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Image for AW is Hiring: Help Take Our App to the Next Level

AW is Hiring: Help Take Our App to the Next Level

American Whitewater is seeking an iOS developer to extend American Whitewater's existing iOS application (written in Swift). At the heart of our online river guide app is innovative crowdsourcing, rich mapping and photography, river safety advice, and engagement with conservation initiatives. An interest or experience in river recreation is a plus for this project, but not required. This project will require interacting with notification APIs, HTTP APIs, mapping APIs, authentication APIs, and camera APIs. The backend is PHP/Laravel. Time-frame is

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Image for Feather Fest (CA) is Coming September 21-23, 2018!

Feather Fest (CA) is Coming September 21-23, 2018!

The Feather River Festival will be September 21-23, 2018! This event is hosted by American Whitewater with a Bar-B-Que and party presented by the Chico Paddleheads. This is California’s biggest whitewater festival and is held annually on the fourth weekend in September to coincide with the Rock Creek Dam scheduled release. Come on out for multiple sections of excellent whitewater, guaranteed flows, and and awesome party.   What: Feather Fest 2018 – a river festival including: film festival, primitive camping, dinner, beer,

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Image for Mokelumne River is a California State Wild and Scenic River!

Mokelumne River is a California State Wild and Scenic River!

Decades of home grown advocacy, including heavy lifting done by our colleagues at Foothill Conservancy and Friends of the River has finally resulted in the permanent protection of thirty-seven miles of the North Fork and main stem of the Mokelumne River.   Like the Federal Act upon which it was modeled, the California Wild and Scenic Rivers Act affords, “certain rivers which possess extraordinary scenic, recreational, fishery, or wildlife values shall be preserved in their free-flowing state, together with their

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Image for AW Volunteer Of The Month Presented By Kokatat: Amy Howell!

AW Volunteer Of The Month Presented By Kokatat: Amy Howell!

American Whitewater is pleased to recognize Amy Howell as AW’s September Volunteer of the Month. Amy absolutely was our star volunteer at the Gore Canyon Festival this year. She was our first ever Volunteer Coordinator for the event and she worked tirelessly to help with pre-event volunteer coordination and job planning for our incredible group of volunteers. She also booked and coordinated the music for our event (her specialty) for free and manned the registration station all weekend long so

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Image for Saint Vrain Stream Management Planning is Underway (CO)

Saint Vrain Stream Management Planning is Underway (CO)

Lyons, Colorado – The St. Vrain Creek watershed on Colorado's northern Front Range, is critical to maintaining the health, biodiversity, character, and economy of communities within the region, including Lyons and Longmont. The creek is a stronghold for native fishes, receives Colorado River transmountain water, hosts one of the country’s largest outdoor industry events, and has its headwaters in Rocky Mountain National Park and the Indian Peaks Wilderness, and its confluence in the county with the largest agricultural economy in Colorado. The

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Image for AW Comments on Colorado Nat'l Forest Wilderness Process

AW Comments on Colorado Nat’l Forest Wilderness Process

The Grand Mesa Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests (GMUG) planning process is well underway and we are working to ensure that the interests of the boating community are well-represented in the process.  Today, September 5, marked the close of the public review process for the DRAFT Wilderness Evaluation Report. The Evaluation Phase is the second step of 4 different steps required in the assessment of lands that may be suitable for inclusion in the National Wilderness Preservation System (NWPS).  The

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Gauley Fest – September 13-16, 2018 – Summersville, WV

Get your groove on baby, it’s a 60’s themed event! Started in 1983 to celebrate the derailment of a hydro-electric project that would have disrupted the flows on the Gauley River, Gauley Fest has grown to become the largest paddling festival in the world. Gauley Fest is also our major education and outreach event and your support feeds our national river stewardship efforts. Put September 13-16 in your calendar and join us in West Virginia.   For this year, 2018,

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Image for Celebrate the 50 Years of Wild & Scenic Rivers at New Belgium Brewery

Celebrate the 50 Years of Wild & Scenic Rivers at New Belgium Brewery

Fort Collins, CO – Join American Whitewater on September 6, with the Coalition for the Poudre River Watershed, American Rivers, and New Belgium Brewing to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Wild & Scenic Rivers Act! We’ll have swag giveaways and opportunities to take action on behalf of rivers near and far. Featuring the short film, PROTECTED: A Wild & Scenic River Portrait and $3 Fat Tire Amber Ale and Fat Tire Belgian White.    Just upstream of Fort Collins

