Articles

Search Articles:

Enter the drawing for a free trip in Ecuador today!

Are YOU the lucky boater AW is going to send on a 7-day paddling trip in Ecuador? Sign up for AW’s Paddle Ecuador Contest today and we’ll enter you in a drawing for a 7-day trip paddling in ECUADOR. Win even more entries in the drawing by helping AW grow! Find out how. Existing contest participants – be sure to let us know your progress! Just e-mail the names of your new members to: EcuadorContest@amwhitewater.org. Just think…it could be YOU

Read More

(MD/VA) Park Proposes Great Falls Fishermen’s Eddy Access Improvement

Great Falls, Virginia – On November 9th, 2001 Superintendent Audrey Calhoun announced the availability of the Environmental Assessment (EA) for “Improvements to Trails and Overlooks at Great Falls Park, Virginia,” a unit of the George Washington Memorial Parkway.The proposed action is based on the fact that the overlooks are currently “in a deteriorating condition, visually incompatible with the surroundings, and inaccessible to disabled visitors.”The assessment also notes that numerous social trails have been established as a result of visitors leaving

Read More
Image for Harpers Ferry Access Study Reveals Need for New Approaches (MD/WV)

California Boaters: Do You Want Access?

The California Department of Boating and Waterways wants to know your needs fornon motorized access and facility improvements. This is a tremendousopportunity for the whitewater community to get river access improvementsparticularly on rivers with upcoming whitewater releases like the North ForkFeather. The deadline is early December. The Department of Boating and Waterways serves all segments of California?sboating public: powerboaters and sailboaters; personal watercraft users;windsurfers and water skiers; kayakers, canoeists and rafters. One of theDepartment¹s primary objectives is to plan and

Read More

Yankee Ingenuity Alive and Well in Upper New York State

In October John Gangemi and Kevin Colburn, American Whitewater staff,toured a series of hydropower projects in and around Adirondack State Park inNew York. In the span of nine-days nine hydropower projects encompassingseventeen dams were visited. Five of these projects four of which containmultiple dams are currently going through the relicensing process. AmericanWhitewater is actively engaged in these relicense proceedings fighting torestore whitewater flows to dewatered reaches, access and publiclyaccessible real-time flow information. “I’ve long awaited an opportunity to paddle in

Read More
Image for California Boaters:  Do You Want Access?

California Boaters: Do You Want Access?

The California Department of Boating and Waterways wants to know your needs fornon-motorized access and facility improvements. This is a tremendousopportunity for the whitewater community to get river access improvementsparticularly on rivers with upcoming whitewater releases like the North ForkFeather. The deadline is early December.The Department of Boating and Waterways serves all segments of California’sboating public: powerboaters and sailboaters; personal watercraft users;windsurfers and water skiers; kayakers, canoeists and rafters. One of theDepartment¹s primary objectives is to plan and develop boating

Read More
Image for AW / Lotus Paddle Days S. Fork American

FERC Takes Balanced Approach on Housatonic River, Connecticut

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the agency overseeing privatehydropower dams, recently initiated a flurry of activity for the relicensing oftwo hydroelectric projects located on the Housatonic River. On October 10th theFERC issued "Additional Information Requests" on the application submitted byNortheast Generation Company (formerly Connecticut Light and Power) for theirhydropower facilities on the Housatonic River. On October 19th the FERC issuedtheir intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for these relicenseproceedings. On October 23rd the FERC released the second scoping

Read More

RALLY TO SAVE THE ANIMAS RIVER, DURANGO, NOVEMBER 9

THE PUBLIC IS INVITED TO PARTICIPATE Congress approves A-LP appropriation; Demands grow to shut the project down Grassroots coalition to march on Bureau of Reclamation headquarters against controversial Animas-La Plata water project More than 35 organizations and businesses are seeking:– An indefinite construction halt, to protect ancient Native Americancemetery;– A GAO investigation of violations of federal rules; and– Congressional de-authorization of the A-LP dam and reservoir project DURANGO, COLORADO — A coalition of more than 35 native and non-nativeorganizations and

