Monday, January 04, 2010

Canoeists Celebrate Year Of The Everglades

12 Paddlers Travel From Okeechobee County To Palm Beach County

OKEECHOBEE, FL. -- The Year of the Everglades kicked off on January 2, 2010, as 12 men and women set off from where the Kissimmee River flows into Lake Okeechobee for a six-day, 78-mile Canoe Expedition which will culminate at Grassy Waters Preserve in West Palm Beach on January 7.

The River of Grass canoe expedition, sponsored by the Arthur R. Marshall Foundation, will draw attention to the invaluable role the Everglades plays in the ecology of Florida. The group will spend its days on the water and its nights camping in Okeechobee county and ending in Palm Beach County.

At trip's end on January 7 at 4 p.m., a flotilla of about 30 vessels will join in for the last leg of the adventure, paddling through the Loxahatchee Slough to the Bingham Nature Pavilion at Grassy Waters Preserve.

Established in 1998, the Arthur R. Marshall Foundation is based on the principles of visionary environmental advocate, Arthur R. Marshall, Jr. (1919-1985). For more than a decade, the Arthur R. Marshall Foundation has championed the restoration and preservation of the greater Everglades ecosystem through science-based outreach programs and hands-on activities to return original plant life and water flow patterns to the historic "River of Grass.''
 

Expedition leader Chris Schuld, biologist Allen Trefry, Danielle Almeida, Janice Kerber, SFWMD’s Susan Sylvester, Erika Fitzsimmons, Tom Salinsky, Rachel Scarafia, Janet Talbot, Maureen Connolly and Tomas Boiton. In addition, world-renowned author, nature enthusiast and wildlife photographer Dudley Edmondson will film a documentary of the trek.

The Palm Beach County School District will host a daily live broadcast at 8:10 a.m. beginning Tuesday, January 5, through Thursday, January 7.

Visit http://breeze.palmbeach.k12.fl.us/riverofgrass and log in as GUEST to see the live broadcast.

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