Hello Folks -
Hello River Friends -
This past weekend we had a great paddle trip to Willamette Falls with about 40 people. We were able to talk about a range of issues, and got great views of the Falls.
We also passed a couple of sea lions lounging on one of the docks, as they have for quite a while. As many of you know, the native winter steelhead population is imperiled - long decimated by dams, habitat modification, hatcheries, and now the final handfuls are being eaten by sea lions at the falls. Too often left out of the discussion is the fact that sea lions are only an issue now because the winter steelhead population has been greatly reduced over the past few decades by the issues mentioned above. Now it appears in 2019 some of the problematic animals will be captured, and euthanized.
On the brighter side, recently WR released the results of our study of freshwater mussels in Eugene. Our days of field work in August of 2018 provided a lot of great data. It appears the population we studied there is viable - meaning some level of reproduction is occurring. This is in stark contrast to the results of a similar study WR conducted at Norwood Island in 2017 which found no reproduction. Assessing these populations is critical to understanding their long term needs, and supporting their presence in the Willamette system.
It is also a great sign to see thousands of Western Pearlshell mussels doing well in an urban area! A huge thanks to the volunteers who made this study happen! WR will conduct additional work next field season with a third essential study.
Finally, thanks to all of you who support or work financially! Your monthly, annual, and other donations really help keep our nonprofit moving forward! Without your support, we could not keep our programs going.
If you are not a financial supporter, please consider becoming a monthly donor, or year end donor today!
Travis Williams
Riverkeeper & Executive Director
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Hoppy Adventure Hour- Monday, 12/10
WHAT: Hoppy Adventure Hour- Virtual Willamette Water Trail Tour & raffle drawing
WHEN: Monday, 12/10 from 6:00pm to 7:30pm
Buy a beer, grab your seat and stay tuned for a presentation sure to inspire.
Enjoy a virtual paddle trip down the nationally recognized Willamette River Water Trail with Kate Ross Kuthe of Willamette Riverkeeper. Learn about new water trail sites and how you can plan your own multi-day paddling adventure. Gain insight on how Willamette water quality has improved, what challenges the river faces today and how you can help. Seating will begin at 6:00pm, presentation begins at 6:30pm.
As a
Give! Guide partner event, REI will have incentives for those who donate to WRK on this evening,
including a tent, pack, and 40oz water bottle.
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BIG GIVE DAY- Thursday, 12/6
Take note! This Thursday is the Give!Guide's BIG GIVE day!
From now through 12/31, we have even more
incredible incentives to GIVE! to us through the Give!Guide to help us reach our goal of 25K in end-of-the-year donations!
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Donate $25 and receive a Red Duck Taco Sauce
- Donate $35 or more and be entered to win raffle prizes from Paddle People: an Alps Mountaineering Glamping Cocktail Set or an Alps backpack
- Donate $100 or more and receive a free basic skills class for 2 from Alder Creek Kayak & Canoe
- Donate $150 or more and receive a 3 pack of Red Duck Sauces ... hand picked by your favorite non-profit team in a heated tasting event at the Red Duck office!
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Volunteers Needed- Trashy Tuesday Cleanup
WHAT:
Trashy Tuesday- Eugene/Springfield
WHEN: Tuesday, 12/11 from 8:15am - 12:15pm
DETAILS: Do you love clean water and healthy rivers? Then come join us for our last River Guardian volunteer clean up of the year! We'll be floating from Valley River Center boat ramp to Beltline, focusing on inlets, islands, and areas around the footbridges.
Meet us at 8:15am (boaters) or 8:30am (non-boaters) to shuttle our vehicles to Beltline. Our meeting area is in the back of Valley River Center, behind the Regal Cinemas, in the parking area nearest the bike path, just upstream from the VRC Footbridge. Look for the rafts backing down to the boat ramp; can't miss us!
All Bring Your Own Boat (BYOB) paddlers must be able to paddle in class II moving water. No boat? No worries! You may RSVP to reserve a seat in a raft or drift boat. PFDs are required and will be provided for those without as long as you register ahead of time.
Bring snacks, water and appropriate layers for the weather. Please wear closed-toe shoes, long sleeves and pants. Gloves, pickers, garbage bags, tools, tarps and coffee will be provided. (Yay, coffee!) Questions? Please contact organizer [email protected] or text 541- 913-4318.
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Michelle Emmons, WRK staff, is happy to be couch surfing on the Willamette.
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A small but mighty crew joined us for the inaugural Corvallis River Guardians cleanup last week at Crystal Lake Boat Ramp in Willamette Park. Working with our South Valley Advocate, Michelle Emmons, volunteer team members from Corvallis Parks and Recreation, Oregon State Parks (including board member, Scott Youngblood), Marys River Watershed Council and the American Canoe Association removed trash from an important floodplain area.
Huge thanks to Cafe Mam - we were able to re-purpose over 60 coffee shipment bags, using them to collect trash, instead of having them go straight into the landfill! In total, we hauled out 1,700 lbs. of garbage including: a two sectional couch; mattress, lots of lumber, various pieces of furniture, and packed a four yard dump truck of bagged trash.
Do you live on Corvallis/Albany area and want to take part in clean water efforts to protect and restore your Willamette? Message
[email protected]
and we'll be sure to get you on the list for our new programs in this area!
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Before and after clean up shots-- quite impressive!
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Short on holiday gift ideas? Order our "187 Miles of Wonder" print today!
This beautiful, limited edition print takes inspiration from the iconic 1930s era WPA posters which depicted National Parks, Monuments, and Natural Areas with the goal of encouraging the public to seek out these special places. In that same vein, we created this work with local graphic designer, Chris Marron, to celebrate your very own "187 Miles of Wonder." Large and small options available, including custom framing. Visit our homepage for details and to place your order (scroll down).
Thank you! And have a wonderful holiday season!!!
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Wild & Scenic Film Festival- THANK YOU!
MANY THANKS to those of you who came out to support our 11th season hosting the Wild & Scenic Film Festival! Your attendance and raffle ticket purchases made this our largest and most successful fest to date, as we teetered near capacity for the theater seating.
Congratulations to our many raffle prizes winners, and thanks again to
REI,
Patagonia, and
Paddle People for collectively donating over $2K worth of gear! And finally a VERY special thanks to
Wendy and Mark Knudsen, for entrusting us with the donation of their beloved family canoe, which was so carefully cared for, and now once again destined for new adventures on the Willamette River!
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