Tag Archives: Salty Snapper

Salty Snapper Pop Up Paddle and Lunch, Withlacoochee River, Langdale Park 2021-05-15

Update 2021-05-14: There’s good water quality news upstream for tomorrow’s Withlacoochee River paddle from Langdale Park Boat Ramp to Sugar Creek and the Salty Snapper. Not so good downstream.

Update 2021-05-13: Water levels are going down, so probably just the first stretch, from Langdale Park to the Salty Snapper; stay tuned. Meanwhile, you can probably schedule a shuttle for $2 with Valdosta on-demand, and hear all about it on radio TV, with Suwannee Riverkeeper and Scott James on 92.1 FM.

Update 2021-05-12: 10% lunch discount for paddlers at The Salty Snapper Saturday.

Update 2021-05-08: Water Trail signs planted at Langdale Park Boat Ramp 2021-05-06.

Leisurely paddle promoting ecotourism as we sieze the rare optimal water levels to paddle from Langdale Park to Troupville Boat Ramp as we stop in halfway for lunch at the Salty Snapper. Each participant will be responsible for purchasing their own lunch. This is a pop-up paddle meaning that we have a rare window to paddle this section of the river in favorable conditions for a group. This also means that conditions can rapidly change. We will keep regular posts on this event to ensure optimal water levels for this paddle. We will gather at Langdale Park at 9am and perform a team shuttle at 9:30 returning to Langdale and launching at 10:00 am. We will arrive at the Salty Snapper (3 miles) for lunch/beverages around 11:30 shortly after they open. Lunch should wrap up around 12:30 and paddle on down to Troupville Boat Ramp (4 miles) arriving and finishing up around 2:30pm.

When: Gather 9 AM, launch 10 AM, end 3 PM, Saturday, May 15, 2021

Put In: Langdale Park Boat Ramp, 3781 N. Valdosta Rd., Valdosta, GA 31602, in Lowndes County.

GPS: 30.88747, -83.32395

High Water Put In: If Langdale Park is closed due to high water, we will put in at US 41 Landing, 3966 N Valdosta Rd, Valdosta, GA 31602. This landing is tricky, so we will post further directions if we have to use it.

Take Out: Troupville Boat Ramp, 19664 Valdosta Hwy, Valdosta, GA 31602: on GA 133 off I-75 exit 18.

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: As a one-time experiment, we are waiving the outing fee for this one pop-up outing. The fee has never seemed to be a deterrent to anybody paddling, but we’ll see if anybody says they came because this one was free. Everyone will still have to sign in so everyone will be covered by WWALS insurance.

All WWALS outings are free to WWALS members. We recommend you support the work of WWALS by becoming a WWALS member today!
https://wwals.net/donations/#join

Event: facebook, meetup

[Langdale Park Boat Ramp sign, map]
Langdale Park Boat Ramp sign, map

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Earth Day Rivers Alive Cleanup: Joree Millpond, Withlacoochee River 2021-04-17

Pick from a pair of floating Georgia Rivers Alive cleanups for Earth Day, and bring your boat!

Gretchen Quarterman will lead a floating cleanup on Joree Millpond in Valdosta, Georgia, starting at 913 Millpond Road (PDF flyer for Joree Millpond). You can return whenever you want to, but we expect this boating cleanup to last about two hours. If you have a jon boat and are willing to take a volunteer onto the pond to remove litter, please contact either Gretchen Quarterman (229-834-1945) or Austin Fiveash (229-563-6262). You can also participate in your kayak or canoe. Volunteers will remove litter from along the edge of the pond and from near the spillway. The City of Valdosta is providing a large trash receptacle at the site, thanks to Valdosta Stormwater Manager Angela Bray.

Bobby McKenzie will lead a paddle cleanup from Sugar Creek behind the Salty Snapper off of Gornto Road, down the Withlacoochee River, and a short hop up the Little River to Troupville Boat Ramp. That’s less than 4 river miles, and even with stops for trash collection should take less than three hours. We will leave the bagged trash at that destination, where Lowndes County Public Works will pick it up Monday.

