06/15/2026
Great Outdoors Day of Service 2026 Paddle 'n PitchIN 🚮🚣♂️ was a success! 🙌 It was a pleasure to see so many folks out on the river during , and everyone we spoke to had plans to or requested a red mesh bag to assist with keeping our lower Salt River scenic & safe. We appreciate River Rangers volunteer Leonard Drayton for donating some carabineers for the bags we handed out so they would stay securely attached.
A big THANK YOU to Saguaro Lake Guest Ranch, Mesa AZ & staff for providing shuttle service this Saturday for our event and allowing us to launch from Foxtail. Definitely a professional & customer service friendly crew as they even took a 42 gal bag of invasive stinknet (noxious w**d) off our hands for proper disposal vs. us packing it downstream on our paddle boards. 🙏
Our 10 volunteers still removed quite a bit of trash, a lot of micro trash, and did our best addressing the invasive Apple Snails, and their hot pink egg clusters, that have taken up shop in the Arundo (giants reed) along the river as we made our way to Phon D Sutton. It was a beautiful morning to get outdoors, enjoy the scenery, camaraderie on the river, and leave the area better than we found it. 🫶
We helped at least one paddler who was new to the river and was not wearing a life jacket when they flipped paddling through RacCoon Bluff. 🛟 We can't emphasize enough: you are not replaceable, but your gear is. No leashes on the river (unless it's a quick release), and a life jacket worn is better than one just out of reach.
We have posted events through June and July and welcome hosting additional community members at these USDA Forest Service- U.S. Forest Service-Tonto National Forest volunteer program River Rangers events! 🚣♂️ Check out the link in our bio for details or the Events tab.
