Take Action: Oregon Waterway Access Permits
11/13/2025 - by Thomas O'Keefe
In 2025, the Oregon Legislature passed HB 2982, expanding the types of vessels subject to waterway access permits and increasing associated fees. The legislation moved quickly, with limited public input, and American Whitewater was the only organization to formally oppose the bill during the legislative hearing. We were successful in helping secure an exemption for small, nonmotorized boats engaged in whitewater recreation. We’re encouraging boaters to weigh-in with public comments at a rulemaking hearing regarding this legislation on Dec. 4.
Supporting Public Lands and Waters, Even During a Shutdown
11/13/2025 - by Evan Stafford
This past fall, despite a government shutdown, American Whitewater continued our work meeting with decision makers in Washington, D.C., and advancing the protection of our public lands and waters. Our team partnered with outdoor recreation and conservation leaders on three trips to the nation’s capital, meeting face-to-face with lawmakers to discuss the value of public lands, the importance of the public voice in hydropower licensing, conservation priorities for rivers, and the effects of agency staff reductions and shutdowns on river management. In partnership with coalitions like Outdoor Alliance and the Hydropower Reform Coalition, we had a busy fall–holding more than 100 meetings with both Republicans and Democrats. Our goal was to strengthen outdoor recreation and conservation priorities across the country.
“With the longest federal shutdown in history and ongoing staffing shortages at our land management agencies, it’s more important than ever to show up and make our voices heard,” said Thomas O'Keefe, Director of Policy and Science, of American Whitewater. “Outdoor recreation remains one area where we can have constructive, bipartisan conversations—and where our advocacy truly makes a difference. Even in a challenging political climate, we’ll continue to look for opportunities to protect access and the health of our rivers, and to ensure that agencies have the resources they need to care for these special places.”
American River (CA) Bridge Debris’ Are Being Removed!
11/13/2025 - by Jeff Venturino
Placer County is currently in the process of removing bridge debris from the American River at Highway 49 just below the confluence of the North Fork and Middle Fork American Rivers. Debris removal was requested by the regional organization, Protect American River Canyons (PARC), and supported by local elected officials. A bridge failure in 1964 caused this hazardous and unsightly debris, which was abandoned in place at that time because an assumption was made that it would be flooded under the Auburn Dam reservoir. Restoring rivers to their natural state and removing infrastructure debris is incredibly important work. We’re thrilled that this project has moved forward despite the lack of a clear responsible party and long time scale. The confluence section of the American has several connected whitewater sections, which not only hosts boaters but also sees many tubers each summer. Recreational users have been endangered by this bridge debris for decades and it is exciting to see this situation will be greatly improved by next summer. American Whitewater has been in contact with Placer County regarding public, and on-water recreation safety, and has been pleased so far with the protective measures being implemented.
November '25 North Fork Feather (CA) Releases
11/13/2025 - by Jeff Venturino
Recreational releases will be happening on the Poe Canyon (V) and Bardee’s Bar (IV) sections of the North Fork Feather River this weekend. Releases will be 1400cfs from 9am to 3pm on November 15th and 16th, and 22nd and 23rd. These releases were negotiated for and are annually coordinated by American Whitewater in conjunction with Pacific Gas & Electric. We also advocated for license-required repairs to Bardee’s Bar road, which were completed this past spring after a significant winter wash-out and access for both sections should be open. This year’s releases were pushed out into November due to Pacific Gas & Electric maintenance needs, but are confirmed for November.
Access Closures on Upper Klamath River (OR/CA)
11/13/2025 - by Thomas O'Keefe and Scott Harding
Just when the newly undammed Klamath River is ready to welcome boaters for its first full winter
season—with five brand-new river access facilities now in place—three of these access
areas are being closed to the public. The Klamath River Renewal Corporation, together with
the Oregon and California departments of fish and wildlife, announced the seasonal closures of Pioneer
Park, Moonshine Falls, and K’utárawáx·u river accesses from November
20, 2025 through March 31, 2026, citing “safety and weather conditions.” For
river-runners in Southern Oregon and Northern California, this news lands hard. These access
sites are the result of years of work by American Whitewater and our partners to ensure that, as
the reservoirs drained and the river returned, boaters would have safe, reliable ways to explore
the newly revealed reaches and witness the river’s revival. If you're interested in trying
to protect public access to the restored Klamath, you can take action by calling the Oregon
Department of Fish & Wildlife: 541-883-5734 and California Department of Fish &
Wildlife: 530-225-2300 and emphasizing why winter and early-spring access matters: these seasons
provide some of the Klamath’s best boating flows, and these new access sites were intended
to serve the public year-round. Image by Nicole Smedegaard.