When: Gather 9 AM, launch 9:30 AM, end 12:30 PM, Saturday, April 17, 2021

Millpond put in: 913 Millpond Road, Valdosta, GA, Take Country Club Drive to Mill Pond Road. Turn right and 913 is last house on left before right-only exit onto Jerry Jones Road.
Drop your boat at the water, then park near the street.
Millpond GPS: 30.867375, -83.309558

River paddle put in: The Salty Snapper parking lot, 1405 Gornto Road, Valdosta, GA.
Go to the back of the parking lot to drop off your boat at Sugar Creek.
Sugar Creek GPS: 30.861785, -83.318793

River Paddle Take Out: Troupville Boat Ramp, 9664 Valdosta Hwy, Valdosta, GA 31602. Go west on St. Augustine Road across I-75 (exit 18) and cross the Withlacoochee River. At the light for Val Tech Road, turn left, which takes you down to the boat ramp.
Troupville Boat Ramp GPS: 30.851842, -83.346536.

Safety: All volunteers must sign a WWALS liability release, which makes WWALS insurance cover them, and must wear a life jacket at all times while in boats.

Bring: the usual personal flotation device, boat, paddles, snaks, drinking water, warm clothes, and first aid kit. Also trash pickers and trash bags, and good boots.

Free: This outing is free to everyone, because it is a cleanup.

We recommend you support the work of WWALS by becoming a WWALS member today!
https://wwals.net/donations/#join

Event: facebook, meetup

[Joree Millpond, trash, Withlacoochee River]
Joree Millpond, trash, Withlacoochee River
Photos: Russell Allen McBride.

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Pictures: Twomile Branch Cleanup 2020-08-29

It was fun and productive: cleaning up Twomile Branch and Sugar Creek, plus a bit of the Withlacoochee River.

And we got a statewide award while we were there!

[Bucket, need boat, Withlacoochee River, spider, bottle, handoff, Great Blue Heron, trash, Volunteer of the Year --GA AAS]
Bucket, need boat, Withlacoochee River, spider, bottle, handoff, Great Blue Heron, trash, Volunteer of the Year –GA AAS

The award was the Georgia Adopt-A-Stream Volunteer of the Year Award, for all the WWALS water quality testing volunteers, many of whom were at this cleanup. Thanks again to Georgia Power for the grant for testing equipment. WWALS is doing an AAS testing training this Saturday.

Join us for another cleanup at Sugar Creek on Saturday, October 10, 2020, or any of several other river and creek locations that same day, in conjunction with Lowndes County and the City of Valdosta. Or help us clean up this Saturday, September 12, 2020, at Berrien Beach Boat Ramp, northeast of Nashville, Georgia, on the Alapaha River.

Thanks to Nic Llinas and Sean of Current Problems for coming up from Gainesville, Florida, to bucket fish in Twomile Branch. Continue reading →

River and Creek Cleanup, Lowndes County, Valdosta, and WWALS 2020-10-10

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (See also PDF)

River and Creek Cleanup, Lowndes County, Valdosta, and WWALS 2020-10-10

Hahira, GA, September 8, 2020 — Lowndes County has three rivers, all great for fishing, boating, and swimming, and Valdosta has many creeks. Everyone enjoys our waterways better when they are clean. Here’s a fun opportunity to get outside and clean them up.

[Flyer: Cleanup on three rivers, many creeks]
Flyer: Cleanup on three rivers, many creeks

Lowndes County, the City of Valdosta, and WWALS Watershed Coalition, Inc. (WWALS) are jointly organizing a three-river cleanup in the county, at Troupville Boat Ramp on the Little River, at Sugar Creek on the Withlacoochee River, and at Naylor Boat Ramp on the Alapaha River, plus cleanups in Valdosta on Onemile Branch, Twomile Branch, and Sugar Creek.

Please join us, from 9 AM to 11 AM, on Saturday, October 10, 2020. No boat required, although if you want to bring a boat, there are water cleanup opportunities at each river location and some of the creeks.

Please bring sturdy mud boots or shoes, long pants and clothes that can get wet or dirty, insect repellant, a refillable water bottle, and an emergency phone number. Trash bags and trash pickers will be provided, as well as drinking water and snacks, but bring your own if you can.

Please maintain a physical distance of at least six feet from people not in your household. Please wear a mask when near people not in your household. We will have extra masks.

Events: Facebook, meetup.

The Valdosta Locations are:

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Cleanup at Twomile Branch 2020-08-29

Update 2020-09-09: Pictures

Cleanup at Twomile Branch and Sugar Creek! We have permission from the landowner on the north side of Twomile Branch and the east side of Sugar Creek to get to those creeks that way, all the way down to the Withlacoochee River. But first meet at the Salty Snapper Parking Lot. If we have time, we’ll also go up to the Millpond spillway on Jerry Jones Drive.

If we get enough people, we may also go to Onemile Branch.

