River Way Stories: Recent Episodes
Kathy Wine
Essays covering a broad range of river-related topics, including environmental concerns, conservation efforts, history and recreation. RiverWayStories is a collaboration between River Action and WVIK.Sponsored by the Joyce & Tony Singh Family Foundation
The Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee with hold it's 80th annual meeting in Rock Island this spring.
There is a Public Works Compost Facility in Davenport, for example, that besides taking yard waste, also produces award winning lawn and garden products, and it has for 25 years!
Embark on a transformative cinematic journey with River Action's 2024 Environmental Film Series.
Floatzilla, the largest paddle event on the Mississippi, is set to make a grand return on August 19th, marking its 14th year of celebration. This eagerly anticipated gathering takes place in the picturesque Quad Cities region, drawing paddling enthusiasts from across the nation for an exhilarating day on the mighty Mississippi River.With over a thousand participants and exclusive river closure to other watercraft, Floatzilla provides an exceptional opportunity to immerse oneself in the area's awe-inspiring natural beauty. Whether you possess seasoned paddling skills or are venturing into this exciting activity for the first time, Floatzilla caters to everyone's preferences. The launch sites have been thoughtfully designed to accommodate individuals of all skill levels, offering a range of options. From a leisurely half-mile paddle originating at Credit Island to an adrenaline-fueled eleven-mile launch from Empire Park, an adventure awaits everyone.Even after a thrilling day on the water, the festivities continue at Floatzilla's post-paddle event. Here, participants can unwind and forge connections with fellow paddling enthusiasts while reveling in live music performances and tantalizing offerings from various food vendors. It's an excellent opportunity to relax, share stories, and bask in the camaraderie that comes from sharing a mutual love for the water.One notable highlight of this year's Floatzilla is the ambitious aim to shatter the world record for the largest raft of…
Recently everyone in the Midwest has been talking about the smoky haze that has settled onto our communities from the Canadian wildfires. Wildfires have been a natural part of many ecosystems for thousands of years. Some tree cones need to be heated before they open and release their seeds. Wildfires also help keep ecosystems healthy. They can kill insects and diseases that harm trees. By clearing underbrush, and weak trees, fires can make way for new grasses, herbs, and shrubs that provide food and habitat for animals and birds. At low intensity, flames can clean up debris and underbrush on the forest floor, add nutrients to the soil, and open up space to let sunlight through to the ground. That sunlight can nourish smaller plants and give larger trees room to grow and flourish. Climate change has been responsible for warmer temperatures which intensify drought and dry out forests, making fires more likely to become very destructive and hard to control. So far the 2023 Canadian fire season has burnt around 24.7 million acres shattering all previous records. For comparison 40 years ago the 1983 season only burnt 2.5 million acres of land. Although wildfires are a natural process, high-intensity fires have been making more frequent appearances due to climate change.It may come as a surprise that these wildfires have appeared at the same time as other extreme climate and weather events across the world, but that isnt very unreasonable. According to the National Oceanic and…
This summer’s Explore the River Series has been very memorable to say the least! We had our first Channel Cat Talk that was geared towards kids, and it went well. We had many students from the Bettendorf School District on the first Channel Cat Talk, many who had never been out on the Mississippi River before! It was a great first river experience with many birds and sightings along the way.On our Raptors Along the River Channel Cat Talk, we saw a family of eagles in the tree line along the river in Bettendorf. Two adults and their juvenile child, who still had brown feathers! Dave Murcia with the Wapsi River Environmental Education Center did a great job spotting for us even from far away.We have heard from many great speakers like Karen Anderson who spoke at the Steam Boating Along the Upper Mississippi River Channel Cat Talk and Matt Johnson who spoke at the Infrastructure Along Pool 15.If you have not already had the chance, you need to experience the Explore the River Series for yourself! We have our Saving Monarch Butterflies Riverine Walk this week on July 12th from 6:00 PM – 8:30 PM and July 15th from 9:00 AM – 10:30 AM. This week’s Riverine Walk will take place at Nahant Marsh Education Center, and you will hear from Paige Burke who is the co-founder of the Quad City Monarch Rescue Team about what their team does to help the declining Monarch Butterfly population. You will even hunt for some Monarch eggs and caterpillars in the prairie around the marsh on Saturday…
The weather has been beautiful and sunny lately and I have been spending a lot of my time outdoors. Some of my favorite things to do are walk through the local parks and ride my bike on Duck Creek Trail. I love watching the trees grow their leaves back and flowers start to bloom. When I am out, I see some people using the green spaces like I am, but not a lot of people and even less kids. It makes me wonder why more people do not utilize these beautiful spaces. How do we encourage people to go outdoors and enjoy nature?River Action has come up with a way to combat summer couch potatoes with our environmental scavenger hunt, Explore & Seek. Explore & Seek is an expansion on our Ride & Seek scavenger hunt last summer as we want everyone, even individuals without bicycles to be able to participate in the fun. Explore & Seek will take friends and families to parks and conservation areas all around the Quad Cities. The goal is to walk, hike, run, or bike to find clues to answer the questions you are provided. If you answer all the questions by the end of June, you will be entered into a drawing to win fun prizes! Some of the amazing places you will go to include Devil’s Glen Park in Bettendorf, West Lake Park in Davenport, and Sunset Park in Rock Island. There are 20 parks and green spaces in all, and you get to choose the route! We will also have the event on the I Naturalist App, where participants can upload pictures of their plant, animal, and insect observations on a…
We recognize our local water utilities as excellent treatment facilities that convert highly variable source water to safe drinking water for all Quad Citizens. However, we forget that source water and drinking water are parts of a connected whole.
Maybe you can’t join Tom Sawyer on all his river adventures, but you can learn about this nature stuff and more with River Action.
Here’s a quiz question for you: What landscape architect, journalist, and conservationist designed parks that zigzag across North America from Milwaukee to Montreal, Boston to Baltimore, Seattle to Staten Island, and hundreds of points in between, and whose 200th birthday is in 2022? If you answered Frederick Law Olmsted, Sr. you are correct.
Are you in need of some fun outside activities this summer? Well River Action has the answer for you. We are hosting a month-long scavenger hunt along the Quad Cities bike trails and bringing back Ride the River which will be held on Father’s Day on 19th of June. Thanks to bikes, adventure is waiting on the riverfront trails. Bikes will take you to places cars will never see! Ride and Seek and Ride the River —Bridging Cultures Building Communities is a ride of discovery and connection in 2022.
Volunteerism comes in many forms, from planning and running events to spending a few hours picking up trash. Any amount of time is beneficial to the health of the environment and the community or the success of an initiative. A large aspect of donating time along the Mississippi comes in the form of environmental stewardship.
56 fifth graders from Public School 15 in Red Hook, Brooklyn took the matter of plastic pollution into their own hands. Join us on April 24th at 2pm for the Viewing of Microplastic Madness at the Figge Art Museum Auditorium to learn about these students' mission to reduce plastic use.
The first day of Spring was March 20th and summer is right around the corner. Get to know the Mississippi River and surroundings when you join River Action for their 2022 Summer Education Series.
"Plastic Free July" read by Lori McCollum. For more information, visit qcearth.org or pacgqc.org.