Posted in Georgia Rivers, Uncategorized, water conservation, Water health, tagged cleanup, floods, healthy water, river issues in georgia, river restoration, trash on April 3, 2013|
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Posted in Uncategorized, tagged adventure, advocacy, agriculture, boat, camping, canoeing, clean water, clean-up, cleanup, creek, ecosystem, Environmental, event, family, fish, fun, fundraiser, Georgia river network, health, inner tube, kayaking, lake, litter, non point source pollution, nonprofit, paddle, Paddle Georgia, paddling, pollution, raft, riverkeeper, rivers, runoff, sandbar, sewage, stream, tires, trash, tributary, waterkeeper, watershed on June 11, 2012|
Some people call the Altamaha River “Georgia’s little Amazon,” but not Dorinda Dallmeyer.
“I turn that phrase on its head and say ‘No, the Amazon is Brazil’s Altamaha,’” said Dallmeyer, director of the environmental ethics program at the University of Georgia. “People need to appreciate that the river is unique, that it is a national treasure.”
The big Altamaha is the longest free-flowing river system remaining in the eastern United States. Named one of the 75 “Last Great Places on Earth” by the Nature Conservancy, the Altamaha is home to a profusion of wildlife — hundreds of kinds of rare plants and animals, including some that grow nowhere else on Earth.
About 350 people, including several Athenians, will get a firsthand look at the ibises, alligators and other creatures that call the Altamaha home on the upcoming eighth annual Paddle Georgia, a project of the Georgia River Network. Paddle Georgia is a week-long caravan of kayaks and canoes that this year will travel down 105 miles of the Altamaha, from Reidsville to Darien. This year’s trek begins Saturday and continues through June 22.
“It’s a great family vacation and a great way to stay cool in the hot summer,” said Daniela Di Iorio, who will make the trip with husband Donald Newman and sons Evan, 14, and Marco, 12. Di Iorio and her family have become regulars on Paddle Georgia, which chooses a different Georgia river each year.
But Di Iorio has a special interest in this year’s river trip. An oceanographer, she’s part of a University of Georgia-based research team conducting long-term research on the Georgia coast where the Altamaha pours into the ocean, nourishing salt marshes and fisheries.
Like many who know the Altamaha, Di Iorio is worried for the river’s future. Big and wild as it is, the Altamaha is dying by degrees, say some of the people who know it best. It’s being killed, they say, by a constant and growing barrage of large and small environmental wounds, many inflicted by folks far upstream, including Athenians who use water from the Oconee River system that feeds into the Altamaha.
“We can’t continue the way we’re going,” said former Altamaha Riverkeeper James Holland, who’s kept a close eye on the river for decades, first as a crab fisherman, later as the Riverkeeper, and more recently as a photographer documenting the mighty river. The University of Georgia Press this month published a book of his photographs, “The Altamaha: A River and its Keeper,” with essays by Dallmeyer and noted environmental writer Janisse Ray.
Big factories like the ITT Rayonier pulp mill in Wayne County pour wastewater into the river; in Appling County, the Plant Hatch nuclear plant sucks out 60 million gallons a day to generate electricity, and only half goes back in the river.
Upstream, cities like Athens draw millions of gallons out of rivers feeding the Altamaha, returning some of it as treated wastewater which still contains pollutants. Runoff from construction silts the river, along with pesticides from farms.
But those are just some of the wounds we inflict on the river, Holland says.
Large numbers of impoundments, from Jackson County farm ponds to Lake Oconee, hold back the waters that feed the Altamaha, reducing its flow. Add in a record drought year like this one, and the toll on wildlife grows from big to enormous. With less water that is more polluted, fewer fish can survive, and as the fish decline, so do the birds and other creatures that eat the fish.
The Altamaha River’s flow this spring has been lower than ever recorded during the 80 years the U.S. Geological Survey has been collecting data at a gauge in Doctortown, in south Georgia’s Wayne County. As the flow of fresh water ebbs, salt water is pushing farther upstream, Di Iorio said, threatening ancient forests that grow around the river — and even in it, in some places.
Meanwhile, invasive fish species like the flathead catfish are changing the stream’s ecological balance by displacing or even eating other fish species — though some native fish, including shad and sturgeon, may be increasing in number after long declines, said Bert Deener, a DNR regional fisheries supervisor in Waycross.
With all the big river has endured, it still teems with life, Deener said.
