Articles

American Whitewater has received a seventh 4-star rating from Charity Navigator, America's largest and most utilized independent evaluator of charities. November 1, 2016, Charity Navigator, America's largest and most-utilized independent evaluator of charities, announced that American Whitewater has earned its seventh consecutive 4-star rating. Receiving four out of a possible four stars indicates that American Whitewater adheres to good governance and other best practices that minimize the chance of unethical activities and consistently executes its mission in a fiscally responsible way. The letter

Arkansas River, Colorado – The Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service, in cooperation with Colorado Parks and Wildlife, invite you to share your views about Browns Canyon of the Arkansas River National Monument at several upcoming listening sessions. The listening sessions are intended to guide the development of the Coordinated Management Plan for the National Monument and to increase understanding of how people interact with the monument, what is meaningful about it and the role it plays in

Last month, American Whitewater and our conservation partners won a monumental shift in Wild & Scenic River considerations in Colorado. The Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB) reversed its long-standing policy of opposing federal Wild & Scenic River protections and voted unanimously to support the US Bureau of Land Management (BLM) draft Resource Management Plan and Wild and Scenic Suitability determination for key segments of the San Miguel and Dolores Rivers. Now the BLM is accepting public comments on their Uncompahgre Field

Fall is upon us, which means different things for paddlers in different parts of the US. Maybe it's time to get out on classic dam release rivers like the Gauley, Feather, or Moose, or maybe another great season on the water is winding down as winter approaches. Either way, this could be a great time to sit back and reflect upon adventures, comraderie, incredible places or mishaps that whitewater has led you to.  Here at the AW Journal, we’re excited this

We would like to recognize lifetime American Whitewater member, Keith Kishiyama, for organizing the ACA sponsored Rock Creek Slalom and Tobin Downriver Race for the 2016 Feather River Festival. Keith’s experience designing the annual Mokelumne River Slalom and organizing the annual Cherry Creek Race made him the perfect candidate to take over the paddling fun at this year’s Feather Fest.   Keith started paddling in 1991 and slalom racing in 1993 on the very same river he first kayaked, the

We would like to thank Matt Anger, our volunteer of the month for helping set a new precedent this year at Gauley Fest, American Whitewater's biggest fundraiser of the year! Matt was essential in contributing to the early set up and challenging break down at the festival grounds. Matt has been volunteering with American Whitewater at Gauley Fest for 7 years and has generously shared over 200 hours of his time. In addition to manning the sledge hammer and organizing

Federal agencies in the Northwest charged with protecting endangered wild salmon and steelhead from the lethal impacts of federal dams in the Columbia and Snake rivers are holding fifteen Public Scoping Hearings this fall in Washington State, Oregon, Idaho and Montana.   These Scoping Hearings represent the first phase of a court-ordered review under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of salmon restoration alternatives in the Columbia and Snake Rivers. One obvious alternative is removal of the lower Snake River

Ohiopyle Falls (PA) Festival Update – due to significant rain in the mid atlantic for the weekend of the Ohiopyle Falls Race, the Ohiopyle Fall Festival and Over the Falls Race is being postponed to Oct 15, 2016. We hope to see everyone there.

Join us in a celebration of the paddling culture, on and off the river, at the 23rd annual Russell Fork Rendezvous. Meet up with old friends and make new ones and you paddle the Russell Fork River through some of the most beautiful Autumn scenery the Southeast has to offer. Don’t miss the annual “Lord of the Forks” race on Saturday. Camp at Carson Island, in Elkhorn City, KY with live music, drums, fire circles, food and dancing. All proceeds benefit American Whitewater.

Colorado, Sept. 2016 – After another lengthy round of meetings between American Whitewater and our conservation partners, and members of the Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB), a monumental shift in Wild & Scenic River considerations has been won in the State. This week, the CWCB reversed its long-standing policy of opposing federal Wild & Scenic River protections and voted unanimously to support the US Bureau of Land Management (BLM) draft Resource Management Plan and Wild and Scenic Suitability determination for

Earlier this year, Oregon Governor Kate Brown designated portions of the Molalla and Chetco Rivers as the state’s first new State Scenic Waterways since 1988. Now, the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department is developing rules that will apply to how the rivers are managed. The agency is seeking public comment on their proposed rules through 5 p.m. on Friday, September 30th. The whitewater paddling community highly values the Chetco and Molalla Rivers, and it’s been exciting to see the state

American Whitewater "Ohiopyle Over the Falls Festival" will be held on Saturday, October 1, 2016. Come on out and participate in the Falls Race, the Freestyle event, or just run laps on the falls. We have prize money! Additional activities will include a Silent Auction and Town Party at 7:30pm at Falls City Pub.   For additional information and registration forms check out www.FallsRace.com website. The Festival welcomes any and all volunteers, if you're interested in volunteering please contact Barry

It’s safe to say that Gore Fest 2016 was a huge success! The weekend was host to great flows, skilled paddlers, just the perfect amount of carnage, and an incredible volunteer squad that kept the river safe and the party wild. Over 400 people joined us at Rancho del Rio to enjoy what Gore Canyon and the Upper Colorado have to offer. A total of 153 kayakers, rafters, and SUP-boarders competed in races and freestyle events. Overall, we had 159

Nannette Johnson is the bomb. No really. This was heard numerous times at the 2016 Gore Canyon Festival. This month, American Whitewater recognizes Nannette as our September Volunteer of the Month. Nannette was instrumental to this years GoreFest, working closely with our Colorado Stewardship Team to put on an amazing weekend of paddling, partying and raising support and awareness for the protection of flows in the Upper Colorado River.  Nannette not only volunteered the entire festival weekend, registering racers, organizing volunteers, directing shuttles,

The September/October issue of the AW Journal features "a Western Family Road Trip". This issue also includes. . . *   Owyhee River Paddle Boarding *   Jewel in the Desert *   Why I Kayak *   Whitewater Accident Summary *   . . .and much more Current members – Read the issue now! Not a current member – Join or Renew!