2025 Board Of Directors Election–Current Members Please Vote Now!
11/13/2025 - by Evan Stafford
Each year American Whitewater's membership ratifies Board of Director members to serve three-year terms. These candidates volunteer to serve on the American Whitewater Board. Current American Whitewater members can cast their votes through Midnight Pacific Time, December 15th. American Whitewater has two Director Nominees to fill two open seats in this election, and you may vote for up to two candidates on the slate. The ballot for our Board of Directors election is placed online here.
2026 Calendars + Holiday Offer Membership Now Available!
11/12/2025 - by Bethany Overfield
Looking for that special gift for someone or just feeling the need to treat yourself? Our American Whitewater Holiday Offer just went live! You can get a Standard Membership ($35), a 16 oz MiiR Mug, and a 2026 calendar (plus shipping) all for $75. Head to our membership form and snag a Holiday Offer today. This is a splendid way to support our Stewardship work at American Whitewater.
We’re excited to partner with MiiR this year as they are a Climate Neutral Certified Brand and a B Corporation. In other words, MiiR walks the walks in the sustainable/environmental world!
Calendars make the perfect gift for the river lover in your life! You can head to our webstore to purchase one today (there are all kinds of gift goodies in the store!). Our calendar images are all contributed by our amazing and talented community and highlight many of the rivers you love. Keep American Whitewater close all year long with these gifts!
Give Early, Give Smart: Make the Most of 2025 Charitable Giving Rules
10/08/2025 - by Clinton Begley
The tax landscape is shifting in 2026, bringing new limits on charitable deductions that could reduce the tax benefit of giving for many Americans, but 2025 offers a valuable opportunity to lock in today’s more favorable rules. These changes will especially affect donors who use donor-advised funds (DAFs) or who plan multi-year support for causes they care about. By giving—or contributing to a DAF—before December 31, 2025, you can secure a full charitable deduction under current law, while still granting funds to organizations like American Whitewater over time. It’s one of the most flexible, tax-efficient ways to give, and one that’s changing soon. Every contribution made before the 2026 tax changes strengthens American Whitewater’s ability to protect, restore, and steward rivers across the country, and gives us the confidence to plan for the years ahead. By giving early—and strategically—you can make your dollars go further, support clean water and recreation, and ensure that your generosity continues to make waves well beyond this year. If you would like to talk more about making a significant gift or muli-year commitment through a donor advised fund contribution, or a gift of appreciated stock or other non-cash contribution, please reach out to Clinton Begley at clinton@americanwhiter.org to coordinate. You can find out more about how to give at https://www.americanwhitewater.org/content/Wiki/aw:giving/
Visit Rivers Responsibly During the Shut Down
10/08/2025 - by Evan Stafford
The US Federal government officially shut down October 1, 2025, and a resolution to reopen the government appears to be nowhere in sight. The shutdown threatens our country’s river based communities that rely on the clean water, healthy ecosystems, access, and infrastructure the Federal government provides for our public waters. From a recreation and tourism perspective, the shutdown’s disruptions will hurt small businesses, workers, and families across the country. In practical terms, river runners need to step-up our game and not add to potential issues on public lands, especially in light of the workforce reductions our public lands agencies have already faced this year. It’s a good time to be extra-cautious and really try to paddle up to the standards of our Paddle Wise program in terms of boating responsibly, utilizing leave no trace principles–even in the front-country, and not putting extra pressure on areas that will be hit hard by visitation without management. Find the details of Paddle Wise, our responsibility code for river runners, here.
