Help send off paddlers on their 60-mile, 4-day journey!
Join us in Worcester to send off our group of river advocates as they begin their Annual Source to Sea Paddle 60 miles over four days — from Worcester, MA all the way down to Providence, RI. Paddlers will portage 22 dams and experience river conditions first hand, helping identify the improvements and opportunities for stewardship and restoration.
On Thursday, September 10th at 9am, we’ll meet at the Blackstone Bikeway at 1265 Millbury Street Worcester MA 01607 and walk 0.4 miles down the bikeway to get the Blackstone River below the Route 20 overpass, where coffee and light refreshments will be provided.
Kayakers will begin their journey with a public kick off, including brief remarks from regional leaders including:
MA State Representative Mary Keefe
Mass Division of Ecological Restoration Director Beth Lambert
Worcester Emergency Management Director Rob Connolly
Upper Blackstone Clean Water Director Karla Sangrey
MVP Central Regional Coordinator Hillary King
CMRPC Director Janet Pierce
The kick off will close with Chief of Hassanamisco Nipmuc Band, Cheryll Toney Holley, offering a blessing for a safe journey as the paddlers begin their four-day expedition.
By 10am, paddlers will be in the river on the first leg of our journey, which will end around 7pm that night at Plummer's Landing in Northbridge, MA – nearly 14 miles downstream.
On Day 2, they will continue down to Blackstone, MA on the Rhode Island border. Day 3 will take them the entire length of Rhode Island down to Slater Mill and Main Street Dams, where the Blackstone changes its name to the Seekonk as it flows another 12 miles to the Narragansett Bay.
Finally, on Day 4, the public is invited to join paddlers on the final four miles of their journey from Festival Pier in Pawtucket to Gano Street in Providence. After, participants will enjoy live music, food, and refreshments at Narragansett Brewing.