Read More

Citizens’ Group Sues over Animas-La Plata

CITIZENS?PROGRESSIVE ALLIANCEPRESS RELEASESeptember 10, 2001 A-LP FOES SUE FEDSFOIA Suit Names BIA & DOIColorado Ute Indian Water Claims At Issue FLORA VISTA, NM — THE FOUR CORNERS (09/10/01)–Citizens’ Progressive Alliance(CPA), a public interest watchdog group based in northwest New Mexico andColorado, is suing the Department of Interior in the 10th U.S. District Courtfor failure to comply with the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). At stake is afull and open public review of a sixteen-year-old technical study used by theFederal Government

Read More

Forest Service and American Whitewater

American Whitewater has enjoyed working closely with the Forest Service (USFS) on a wide variety of river-related projects during the 1990’s. As we enter the new Millennium, we look forward to increasing our cooperation with this agency and finding more ways to work together on issues of both national and regional significance. We are particularly excited over the development of the Forest Service’s Roadless Policy, and the Forest Service’s commitment to working on Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) hydropower relicensing.At

Read More

Chattooga Help More Urgent Than Ever

More Information Including Updates.American Whitewater’s Chattooga Headwaters Access Proposal.American Whitewater & the Forest Service.November 7, 2001RUSH — VIA TELECOPY 864-638-2659Mr. Mike CraneUSDA Forest Service112 Andrew Pickens CircleMountain Rest, SC 29664mcrane@fs.fed.usRe: Wild and Scenic Chattooga River – Pending EA for Amendment 14Mr. Crane,I am a private whitewater boater and I support American Whitewater. I officially request that you include an alternative in the upcoming Chattooga River Environmental Assessment that: (A) Allows private, non-commercial boating on the Chattooga River above highway 28;

Read More

AW Forum in New Kayak Session

American Whitewater has announced it will be contributing articles to Kayak Session, a new magazine will bring ‘coffee table’ quality to the imagery chronicling whitewater, including the critical role conservation and access play in the sport. “This publication will focus on the excitement of the sport that has driven excitement and technical advances,” states Risa Shimoda, American Whitewater Executive Director. “We will contribute an article to each issue, reminding the paddling community that American Whitewater staff and volunteers are working

Read More

Lackawanna (PA) Needs Your Envolvement

The following is an alert from some folks who really care about the Lackawanna River. If you paddle this river or want to one day, check them out at http://lrca.org/ and go to the meeting! There is a meeting to determine final recommendations for the Lackawanna River Conservation Plan regarding recreation and clean up on November 20 at 7:00 pm at the Uniondale Methodist Church. The church is about 5 miles north of the put in at Forest City on

Read More

Russell Fork Environmental Victory

Plan to drill for gas in Breaks Interstate Park is abandonedThat’s the headline in a recent Lexinton Herald Leader sent to American Whitewater’s office by local activist, attorney J. Brent Austin, and coming on the heels of another great Russell Fork season the timing is perfect. Brent alerted American Whitewater to this imminent threat early this year and implored us to petition our members to help protect the park from gas drilling and inevitable road building. If you are familiar

Read More
Image for Sign-Ins Required for the Upper Blackwater

North Fork Feather River Success!

On October 23rd, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission(FERC) voted to accept the settlement agreement and issued the new license for Rock Creek – Cresta. American Whitewater, led by Conservation Director John Gangemi, along with board members Dave Steindorf and Kevin Lewis, spent the last five years working to return precious flows to the North Fork Feather River. Allied with other conservation groups(California Trout, Friends of the River, California Sportfishing Protection Alliance) and government agencies, this settlement returns much-needed instream flows

Read More

Can You Taste Victory?

On October 19, 2001 the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission revoked thepreliminary permit for the Boundary Creek Water Power Project. This is a hugevictory for the paddling and environmental communities. Boundary Creek is apremiere creek run that also provides critical habitat for bull trout, westslope cutthroat trout, red-band rainbow, harlequin ducks, grizzly bear, wolf andmountain caribou. As a member of the first descent party, I?ve had a vestedinterest in preventing this project from being constructed. American Whitewaterhas been battling this permit

