Tag Archives: VLPRA

Mayor and Chairmans Paddle by Suwannee Riverkeeper, Troupville to Spook Bridge, 2026-03-07

Back at the original date, because we got enough rain. And the old original route: Troupville Boat Ramp to Spook Bridge.

Suwannee Riverkeeper invites you to paddle with Valdosta Mayor Scott James Matheson and Lowndes County Chairman Bill Slaughter on the idyllic Withlacoochee River.

Thanks to Joe Brownlee for a generous grant from Georgia Power, this outing is free for everyone.

[Mayor and Chairmans Paddle, Troupville to Spook Bridge, Withlacoochee River, Saturday, March 7, 2026]
Mayor and Chairmans Paddle, Troupville to Spook Bridge, Withlacoochee River, Saturday, March 7, 2026

When: Gather 8 AM, launch 9 AM, end 4 PM, Saturday, March 7, 2026

Put In: Troupville Boat Ramp, 19664 Valdosta Hwy, Valdosta, GA 31602.
From I-75 exit 18, go 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.
GPS: 30.851842, -83.346536 Continue reading →

Mayor and Chairmans Paddle by Suwannee Riverkeeper, Withlacoochee River 2026-04-18

Update 2026-02-27: Rescheduled back to the original date: Mayor and Chairmans Paddle: Troupville to Spook Bridge 2026-03-07.

Rescheduled due to low water, to Saturday, April 18, 2026.

Suwannee Riverkeeper invites you to paddle on the idyllic Withlacoochee River with the Mayor of Valdosta and the Lowndes County Commission Chairman.

Mayor Scott James Matheson and Chairman Bill Slaughter always seem to enjoy this outing, and you will, too.

Under towering oaks, cypress, and longleaf pines, we will pass the most populous city and county in the Suwannee River Basin and the site of the future Troupville Nature Park and River Camp, on the WWALS Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail (WLRWT).

Thanks to Phil Hubbard for once again leading this paddle.

Thanks to Joe Brownlee for a generous grant from Georgia Power, this outing is free for everyone.

Thanks to Paul Batts and Valdosta-Lowndes Parks and Recreation Authority (VLPRA) for agreeing to bring shuttle vans.

The city and county will probably also post their own announcements.

[Mayor and Chairmans Paddle by Suwannee Riverkeeper, Withlacoochee River, Saturday, April 18, 2026]
Mayor and Chairmans Paddle by Suwannee Riverkeeper, Withlacoochee River, Saturday, April 18, 2026

When: Gather 8 AM, launch 9 AM, end 4 PM, Saturday, April 18, 2026

Put In: Langdale Park Boat Ramp or Troupville Boat Ramp
Which put in will depend on water levels and any remaining obstructions in the river.
WWALS will announce that decision in advance. Continue reading →

Pictures: Suwannee River Camps on-land tour 2025-09-27

Many thanks to Edwin McCook, formerly of SRWMD, who invented the Suwannee River Camps, and Nic Brown, who is in charge of them at Florida Parks, as well as Shell Simmons for assisting.

Even more thanks to Lowndes County, Georgia, Chairman Bill Slaughter and Paul Batts of Valdosta-Lowndes County Parks and Recreation Authority (VLPRA) and his wife Melanie for attending.

[Suwannee River Camps, on-land tour 2025-09-27, Dowling Park River Camp, Adams Tract River Camp]
Suwannee River Camps, on-land tour 2025-09-27, Dowling Park River Camp, Adams Tract River Camp

The visitors got to hear from the experts how Florida does it. Many topics were discussed, from access to finances. Continue reading →

Foraged Wreath Make and Take 2025-12-13

Join floral artist Amanda Hall-Phillips for a hands-on wreath-making workshop using natural, foraged greenery—think cedar, pine, eucalyptus, seed pods, cones, vines, and other beautiful finds from our own woods and waterways. You’ll learn how to identify local plants, build a lush, oversized wreath, and style it for the season.

It’s fun and educational. For example, the venue is in the watershed of Sugar Creek, which has had many sewage spills on the way to the Withlacoochee River.

