Canoe Project; Bigger and Better

CANOE PROJECT; BIGGER AND BETTER

CANOE RENTALS

April 6^th begins our canoe season down at Laurel Hill County Park in Secaucus. The livery will be open on weekends (10 a.m. – 6 p.m.) through the end of May. Beginning June 1, the livery will be open 5 days a week (Wednesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.)!
The required donation per boat will remain the same at $20 for up to four hours; $30 will get you the canoe for the entire day. Two to three people per boat is a comfortable fit. (No one may canoe alone.) Each person in the canoe will be issued a paddle and a personal flotation device (PFD). You will also be given an aerial photograph and a short paddling instruction and river orientation. A whistle must be taken in each canoe and may be purchased from us for $2.

FREQUENT PADDLERS

This season, we will also implement a frequent paddle program. Each time you take out a canoe, you will receive credits toward discounts, bonuses and benefits. What are they? You'll just have to come down to the Meadowlands to find out.

GUIDED TOURS

This season, we will augment the Canoe Project by offering guided canoe tours to the public. There will be one each month. Each one will be a leisurely paddle through the marsh and will last approximately two hours. Your guide will offer ecological, historical and recent development information during the trip. The required donation will be $15 per person.
You may join us for just one tour or for all of them. See a snapshot of the Meadowlands, or see the change of seasons from one of the best vantage points—from the marsh, itself.
You may also request your own private guided tour. Individuals or groups of people (e.g. Scouts, birders, etc) should call at least two weeks in advance to place a reservation.
For a current 2002 schedule, visit our Eco-Programs Canoe Project page.

ECO-CANOE CAMP

Finally, and best of all. We are exploring the idea of creating a new Hackensack Riverkeeper program. An Eco-Canoe Camp, still in the works, would be an outdoor education experience that would take campers on trips to lakes in the upper watershed and through several of the marshes and creeks in the lower watershed, including the Meadowlands.

The Novice course would introduce campers to paddlesport, including all safety and boat handling considerations. Two days may be spent in the upper watershed; three may be spent in the lower watershed exploring Mill Creek, Saw Mill Creek, and others. This course would include an Eco-Cruise, an Eco-Walk and a trip to the NJ Meadowlands Commission Environment Center.

The Advanced course would test a paddler's endurance. We may spend one day in the upper watershed, and then we could explore nearly all of the major creeks, tributaries and marshes south of the Oradell Dam. We could cover about 30 miles during the week. This course would also include an Eco-Cruise, and Eco-Walk and a trip to the NJ Meadowlands Commission Environment Center.

The Overnight session would be spent camping under tarps in the upper watershed. Meals would be prepared and cooked by campers. Each day, multitudes of canoe activities are planned on the lake.

For more information about any of these programs visit our website, www.hackensackriverkeeper.org, or call or email Jared at our headquarters: 201-692-8440 or 201-920-4746; jared@hackensackriverkeeper.org.

Hackensack Riverkeeper is searching for additional staff to ease the operations of our summer programs. If you are interested, call our headquarters at 201-692-8440.

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