SIW NEWS BULLETIN "STICKS IN THE WATER" PADDLERS June 17, 2008   What started out as a banner year for area paddlers has taken a terrible turn.    Early this year we initiated the Sticks In the Water area paddling group, quickly gathering over 130 email addresses of interested area paddlers.  Cedar Rapids and Linn County declared 2008 the “Year of the River,” and Indian Creek Nature Center hosted a record crowd at its Paddle Day event.  Efforts were underway in Iowa City to understand and reverse the pollution trends along the length of the Iowa River.  Communities and counties across the state were embracing their river heritage and the DNR Iowa Water Trails program.  The Iowa Legislature and Governor Culver supported and funded significant programs for water trail planning, low head dam danger mitigation, and riverfront development.  SIW hosted a Meet & Greet event in April, then we paddled at Jones County Central Park in May.  The SIW focus was now on increasing activity and participation.  A great paddling year was underway, or so we thought.  What a difference a couple of weeks can make.   Some paddlers like to say that they “live to paddle,” but in truth, most paddling is a recreational pursuit, an enjoyable diversion, albeit with important aspects of education and spiritual renewal.  It is important that we maintain a perspective on the difference between our disappointment and the true disaster, which is facing many of our friends and fellow citizens.   Elements of our 2008 Flood DISAPPOINTMENT: Decrease in safe areas to paddle, opportunity and time to go paddling. Negative impact on SIW participation and organization strength. Setbacks to water trail development. Postponement or cancellation of paddling-related events, parade floats, etc. People paddling through floodwaters without PFDs.   Elements of our 2008 Flood DISASTER: Families losing homes, vehicles, and other personal property. Families losing income and jobs. Businesses losing property and revenue. Farmers losing livestock, crops, and personal property. Increased health risks across the communities. Environmental impact of flood waters contaminated with agricultural and industrial chemicals, fuel, and sewage from feed lots and waste treatment plants. Financial impact of replacing major infrastructure elements, such as roads and bridges. Impact on our heritage of losing museum collections, historical records, historical buildings, even historical neighborhoods.   Given this comparison, it is easy to assign the proper relevance to our disappointment, and the greater concern to those directly impacted by the 2008 Flood disaster which has spread across so much of Iowa.   Paddling will continue, when time and conditions allow.  SIW may not be quite the priority that it was in February, but it will continue, and may have to wait for a “breakout year” in 2009.  Water Trail development may be delayed, but the public commitment remains.  And paddling events will be rescheduled, both for quiet reflection and for environmental cleanup.   The magnitude of the flood’s destruction is just beginning to reveal its ugliness to all of our senses, but it will be met by the countless volunteers who are anxious to begin their task.   Equal measures of the Iowa values of patience, perspective, perseverance, and personal commitment will see us through the challenging days ahead.   And when the time is right, maybe we could all get together for a little cruise around Mays Island?   Keep the faith. BR Gregg   IN THIS ISSUE: ·         Revised schedule of SIW paddling events. ·         Revised calendar of area paddling events “On the Horizon.” ·         Lake MacBride paddling report. ·         Paddling partner needed for Montana canoe trip. ·         Buy, Sell, or Trade listings. ·         Links to websites, newsletters, cleanups, other great “paddling stuff.” ·         Pam’s guide to joining the Sticksinthewater Yahoo! Group.   DEVELOPING A SCHEDULE OF SIW PADDLING OPPORTUNITIES: The effort to build activity and participation in our inaugural season has been severely impacted by high water, polluted water, and the need for many SIW members to focus their energies in other directions.  We sincerely hope that conditions will improve with time, and that we will be able to share some paddling time before the season expires.  