Read More

Victory on Fee Demo is Result of AW Testimony

American Whitewater Helps Reduce Fee Demo Extension from Four Years to Two Years and Increases Appropriations for Land AgenciesOn October 10, the House and Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittees extended the Recreation Fee Demonstration Program (“Fee Demo”) for two years instead of the four years initially proposed. The program is now set to expire on September 30, 2004. This scaling back of Fee Demo is a victory resulting from concerted lobbying efforts by the Access Fund, the Outdoor Industry Association, American

Read More

A Halloween Jam for American Whitewater

Oct 26 Halloween Dance Party for American Whitewater Ubiquitone and American Whitewater invite you and your friends to come out to the Firehouse Grill in old town Fairfax. Preview your Halloween costumes and dance the night away!We’ve just learned that local phenom Joe Herbert of Indoe Loop will open for Ubiquitone! Joe is coming to us fresh from performing a solo acoustic set for Todd Rundgren on the 20th.We’re hosting this jam band dance party on Friday, October 26th (8:00

Read More

A Halloween Jam for American Whitewater

Oct 26 Halloween Dance Party for American Whitewater American Whitewater invites you and your friends to come out to the Firehouse Grill in old town Fairfax. Preview your Halloween costumes, and dance the night away with the Ubiquitones!We’re hosting this jam band dance party on Friday, October 26th (8:00 pm ’til last call) to celebrate America’s whitewater — and we also have a special surprise announcement about new releases on a favorite local river…Everyone is invited, so beat the bushes

Read More

USGS Tellico Gauge: The Rest of the Story

Tellico Gauge: The rest of the story   The Tellico gauge is now on line at the USGS Tennessee web pages. How did it get there? Many of you helped whether you remember it or not. Other organizations and American Whitewater, through the efforts of Jason Robertson, AW Access Director, lobbied hard to get additional funding for the USGS so they could continue to maintain and report gauges important to the whitewater community and maybe even add a few. Read

Read More

When Were Moose River Releases Achieved?

When did AW and Moose River Corporation come to an agreement to release water on a schduled basis? The answer (unless you are as old as Chris Koll, heaven forbid, for you might recall first hand) can be discovered this weekend at the Moose Festival where we’ll showcase The River Chasers, a new book chronicling the history of whitewater in the US. Author Sue Taft will be signing the book for which she spent over five years, interviewing 150 paddlers

Read More

Moose Fest weekend – Oct. 12-14

Celebrating releases on the Black and Bottom Moose Rivers secured by American Whitewater — the 7th annual Moose River Fest will feature a full weekend of partying and paddling Oct. 12-14 in Old Forge, NY. Activities start on Friday with a special release on the Black River Gorge from 11 am-1 pm. The Black River features seven miles of class 3-4 rapids along with a 15-foot waterfall and the class 5 “Poop Chute.” Before and after the Gorge release, boaters

Read More

Want to paddle in Ecuador? Help AW grow and win a trip!

AW’s Paddle Ecuador! Contest Imagine…lush rainforests, clean warm water, lava cliffs, tree-lined banks, tropical birds, waterfalls, polished granite bolders. You could be there! Sign up for the contest today and get one free entry in the drawing for a 7-day trip in ECUADOR. Click here! About the contest You probably know at least a handful of people who want to protect and paddle whitewater rivers just as much as you do. When they join American Whitewater, they’ll help us make

Read More

Want to paddle in Ecuador? Help AW grow and win a trip!

<center><table><table cellspacing=10><tr><td></td><td> <font size="2"><img height="180" width="120" src="/resources/repository/SWA_EcuadorSurfer.jpg" align=left></font> </td><td><br></td><td> <p><font size="2"><b>AW’s Paddle Ecuador! Contest<br> September 22, 2001 – January 31, 2002<br> </b></font></p> <p><font size="4" color="0896DB"><b><i>Help us strengthen the voice <br>for river access and WIN! </i></b></size><br> </font></p> </td> </tr></table> </center> <center> <p><a href="#start"><font size="2">Sign me up!</font></a><font size="2"><br> </font></p> <p><a href="#why"> Why the Paddle Ecuador! Contest? ACCESS!</a> <br><a href="#how"> How it works </a> <br><a href="#prizes">The prizes! </a> <br><a href="#buddies"> Why your buddies should join AW </a> <br><a href="#start">Getting Started</a> <br><a href="#rules">Contest Rules</a>

Read More