Upper Reach blog

We've finally been able to get some dates nailed down for our Loons Summer Outings. Please mark you schedules for our June 9th Banister River and July 14th Staunton River State Park. Those of you who are still young at heart (and mind) may want to join us for the Fun Float on June 23rd from Brookneal to Long Island. We do not sanction this event...but will probably go anyway.

We are also getting underway on our capital projects and website to get everything really rolling. We could sure use some volunteeer help keeping the website calendar and blogging. We'll get the website to where you can post your pictures. Tax-deductable donations are always needed and very much appreuciated! Please click on the button above and mark your donation for Upper Reach. This is a non-profit venture dedicated to promoting the use and protection of our blueways......so all monies go to help raise awareness and supprot the outings. No personal compensation comes out of these donations (or any others for that matter) so please help out if you can. Remember that when taking advantage of shuttles ...it is good paddler etiquette to "pony up" a couple of bucks to help defray the cost of gas and wear on personnal vehicles.

This has been an interesting start-up but everyone that has come out to paddle provides the inspiration to carry on. We wish to acknowledge and thank everyone who has taken part in our outings and events. You are helping to build a paddling community of friends that share in the love of the outdoors and the protection of our river system. Thank-You!

 

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First of all thank you to everyone who joined us or helped in their own way to make Lake Gaston cleaner.  This paddle was great.  We had a lot of fun picking up random trash...ofcourse we found a tire.  We also got to see two nesting Bald Eagles and may Osprey.  We started at Kerr Damn Tailrace Park and continued down to the Steel Bridge on US 1.  We had 6 people in total since I am sure the threat of rain scared many people away.  As you can see in the pictures the fog was very eerie to paddle through but man was it pretty. (the photos are under the photo tab)

A few of us got the pleasure of being interviewed by Mike Mosley with South Hill Enterprise.  Please check out our brief article and video on their website.

http://www.vancnews.com/news/article_49323186-9833-11e1-8724-0019bb2963f4.html

Our next UR Loons paddle will be on the Bannister River on June 9.  Please RSVP to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and for any information. 

 

Thanks for readng,  Enjoy this weather and get out there and enjoy.

 

 

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Hello everyone,

The UR Loons are paddling this weekend.  We will start at 10 am at the tailrace picnic shelter by Kerr Dam and travel down to the US 1 Steel Bridge.  This paddle is to help the Lake Gaston Association with their Trash Sweep.  I hope many of you are able to join us.  If so please RSVP to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

 

Now that the weather is getting warmer rember there are more and more boats out there.  Safety is our first goal.  Please wear your life jackets and have all the necessary gear aboard your boat.  Always have fun. 

 

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Jim joined us for our April 2nd trip to Beechwood Flats and through our passage way to Miles Creek.  These are some of the pictures he shared with us.

 

Thanks Jim

 

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First off, Thanks to everyone that was able to make it to the UR Loons first group paddle.  Although it was a bit chilly we warmed up quickly.  We started at the Steel Bridge on US 1 and went down to Beechwood Flats.  In Beechwood the water was low but we toughed it out by paddling harder to get through the cut through to Miles Creek.  The paddle was great!

We saw one Bald Eagle and many Osprey.  Some of us saw dolphin sized carp in the flats swimming off the bow of our canoes/kayaks.  We had many laughs and great stories told by all.

In the future I hope many more will join in our adventures. 

Our next paddle is May 5th.  We will be starting at the Kerr Dam and floating down to Steel Bridge.  This trip is a special outing to clean up our shores.  Lake Gaston Association has asked up to help in the trash sweep.  Remember the more the merrier.  Hope see you all there.

 

Get outdoors!

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A few weeks ago Scott and I paddled Flat Creek in search for Yeti or other wildlife. We came across beaver, ducks, turtles, hawks, eagles, osprey, and crazy kids on motorcycles...but still no Yeti. We paddled about 4 miles up Flat Creek until we could go no further. The route we took started at Steel Bridge US1 down river to Beechwood Flats. Since I am new to the area this place was exciting. The water was calm and filled with all species of ducks. There was a two UR Loons as well.

While in Flat Creek I decided that falling out of the kayak was not a good idea since the water was still very cold. Thank goodness for fast drying clothing and the warm sun. The last few weeks have been great for paddling, hope you are getting out there to do some explporing.

 If you would like Upper Reach has started a paddling group called the UR Loons. This group will meet once a month for a paddle around the region. On April 7th we are meeting at the Steel Bridge on US 1 at 9:30 am with a 10am departure for a trip to Beechwood Flats. For more information contact me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

The RRBA-Upper Reach has been asked by the Lake Gaston Association to participate in the lake wide Trash Sweep scheduled for May 5,2012. This will be our UR Loons paddle for May. I hope a ton of people could join us for this great event and help our region clean up. Safe Paddling!

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I kayaked the Miles Creek mouth today for some early spring fishing.  Apparently the fish did not like my bait, but hey it was 74 degrees and sunny so I had a great time.  I did see two Bald Eagles playing around in the tree tops.  There are a ton of turtles in this area.  They were surfacing within 2 feet of my kayak.  Guess they were also enjoying the warm weather.  Hopefully this weekend I will be heading the opposite way on Miles Creek.  Word is there is a lot of wild life up there. 

This morning I went out infront of my house.  I have also attached some of the pictures from that small float.

Happy Boating!

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Yesterday RRBA-UR began an early announcement of its Requests for Proposals for Website Development, Metrics Program Development, and Capital Projects. Interested teams and firms are invited to submit their proposals pursuant to the published RFP's available on this site. Go to Downloads > Planning & Development to download copies of the RFP's.