If you have the time to “Initiate” a SIW paddle event on safe water, we will continue to do our best to support and promote your efforts.   What: SIW Thursday Evenings in June at Robins Lake in Cedar Rapids.  (Canceled) We might have extended these through the summer, but canceled at this point.   What: SIW Full Moon Paddle & Camp on the Cedar River. (Currently very doubtful, will try to reschedule) Where: Cedar River, Hoefler-Dulin Access 2.5 miles East of Vinton to Wildcat Bluff.  Camp on a sandbar (preferred) or Benton City Fry Camp (backup) at approx. halfway point.  Approximately total 7.3 river miles. When: July 18, 7pm—July 19, Noon. Details: Meet at 7pm at Hoeflin-Dulin Access to unload boats & equipment, load boats with overnight gear and food, shuttle most vehicles to Wildcat Bluff.  Plan to be on the river no later than 8pm. Equipment: Usual boats, paddles, PFDs, and paddling gear appropriate for the weather. Food: Friday night potluck.  Saturday breakfast potluck.NA Safety: Usual PFD, drinking water, hat, dry clothes, appropriate boat light. Initiator Contact: Nick Gaeta, ensure Subject = “Full Moon,” redwing1980@q.com.   What: SIW Maquoketa River Trip.  (Still scheduled for August) Where: Maquoketa River, Canton Access to Royertown.  This section is relatively isolated, with lovely bluffs & (usually) clear water.  Approximately 10 river miles. When: August 16, 9am—3 or 4 pm, depending on river level & paddling speed. Details: Meet at 9am at Canton Access to unload boats & equipment, shuttle most vehicles to Royertown Access.  Plan to be on the river no later than 10am.  We’ll eat lunch on a sandbar somewhere on the river.  (See page 92 in the Iowa Paddling Hymnal.) Equipment: Usual boats, paddles, PFDs, and paddling gear appropriate for the weather. Food: Bring your own lunch and snacks. Safety: Usual PFD, drinking water, hat, dry clothes. Initiator Contact: Pam Stalnaker, canoepam@yahoo.com.   WATCHING CR FIREWORKS FROM THE WATER:  (Pending fireworks schedule) Where: Cedar River, Prairie Creek access on West shore, Otis Road boat access on East shore. When: Likely to be rescheduled along with the Freedom Festival, which has been rescheduled to Labor Day weekend. Details: Meet at the accesses in the early evening, enjoy a leisurely paddle up to one of the bridges to watch the fireworks.  Return to the accesses after the show. Equipment: Usual boats, paddles, PFDs, and paddling gear appropriate for the weather. Food: Bring your own snacks. Safety: Usual PFD, drinking water, hat, dry clothes, appropriate boat light. Initiator Contact: Joe DeLory   SIW PADDLING FLOAT IN THE FREEDOM FESTIVAL PARADE: Along with the Cedar Rapids Freedom Festival, this activity has been postponed to the Labor Day weekend.  We really appreciate the folks who volunteered to assist with the SIW parade float, and we will be back in touch later this summer.  Hopefully, we will all have a lot to celebrate by then.   MACBRIDE PADDLING REPORT: Thanks to Dave Bell for this paddling report, filed on Monday, June 9, 2008.    “Sunday afternoon looked like a reasonably decent day for a paddle on Lake McBride.  There was no rain and the wind was reasonable where we were at in Iowa City.  Knowing that the SIW event would only be cancelled for thunderstorms, we headed for McBride.  We got to the east end of the south wing about 4:30 PM.  We needed a tune up in our tandem flatwater tripper to start getting ready for a trip later this summer.  The lake was all but deserted.  We paddled for about 1 1/2 hours.    “We spotted a large white bird before putting in and got close enough to determine it was a swan.  Neat!  We saw some cormorants as well.  Later we spotted at least ten baby ducks and then spotted mama duck with four more babies. Quite a brood!  We spied a big bullfrog sitting under a bush who obviously had staked out his territory as he was still there on our return trip. Further on we encountered a swimming raccoon who not only crossed in front of us but made the return trip as well.  We talked to some fisherman who were catching catfish.   “The wind started getting brisk and we decided to pull in rather than fight it any longer. We took the scenic route back to Iowa City, crossing the rez at Mahaffy Bridge, stopped for an ice cream cone in North Liberty, and back over the Coralville Reservoir dam to check the level at the spillway and see the water at the discharge chute. Very impressive amounts of water in the rez and going out.  