Grasstops Collective Application is Now Open!
10/07/2025 - by Evan Stafford
Interested in becoming a more effective river stewardship and outdoor recreation advocate? American Whitewater and our partners at the Outdoor Alliance have been training community leaders for the past several years through the Grasstops Collective program, a leadership and advocacy development program that trains fledgling advocates to build relationships with policymakers and raise their voice for our stewardship priorities from an authentic, local perspective. Grasstops leaders are unique because of their meaningful place in their communities, whether they are in business, nonprofit, or local government. They are the unofficial mayors—the ones who know everyone at the put-in, trailhead, or crag. For more information, check out this program overview, and if you’d like to sign-up, please complete this application and optional recommendation by November 2, 2025.
National Low Head Dam Inventory is Live!
10/07/2025 - by Hattie Johnson
American Whitewater worked intently on two cycles of the biannual Water Resources Development Act to ensure a National Low Head Dam Inventory would be created and the inventory is now live! As many paddlers know, low head dams create incredibly dangerous hydraulics and extreme hazards for folks looking to enjoy rivers. Over the past 50 years, low-head dams have claimed more than 1,400 lives. American Whitewater’s database of whitewater accidents and fatalities, maintained since 1972, documents that 10% of fatalities nationwide are a result of individuals getting caught in a low-head dam hydraulic. We’ve had no central source of where thousands of these structures exist, until now because of the work of American Whitewater and our partners.
Use the Free Shuttle, Final 2025 Nantahala Cascades Releases, Sept. 27-28 (NC)
09/25/2025 - by Kevin Colburn
The last scheduled 2025 releases for the Upper Nantahala and Cascades are this Saturday and Sunday, September 27th and 28th. We are asking boaters running laps on the Cascades to make an extra effort to stay out of the way of traffic on the road by taking the free shuttle, walking well off the road, and generally avoiding conflicts.
Accident Summary Jan–June 2025 Available Online
09/16/2025 - by Evan Stafford
The American Whitewater Accident Summary for January–June 2025 is now available online. Since our inception, American Whitewater has been a vigorous promoter of river safety information, and accident reporting has become integral to this task. Charlie Walbridge has used reports submitted by our membership to compile regular summaries of fatalities and close calls for our Journal since 1986. American Whitewater has catalogued over 2400 incidents on whitewater rivers dating back to 1972, which you can find and analyze for yourself in our online Accident Database.
Get your Gauley Fest Tickets online and WIN! And Gauley Fest News......
09/15/2025 - by Bethany Overfield
Online tickets sales for Gauley Fest are available now. Gauley Fest is one of our biggest fundraisers of the year. Ticket sales help fund the river project work we do at American Whitewater and we are grateful for every attendee! Early bird tickets start at $60 for Thursday entrance / $50 for Friday entrance / $40 for Saturday entrance. In person gate admission will be through cash or Eventbrite only this year. To encourage folks to buy tickets in advance (and help the flow of event traffic). As a pretty sweet incentive, all Eventbrite (pre-sale online) ticketholders will be entered to win an American Whitewater Ocoee Watershed Drybag. Boom.
We’re still looking for volunteers to put on the biggest whitewater festival in all the lands.
Finally, we’re looking forward to one of the greatest costume parties of all time this year at Gauley Fest! The event, which starts on September 18th and concludes on September 21st, will showcase a Bridal Party Theme. Attendees will have a chance to renew their vows to American Whitewater with membership support and receive a commemorative token. Whether you choose to dress up as a bride, groom, wedding officiant, flower girl/boy, or a bridesmaid/groomsman, you’ll be in the running to win our costume party on Saturday night. We’re excited to see you all show up rocking those 70s tuxedos and wedding dresses!