And you’re helping all that WWALS does, including water quality testing!

When: Gather 10 AM, launch NA, end 12 PM, Saturday, December 13, 2025

Put In: Wood Valley Community Center Pavilion, 1907 Gornto Road, Valdosta, GA 31602.

GPS: 30.849573, -83.323239

[Foraged Wreath Make and Take, Fundraiser 2025-12-13, Amanda Hall-Phillips, Wood Valley Community Center]
Foraged Wreath Make and Take, Fundraiser 2025-12-13, Amanda Hall-Phillips, Wood Valley Community Center

Continue reading →

Former Artesian Spring, Saunders Park, Valdosta, GA 2017-09-16

Excerpted from another post eight years ago. This barely trickling spring is on Sugar Creek, which flows to the Withlacoochee River. It is a cautionary tale for overpumping groundwater.

[Former Artesian Spring, Saunders Park, Valdosta, GA 2017-09-16, On Sugar Creek, Withlacoochee River]
Former Artesian Spring, Saunders Park, Valdosta, GA 2017-09-16, On Sugar Creek, Withlacoochee River

My father told me there used to be a bath house on River Street west of downtown Valdosta, fed by an artesian well. I remember decades ago there being tumble-down buildings. In recent years I never could locate them.

Turns out that’s because it became John W. Saunders Park, 1151 River Street, Valdosta, Georgia. Continue reading →

Clean Withlacoochee River 2025-05-29

Update 2025-06-06: Clean Sugar Creek, Withlacoochee and Alapaha Rivers 2025-06-04.

The Withlacoochee River tested clean E. coli this week, upstream and down.

Whatever was amiss at Langdale Park last week is gone now. We don’t know the state of Sugar Creek: nobody tested there.

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

There’s some chance of rain today, then sunny for the weekend.

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

[Clean Withlacoochee River 2025-05-29]
Clean Withlacoochee River 2025-05-29

Maybe join us tomorrow for Big Shoals St Pk to Suwannee Wayside, Suwannee River 2025-05-31.
https://wwals.net/?p=67042 Continue reading →

Filthy Langdale Park Withlacoochee River 2025-05-22

Update 2025-05-30: Clean Withlacoochee River 2025-05-29.

The Withlacoochee River tested too high for E. coli for Thursday at Langdale Park, but clean upstream and OK downstream.

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]
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 →

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]
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 →

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]
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 →

Chairman and Mayor’s Paddle: Troupville to Spook Bridge, Withlacoochee River 2025-03-22

Update 2025-03-19: Rescheduled: Chairman and Mayor’s Paddle: Troupville to Spook Bridge, Withlacoochee River 2025-04-19.

Rescheduled to March 22 due to high water.

Join us for a leisurely paddle on the Withlacoochee River: three miles to an early takeout, or another eight miles to Spook Bridge, with a mid-point lunch stop.

The first stretch is along the Little River frontage recently purchased by Lowndes County for Troupville River Camp and Nature Park. The right bank the whole way is Brooks County.

The second stretch goes by Valdosta’s cleaned up Outfall from its Withlacoochee Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) on the left bank in Lowndes County.

Paddle with Valdosta Mayor Scott James Matheson and Lowndes County Chairman Bill Slaughter.

[Chairman and Mayor's Paddle, Troupville to Spook Bridge, Little River, Withlacoochee River 2025-03-22]
Chairman and Mayor’s Paddle, Troupville to Spook Bridge, Little River, Withlacoochee River 2025-03-22

Shuttle vans provided by Valdosta-Lowndes County Parks and Recreation Authority (VLPRA).
Early takeout provided by Paul DeLoach.
Spook Bridge takeout and midpoint provided by The Langdale Company.
Thanks to a generous grant from Georgia Power, this outing is free for everyone.
Thanks to Phil Hubbard for leading this expedition and Phil Royce for being sweep.

When: Gather 8 AM, launch 10 AM, end 4 PM, Saturday, March 22, 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 →