However, we are completely convinced the spillway will be breached in the very near future unless the discharge is turned wide open, and even that may not stop the water from going over the top of the spillway.   “This is certainly no time to be paddling streams and rivers anywhere in the immediate area. All in all, though, a fine outing for my weather channel watching spouse and myself. “The one thing we did not happen upon was another paddler. When I checked the e-mail messages I found out why we were the only SIW representatives at McBride. Safe and sane requires erring on the side of caution. I'm glad we didn't get the message. We missed the hot dogs and cameradarie but we had a number of memorable moments on the water to treasure that more than made up for whatever we might have missed.” MONTANA CANOE ADVENTURE SEEKING PADDLING PARTNER: Had a good time at the outing at Jones County Central Park. We thought today we would be starting the Annual Disorganized Cedar River Float (Otranto to Janesville). But it has been postponed to June 28 - July 2, due of course to the high water. Hope the Cedar goes down and clears up by then. That's questionable. Made the float last year and had a great time. A fun bunch of people.   If possible we would like to post the following announcement in the next sticksinthewater e-mail: We are planning a trip to Montana to float the Upper Missouri Wild and Scenic River. This is the section known as the Missouri Breaks. It is 149 river miles, from Ft. Benton to the James Kipp Recreation Area. This trip takes about a week and we hope to be on the river approx. July 14 - 20. We will be taking a tandem canoe. There is no re-supply on this stretch so a one week+ supply of food is needed - the practical option is dehydrated. Also there are limited places to get drinking water, so carrying water or a good filter is a necessity. The river is strictly pack it in, pack it out (everything!) so our gear includes (ahem) a folding portable toilet. Now to my point. We have a good friend, Ken Glantz, in Murdock, Nebraska who would like to go but needs a paddling partner. He is a retired middle school teacher. He thought he would rent a tandem canoe locally from an outfitter in Ft. Benton or that area. A car pool from Murdock is possible. It is just west of Omaha. If interested contact Ken directly at route66@alltel.net Signed, Woody and Gayle Woodward  wwoodward20@msn.com    SO. . . WHERE WOULD YOU LIKE TO PADDLE NEXT? Do you have a favorite clean lake you enjoy paddling?  We would appreciate your suggestions for safe, clean places to paddle.  Maybe this is the time to organize a quick trip to the Current River, or other places outside our flooded state?   SIW SEEKING “INITIATORS” FOR PADDLING EVENTS: The SIW Steering Committee is looking for a few paddling event “Initiators” to help share the load of getting SIW associates out on the water more often.  Per the Common Adventure philosophy, “Initiators” of these paddling events are not serving as outfitters, instructors, or paddling experts.  Their role is to schedule and coordinate an event, including dates, times, put-ins, take-outs, shuttles, basic route information, and provide common sense reminders re planning & equipment (see the SIW events above for examples)..  If you have an interest, please contact the editor.   OPPORTUNITIES TO BUY, SELL, OR TRADE PADDLING GEAR: Even if you can’t paddle, you can still have fun working on your boats and gear. Check out the Swap Meet, WH Sale, & Festival at SeaTaSea, Saturday June 28, 9am—6pm.  Items limited to watersports-related, but no charge for you to sell your stuff, tables provided.  http://www.seatasea.com/SwapMeet.htm For Sale: Pyranha Attak WW kayak, Ames, $400 OBO with paddle, $300 cash without. Email  skibum_1260@hotmail.com.  http://www.paddlingiowa.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=1948 For Sale: Mad River Slipper 14' 7" solo canoe, fiberglass, wood gunnels, adj. seat , 45#, $475.  Bell Merlin II 15' solo canoe in Kev Krystal, aluminum gunnels, 33#, $975.  Email jcholzmueller@att.net.  http://www.paddlingiowa.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=1970 For Sale: Old Town Discovery Sport 17 square stern canoe with 5hp Yamaha outboard, $1,650.00. Davenport, IA. Call 563-391-3081.  