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Image for 2018 Letter To Gauley Boaters From The NPS (WV)

2018 Letter To Gauley Boaters From The NPS (WV)

American Whitewater received the following open letter to boaters from the rangers and staff of the Gauley River National Recreation Area. This letter will keep you up to date on important management actions of the National Park Service on the Gauley River. The Park Service also shared information regarding their flow alert program. Enjoy your paddling season on this classic whitewater river. As in past years, American Whitewater has leased the field above Masons Branch, also known as the Legg field,

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Image for Washington Dams With Fishery or Recreation Issues

Washington Dams With Fishery or Recreation Issues

Several dams in Washington State have known issues impacting fishery resources or river-based recreation. Some represent partial or complete barriers to fish passage that should be addressed; additionally impacts to geomorphology degrade habitat for fishery resources at many of these dams. In other cases the primary impact of the dam is on river-based recreation where the dam represents a hazard to navigation or public safety. Some of these dams may be candidates for removal while others could be modified to

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Image for Speak Up NOW to Protect New Mexico’s Gila and San Francisco Rivers!

Speak Up NOW to Protect New Mexico’s Gila and San Francisco Rivers!

SIGN THIS CITIZEN SUPPORT LETTER TO PROTECT THE GILA AND SAN FRANCISCO RIVERS IN NEW MEXICO BEFORE THIS FRIDAY!  On July 18, a coalition of recreationists, landowners, and conservations groups, including American Whitewater, submitted a formal proposal to the offices of Senator Heinrich and Senator Udall to designate 453.9 miles in the Gila River Watershed under the National Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. The proposal includes the mainstem Gila River, the San Francisco River, and select major tributaries to the

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Image for Johnnies Creek Access Update (Summer 2018)

Johnnies Creek Access Update (Summer 2018)

AW is pleased to offer this update on the put in for Johnnies Creek.  True Adventure Sports (TAS) has acquired river access rights to the Mill Hole area of Johnnies Creek. A primary goal of this action is to ensure paddlers have a safe, sustainable place to access Johnnies Creek. Current use of the site as a party-oriented swimming hole has led to significant damage to the area, litter, and public safety and sanitation risks. TAS has closed the site

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Image for Report your encounters with Low-flying aircraft on western rivers.

Report your encounters with Low-flying aircraft on western rivers.

Colorado River – As you may have seen reported in the news, a small aircraft (pictured) crashed alongside the Ruby-Horsethief section of the Colorado River, near the Colorado/Utah state line, on July 31, 2018.  Fortunately, the pilot of the accident aircraft was rescued by nearby rafters and not seriously injured.  However, the crash is a sobering example of how dangerous this sort of flying can be for pilots and other river users.  American Whitewater has received numerous reports over the past

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Image for Get Ready for Gore Fest! August 24-26th, 2018

Get Ready for Gore Fest! August 24-26th, 2018

The Gore Canyon Festival is the premiere whitewater event in Colorado. Focused around the Class IV-V downriver race through Gore Canyon, GoreFest has brought the worlds elite whitewater athletes together for an awesome end to the Colorado boating season, but it also has events for everyone. From a family fun float through the class II/III Hartman Canyon (aka Little Gore Canyon), a freestyle rodeo at the Gore Canyon Whitewater Park, and SUP downriver and cross races, to the party at Rancho

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Image for AW Volunteers Of The Month Presented By Kokatat: The AW App Team!

AW Volunteers Of The Month Presented By Kokatat: The AW App Team!

American Whitewater is pleased to recognize Greg Lee, Rachel Jin and Alex Kerney as AW’s August Volunteers of the Month. This team worked together to create the new American Whitewater iOS app. The app is a great way to see which rivers are running near you and learn a bit about AW and it was an incredible gift to our organization and the paddling community. The app is a breeze to use, is getting great reviews, and we like it

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Image for East Rosebud Creek is a New Wild and Scenic River!

East Rosebud Creek is a New Wild and Scenic River!

August 2, 2018, the President's signature marked the exciting finale of nearly a decade of efforts to protect Montana's East Rosebud Creek from hydropower development and other impacts. Twenty miles of this beautiful stream were designated as a Wild and Scenic River as it flows from the rugged Beartooth Mountains between Big Timber and Red Lodge, Montana. East Rosebud is treasured by local residents, paddlers, anglers, hikers, and other visitors.  The designation comes on the 50th anniversary year of the

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Image for Opportunities to Enjoy Pit Falls (CA) Limited Again!

