CRBI's Summer of Fun Series Include Tubing Trips, Beer Tastings

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Paddle trips, footraces, tubing trips and even beer tastings will highlight two months of activities centered around local rivers and sponsored by the Coosa River Basin Initiative.

CRBI’s Summer of Fun events begin Wednesday, July 8 with a paddleboard and canoe and kayak trip from Heritage Park followed by a Meet the Riverkeeper event at Jefferson’s Restaurant in downtown Rome.

The paddle leaves Heritage Park at 6:30 p.m. Complimentary paddleboards from Rome-based River Dog Paddle Co. and canoes and kayaks from CRBI will be available for this late afternoon, out-and-back paddle on Rome’s three rivers.

CRBI Program Coordinator & Riverkeeper Amos Tuck will be at Jeffersons’ beginning at 8 p.m. for river trivia and beer specials from SweetWater Brewing Co.

The event is the kick off for the Atlanta-based craft brewer’s Save Our Water campaign. Save Our Water T-shirts and paper fish as well as raffle tickets to win a special edition SweetWater paddleboard from River Dog. Paddle Co. will be on sale throughout July and August at area restaurants with all proceeds benefiting CRBI.

Since 2006, SweetWater has helped raise nearly $1 million for various river protection groups across the country, including CRBI. Additional Save Our Water events are planned for July 15 at Schroeder’s New Deli in Rome, July 23 at Mellow Mushroom in Rome and July 30 at the Dark Side of the Moon bar in Rome.

The fun continues Saturday, July 25, with CRBI’s Run for the Rivers 5K Race at Ridge Ferry Park in Rome. The 3.1-mile course will feature a variety of water obstacles — from water balloons to a giant waterslide at the finish line — to keep runners cool in the summer heat. Registration is now open on the event’s website.

The next day, Sunday, July 26, CRBI will host its Swimmable Water event, a 1.5-mile swim/float on the Oostanaula River from Ridge Ferry Park to Heritage Park. Participants are encouraged to bring tubes and floats to drift down river or swim the route. There is no cost to participate.

The event is part of a global effort led by the international Waterkeeper Alliance to celebrate clean water. Canoe and kayak trips are also on tap. CRBI will host guided paddle trips on the Etowah and Oostanaula rivers July 18 and Aug. 1 and 8.

The trips are free to CRBI members; canoe and kayak rentals are available. Pre-registration is required at www.coosa.org/events/paddle-trips.

An Aug. 2 paddle trip on the Etowah River near Canton will include a catered dinner and kayak raffle to benefit CRBI, Upper Etowah River Alliance and Cherokee County Historical Society. Additional information about this event can be found online.

CRBI’s summer of fun culminates Aug. 22 with its annual River Revelry—A Biodiversity Bash, a beer and barbecue festival on the banks of the Coosa River at Heritage Park in downtown Rome. The event will feature music by Jerry on the Moon, silent and live auctions, a barbecue contest and a 1.5 mile come-as-you-float trip down the Oostanaula River from Ridge Ferry Park to the River Revelry party grounds.

Tickets for the event are now available online. For more information about CRBI and these events, visit CRBI’s website or contact Shira Kerce at 706-232-2724 or skerce@coosa.org.

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Photo credit: Coosa River Basin Initiative