http://www.paddling.net/Classifieds/forSale.html?category=canoesell&state=IA For Sale: Old Town Nantucket kayak w/rudder. 15'5" w/large cockpit, forward and aft dry storage, $800 - will meet within 60 miles of Decorah, IA.  http://www.paddling.net/Classifieds/forSale.html?category=kayaksell&state=IA For Sale: 17ft aluminum canoe, dented, $350, Ft. Dodge.  (515)546-6448, (515)570-8825, (515)546-6461.  http://cedarrapids.craigslist.org/boa/722313617.html For Sale: 13 ft American Perception kayak with spray skirt & paddle, $300, Vinton.  http://cedarrapids.craigslist.org/boa/714150633.html For Sale: Old Town Loon 111 Classic kayak, $399, Cedar Rapids.  319-395-0351 & ask for Mike.  http://cedarrapids.craigslist.org/boa/713831136.html   APPROPRIATE  LIGHTS FOR NIGHT OPERATION OF UNPOWERED WATERCRAFT: According to our source at the DNR, the “It’s The Law” pamphlet is in error, plus an updated regulation will soon changes things somewhat.  The short version is that on normal interior streams, if you carry a handheld light or headlamp, and turn it on before someone collides with you, you have upheld your end of the old and new regs.  If your on an impoundment or natural lake or the Mississippi or Missouri Rivers, you are also required to use an “always on” stern mounted light of any kind in addtion to the handheld or headlamp to be shown in sufficient time to avoid collision from the bow (a vantage point from which your body may obscure the stern light on a kayak).  We will publish further updates when available.   NEW IA DNR REQUIREMENT RE YOUTH WEARING PFDS WHEN UNDERWAY: Effective May 10, children under age 13 are required to wear a Coast Guard approved life jacket (PFD) whenever the boat is underway.  Details at http://www.iowadnr.com/news/08maylifejacket.html.   AREA COUNTY CONSERVATION DEPARTMENT WEBSITES: Eastern Iowa County Conservation Departments are great resources for paddling events, but right now they are battling flood damage, and would probably welcome your volunteer assistance.  We encourage you to watch for outdoor events and activities via the websites, calendars, and newsletters of all of our area county conservation departments (CCDs).  Here are just a few: http://www.johnson-county.com/conservation/conservation_connection.shtml http://co.jones.ia.us/conservation/newsletter.html http://www.linncountyparks.com/files/newsletter/Newsletter.pdf http://www.clintoncountyiowa.com/conservation/articles.htm http://www.dubuquecounty.com/ParkRec.cfm http://www.naturallylouisacounty.com/trails/odessa_water_trail.html http://www.naturallylouisacounty.com/things_to_do/events/paddling_events.html http://www.jacksonccb.com/ Links to most Iowa County Conservation Boards via the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation website, http://www.inhf.org/ccblinks.htm.   OPPORTUNITIES TO HELP CLEAN STREAMS IN 2008: River cleanup events are always subject to postponement due to flooding, bad weather, or other safety considerations.  Most Eastern Iowa cleanup events will be listed in our “On The Horizon” section, but you can find most of Iowa’s cleanup event at the IOWATER site, http://www.iowater.net/StreamCleanupEvents.htm.   ON THE HORIZON: We suspect that additional events have been rescheduled or canceled, but the info has not yet been updated on the various websites. ·         Postponed, Date TBD: Nature Rocks: The Year of the River.  Rescheduled from June to TBD.  Evening of music and fun to celebrate the Year of the River, fund raiser for Indian Creek Nature Center and SPT Theatre Company. http://indiancreeknaturecenter.org/ ·         Ongoing 2008: "Year of the River" Events, sponsored by Cedar Rapids and Linn County. http://www.yearoftheriver.org/   (Many events may be rescheduled or canceled)  ·         Ongoing 2008: Monday Night Free Demo Paddles, 4:30—7:00 PM.  (Revised dates/locations) Robins Lake, CR: Jul 21, 28; Aug 18, 25.  Lake McBride, Solon: Jul 14; Aug 11.  Pleasant Creek, Palo: Jun 23, 30; Jul 7; Aug 4.  Sponsored by SeaTaSea: http://www.seatasea.com/ ·         Ongoing until June 24: Iowa Mountain Lion Exhibit, Wickiup Hill Nature Center near Palo. Not a paddling program, but you might want to start checking muddy shorelines for big cat tracks. ·         June 1-July 11: Exhibit of Wilber Suiter’s outstanding photos of birds and other wildlife from Linn, Johnson, and Iowa counties, Indian Creek Nature Center.  