Articles

We are sad to report the passing of Wolf Bauer one of American Whitewater’s original founders. Born in 1912 in the Bavarian Alps, Wolf came to Seattle at the age of 13 and was awarded a membership to The Mountaineers as a youth. Already an accomplished skier, Wolf quickly came to love his new home at the doorstep of the Cascades where he began to hike and climb with the Boy Scouts. Through college he established the region’s first instructional

Paddlers made a great showing at the January 28th Deep Creek Watershed Planning Meeting in McHenry, MD. Releases from Deep Creek Lake that support paddling on the Upper Youghioghenny River have been under attack by homeowners on backwater lots who are left high and dry during droughts. Friendsville town councilman Jess Whittemore and Upper Yough outfitter Roger Zbell have been ably representing whitewater paddlers for years. They know the river and dam inside out! Their goal has been to see

For the past couple of years, the staff of America Whitewater has joined with a number if our members to participate in a four-day float trip on the Rogue River in southern Oregon. This trip has been a great opportunity to connect with members in ways that build a lasting understanding of the role of recreation in fostering a stewardship ethic.  As one of the original eight Wild and Scenic Rivers in the country, the Rogue is an outstanding classroom

Come see American Whitewater and the year's best photos and videos at the National Paddling Film Festival (NPFF)! This year's NPFF will be held on February 19-20 in Frankfort, KY at the Buffalo Trace Distillery. You can buy a ticket to the magic via this easy online order form. Tickets are $20 online or $25 at the door.   For 34 years the National Paddling Film Festival has been hosting a competition to determine the best in paddle sport videos

The Winter issue of the AW Journal features "The Top Ten Stewardship Issues of 2016". This issue also includes. . . *   Top Ten 2015 Update *   The Heart of the Sierras: Hiking In, Paddling Out *   Shredding Sub-ELF Flows on the Selway *   . . .and much more Current members – Read the issue now! Not a current member – Join or Renew!

For the March 2016 issue of the American Whitewater Journal, we'll be highlighting the challenges and opportunities for river access that paddlers face across the country. In the West, where some of the most contentious access conflicts till persist, our Colorado River Stewardship Program wants to hear your stories! Whether it's a terribly placed fence, a pissed-off landowner, bad signage, or local governments not honoring your rights as a paddler, we'd like to hear your stories of access gained and

This month, American Whitewater supporters stepped up, took action, and made a difference on two important issues that have a big impact on river conservation and recreation. As Congress wraps up the session for 2015, here’s an update on where things stand with hydropower legislation and Land and Water Conservation Fund.    H.R. 8 – Hydropower Legislation   Background: H.R. 8 is a comprehensive energy bill that has some very troubling implications for rivers with private and municipal hydropower dams.

The Forest Service recently released a great list of 53 rivers and creeks they view as potentially worthy of protection under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, and asked for feedback. Numerous paddlers responded this week to share the exemplary values of the region's whitewater gems and to argue for full protection. With the comment period now closed the Forest Service will select a system of protected streams based on public comments and other information. We'll have a chance to

The California State Lands Commission (SLC) is in the final stages of updating their strategic plan through the final draft of the California State Lands Commission Strategic Plan 2016 – 2020.  Led by California State Lieutenant Governor, Gavin Newsom, State Controller, Betty Yee and Director of Finance, Michael Cohen the Lands Commission is tasked with protecting the lands that are controlled by the State of California.  This includes all of the lands under and adjacent to the navigable rivers within

Yosemite National Park recently announced that it is beginning the process of updating its Wilderness Stewardship Plan, and has requested that the public provide comment about the future of the Wilderness lands within the Park.    The Wilderness Stewardship Plan will govern activities within Yosemite’s designated Wilderness Areas, which make up about 94% of the Park. Earlier this year, Yosemite National Park began to implement its Merced and Tuolumne Wild and Scenic River Management Plans, which opened both rivers to

The Lewis and Clark National Forest (MT) is updating the inventory of streams they protect as "eligible" for Wild and Scenic designation. To be eligible a stream reach must be undammed and have at least one rare, unique, or exemplary value that is regionally or nationally significant. This marks an incredible opportunity for the paddling community to help protect rivers on the Rocky Mountain Front, in the Upper Blackfoot and Little Blackfoot watersheds, and in the Big Belts, Little Belts,

Russell Fork Rendezvous and the Lord Of The Fork Race bring together the southeast/mid atlantic boating community and could not happen without strong volunteer leadership. Participants enjoy great music, good food, camaraderie, bonfires, films, and lots of great whitewater on the banks of the Russell Fork near Elkhorn City, KY. American Whitewater benefits with a strong membership drive around the event.   AW’s December Volunteers of the Month are the team that hosts these Russell Fork events; Bob Larkin, Nate Scally and

The House is scheduled to vote the week of November 30th on the hydropower legislation we’ve been tracking since late spring. It still spells really, really bad news for rivers and paddler’s voices are very important right now!   H.R. 8 (the "North American Energy Security and Infrastructure Act”) is a comprehensive energy bill with hydropower provisions that, if passed, will make restoring rivers impacted by hydropower dams significantly more challenging (these provisions are in Title I Subtitle C of