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Let the countdown begin! T-minus 26 days and counting 'till Bailey Fest 2012! Dates are August 10-12, 2012. Information can be found here: Bailey Fest | Whitewater Kayak Festival | NF South Platte River | Denver, Colorado including camping info, dates, maps, photos, etc. After one of the worst drought years in Colorado, Bailey Fest has what you need… WATER in the river!  Good boating flows are provided thanks to Denver Water moving water from Lake Dillon into the North

  State Agency Certification Supports Dewatering Similkameen Falls   Oroville – Today public interest organizations criticized the Washington State Department of Ecology for certifying that a proposed hydropower project would meet state water quality standards, when the project would instead effectively dewater a historic waterfall on the Similkameen River in Okanogan County.  The state agency’s decision, known as a “401 Certification” under the federal Clean Water Act, will move forward a proposal by Okanogan PUD to reactivate Enloe Dam for

The Hood River is the go-to river for whitewater lovers in Oregon and Washington's Columbia Gorge, and the area around Punch Bowl Falls is an important access point.  Located in a stunning canyon near the confluence of the East and West Forks of the Hood River, Punch Bowl Falls also provides a sanctuary for salmon and access for swimming, and the area has great potential for camping. Above the Falls, the West Fork of the Hood provides an opportunity for

The most common way to access a river is where a public road crosses it. Paddlers often find themselves squeezing down the narrow easement that typically exists between a bridge and private land. It turns out that in California, the Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is required to fully consider and report on whether it is feasible to provide public river access when they build a new state highway bridge over a river (see California Streets and Highways Code section 84.5;

The Trust for Public Land last week announced the purchase of a critical 80-acre private property in the heart of the Frank Church – River of No Return Wilderness in the Salmon-Challis National Forest, Idaho. This land will be added to the Frank Church and made available for all to enjoy as unspoiled wilderness. The Trust for Public Land worked with the landowners and the U.S. Forest Service to protect a portion of the Morgan Ranch, a private homestead dating

The July/August issue of the AW Journal includes American Whitewater’s 2011 Annual Report . Our index now provides direct links to each article. this issue includes. . . Mission Unaccomplished From Dreams to Reality Solo Boating: Cataract Canyon A Selway Story Adventures on the Little River Teaching without Speaking . . .plus much more! Want to read the AW Journal online: You need a current membership and you must be registered with the AW website and have your membership associated

American Whitewater is pleased to announce Chris Cardoni as our July 2012 Volunteer of the Month! Chris has been a rockstar volunteer at AW's Deerfield Fest for the past several years. Most recently he's run the Silient Auction for us for the whole day and evening. Moreover, Chris shows up each Sunday morning after the fest to help us clean up the field, the mark of a dedicated volunteer! Add this to his fun and friendly demeanor the whole time and

  Each summer, American Whitewater takes a look back at the previous year and distills the organization's projects, supporters and financial information – plus much more – into one document, our Annual Report. The 2011 American Whitewater Annual Report is now available for your review.   A couple high points from the report: 1) In 2011, American Whitewater focused on adding capacity to our highly effective river stewardship program by hiring additional staff to support critical projects in Colorado and

Although the drought eliminated the regular Friday and Monday whitewater releases on the Upper Yough, locals know that shorter releases are being made regularly to protect the river's trout fishery. These "fish releases" are almost as good as the regular whitewater releases!  To help out-of-town paddlers make plans, thirty-year Upper Yough outfitter Roger Zbel and Friendsville Town Councilman Jess Whittemore will predict the probability of "fish releases" on Thursday for the coming Friday and others in the future. UPPER YOUGH UPDATE: Deep Creek

This year's Upper Yough Race is scheduled for July 28th. Weather and water permitting there will be an extra-long release that day. Registration will be from 9-12 Noon  at the Wilderness Voyageurs store in town on the day of the race. Cost is $30.  the Dam release runs from 10am – 4pm, and the race start time has changed from 5pm to 4pm PM at Gap Falls. This is the same weekend as Friendsville Days! Stay around for great music and food

Please go to the article on the Middle Atlantic Page{ http://www.americanwhitewater.org/content/Article/view/articleid/31432/  

Last week Pacific Gas & Electric and the Nevada Irrigation Cistrict both filed amended license applications for the Yuba/Bear and Drum Spaulding Hydroelectric Projects. These revised license applications represent significant agreements on flows for the Middle Fork Yuba, South Fork Yuba, Canyon Creek, Fordyce Creek, the Bear River, and a myriad of small streams throughout the Yuba/Bear watershed. This agreement most certainly did not happen overnight. American Whitewater has spent six years putting in thousands of hours and going to

  QUILCENE, Wash. (June 21, 2012) The Wild Olympics Campaign, of which American Whitewater is a member, today cheered the introduction of the Wild Olympics Wilderness & Wild and Scenic Rivers Act (H.R. 5995 and S. 3329) by Congressman Norm Dicks and Senator Patty Murray to permanently protect more than 126,500 acres of Olympic National Forest wilderness and 19 rivers and their major tributaries (a total of 464 river miles) as Wild and Scenic Rivers. If enacted, the legislation would

  American Whitewater requested that Ohiopyle Falls Access Guidelines be updated for the current year. We are also waiting for a response to our request to increase the Falls season through the autumn Launch Booth closure date of Sunday October 7, 2012. What follows are the Park guidelines for this year, 2012.     Private Boater Ohiopyle Falls Access Guidelines 1.     Prior to launching for each falls run, all boaters must register at the Lower Youghiogheny Launch Booth on SR 381.  A

Earlier this month, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack named the members of an advisory committee charged with providing guidance and recommendations on the implementation of the new U.S. Forest Service Planning Rule.  Among the appointed members is Adam Cramer, Outdoor Alliance Policy Architect and American Whitewater Board Member.  Adam will represent dispersed recreationists on this important committee.  "Members of this federal advisory committee will give unique perspectives on land management issues under the new planning rule, which provides stronger protections for

American Whitewater is pleased to announce the hiring of Alan Panebaker as our new Northeast Stewardship Director.  In this position Alan will oversee American Whitewater’s regional stewardship projects including playing various roles in dam releases, state and federal policy affecting rivers, public land management, and community recreation planning. Alan comes to American Whitewater with a Juris Doctor (JD) and a Masters in Environmental Law and Policy from the Vermont Law School, as well as a B.A in Journalism from the

The first ever scheduled recreational releases on the upper Nantahala River will occur on Saturday and Sunday, September 29 and 30, 2012, near Wesser, North Carolina.  Duke Energy will release water from the dam at Nantahala Lake into the upper Nantahala.  These releases are in addition to the more typical releases from the Nantahala powerhouse into the popular lower Nantahala River.  The releases were negotiated by AW and a diverse group of local and regional stakeholders between 2001 and 2003