http://indiancreeknaturecenter.org/ ·         Canceled--June 21: Odessa Water Trail Launch Event., Louisa CCD. ·         June 22-28: Annual Disorganized Cedar River Canoe Float.  (Rescheduled from June 14-21) Otranto to Janesville, about 65 miles in 5 days, campsite and shuttle coordination, food on your own, pay as you go, no registration.  Contact Jim & Laura hughes, 641-228-7855, jlhughes@myclearwave.net. ·         Canceled--June 28: I Paddled the Iowa, Louisa CCD. ·         June 28: Bonaparte’s Great Iowa Canoe Race, email croma@netins.net. ·         July 11-13: Cedar River Music Festival & Cleanup, Cedar Falls/Waterloo, www.thecregproject.org. ·         July 12-31: Exhibit of Outdoor Writer Association of America Photography Contest winners, both black-and-white & color photos, Indian Creek Nature Center. http://indiancreeknaturecenter.org/  ·         July 12: Canoe Van Buren County, www.800-tourvbc.com. ·         July 12: 2008 Adel Paddlefest at Kinnick Feller Park in Adel, 11am—5pm; canoe & kayak races, crazy boat races, boat show, art & music, preceded by 8 day float on the North Raccoon, hosted by Raccoon River Watershed Assoc.; contact Mike Delaney at medelaney54@aol.com or visit www.northraccoon.org. ·         July 12: IOWATER Statewide Snapshot, www.iowater.net. ·         July 18-19: SIW Full Moon Paddle & Camp on the Cedar River.  (Very likely to be rescheduled) See details above. ·         July 18-19: Odessa Full Moon Paddle & Campout, Louisa CCD. ·         August or later: Project AWARE; week-long cleanup postponed from June to August or later; info and registration forms at: http://www.iowaprojectaware.com/. ·         August 9: 2008 Cedar River Dragon Boat Festival (postponed from June) at Pleasant Creek State Park, Palo, IA.  Team boat racing, food vendors, activities.  Seeking volunteers to organize 20-paddler teams.  Brand new website at http://crdragonboat.com. ·         August 10: Eco-Tri at Cedar Falls, triathlon featuring 5.5k kayak, 17K bike, 5K run; George Wyth State Park & Hartman Reserve; registration & info at www.hartmanreserve.org. ·         August 16: SIW Maquoketa River Trip.  See details above. ·         August 22-24: 3rd Annual Lower Wapsipinicon River Cleanup, Donahue to McCausland in Clinton and Scott Counties. Info and registration forms at: http://www.lowerwapsicleanup.org/. ·         September 6: Louisa County River Paddle, Louisa CCD. ·         September: Upper Iowa River Cleanup, annual event in September. ·         October: Indian Creek Cleanup (Marion/Cedar Rapids), new event set for October. ·         October 11: Annual Fall Colors & Archaeology Canoe Float on the Maquoketa River, Supples to Canton with interpretive stop at Clay Mills site, rescheduled from last fall.  Jones CCD.   LOTS OF LINKS TO GREAT IOWA PADDLING INFO: ·         “Paddling.Net” national paddlers website providing access to boat data, test reports, classified ads, and advice about paddling and paddling activities from around the country: http://www.paddling.net/.  ·         “PaddlingIowa” mother of all Iowa paddling info, including paddling opportunities, trip reports, classified ads: http://www.paddlingiowa.com/. ·         “Sticks In the Water” email site at sticksinthewater@yahoo. ·         “Sticks In the Water” group site at http://groups.yahoo.com. ·         “Sticks In the Water” discussion topic section on paddlingiowa.com under Community/Forums. ·         Central Iowa Paddlers, based in Central Iowa, broad participation. http://www.paddleiowa.org/. ·         Saukenuk Paddlers Canoe and Kayak Club, Quad Cities. http://www.rivers-end.org/saukenuk/. ·         Iowa DNR home page: http://www.iowadnr.gov/index.html ·         Iowa DNR publications: http://www.iowadnr.com/pub.html ·         Iowa DNR, Iowa Water Trails: http://www.iowadnr.gov/watertrails/user.html ·         DNR guidelines for display of registration decals and numbers, other legal requirements: http://www.boat-ed.com/ia/ia_specific_images/pdfs/IA_handbook_its_the_law.pdf    NO PADDLER LEFT BEHIND: Thanks for downloading & distributing copies of the SIW Poster & the SIW Paddling Interest Survey.  In an effort to reduce the electronic “footprint” of our SIW News Bulletin, we will not be providing them as attachments, but please email the editor if you need copies.   SIW ATTACHMENTS TO THIS NEWS BULLETIN: None.   