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Many thanks to everyone that "likes" us on facebook. We've been busy working ot get the launch and website projects underway and its taking a lot of time. We continue to get good news from State agencies, the Corps and other groups on possible projects so hopefully we'll ahve some big announcements soon to pass along.

MOur biggest focus now is in trying to buidl this paddling community to a point where some of our friends will feel free to blog, post pictures, help with Spring paddling outing, etc..

There's lots of opportunities to volunteer and you don't have to commit long term or otherwise over commit. Last two weeks three folsk have stepped up to say they want to help. A student at NCSU Recreation Management is helping write some of the letters to try and approach teh NC Golden Leaf Foundation, a recent Landscape Architecture graduate has offered to help on mapping, a past Parks and Recreation manager has offered to help on miscellaneous and I've recruited my nephew to help on launch ramp construction. We're in discussion with the Boys Scouts about partnering on projects and thats jsut for starts.

We need someone to run point on a Spring outing (nothing big just have to pick a date and place and tell everyone to be there). I'm trying to make time to talk to more groups and show our power point and could always use some help. It only amounts to a couple of hours here and there so drop us a line if you can spare a few.

Enough for now....remember to GET OUT NOW! 

 

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Our apologies for dropping off the radar for a few weeks but the holidays, work and grant admin have us very busy. I finaklly was able to post Scott Huddle's pics of his paddle trip with his Dad from Staunton View. Looks like a perfect day and check out route map in the post where I included his description.

We also posted a few pics of Little Fishing Creek (2.5 mi run through Medoc Mountain SP , Halifax County, NC) The lauch and retrival are easy enoguh to find and I only counted one tree fall that you would have to negotiate. Plenty of water this time of yer and through spring and early summer.

 

We're getting underway finally with our blueways development and more work on our website. Stay tuned... and please send us your pics and stories. First on the agend is an "easy post" for pics and stories. If we can't get out there every day we can at least read and follow others.

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Many of you have ask about how to best prepare for the Paddle Days Event. Hopefully this blog will provide some useful advice. SAFETY FIRST - The Kerr Dam Tailrace section of the Roanoke River is just below the dam and the water stays about 10 degrees cooler than in the lakes at any time of the year. During water releases from the dam the current will increase to 3-4 mph and rise about 5' over a 15- 20 min. time period. Plenty of time to get to higher ground and there is nothing to fear ....unless you have waded out to a rock for a picnic (not adviseable). This current makes for a plesant float downriver. LIFE JACKETS ARE A MUST! We will have safety boats nearby for the event but if you were to capsize ....everything can be funny and memorable.... unless you are not wearing a life jacket. Life jackets or PFD's (personal floatation devices) are included with every canoe or kayak rental. If you capzie STAY WITH YOUR BOAT...heck with the paddle, it will float.We can get you back in to the boat but have you ever tried to mount a paddle? There are many good YouTube videos on what to do and how to renenter a kayak or canoe in the event of a capsize. This event is not a teaching session and it is up to each paddler to know the sport, the associated dangers and have a basic understanding of the techniques and skills. That said it is really very easy to master the basic skills.... a few links to some of the better videos are included in our LINKS on this website but there are literally hundreds more. Please watch some of them or sign up for a class with Frog Hollow or one of our other providers. WHAT TO WEAR - As we mentioned the water is cool and the air may be even cooler. Oct 15th was selceted because it is not so darn hot but remeber that a cold front can make it become quite chilly overnight. Synthetic clothing is best and our many outfitters offer the best paddling attire. Although you will surely look snappy for the camera it is not essential to go "gear-up" for your first enjoyable day on the river. Running gear, snythetic long johns or quick dry clothing along with a nylon windbreaker, cap and sunglasses are usually all that are needed. Wet shoes ...the kind that dry quickly are cool but that old pair of Vans or Converse will also work...and can be equally snappy. One of your first purchases that you will never regret is a "dry-bag". Its kinda like a big zip-loc baggie on steroids. We'll give you a small zip-loc with your map and breakfast snacks at the registration but having one large enough to hold a pair of dry shorts and a tee shirt to change in to at the take-out can mean a much more comfortable shuttle ride back to the top. if you are totally soaking wet we'll vote to either let you ride with the kayaks, ride as a hood ornament or simply let eveyone else grab you and wring you out before climbing in to the van. Its also a good idea to bring along a towel or something to sit on. Although a kneeling or semi-knelling position is most stable a 5 mile paddle will find you shifting among positions and having somehting to coushin the knees or the seat is handy. Oh well, I'm sure I'll think of some other stuff to blog before the 15th but DO COME ON OUT AND HAVE FUN PADDLING! Tags: Untagged Read More

Greetings, we're glad you found us! Upper Reach is a brand new program for our community and we're working hard to make things happen. With any luck at all we'll have our first paddling outing this fall (when its much cooler) and hope you will join us. Mark you calendars for October 15th and watch the events calendar for updated information.

We're working on a lot of fronts and can use all of the help we can  muster. Step up and hit the Get Involved button and send us a note on your interest. We're working on our eagle cameras and osprey platforms where we've joined Dave Kramar- Virginia Tech Conservation Management Institute who is applying for some USFWS funding. If he is successful Rick and Lee will join him in installing the first (that I know anyway) Lake Country eagle camera.

We are exploring otions with VA DGIF to add an accessible canoe/kayak launch at the Steel Bridge/Historic US 1 Landing. this will enable personsiwth disabilities to enjoy paddling our cornerstone trail. Lots of veterans and disability groups are asking for this and we want eveyone involved. Sound interesting...hit that Get Involved button.

Get out and Explore some of the trails. They are there for you to enjoy and they belong to you. You've already paid for them.

Check out the hot political events on our Roanoke River Basin Association site (see links) as well as our other friends.

...more to follow

 

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