“This time of year there’s nothing like going on the Altamaha and getting a shady area and fishing for river bass,” he said. “There’s something special about it.”
http://onlineathens.com/local-news/2012-06-09/paddle-georgia-explore-altamaha-river
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged adventure, advocacy, agriculture, boat, camping, canoeing, clean water, clean-up, cleanup, creek, ecosystem, Environmental, event, family, fish, fun, fundraiser, Georgia river network, health, inner tube, kayaking, lake, litter, non point source pollution, nonprofit, paddle, Paddle Georgia, paddling, pollution, raft, riverkeeper, rivers, runoff, sandbar, sewage, stream, tires, trash, tributary, waterkeeper, watershed on June 7, 2012|
Posted in Georgia Rivers, Water health, tagged adventure, advocacy, agriculture, boat, camping, canoeing, clean water, clean-up, cleanup, creek, ecosystem, Environmental, event, family, fish, fun, fundraiser, Georgia river network, health, inner tube, kayaking, lake, litter, non point source pollution, nonprofit, paddle, paddling, pollution, raft, riverkeeper, rivers, runoff, sandbar, sewage, stream, tires, trash, tributary, waterkeeper, watershed on May 29, 2012|
A Project of Georgia River Network
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| Second Notice on Venue Change and More | |||
| In This Email: Request for Equipment Donations for Scholarship Youth Paddle Georgia Program at REI Second Notice on Venue Change (in case you missed this last week) Request for Equipment Donations for Scholarship Youth on Paddle Georgia Hey Y’all, This summer, 12 different students will join us on the Altamaha, thanks to the generosity of many folks who attended GRN’s Weekend for Rivers. Let’s help them out by bringing an extra item or two! Joey and Alicia have put together a wish list below, so please consider pitching in. It will make a world of difference in the students’ PG experience! If you would like to bring something to donate to the students, please email me at rachel.e.haddon@gmail.com with your name and which item(s) you would like to bring. If you would like to donate money in lieu of an item, that’s fine too! Donations can be made at by clicking here. Please note that the donation is in honor of Scholarship Youth. Wish List: I will be collecting items at PG registration, but please be sure to email me first so I know who’s bringing what! Thanks y’all, and I’ll see you on the river! Paddle GA Workshop at Atlanta REI (I-85 Store) on Thur, May 31 Are you frettin’ and fussin’ over what to bring to Paddle Georgia? Paddle Georgia staff will attempt to answer all these questions and more Thursday, May 31, at the REI Store in Atlanta (I-85) at 7 p.m. If you plan to attend, please register at http://www.rei.com/event/39786/session/50424 Several spots still remain. Dear Paddle Georgia 2012 Participants: Of course, this change in venue necessitates some slight alterations to our itinerary, including boat drop off times, driving directions and distances from campsites to launch/take out sites. What Doesn’t Change? ALMOST EVERYTHING! All campsites, menus, educational programs, special tours and moving days remain the same. What Does Change? PLEASE REVIEW THE INFORMATION BELOW CAREFULLY. OTHERWISE, YOU’LL END UP ON THE OHOOPEE AND YOU’LL BE ALL ALONE…AND THAT WOULD BE SAD, INDEED! (especially after you attempt to paddle the Ohoopee in drought conditions) Mileage: The trip is now 105 miles, instead of 108 miles. Shuttle Distances from Campsite to Launch/Out Sites: NEW BOAT DROP-OFF DIRECTIONS AND TIMES! Directions to Boat Drop from the North (I-16): From Exit 90 on I-16 (U.S. 1) Proceed south on U.S. 1 towards Lyons. At 15 miles enter downtown Lyons. Continue south on U.S. 1 toward Baxley 19 miles to the Altamaha River. Cross river (Georgia Power’s Plant Hatch will be on the left) and continue 0.5 mile to Deen’s Landing Road on right. Turn right and proceed 0.9 mile. At 0.9 mile bear to right, staying on Deen’s Landing Road. Proceed 0.5 mile and bear to left, continuing on Deen’s Landing Road. Proceed 0.3 mile to entrance to boat landing on the right. Directions to Boat Drop from the East (I-95): From Exit 36 (U.S. 341/U.S. 25), go west on U.S. 341 33 miles to Jesup. In Jesup, continue on U.S. 341 toward Baxley. At 64 miles from I-95 reach U.S. 1 (Main St.) in Baxley. Turn right (north) on U.S. 1 and proceed 11 miles to Deen’s Landing Road on left. Turn