Join
us in Oregon, IL, canoe on the most scenic stretch of the Rock River
includes an
all you can eat breakfast and shuttle service from the drop off points
so single
paddlers are welcome! Starting at
Park East in Oregon IL, on the Rock River between the hours of 7AM and
11AM
canoe or kayak to any of two takeout points, 5 mi or 9 mi.A limited number of rentals are
available and you will also receive an official commemorative patch of
the
Rally. Visit http://www.oregontraildays.org/Events/2010-07-18/Sunday-Eventsfor more info and registration forms and
maps.
Mark your calendars for March 13th 2010 at Canoecopia. The Illinois Paddling Council will be hosting the first annual Paddling
Club Rendezvous on Saturday evening from 5:30-7:00pm in the Superior
Room at the Clarion Hotel next to the Alliant Energy Center campus.
The
Rendezvous is an opportunity for paddling club members from all over
the Midwest to get together to network, share favorite paddling
destinations, plan joint activities, recruit new members, and just get
to know each other over pizza and soda.
As
many of you know, Last Spring Buzzi Unicem which owns the cement plant
on the Vermilion River, (one of the most paddled and best whitewater
runs in Illinois) closed the river to paddlers out of fear of
liability. State Representative Frank Mautino recently Introduced HB
5296 The Vermilion River Navigability Act which would solve the problem
by declaring the closed portion to be navigable and therefore making it
public and open. The bill has reached a crucial point and will have a
hearing on Tuesday in the House Agriculture and Conservation Committee. It is critical that Committee members hear from large numbers of paddlers.
Only
emails or phone calls will make it in time. Emails should be short and
to the point such as I am in favor of HB5296 and give your reason for
your support. Urge the Representative to pass this bill through
committee. We should all contact all the committee members on or before
Monday February 22, 2010 and reiterate this message. Anyone willing to
travel to Springfield to give testimony in front of the committee
should file a witness slip prior to the hearing if they want to be
recognized.
A Synopsis of HB5296
Amends the Rivers,
Lakes, and Streams Act. Provides that the Vermilion River, from its
confluence with the Illinois River upstream to the bridge at 18th
Street in LaSalle County, is declared a navigable stream, shall be
deemed and held a public right-of-way, and shall remain free, open, and
unobstructed, and all laws prohibiting the obstruction of navigable
streams shall be deemed applicable to the Vermilion River between the
points identified.
Tom, the FP has recently approved a new aquatic invasive
species program (AIS) to be implemented throughout the FP throughout the
county. It incorporates permanent signage at all river / lake access
points to advise recreational users to help STOP the spread of AIS and how to
prevent their spread…… it also has a volunteer element to monitor
the three subwatersheds through an absence/ presence sampler plate method for
zebra mussels.
Any questions feel free to contact me…… #
630-988-7724 cell
Happy paddling
Jessi DeMartini Ecologist Office of Natural Resources - Ecology Forest Preserve District of DuPage County (630) 871-7548
Driven by a life-long desire to leave this world in a better condition than when he entered, Frank has conceived the idea of the Rock River Sweep, a one-day cleanup of all 285 miles of the Wisconsin-Illinois course of the Rock. The event is scheduled for July 31, 2010.
