Inspiring. Meaningful. Adventure.

Place-based Learning in the Great Outdoors

John was a frequent participant of Paddle Florida events over the years. He made many friends on these trips and recruited others to get involved.

In lieu of flowers, please make Memorial gifts for John’s incredible life to:

• Americans United: 1310 L Street, Suite 200, Washington DC 20005;

• National Public Radio: P.O. Box 791490,Baltimore, MD 21279-1490;

• WUFT: P.O. Box 118405, Gainesville, FL 32611;

• Southern Poverty Law Center: 400 Washington Avenue, Montgomery, AL 36104; or the

• American Civil Liberties Union: 125 Broad Street, 18th Floor, New York NY 10004

A Celebration of Life service will be held on October 16th at the open-air Shelter at Fanning Springs State Park at 2PM. A reception to follow. To indicate your plans to attend please reply via email to cltownsend1016@gmail.com re: JRT’s Service. Cremation arranged by Forest Meadows Funeral Home, Gainesville.

2021-2022 Paddle Florida Season

Happy Paddler Exclusives

This is my twelfth article for the Happy Paddler. We’ve covered a lot of ground (or should I say water). This month I hope to connect the dots on two issues that I’ve written about in the past to illustrate how the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s negligence impacts Florida’s springs and rivers.

First, I want to share a couple of opportunities to support our work at the Florida Springs Council that Paddle Florida members may be particularly interested in. 

Win A Paddleboard

We are thrilled to announce that iRocker - maker of world-class paddle boards - is partnering with the Florida Springs Council to help us protect Florida’s springs and rivers. I am so proud to partner with iRocker because they make outstanding SUPs, share our love for healthy springs and rivers, and are based right here in my hometown of Jacksonville. 

To celebrate this partnership, iRocker has donated a NAUTICAL 10'6" inflatable paddle board that will go to one lucky FSC donor. Go to www.floridaspringscouncil.org/donatetowin for your chance to win. 

Benefit Concert

Also, come join me and other members of the FSC family on September 11th at Heartwood Soundstage in Gainesville for a night of fantastic music to benefit FSC’s legal challenge to stop the bottling permit and Save the Soul of the Santa Fe River. Shine and the Shakers, Madwoman, and Tamayo will be performing outside from 7pm to 10pm. Get your tickets at heartwoodsoundstage.com

Back to DEP and our broken regulatory system... [Read more…]

Tourism marketing is the process of inspiring visitors to spend their money at our local businesses. The tourism marketing fund, sometimes known as the BedTax, was established to create a dedicated revenue stream for this marketing activity. Its creation benefits the entire community without asking residents to contribute any additional dollars to the effort. 

The success of the tourism marketing fund has made the available pot of money attractive to many community groups and elected officials. Diluting the revenue generally fall into two categories: infrastructure projects and transfer to the general budget to cover shortfalls.  

These suggestions to dilute the fund have gained traction over the years. Each of the proposed uses of the dedicated tourism marketing fund are either forms of direct payment to local community groups, or tangible projects that can be marketed publicly as enhancements to quality of life.  [Read more…]

Aquatic invasive weeds crowd out native species, reduce biodiversity, decrease utility of waters for fishing and hunting waterfowl, and reduce recreational enjoyment. Managing invasive weeds in Florida will assist in protecting our natural resources and using biological control is a cost effective and sustainable tool to be incorporated into this process. Florida recreation is centered around our natural waterways including 7,700 lakes and ponds and 1,400 rivers and streams. Fishing, swimming, boating, hunting, and diving are all threatened by invasive species. For many Florida residents fishing and hunting in Florida’s waterways are their way of life and a vital food resource. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has several lake management plans for invasive species with specific goals to increase largemouth bass populations. In addition to protecting our food resources and recreational areas we have an obligation to protect our rare and endangered native species such as manatees which depend on our aquatic ecosystems. [Read more…]

News Article of Interest

The first seven months of this year have seen a record 900-plus manatees die in Florida’s waterways.

While that figure is staggering enough in its own right, the total is expected to reach as high as 1,200 by year’s end.

The Save the Manatee Club and two other nonprofit organizations have given the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that they plan to sue if more isn’t done to protect the sea mammal.

Data compiled by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission shows 905 manatee deaths have been recorded so far this year, shattering the record of 830 set in 2017.

And, according to the Save the Manatee Club, the problem is only going to get worse. [Read more…]

Photo: U.S. Geological Survey

How To: The Knot Every Paddler Should Know

The most important knot for all paddlers to know is the Trucker’s Hitch knot. It is a simple knot that is used to apply tension, which makes it great for tying boats on vehicles. Anytime you need to pull something taut, the Trucker’s Hitch is probably the answer. [Learn more…]

Click here for video.

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