Use of New River is quite high these days. The air is hot, the river is cool, and you can buy or rent a boat just about anywhere. For the past sixteen years after enjoying a summer of floating, residents of the New River Valley have gathered together in a day of celebrating the river, the end of summer and the start of the new semester. The annual ReNew the New event, which started in Giles County, received record participation last year with over 700 folks from across the region coming out to collect trash along our regional waterways. This year we would like to encourage residents to get outdoors and pickup trash; however, the event will look a little different. Local governments are still formulating their plans for a safe event, but please save the date of August 29th to participate in a regionwide river clean up. Lucky for us, we have two sides of 87 miles of river to spread out on, with hundreds of miles of tributaries. Your effort makes a difference! For updates on the event check out www.NewRiverWatershed.org. Don’t forget to use #ReNewtheNew when participating.
One reason river use might be more active these days is because of the recent increase in access points. For decades, Giles County has focused on the New River as a regional economic development resource. Over the past few years they officially launched the New River Water Trail (NRWT) system. This summer, Giles County has been working to design and build five new river access points. In Eggleston you can now access the river from the Mary Draper Ingles Boat Landing and in Glen Lyn you can launch from Johnson Falls, Shumate Falls, Sand Bar and State Line Falls. The Giles County ReNew Committee, the community group who has been organizing river clean-ups since 2004, recently launched the New River Mile Marker System, as part of NRWT wayfinding and safety efforts. Next time you are out on the river look for the mile 142 in Pembroke and 136 in Eggleston, now posted on the water trail. For more information about the New River Water Trail visit www.NewRiverWaterTrail.com.
For further information contact Nichole Hersch, (nicole@nrvrc.org) 540-639-9313.