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SAVANNAH, GA—On Sunday, June 25, more than 200 people from across Georgia and 11 other states began a weeklong journey on the rivers, creeks, oxbows, swamps and lakes in the Savannah River basin.
Designed to connect people with and protect Georgia’s rivers, Georgia River Network’s annual Paddle Georgia adventure takes place on a different river each summer. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this is the first time since 2019 the organization has hosted Paddle Georgia as a large-group, week-long adventure.
Over the next seven days, paddlers will explore Brier Creek, a hidden, cypress-lined beauty in Screven County, the Savannah River as it bounces between winding oxbows and high bluffs along the Georgia-South Carolina line and Ebenezer Creek, a Effingham County stream so beautiful it is one of only three state-designated “scenic rivers.”
On the river by day, participants will camp each night, settling in for catered meals, education programs and entertainment at Black Creek Scout Reservation near Sylvania and at New Ebenezer Retreat Center in Rincon.
The event includes programs on the river’s cultural and natural history, tours of facilities and historic sites, nightly games and entertainment and even a research program in which participants will help collect chemical and biological data with the Georgia Adopt-A-Stream program to give a snapshot of the rivers’ current health.
“This is much more than just a paddle trip,” said Joe Cook, Paddle Georgia coordinator. “The journey is designed to connect people with our rivers and help them understand how we depend on those rivers. When people have a connection to a river, they will take action to protect that river. This journey creates an army of river advocates.”
“For 25 years, Georgia River Network has been the state’s nonprofit partner creating Georgia’s water trails program, bringing rural economic development through river community tourism across the state. Paddle Georgia is the nation’s largest camping adventure that showcases a different Georgia river and its water trails every year,” said Rena Ann Peck, Georgia River Network Executive Director.
“Outdoor recreation is a bipartisan initiative; Republican and Democrat legislators come to Paddle Georgia every year to share their support for recreation and conservation and special waterways, such as protecting the Okefenokee Wilderness Canoe Trail from mining that would harm the Okefenokee Swamp and its regional tourism economy.”
Paddle Georgia serves as a fundraiser for GRN and local watershed protection groups. Since the inaugural Paddle Georgia in 2005, GRN has introduced more than 6,000 paddlers to Georgia’s rivers and raised more than $700,000 for river protection projects.
Sponsors of the event include: Hennessy Land Rover, Georgia Power Company, Colonial Pipeline, Oglethorpe Power, RYAM, Denali Water Solutions, Georgia Pacific, Troncalli Subaru, Cedar Creek Outdoor Center, Southern Company Gas, Mill Creek Environmental, Public Lands, Brown & Caldwell, Spears Family Foundation, Baxter and Harbin CPAs, Purina, Fruit of the Loom/Jerzees, City of Savannah Water Resources, Rain Barrel Depot, REI, Siegel Insurance, Auto Owners Insurance, Alston & Bird, Westbrook Supply Company, Georgia Mining Association, Wildwater, Stormwater Systems, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Stream Techs, Whitewater Express, Crescent Kayaks, The Canoe House, Patagonia, Adventure Keen, Southeast Adventure Outfitters, Oconee Outfitters, The Hike Inn, Learn to Kayak and Café Campesino. Partners include Georgia Adopt-A-Stream, Georgia Canoeing Association, Savannah Riverkeeper, American Canoe Association.
Designed to connect people with and protect Georgia’s rivers, Georgia River Network’s annual Paddle Georgia adventure takes place on a different river each summer. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this is the first time since 2019 the organization has hosted Paddle Georgia as a large-group, week-long adventure.
Over the next seven days, paddlers will explore Brier Creek, a hidden, cypress-lined beauty in Screven County, the Savannah River as it bounces between winding oxbows and high bluffs along the Georgia-South Carolina line and Ebenezer Creek, a Effingham County stream so beautiful it is one of only three state-designated “scenic rivers.”
On the river by day, participants will camp each night, settling in for catered meals, education programs and entertainment at Black Creek Scout Reservation near Sylvania and at New Ebenezer Retreat Center in Rincon.
The event includes programs on the river’s cultural and natural history, tours of facilities and historic sites, nightly games and entertainment and even a research program in which participants will help collect chemical and biological data with the Georgia Adopt-A-Stream program to give a snapshot of the rivers’ current health.
“This is much more than just a paddle trip,” said Joe Cook, Paddle Georgia coordinator. “The journey is designed to connect people with our rivers and help them understand how we depend on those rivers. When people have a connection to a river, they will take action to protect that river. This journey creates an army of river advocates.”
“For 25 years, Georgia River Network has been the state’s nonprofit partner creating Georgia’s water trails program, bringing rural economic development through river community tourism across the state. Paddle Georgia is the nation’s largest camping adventure that showcases a different Georgia river and its water trails every year,” said Rena Ann Peck, Georgia River Network Executive Director.
“Outdoor recreation is a bipartisan initiative; Republican and Democrat legislators come to Paddle Georgia every year to share their support for recreation and conservation and special waterways, such as protecting the Okefenokee Wilderness Canoe Trail from mining that would harm the Okefenokee Swamp and its regional tourism economy.”
Paddle Georgia serves as a fundraiser for GRN and local watershed protection groups. Since the inaugural Paddle Georgia in 2005, GRN has introduced more than 6,000 paddlers to Georgia’s rivers and raised more than $700,000 for river protection projects.
Sponsors of the event include: Hennessy Land Rover, Georgia Power Company, Colonial Pipeline, Oglethorpe Power, RYAM, Denali Water Solutions, Georgia Pacific, Troncalli Subaru, Cedar Creek Outdoor Center, Southern Company Gas, Mill Creek Environmental, Public Lands, Brown & Caldwell, Spears Family Foundation, Baxter and Harbin CPAs, Purina, Fruit of the Loom/Jerzees, City of Savannah Water Resources, Rain Barrel Depot, REI, Siegel Insurance, Auto Owners Insurance, Alston & Bird, Westbrook Supply Company, Georgia Mining Association, Wildwater, Stormwater Systems, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Stream Techs, Whitewater Express, Crescent Kayaks, The Canoe House, Patagonia, Adventure Keen, Southeast Adventure Outfitters, Oconee Outfitters, The Hike Inn, Learn to Kayak and Café Campesino. Partners include Georgia Adopt-A-Stream, Georgia Canoeing Association, Savannah Riverkeeper, American Canoe Association.