Restoring Access to the Wild & Scenic Tuolumne River (CA)
09/09/2025 - by Jeff Venturino and Katie Hawkins
American Whitewater is thrilled to announce significant progress toward the restoration of access to the Tuolumne River. A contract for repairs and improvements to Lumsden Road is out to bid. Although delays in contracting are possible, it is likely that road repairs will be completed this fall and winter with the road reopening in the spring. Our advocacy has only been possible thanks to support from our partners at Outdoor Alliance California, Tuolumne River Trust, Tuolumne River Outfitters, and dedicated members of the paddling public. Tuolumne County and the Stanislaus National Forest have both been driven to move repairs forward and strong collaborators. This repair work includes significant and hard-won improvements to the damaged locations that should reduce the chances that the road washes out at those locations again.
Administration Seeks Comments on Repealing Roadless Area Protections
09/04/2025 - by Kevin Colburn, Thomas O'Keefe, and Evan Stafford
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has officially proposed to repeal the Roadless Area Conservation Rule, which has protected popular backcountry recreation destinations spanning nearly 60 million acres of Forest Service lands across the country since 2001. The result of this action, if successful, would open remote landscapes highly valued for backcountry river and other recreation activities to road building and logging. Protected Roadless areas are a treasure trove of whitewater boating and biodiversity gems. Runs like the Middle Fork Feather and Dry Meadow Creek in California, South Fork Salmon in Idaho, Cascade Brook in New Hampshire, the Cooper and McCoy Creek in Washington, Seneca Creek and Tea Creek in West Virginia, Upper Chattooga in Georgia, Snowbird Creek and Upper Wilson Creek in North Carolina, and Laurel Fork of the Potomac in Virginia all flow through Forest Service Roadless Areas. We encourage boaters to submit a personal letter to the Administration clearly supporting the No Action Alternative. Arguments about protecting recreational experiences and water quality are encouraged. The deadline to comment is Sept. 19, 2025.
Limited Edition Whatever Your Quiver AW Gear
09/01/2025 - by Evan Stafford
Show your support for American Whitewater with limited edition river inspired gear! American Whitewater has partnered again with FLOAT to bring you these tees, tanks, and hoodies, but only for a limited time! Celebrate all the ways you can enjoy the river, with our “Whatever your quiver, American Whitewater delivers” line of gear. Purchasing these items directly supports American Whitewater’s stewardship efforts! Tons of colors and styles available. And for every item sold, FLOAT donates $8 to our program protecting, restoring and ensuring safe access and enjoyment of our rivers. Head on over to FLOAT and SHOP today–lots of fun colors and styles to choose from! Don't delay. . . this offer is only available for a limited time! Thanks for supporting American Whitewater!
Support Shoshone Permanency
08/14/2025 - by Hattie Johnson
If you’ve driven I-70 through western Colorado, you’ve likely driven by the Shoshone dam and powerhouse in the depths of Glenwood Canyon. Unless you have stopped to boat the Colorado there - and I hope you have! - you would likely miss the over hundred year old structures tucked in the canyon walls. But that small hydropower operation holds the largest and oldest water rights that keep the Colorado River flowing throughout most of the year from Kremmling to the Glenwood Springs. Because of this, American Whitewater has been a proud supporter of the Shoshone Water Right Preservation Coalition. Preserving the streamflow created by the Shoshone water rights creates massive benefits upstream and downstream for Colorado’s recreation, environment, communities, and water users across the state, especially in light of a hotter and drier future.
Gore Fest 2025
08/14/2025 - by Hattie Johnson
After eight years of hosting Gore Fest, American Whitewater is excited to announce we fully passed the festival off to the incredibly capable hands of the folks at Whitewater Racing LLC. We will be out there at our tent, so please still come and stop by and renew your membership or join for the first time! Click on read more for all the details about this year’s festival taking place at the Pumphouse Rec area from Aug 21st -24th (Thursday evening till Sunday morning).
New Wild and Scenic River Legislation for Montana!
08/13/2025 - by Kevin Colburn
On August 1st, Western Montana Congressman Ryan Zinke introduced the Greater Yellowstone Recreation Enhancement and Tourism Act, legislation that would designate nearly 100 miles of the Madison and Gallatin Rivers and select tributaries as part of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. Congressman Zinke worked closely with local stakeholders, including county commissioners, conservation groups, including American Whitewater, local outfitters, private landowners, and Northwestern Energy, to draft the legislation.