Coastal Lake and River Trails

Historic Cultural and Culinary Traditions along America’s Waterways

There are many points of interest in the United States; we have selected anchor locations from which you can best base your travel movements, mindful that you are likely to visit three to four places in a compressed period of time, typically 7 to 10 days, and experience multiple interests that range from cultural to culinary, wellness and the environment.

Northeast Atlantic

The Hudson Valley extends 150 miles above the tip of Manhattan. Designated as a National Heritage Area, the valley is steeped in history, natural beauty, culture, food and farmers’ markets.

The Delaware rises in two branches and flows 419 miles – 674 Km – into Delaware Bay. Its watershed drains an area of 14,119 square miles - 36,570 km² - in the five Atlantic Coast States of New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland. 

The Hudson and the Delaware were originally called the North and South Rivers

The Susquehanna River is 464 miles (747 km) long and is the longest river on the US East Coast. With its watershed, it is the 16th-largest river in the United States, and the longest river in the continental United States without commercial boat traffic today. In the Canal Era, navigation improvements were made to enhance the river for barge shipping by water on the Pennsylvania Canal.

The Lower Potomac, Anacostia, Patuxent and Wicomico rivers are among the major waterways in the region, but hundreds of smaller streams, creeks and rivers abound providing numerous opportunities for recreational boating.

Mid America

The Upper Mississippi is the portion of the river from Lake Itasca, Minnesota to Cairo, Illinois - 2000 km (1250 mi) where it joins the Ohio River. In terms of geology and hydrography, the Upper Mississippi River valley likely originated as an ice-marginal stream during the Nebraskan glaciation.

The Missouri is the longest river in North America, rising in the Rocky Mountains and flowing east and south for 2,341 miles - 3,767 km - before connecting with the Mississippi north of St. Louis.

The First Westward leg of the Pony Express was a Ferry across the Missouri River

 

American South

The Lower Mississippi River flows downstream from Cairo, Illinois and the confluence with the Ohio River, for 1600 Kilometers – 1000 miles – to the Gulf of Mexico. It is the most heavily traveled component of this river system. Unlike on the upper rivers, there are no locks and dams on the Lower Mississippi. The river is, however, constrained by levees and dams that control flooding and secure the navigation channel for barge traffic.

The Ohio River is formed by the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers in Pittsburgh. From there, it flows northwest before making an abrupt turn to the southwest at the Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania border. The Ohio then follows a roughly west-northwest course until Cincinnati, before bending southwest for the remainder of its journey through the US Midwest and joining the Mississippi at Cairo, Illinois.

Ohio means the Good River in Iroquoian

The Rio Grande rises from south-central Colorado and flows to the Gulf of Mexico, acting as the border between Mexico and the United States; it is the fourth longest river system in North America.

The Rio Grande Flows for much of its Length at High Elevation

US West

The Colorado River flows from the Rocky Mountains through the Grand Canyon to the Gulf of California. With dramatic canyons and whitewater rapids, the Colorado is a vital source of water for agricultural and urban areas.

The Imperial Valley is the most Productive Winter Agricultural Region in the United States

The Platte River originates in Nebraska and is a tributary of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers

The South Platte is the Principal Source of Water for Eastern Colorado

The American River runs from the Sierra Nevada to the San Joaquin Valley, eventually emptying into San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean.

The Willamette River Valley basin contains two-thirds of Oregon's population and is one of the most fertile agricultural regions in North America, hence the destination of many 19^th century pioneers traveling on the Oregon Trail. The river supports 60 fish species, including salmon and trout.

The Columbia is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest; its watershed extends into seven US states and a Canadian province. The river's heavy flow gives it tremendous potential for the generation of electricity with 14 Hydroelectric Dams.

The Best Way to Travel is in the Company of People that Live and Work in the Places You Visit

Chesapeake Bay and the Maryland Eastern Shore

history geology hydrology fishing and the environment

Chesapeake Bay is an estuary and the largest such body in the contiguous United States and is a very important feature for the ecology and economy of the Middle Atlantic Region. More than 150 major rivers and streams flow into the bay's 64,299-square-mile - 166,534 km² covering parts of six states.

