Celebrate the Naugatuck River!

Fun for Families and Paddlers on the Naugatuck River
Naugatuck River Festival and Fun Paddle Run
Saturday, April 30 - noon to 3pm
Linden Park, Naugatuck

A Naugatuck River Festival and Fun Paddle Run calling attention to the revitalized river to encourage visitors to learn, explore, and become stewards will be held Saturday, April 30 from noon to 3pm at Linden Park on Riverside Drive in Naugatuck.

The event is being held by the Housatonic Valley Association, in conjunction with many partners including the Naugatuck Valley Outdoors Club and the Town of Naugatuck.

Experienced paddlers are invited to join in a 5-mile noncompetitive paddle beginning at 2pm at Linden Park and ending at Beacon Falls. $4 registration fee is required as are life jackets (PFD’s) and helmets. Fun Paddle Run registration starts at 11AM. Conditions are normally class I and II rapids dependent on water flow and the "Run" is dependent on safe water levels. The "Run" replaces the annual Naugatuck Valley River Race. For more information about the paddle “run”, contact Dave Faber at 4ctoutdoors@gmail.com.

There will be family-friendly river and wildlife exhibits and activities by the Housatonic Valley Association, Naugatuck Valley Outdoors Club, canoe and kayak demos from CT Outdoors, fly fishing demos by Trout Unlimited, and other area exhibitors. Interested citizens can find more information about the Naugatuck River Festival by visiting the Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/PaddletheGreenway/

The Naugatuck River is the largest tributary of the Housatonic River, draining 311 square miles and portions of 27 towns. At one time, one of the most polluted rivers in the nation, the Naugatuck River has rebounded, due to the hard work and perseverance of many local and state-wide organizations and as well as major changes in state and federal pollution control laws.

The Naugatuck River Festival and Fun Paddle Run is being held during Housatonic Valley Association’s Housatonic River Adventure - Source to Sound Paddle Trip, a 10-day, 149-mile, river adventure starting on Earth Day, April 22 in the Berkshires of Massachusetts and ending at Long Island Sound on May 1. Paddlers will maneuver challenging rapids, paddle oxbows and calm lake waters and may even battle waist-deep currents to upright capsized canoes along the way. Follow the paddlers at hvas2s.tumblr.com.

Celebrations and educational programs along the journey will connect thousands to the beautiful river that runs through the Berkshire and Connecticut communities. Many partner organizations from the surrounding watershed will join HVA for this historic river adventure.

River Adventure Sponsors include the Natural Resource Trustees (Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), Connecticut Community Foundation, FirstLight, Housatonic Heritage Area, Community Foundation of Northwest Connecticut, Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, Iron National Bank, Berkshire Bank Foundation, Union Savings Bank, Center Subaru, Salisbury Bank, Becton Dickinson, Golub Corp., Greylock Federal Credit Union, Kimberly Clark, Shelton-Derby Rotary Club.

HVA is uniquely dedicated to protecting the entire Housatonic River Watershed. The watershed includes 2,000 square miles of land stretching from western Massachusetts through western Connecticut and eastern New York to Long Island Sound. HVA monitors water quality throughout the watershed, conducts educational programs, works to link preserved space with the Housatonic River Greenway of hiking and biking trails and uses computer mapping to help towns measure the impact and benefits of land use and development. HVA’s offices are in Cornwall Bridge, Connecticut; South Lee, Massachusetts; and Wassaic, New York.