RiverWatch | Edmonton Journal

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From morning to sunset, sometimes with dinner and always a dose of science and history, RiverWatch Eco Floats offers up Edmonton from a unique, watery perspective

Published Jul 25, 2023 • Last updated 9 minutes ago • 4 minute read

Jay Ball and Emma Schneider RiverWatch executive director Jay Ball, left, and guide Emma Schneider. Photo by Fish Griwkowsky /Postmedia

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There are lots of interesting creatures that pop up while floating down the North Saskatchewan river on a rubber raft.

“You’ll see beavers and muskrats,” says RiverWatch Institute of Alberta guide Emma Schneider while a boat full of guests listen. “Even the occasional nude person. If there’s someone skinny dipping while you’re on the river it’s almost impossible to miss it.”

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This is the second year Schneider, an environmental science student, has hosted groups as part of RiverWatch Eco Floats. She takes participants on three to four-hour tours covering 12.5 km, under nine city bridges, beginning at the Laurier Park boat launch and continuing to the Dawson Park boat launch east of downtown. Originally started in Calgary in 1995 as a river monitor study project for young students, RiverWatch expanded to Edmonton in 1997 and quickly became available in other Alberta towns and cities. The program became a non-profit in 2010, and now upwards of 10,000 students a year engage in such activities as wastewater testing and learning about river health.

A few years ago the decision was made to extend the floats to the general public. In the summer of 2022 they kicked off the test program, bringing passengers, including corporate clients, down the river.

RiverWatch participants approaching downtown on the North Saskatchewan River. Photo by Fish Griwkowsky /Postmedia

“The notion of the ribbon of green is a powerful narrative,” says RiverWatch executive director Jay Ball. “Many people don’t have access to kayaks or paddle boards and they want that guided experience. They want to learn, they want to see this river that’s so full of life.”

RiverWatch offers floats five days of the week until the end of July, with Friday floats available through to the end of August. There’s a midweek morning group or family float, a Thursday night sunset float, a Feast & Float on Friday nights that pairs the adventure with a meal from a local restaurant halfway through the trip, as well as Saturday night and Sunday morning jaunts. On this particular Friday trip RGE RD supplies the meal at a long table near the John Walter Museum next to the Walterdale Bridge, a tasty supper of sausage, lentils and grilled vegetables, with ice cream and a cherry and chocolate cookie for dessert.

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“People have an emotional connection to the environment,” says Ball while RGE RD owners Blair Lebsack and Caitlin Fulton look on. “It makes them feel good, right? So, we wanted to connect that feeling with food, which people also have an emotional connection with. We do one restaurant for two weeks and then it rotates.”

Blair Lebsack, standing left, and Caitlin Fulton of RGE RD introduce their boxed meal on the RiverWatch Feast & Float. Photo by Fish Griwkowsky /Postmedia

Participants provide the rafts’ muscle power with paddles, but there isn’t too much of that. Mostly you float downstream while Schneider and Ball provide a running commentary on Edmonton history, wildlife, early provincial politics and personal anecdotes. An eagle soars above us and a husky watches the boat intently from the south bank of the river; we stare back.

“The first part of the trip here, it doesn’t feel like you’re in Edmonton,” says Schneider as we float away from the Laurier Park boat launch. “It’s weird but we’re mostly in central Edmonton right now. As we keep floating we’ll go past a couple more bends and then you’ll start seeing downtown, but with a different view that a lot of people don’t get to see, and you’ll get to see a lot of landmarks.”

Schneider points out one such landmark on the south bank of the river, officially coined Keillor Point but most younger Edmontonians know it as The End of the World. She shifts the conversation to the passengers, most of whom are employed by an investment management corporation and enjoying a team-building exercise. They’re grouped on the edge of the boat in life jackets, one or two prompted by the heat to dip their legs in to feel the chilly river water.

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“Ten years ago the narrative was that the river was dirty and full of fish with three eyes,” says Ball. “That was never true even at that time, and in the last 20 years industry has done a great job of taking care of it.”

The trip proceeds at a leisurely pace, with plenty of opportunities to rest the arms. Peter Pocklington’s old house is spotted, a few University of Alberta buildings are singled out, with humorous running commentary. Invasive species are discussed, as well as the fish that normally swim in the river. We watch as dogs scamper in the water underneath the Hawrelak Park footbridge. Jet boats speed by, a skidoo does donuts in the water, giant inflatable volleyball inexplicably appears, towed along the edge of the north bank. Interesting creatures, indeed.

“For me, the greatest part of the float is halfway between the High Level Bridge and the Walterdale Bridge,” says Ball. “Last year we did it in late August, the sun was going down on the High Level, and it was just one of those amazing Edmonton moments. So, that’s one of the big purposes of RiverWatch, to give people the ability to actually get on the river and know that it’s there for recreation, but also so more people can have those moments.”

Tickets and more information for RiverWatch can be found at riverwatch.ca

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