The Thornapple River expedition is scheduled in August | Environment

The Thornapple River Expedition 2012 will be coming through Cascade on Saturday, August 11, 2012. The Expedition is a six day public journey of discovery to experience conditions and opportunities of Michigan’s Thornapple River and its watershed in order to foster awareness and responsibility for the River.

The TR Expedition is led by a diverse team of historians, educators, students, civic leaders, and scientists from natural resource and other professions. The Expedition team will travel by canoes, kayaks, and boats, conduct studies, and provide demonstrations, interactive displays, and exhibits in communities along the Thornapple River. This event is a follow up to the Grand River Expedition held in 2010.

The TR Expedition will start on Monday, August 6 in Charlotte, Michigan near the headwaters of the Thornapple River. Each day participating canoeist and kayakers will make their way along the Thornapple River, stopping for lunch breaks, portages, conducting water test and camping along the shores at night.

The final segment of the TR Expedition will be on Saturday, August 11, where the participants will paddle from Alaska to Cascade and on into Ada. In Cascade they will portage the dam and have a quick lunch at Tassell Park. The Expedition will come through Cascade between 10:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. on August 11th. You will need to be near the river during that time to observe the boats.

In Ada they will portage the Ada dam and then travel the final section of the river to where it flows into the Grand River just south of the M-21 Bridge. 

 The expedition is open to the public to join in, whether you do the entire trip or just one day, you just need to pre-register ahead of time. Registration will close on July 1 or when the expedition reaches its capacity of 150.  To learn more about the Thornapple River Expedition or to register visit the web site: www.thornappleriver.org  or e-mail trwc@thornappleriver.org

Sources:  Thornapple River Expedition and Cascade Township