Opportunities to Enjoy Pit Falls (CA) Limited Again!

Over American Whitewater’s objections, Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) is again planning on a single four-day release on Pit 1 over the Columbus Day weekend. While we understand that this is their option per the language of the FERC license condition, we do not feel that PG&E's rationale for doing this again is in the spirit of the agreement negotiated during relicensing. Last year, the change by PG&E to move the fall releases to 4 consecutive days over Columbus Day

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Image for American Whitewater Announces Endowment

American Whitewater Announces Endowment

American Whitewater is pleased to announce the creation of our first endowment ever! Thanks to long time AW board member and river safety educator, Charlie Walbridge, a generous donation was made to serve as the seed for American Whitewater’s River Safety Endowment. The income will be used for “promoting whitewater safety, responsible on-river behavior, safety education and outreach, and maintenance of the American Whitewater Safety Code and Whitewater Accident Database.’ Charlie’s generous support of safety education and outreach insures that, over the

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Image for Submit Your Best Photos For The AW Calendar By August 10th

Submit Your Best Photos For The AW Calendar By August 10th

Submit your best photos for American Whitewater's annual calendar! When The deadline is August 10th, 2018. How Via our online submission form. Images must be submitted as high-resolution files (suitable for printing up to 10", at least 1MB) for inclusion in the calendar, without monetary compensation. Maximum 10 photo entries per person. Who Any and all photographers, from professionals to complete novices. Have you taken a photo before? Then you're ready. Why First, you'll get a free copy of the calendar

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Image for Apple and Android AW Apps Now Available!

Apple and Android AW Apps Now Available!

American Whitewater is pleased to announce that a free iPhone/iOS App is now available that shares realtime details on the over 5,500 whitewater runs in our National Whitewater Inventory. The new location-enabled app allows paddlers to learn about nearby rivers within a selected distance or state, and safely pick trips that meet their group’s skill level, flow preferences, and timeframe. It offers enhanced mapping and links paddlers to the rich crowd-sourced information and river-related news on the American Whitewater website.  This app was developed

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Image for Bill to Protect East Rosebud Creek Heads to President's Desk!

Bill to Protect East Rosebud Creek Heads to President’s Desk!

The Senate yesterday passed Senators Jon Tester and Steve Daines and Congressman Greg Gianforte’s bill that protects 20 miles of the East Rosebud in south-central Montana as part of the Wild and Scenic River System.   American Whitewater has actively supported this bill and the many local community members that have advocated for it since day-one. We played a high-level role in defeating a proposed dam on the stream, and have since worked to encourage its permanent protection. We are

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Image for SPEAK UP FOR IMPROVED ACCESS AT NEW BULLARDS BAR DAM - YUBA RIVER (CA)

SPEAK UP FOR IMPROVED ACCESS AT NEW BULLARDS BAR DAM – YUBA RIVER (CA)

American Whitewater is advocating for improved access conditions at New Bullards Bar Dam on California’s Yuba River. Access to the sections of whitewater below New Bullards Bar Dam involves putting in at the base of the Dam; a 0.75-mile-long, paved, private, gated road (posted “No Trespassing”) accesses the base of New Bullards Bar Dam.  Absent legal access below the Dam, boaters are required to hike around the dam, scramble down a steep and unstable hillside or to hike in from

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Image for Help Us Determine the Economic Impact of Recreation in Colorado and Montana!

Help Us Determine the Economic Impact of Recreation in Colorado and Montana!

Do you like to paddle and/or recreate in other ways in Montana's Custer Gallatin National Forest or the western slope of Colorado? If so, we need your help to understand the economic impact of recreation there before Monday August 20th.   Our partners at Outdoor Alliance are working with a social scientist to measure the economic impact of human-powered recreation including paddling in priority national forests in Colorado’s Grand Mesa Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forest (GMUG) and Montana's Custer Gallatin National

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Image for East Rosebud (MT) Wild and Scenic Act Passes House!

East Rosebud (MT) Wild and Scenic Act Passes House!

On Tuesday July 17, 2018, the East Rosebud Creek Wild and Scenic River Act passed the United States House of Representatives, clearing a make-or-break hurdle on the way to becoming law. Designation would protect twenty miles of East Rosebud Creek from hydropower dams and other impacts as it flows on Federal lands from the spectacular Beartooth Mountains in Montana. This broadly supported bipartisan bill would create the first Wild and Scenic River in Montana since 1976, on this, the 50th

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