When: Gather 9 AM, end 12 PM, Saturday, August 29, 2020

Put In: Salty Snapper parking lot, 1405 Gornto Rd, Valdosta, GA 31602

GPS: 30.861717, -83.318712

Take Out: N/A

Bring: wet boots, sturdy gloves, trash pickers, trash bags, masks, and hand sanitizer. We will have some of those supplies, but whatever you can bring yourself will be great.

Free: This is a cleanup, so no charge.

We recommend you support the work of WWALS by becoming a WWALS member today!
wwals.net/donations/#join

Event: facebook, meetup

[Twomile Branch, Sugar Creek, Withlacoochee River]
Twomile Branch, Sugar Creek, Withlacoochee River

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Trash on Two Mile Branch at Sugar Creek 2020-04-21

Cleanup opportunity on Two Mile Branch where it joins Sugar Creek!

A few days ago we got this: “Hello! I don’t know if y’all are the people I should contact, but I was at Two Mile Branch today, and there is a huge amount of garbage and debris.”

We have an offer of cleanup access from a neighboring property owner. It’s possible to do this while staying six feet apart, and people don’t even have to go at the same time. This is a great opportunity for #SuwanneeCleanup!

[Two views]
Two views

Easy way to report a problem (trash, sewer spill, etc.) to Continue reading →

Sugar Creek, Gornto Road, after Valdosta record sewage spill 2019-12-12

Update 2019-12-17: Valdosta and Florida water quality data after Valdosta record raw sewage spill 2019-12-16.

Sara Jay took this video of Sugar Creek at Gornto Road, near The Salty Snapper and the YMCA, on Thursday, December 12, 2019, after Valdosta’s record-largest raw sewage spill.

As you can hear and see in the video, Sugar Creek, which usually runs clear, is cloudy from lime and dark at the edges out of the current.

[Edge]
Edge

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Songwriting Contest on Scott James Radio 2019-08-23

Broadcasting 8AM Friday from the steps of the historic Lowndes County Courthouse in downtown Valdosta, Georgia, Scott James and I will discuss the Second Annual Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest, when seven finalists will play for you and three judges who will award some of them prizes, at the Salty Snapper this Saturday.

When: 8AM, Friday, August 23, 2019

Where: Talk 92.1 FM Scott James drive-time radio show.
You can listen on the air, or through the radio show’s own website, or through several online listening services.

Event: facebook

Historic Lowndes County Courthouse

All about the Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest:
https://www.wwals.net/pictures/2019-08-24–suwannee-riverkeeper-songwriting-contest/ Continue reading →

Boomerang Banner 2018-11-03

The WWALS Boomerang banner shows the sponsors and vendors for 11AM tomorrow morning, Saturday, November 3, 2018, at State Line Ramp (Mozell Spells, 6461 Madison Hwy, Valdosta, GA 31601). Paddle with us from Georgia into Florida, and back again!

at UPS Store, Banner

 -jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

You can join this fun and work by becoming a WWALS member today!

Now at State Line Ramp: WWALS Boomerang paddle race 2018-11-03

WWALS Boomerang
From Georgia To Florida
and Back Again
Withlacoochee River
State Line Ramp (Mozell Spells)
11 AM, Saturday, November 3, 2018

Join us for a fun filled day of paddle racing and leisurely paddling on an idyllic blackwater river.

Yes, we’ve moved downstream, to plenty of water, no deadfalls, plus shoals, in two states (Georgia and Florida) and four counties (Lowndes, Brooks, Madison, and Hamilton)!

Flyer, WWALS Boomerang
Follow this link for a printable PDF flyer.
Or this link for the same flyer 2 per page.

Event: facebook, meetup, but don’t forget to get tickets!

Tickets: $30 per boat.
We also recommend you support the work of WWALS by becoming a WWALS member today!

When: 11:00 AM, November 3, 2018

Put In: State Line Ramp (Mozell Spells, GA 31 Ramp),
6461 Madison Hwy, Valdosta, GA 31601.

GPS: 30.637844, -83.311149

VSU 16 miles, Quitman 23, Adel 37, Tifton 60, Moultrie 55,
Madison 15, Jasper 27, Live Oak 40, Lake City 60,
Tallahassee 70, Gainesville 108, Jacksonville 120.

Bridge and ramp, 14:15:54,, State Line Boat Ramp
Photo: John S. Quarterman, Horn Bridge and State Line Boat Ramp (Mozell Spells), 2018-10-27

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