left and proceed 0.9 mile. At 0.9 mile bear to right, staying on Deen’s Landing Road. Proceed 0.5 mile and bear to left, continuing on Deen’s Landing Road. Proceed 0.3 mile to entrance to boat landing on the right. Directions to Boat Drop from the South (I-75): Take Exit 62 (U.S. 82/U.S. 319) in Tifton and proceed east 2.7 miles to intersection of U.S. 82 and U.S. 319. Turn left on U.S. 319 toward Ocilla and proceed 17.5 miles to Ocilla where U.S. 319 and Ga. 32 merge. Proceed 0.5 mile to intersection with U.S. 129/U.S. 319 (Irwin Ave.). Turn left on U.S. 129/U.S. 319 and proceed north toward Fitzgerald 7 miles to intersection with Ga. 107 (East Industrial Dr.). Turn right and proceed 1.6 miles to U.S. 319. Turn right on U.S. 319/Ga. 107 (east) and proceed 17.7 miles to U.S. 441/Ga. 107. Turn right (south) on U.S. 441 and proceed 1.4 miles to Ga. 107. Turn left (east) and proceed 16.6 miles to U.S. 221. Turn left (north) on U.S. 221 toward Hazelhurst and proceed 9.2 miles to East Coffee St. in Hazelhurst. Turn right on Coffee St. and proceed 0.1 mile to East. Jarman St. (U.S. 341). Turn right on East Jarman St. and proceed 16 miles to Baxley. At Main Street in Baxley (U.S. 1), turn left (north) and proceed 11 miles to Deen’s Landing Road on left. Turn left and proceed 0.9 mile. At 0.9 mile bear to right, staying on Deen’s Landing Road. Proceed 0.5 mile and bear to left, continuing on Deen’s Landing Road. Proceed 0.3 mile to entrance to boat landing on the right. Directions from Tattnall County High School to Boat Drop Off: Return to Ga. 57. Turn right (north) on Ga. 57 and proceed five miles to U.S. 280 (Brazell St.) in Reidsville. Turn left (west) and proceed 0.2 miles. At 0.2 miles turn left on to Ga. 147. Continue on Ga. 147 six miles to intersection with Ga. 178. Continue straight on Ga. 147 four miles and turn left on Ga. 147 (Ga. 178 continues straight). Proceed on Ga. 147 8.5 miles to U.S. 1. Turn left on U.S. 1 and proceed three miles to Deens Landing Road on the right. Turn right and proceed 0.9 mile. At 0.9 mile bear to right, staying on Deen’s Landing Road. Proceed 0.5 mile and bear to left, continuing on Deen’s Landing Road. Proceed 0.3 mile to entrance to boat landing on the right. NEW DIRECTIONS FROM PADDLING WORKSHOP TO BOAT LAUNCH NEW KICK OFF SHUTTLE CONSIDERATIONS Should you have any questions, please contact Joe Cook at 706-409-0128 or Georgia River Network at 706-549-4508. A revised information packet is online at http://www.garivers.org/paddle_georgia/2012/pgregistered2012.html (You may need to hit the “refresh” button on your internet browser to see the “revised” file.) Joe Cook Sponsors – Georgia Power, Hennessey Land Rover, Patagonia, Johnson Outdoors, Mohawk Carpet Foundation, The Outside World, Dock Supply, Cedar Creek RV & Outdoor Center, Stream Techs, Coca-Cola Refreshments, China Clay Producers Association, The Rain Barrel Depot, Jackson Spalding, Bridgestone Partners – Georgia Canoe Association, Altamaha Riverkeeper, Georgia Adopt-A-Stream, Project Wet, City of Darien, Altamaha River Partnership, Wayne County Board of Tourism |
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged adventure, advocacy, agriculture, boat, camping, canoeing, clean water, clean-up, cleanup, creek, ecosystem, Environmental, event, family, fish, float, fun, fundraiser, Georgia river network, health, inner tube, kayaking, lake, litter, non point source pollution, nonprofit, paddle, Paddle Georgia, paddling, pollution, raft, riverkeeper, rivers, runoff, sandbar, sewage, stream, tires, trash, tributary, waterkeeper, watershed on May 17, 2012|
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A Project of Georgia River Network- Important Venue Change! |
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Dear Paddle Georgia 2012 Participants: Normally, at this time of the year, the Ohoopee River is flowing at about 140 cubic feet per second (cfs), but in this already drought-stricken year, the Ohoopee is flowing at less than 30 cfs. The minimum floatable level is greater than 60 cfs. We want to ensure everyone has been notified of the changes below. To let us know you got this email and there is no need to call you, please click here and enter your name. We will be calling all paddlers who do not fill out this form and let us know they have been notified. Of course, this change in venue necessitates some slight alterations to our itinerary, including boat drop off