EDITOR’S NOTES: Thanks for the words of encouragement, calendar items, and story ideas. Please keep them coming! We apologize in advance for any errors or omissions. Email your SIW News Bulletin corrections, news items, and story ideas to "SIW Editor" at greggpeggystark@yahoo.com. If you do not wish to receive future copies of this SIW News Bulletin, please send an email to sticksinthewater@yahoo.com. with "Unsubscribe" in the subject line. All other address changes, subscription adds, or inquiries about “Sticks In the Water” paddlers should be emailed to sticksinthewater@yahoo.com.   “Sticks In the Water” is an informal paddling network, centered around Johnson, Jones, and Linn counties in Eastern Iowa, working to provide area paddlers with expanded opportunities to enjoy a lot more time on the water, in a safe and environmentally responsible manner.   Safe Paddling:  The Sticks In the Water paddling group embraces the “Common Adventure” philosophy, under which individual paddlers recognize that paddlesports & other outdoor activities inherently include some risk of injury or death, and assume responsibility for the safety of themselves & the members of their party.  The “initiators” of SIW events are not necessarily outfitters, instructors, or paddling experts.  That said, we strongly encourage all paddlers to wear PFD’s, avoid on-water alcohol, & utilize proper equipment, training, & procedures in pursuit of a safe & enjoyable paddling experience. ~~~/~~~/~~~   HOW TO SIGN UP FOR THE STICKSINTHEWATER YAHOO! GROUP By our resident “Groups Guru” CanoePam If you already have a Yahoo! email address, sign in to your Yahoo! mail and go to Step B below. If you do not have a Yahoo! email address, follow the following steps.  You don’t need to use this email address for the group, but you need one at least temporarily. Step A: Go to http://yahoo.com.  You will see a “Sign up” item near the bottom on the right.  Select it and follow the instructions to generate a Yahoo! id and email address.  When you have finished filling it out, select the “Create My Account”.   You will get a “success” screen.  Make sure you go to “Edit your marketing preference” and opt-out of the items you have no interest in (probably all of them!).  When you have edited your preferences, select the “Experience Yahoo” button.  Don’t want to get email at this Yahoo! address?  Don’t worry, you can change it soon.  Now go to Step B below. Step B: Go to http://groups.yahoo.com.  In the center of the page you’ll see a Search box to “Find a Yahoo! Group”.  Enter “sticksinthewater” in the search box and press “Return”.  Select the sticksinthewater group.  You should see a “Join this Group” message on the right side of the page.  Click on that button.  Fill in the form.  If you want to use another email address to receive messages from the group, you add it here.  Now is the time to decide what your message preferences are, so read the options carefully.  You can change them later if you like too.  Make sure you tell us why you’re joining!  After you finish filling in the form, select the “Join” button at the bottom.  This will generate an email to the Yahoo! group moderators to approve your application to join.  We require these steps so we don’t get lots of spammers.  Make sure you set your email spam filters to allow messages from the group; this is particularly important if you have an email account from Microsoft (hotmail or msn) because these domains frequently don’t allow Yahoo! messages without specific action from you.  In a day or so you should get a message in your email letting you know you’ve been approved.  Follow the instructions to finalize your membership.  If a couple of days go by and you don’t see anything, check your spam folder in case your mail server routed our message to that location. Once you are a group member you can send messages to all the other members by sending mail to sticksinthewater@yahoogroups.com.  All we ask is that you treat others as you would like to be treated; insults, personal attacks, obscene or foul language, or spamming will get your Sticksinthewater Yahoo! group membership cancelled without any second chances. If you have any questions, send an email to canoepam@yahoo.com.  I will reply in a day or so, usually less..  Like the rest of the sticksinthewater crew, I’m a volunteer with a “day job” that sometimes gets in the way.  Be patient; I will get back to you.