10-14

Now also a Rivers Alive cleanup in conjunction with Keep Lowndes-Valdosta Beautiful (KLVB). You can clean up, or clean up and paddle! Best to bring a rope for your boat: the Withlacoochee River is low, and there may be a few spots of dragging over shoals.

Through KLVB: Call (229)671-3698 to be assigned to Nankin Landing or another location.

Through WWALS: Come on down to Nankin Boat Ramp 9AM Saturday October 14, 2017!

State Line Shoals

Where: 6899 Clyattville-Nankin Rd, Valdosta, GA 31601, in Lowndes County, 30.675192, -83.394143

Details: See Continue reading →

Sasser Landing to Jennings Bluff & Dead River Sink 2015-06-14

See three sinks, a waterfall, and a distributary in these videos from the WWALS Outing to Turket Creek Waterfall, the Alapahoochee River, the Alapaha River Sink, and the Dead River Sink, June 14, 2015. A WWALS video playlist follows the links to each video below. Continue reading →

Okefenokee Suwannee River Outing 2017-12-10

Update 2018-02-10: Pictures of the outings.

Update 2017-12-12: And the winner is…

Update 2017-12-11: We drew for the kayak (stay tuned for the winner), and here are some pictures.

Update 2017-12-07: Also last chance to get a kayak raffle ticket before we draw the winner at the beginning of the outing.

Paddle upstream to Minnie’s Lake and back to see the Okefenokee Swamp after the West Mims Fire. Gators, birds, and fish!

When: 9AM, Sunday, December 10, 2017

Put In: Stephen C. Foster State Park, Fargo, GA

GPS: 30.8282, -82.361

Take Out: Same as Put In. This location is on the Suwannee River Wilderness Trail (SRWT) and the path is on the Okefenokee Wilderness Area Canoe Trails.

Bring: the usual personal flotation device, boat paddles, food, drinking water, warm clothes, and first aid kit. Also trash pickers and trash bags: every WWALS outing is also a cleanup.

Free: This outing is Free! And we recommend you support the work of WWALS by becoming a WWALS member today!

Event: facebook, meetup

Minnies Lake, Floyds Island, Big Water, Canal Run
On our previous Okefenokee outing we went to Billys Island.

Duration: Continue reading →

Rescheduled: Rivers Alive Cleanup and Paddle Outing, Alapaha River 2017-10-01

Rescheduled due to Tropical Storm Irma: a combination Rivers Alive and Waterkeeper Alliance Cleanup on the enchanting Alapaha River at Pafford Landing, Lakeland, Georgia, plus optional upstream and back paddle afterwards.

When: 2PM, Sunday, October 1, 2017

Where: Pafford’s Landing, MILE 71.73, east of Lakeland, GA, south side of GA 122, into the woods, west side of Alapaha River, Lanier County

GPS: 31.043011, -83.042564

Purple and blue trash on the beach
More pictures of Pafford’s Landing and trash to be picked up here.

Event: facebook, meetup.

Cleanup: Cleanup materials will be provided, but if you’ve got Continue reading →

Canceled: Pafford’s Landing Cleanup due to Hurricane Irma 2019-09-08

Everyone is a bit preoccupied right now tying things down for the most powerful Atlantic hurricane ever observed, so the Outings Committee has canceled this Sunday’s Rivers Alive Cleanup and Paddle Outing on the Alapaha River at Pafford’s Landing. Hurricane Irma may still decide to go east or west, but for a hurricane, better safe than sorry. Depending on the aftermath, we may reschedule for next weekend; stay tuned.

Category 1
These maps are details from New York Times, UPDATED 12:45 PM ET, SEPT. 8, 2017, Maps: Tracking Hurricane Irma’s Path.

Madison to Ocala

Four days ago Florida governor Rick Scott declared a state of emergency in all 67 Florida counties, and Monroe County, including Key West, was evacuating.

Irma is currently predicted to drop from Continue reading →

One Mile Branch Cleanup, Valdosta, GA 2017-11-11

Update 2017-10-29: Meet at VSU CORE.

A first for WWALS: an urban cleanup! One Mile Branch runs right through the heart of the biggest city in the Suwannee River Basin (Valdosta) and through the biggest educational institution in the Basin (Valdosta State University). It has some trash, and you can help WWALS come get it!

When: 10AM, Saturday, November 11, 2017

Where: One Mile Branch, through the heart of Valdosta and VSU.

Meet: VSU CORE, 1300 Sustella Ave., Valdosta, GA 31698
(This is a WWALS event; we’re just meeting in CORE’s parking lot.)

Event: facebook, meetup.

Map: Brookdale Drive and VSU parking lot
Map: Brookdale Drive and VSU parking lot

Hosts: Scotti Jay and Dan Phillips

Contact: Continue reading →

Pafford’s Landing, Alapaha River

Plenty of trash to pick up on the site of the WWALS Rivers Alive Cleanup and Paddle Outing, Alapaha River 2017-09-10.

Beach with purple trash

Such a nice river. Come help clean it up!

See also one reason we always give a safety lecture before boating.

 -jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

Continue reading →

Nankin Landing to Madison Highway: Withlacoochee River 2017-10-14

Update 2025-10-13: Pictures in updated format.

Back by popular request, 9.1 miles past two of the six second-magnitude springs in Georgia, into and back out of Florida, over numerous shoals, on the tea-colored Withlacoochee River in the fall, all on the Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail.

When: 9AM Saturday, October 14, 2017

Put In: Nankin Boat Ramp, MILE 36.3, 6899 Clyattville-Nankin Rd, Valdosta, GA 31601, in Lowndes County.

GPS: 30.675192, -83.394143

WWALS banner at McIntyre Spring

Bring: the usual personal flotation device, water, snacks, trash bag, and trash picker: every WWALS outing is also a cleanup! If you do not have a boat, let us know, and probably somebody can loan you one, or contact one of the many outfitters.

Free: This outing is Free! And we recommend you support the work of WWALS by becoming a WWALS member today!

Event: facebook, meetup.

Take Out: Madison Highway Boat Ramp, MILE Continue reading →