History in 1524, Italian explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano sailed past the Chesapeake, but did not enter the bay. Spanish explorers may have been the first Europeans to explore parts of the bay which they named Bay of the Mother of God. In the late 16^th century the British founded a colony and Captain John Smith explored and mapped it between 1607 and 1609. The first designated all-water National Historic Trail was created in 2006 following Smith's historic 17^th century voyage.

The US Northeast and the Mid-Atlantic States

The Eastern Shore is home to crabbers, oystermen, gentlemen-farmers and sharecroppers, boat builders and antiques dealers. Activities include fishing, crabbing, swimming, boating, kayaking and sailing. 

Geology and Hydrology the bay was formed starting about 10,000 years ago when rising sea levels at the end of the last ice age flooded the Susquehanna River valley.  Much of the bay is shallow; it is approximately 200 miles - 320 km - long and 2.8 miles  - 4.5 km - wide at its narrowest and 30 miles - 48 km - at its widest point. Average depth is 21 feet - 6.4 m. Because the bay is an estuary, it has fresh water, salt water and brackish water.

Fishing once employed up to nine thousand watermen and their skipjacks, the only remaining sailing workboats in US waters, engaged in the seafood production of blue crabs, clams and oysters. Now, runoffs from farms and urban areas, over-harvesting and foreign species invasions have made the bay less productive. Oyster farming helps maintain the estuary's productivity and is a natural effort for filtering impurities and reduce the amount of nitrogen compounds entering Chesapeake Bay.

Environment in the 1970s, Chesapeake Bay was discovered to contain marine dead zones - waters depleted of oxygen and unable to support life – that weaken the base of the estuary and its food source. The runoff and pollution have many components that help contribute to the algal bloom which is mainly fed by phosphorus and nitrogen. This algae prevents sunlight from reaching the bottom of the bay while alive and deoxygenates the bay's water when it dies and rots. Also, the overharvesting of oysters has made it difficult for them to reproduce, which requires close proximity to one another. The depletion of oysters has had a particularly harmful effect on the quality of the bay as they serve as natural water filters, and their decline has further reduced the water quality of the bay.

Georgetown Texas

victorian architecture economic development energy and the environment

Georgetown is located 30 miles from Austin on the northeastern edge of Texas Hill Country. Portions of the town are located on either side of the Balcones Escarpment, a fault line characterized by black, fertile soils of the Black land Prairie, with the west side consisting of hilly, limestone karst formations.

The North and Middle Forks of the San Gabriel River run through the city, providing over 30 miles of hike and bike trails, parks and recreation for residents and visitors.  

History the earliest known historical occupants of the county, the Tonkawas, were a flint-working, hunting people who followed buffalo on foot and periodically set fire to the prairie to aid them in their hunts. During the 18th century, they made the transition to a horse culture and used firearms. The town was named for George Washington Glasscock who donated the land for the new community; the early American and Swedish pioneers were attracted to the area's abundance of timber and clear water.

Victorian Architecture in 1976, a local ordinance was passed t protect the historic central business district. Georgetown has three National Register Historic Districts: Williamson County Courthouse District, Belford National District and the University Avenue/Elm Street District.

Southwestern University the Oldest University in Texas is 1/2 Mile from the Historic Square

Economic Development Georgetown was an agrarian community for most of the 19^th and early 20^th centuries. The Shawnee Trail, a cattle trail that led from Texas to the rail centers in Kansas and Missouri, crossed through Georgetown. The establishment of Southwestern University and construction of a railroad contributed to the town's growth and importance. Cotton was the dominant crop in the area between the 1880s and the 1920s.

Population growth and industrial expansion continued modestly in the 20^th century until about 1960, when residential, commercial, and industrial development, due to major growth and urban expansion of nearby Austin, greatly accelerated. Currently, Georgetown is served by the appropriately named Georgetown Railroad, a short line railroad that connects with the Union Pacific Railroad at Round Rock and at Granger.

Energy and the Environment in March 2015, Georgetown announced that their municipal-owned utility, Georgetown Utility Systems, would buy 100% of its power for its customers from wind and solar farms, effectively making the city 100% green-powered.