Registration open for 56-mile Fall Float on the Flint

ALBANY — Registration is open for an opportunity to explore Southwest Georgia’s Flint River during Georgia River Network’s Paddle Georgia Fall Float on the Flint, a three-day canoe and kayak journey set for Oct. 8-10.

The fall event will be the third year the statewide river advocacy group has offered this trip in conjunction with Flint Riverkeeper, and organizers are expecting at least 150 paddlers to make the journey. Registration for the event began last week at a cost of $325 for adults, $280 for youths age 8-17 and $140 for children age 7 and younger.

The registration fee includes catered breakfasts, lunches and dinners for three days, camping privileges, shuttle services, event T-shirt and decal, maps and guides, entertainment and educational programs, and a year’s membership in GRN.

“We keep returning to the Flint each fall because it is such a popular trip,” said Paddle Georgia Coordinator Joe Cook. “The Flint is unlike any other south Georgia river. It’s limestone bluffs, lively shoals and blue hole springs surprise most first-timers and keep others coming back to experience it again and again.”

Coordinators say spaces will be limited to the first 175 who register.

Coordinators say paddlers will launch from Mitchell County Landing on Oct. 8 and finish the journey Oct. 10 at Flint River Heights Road north of Bainbridge. During the event, participants will camp at Rocky Bend Flint River Retreat in Newton. Canoeists and kayakers will travel to the Flint River Retreat the first day, and the next day travel from the retreat to Hoggard Mill Road. On the final day, the journey will take participants from Hoggard Mill to Flint River Heights.

In all, 56 miles of the river will be covered.

The trip is an offshoot of GRN’s annual Paddle Georgia event, a seven-day trip venturing on a different Georgia river each year. Now in its 12th year, that event has grown into the largest weeklong canoe and kayak camping adventure in the country, officials say.

In addition to providing participants opportunities to learn about the importance of the Flint and Georgia’s other rivers, officials say the Fall Float also serves as a fundraiser for GRN and Flint Riverkeeper. Since its inception in 2005, GRN’s Paddle Georgia trips have guided more than 4,400 people down 15 rivers while raising more than $330,000 for river protection.

Earlier this month, more than 400 outdoors enthusiasts participated in Paddle Georgia 2016 on the Conasauga and Oostanaula rivers.

“We’re excited about partnering with GRN to bring people from across the state and nation to the beautiful Flint,” said Flint Riverkeeper Gordon Rogers. “But we also want to see local citizens take part in the trip. It’s a great opportunity to explore your own backyard.”

Through a grant from Weyerhaeuser Giving Fund, this year’s Fall Float will also involve an area youth group that will complete the three-day journey and receive training as Georgia Adopt-A-Stream citizen water monitors. The goal of the project is to involve these youths year-round in water monitoring and Flint protection projects, officials said.

The trip is open to new and experienced paddlers. Paddlers have ranged in age from 4 to 84, with many families participating. Online registration is available at regonline.com/fallfloat2016.

Sponsors of the event include Hennessy Land Rover Centres; Columbia Sportswear; Dalton Utilities; Atlanta Gas Light; Maxxis; Cedar Creek Park RV & Outdoor Center; Stormwater Systems; CYA Insurance Agency; Oglethorpe Power; Cary S. Baxter, CPA LLC; The Outdoor Foundation; Sole Source Electrical Contractors; Shaw Floors; Georgia Secure Shred; Stream Techs; The Outside World; R. Terry Pate, Certified Public Accountant; China Clay Producers Association; Georgia Mining Association; Mohawk Industries; AR Motorsports Inc.; Patagonia; Pepsi; Troncalli Subaru; Bending Branches; RS Industrial; EarthShare of Georgia; Friends of Georgia State Parks & Historic Sites, and Rocky Bend Flint River Retreat.

Event partners include American Canoe Association, Café Campesino, Georgia Canoe Association, Georgia Adopt-A-Stream and Project Wet.

Those interested in participating can get more information at the Paddle Georgia website at garivers.org/paddle_georgia or by contacting Cook at (706) 409-0128 or [email protected].

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