On Thursday, more than 300 visiting paddlers will continue their week-long river trip with a float through downtown Chattanooga.
Paddlers will begin their Thursday float at the Coolidge Park boat launch and will travel seven miles (about three hours) through downtown Chattanooga and around Moccasin Bend to the Tennessee River Place at the base of the Cumberland Plateau and mouth of the Tennessee River Gorge.
Paddlers are participating in the Georgia Rivers Network’s 20th annual Paddle Georgia river trip, which began Sunday in Ringgold, and will conclude on Saturday, in Stevenson, Al. Over the course of the week-long experience, paddlers will cover more than 80 miles on South Chickamauga Creek and the Tennessee River.
Paddle Georgia participants include paddlers of all ages from Georgia, Tennessee, and Alabama, as well as visitors from as far away as Pennsylvania and Minnesota. Thursday is also Paddle Georgia’s “Elected Officials Day,” which offers government leaders from Georgia, Tennessee, and Alabama the opportunity to experience the Tennessee River paddling alongside Paddle Georgia Participants. Approximately 20 elected officials, staff, and family members are expected to attend.
Paddle Georgia is an annual week-long canoe/kayak camping adventure that ventures on a different Georgia River each June. Since 2005 and the first Paddle Georgia on the Chattahoochee River, the event has grown into the largest week-long canoe/kayak camping adventure in the country, attracting between 250 and 400 participants annually. Since that inaugural journey, Paddle Georgia has engaged more than 7,000 paddlers and raised more than $900,000 for river protection. Designed to be an environmental education adventure, it is a one-of-a-kind summer camp for ages 4-84. In addition to paddling a wild river for seven days, participants learn from nightly educational programs and entertainment, on-river activities, and tours of historic sites and facilities along the river that use or impact the river.
A full itinerary can be found here.