times, driving directions and distances from campsites to launch/take out sites. What Doesn’t Change? ALMOST EVERYTHING! All campsites, menus, educational programs, special tours and moving days remain the same. What Does Change? PLEASE REVIEW THE INFORMATION BELOW CAREFULLY. OTHERWISE, YOU’LL END UP ON THE OHOOPEE AND YOU’LL BE ALL ALONE…AND THAT WOULD BE SAD, INDEED! (especially after you attempt to paddle the Ohoopee in drought conditions) Directions to Boat Drop from the North (I-16): From Exit 90 on I-16 (U.S. 1) Proceed south on U.S. 1 towards Lyons. At 15 miles enter downtown Lyons. Continue south on U.S. 1 toward Baxley 19 miles to the Altamaha River. Cross river (Georgia Power’s Plant Hatch will be on the left) and continue 0.5 mile to Deen’s Landing Road on right. Turn right and proceed 0.9 mile. At 0.9 mile bear to right, staying on Deen’s Landing Road. Proceed 0.5 mile and bear to left, continuing on Deen’s Landing Road. Proceed 0.3 mile to entrance to boat landing on the right. Directions to Boat Drop from the East (I-95): From Exit 36 (U.S. 341/U.S. 25), go west on U.S. 341 33 miles to Jesup. In Jesup, continue on U.S. 341 toward Baxley. At 64 miles from I-95 reach U.S. 1 (Main St.) in Baxley. Turn right (north) on U.S. 1 and proceed 11 miles to Deen’s Landing Road on left. Turn left and proceed 0.9 mile. At 0.9 mile bear to right, staying on Deen’s Landing Road. Proceed 0.5 mile and bear to left, continuing on Deen’s Landing Road. Proceed 0.3 mile to entrance to boat landing on the right. Directions to Boat Drop from the South (I-75): Take Exit 62 (U.S. 82/U.S. 319) in Tifton and proceed east 2.7 miles to intersection of U.S. 82 and U.S. 319. Turn left on U.S. 319 toward Ocilla and proceed 17.5 miles to Ocilla where U.S. 319 and Ga. 32 merge. Proceed 0.5 mile to intersection with U.S. 129/U.S. 319 (Irwin Ave.). Turn left on U.S. 129/U.S. 319 and proceed north toward Fitzgerald 7 miles to intersection with Ga. 107 (East Industrial Dr.). Turn right and proceed 1.6 miles to U.S. 319. Turn right on U.S. 319/Ga. 107 (east) and proceed 17.7 miles to U.S. 441/Ga. 107. Turn right (south) on U.S. 441 and proceed 1.4 miles to Ga. 107. Turn left (east) and proceed 16.6 miles to U.S. 221. Turn left (north) on U.S. 221 toward Hazelhurst and proceed 9.2 miles to East Coffee St. in Hazelhurst. Turn right on Coffee St. and proceed 0.1 mile to East. Jarman St. (U.S. 341). Turn right on East Jarman St. and proceed 16 miles to Baxley. At Main Street in Baxley (U.S. 1), turn left (north) and proceed 11 miles to Deen’s Landing Road on left. Turn left and proceed 0.9 mile. At 0.9 mile bear to right, staying on Deen’s Landing Road. Proceed 0.5 mile and bear to left, continuing on Deen’s Landing Road. Proceed 0.3 mile to entrance to boat landing on the right. Directions from Tattnall County High School to Boat Drop Off: Return to Ga. 57. Turn right (north) on Ga. 57 and proceed five miles to U.S. 280 (Brazell St.) in Reidsville. Turn left (west) and proceed 0.2 miles. At 0.2 miles turn left on to Ga. 147. Continue on Ga. 147 six miles to intersection with Ga. 178. Continue straight on Ga. 147 four miles and turn left on Ga. 147 (Ga. 178 continues straight). Proceed on Ga. 147 8.5 miles to U.S. 1. Turn left on U.S. 1 and proceed three miles to Deens Landing Road on the right. Turn right and proceed 0.9 mile. At 0.9 mile bear to right, staying on Deen’s Landing Road. Proceed 0.5 mile and bear to left, continuing on Deen’s Landing Road. Proceed 0.3 mile to entrance to boat landing on the right. NEW DIRECTIONS FROM PADDLING WORKSHOP TO BOAT LAUNCH NEW KICK OFF SHUTTLE CONSIDERATIONS Should you have any questions, please contact Joe Cook at 706-409-0128 or Georgia River Network at 706-549-4508. A revised information packet is online at http://www.garivers.org/paddle_georgia/2012/pgregistered2012.html (You may need to hit the “refresh” button on your internet browser to see the “revised” file.) Joe Cook Sponsors – Georgia Power, Hennessey Land Rover, Patagonia, Johnson Outdoors, Mohawk Carpet Foundation, The Outside World, Dock Supply, Cedar Creek RV & Outdoor Center, Stream Techs, Coca-Cola Refreshments, China Clay Producers Association, The Rain Barrel Depot Partners – Georgia Canoe Association, Altamaha Riverkeeper, Georgia Adopt-A-Stream, Project Wet, City of Darien, Altamaha River Partnership, Wayne County Board of Tourism |
Paddle Georgia, A Project of Georgia River Network - Weblog 