Photo essay: First ever Milwaukee boat parade

A lucky few got to witness firsthand on Saturday Milwaukee's first ever boat parade. If you were not among them then here you have it. Not as good as the real thing, but it'll give you a flavor. The event, which was billed as a first annual, was sponsored by Milwaukee Riverkeeper and Harbor District, Inc. and was held in conjunction with the annual Harbor Fest, which took place on Greenfield Avenue in front of the UWM School of Freshwater Sciences. Participating boaters were invited to decorate their boats and compete for prizes in two categories: paddle boats and motor or sail boats. The Milwaukee Riverkeeper boat (above) began at Lakefront Brewery, near the Holton Street Bridge on the Milwaukee River. It proceeded downstream, picking up boats along the way.

No, the cruise ships did not join the parade. The kayak did.

In addition to the large elephant (complete with squirting trunk) and human figures, this boat had a large band playing lively tunes.

This boat didn't win an award (I'm guessing it was hosted by one of the sponsoring organizations, which were ineligible) but it was my personal favorite. In case it isn't clear in the photos, the "fish" are fishing for humans!

The pirate canoe in the foreground won second place in the paddler category.

 

Johnny, wearing the banana costume in the shark kayak, received the first place award in the paddler category.

Kudos to all who participated. If you're a boat owner, watch for next year's boat parade! 

Full disclosure: I am a former board member of Milwaukee Riverkeeper and the current artist in residence for the Harbor District, Inc.

Canoeing the Kinnickinnic

 

Over the weekend I participated in a canoe tour of the lower KK River sponsored by the Urban Ecology Center and led by UEC staffer Chad Thomack. We put in at the public boat launch across from the Hoan Bridge.

The canoe trip was partially funded by the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. The GLRI is an action plan developed by 11 federal agencies. Its mission is to clean up toxic pollution, combat invasive species, and protect watersheds in the Great Lakes region from polluted runoff.

The GLRI has identified “Areas of Concern” (AOC) throughout the Great Lakes. One of them is the Milwaukee River Estuary, which includes the lower KK River. The AOC designation was given to the estuary because of several pockets of sediments polluted with industrial chemicals from the 1930s through the late 1970s.

It was mostly overcast and gloomy, but unseasonably warm. Our journey began in the inner harbor along Jones Island. Here is a short photo essay of the excursion.

The U.S. Bank building in the distance seems to be dwarfed by the MMSD stack at its Jones Island Treatment Plant.

UWM's Great Lakes Water Institute, foreground, and the "Allen Bradley" clock tower atop Rockwell. 

The flotilla of canoes making its way past the First Street bridge and a railroad bridge.

A section of the river bank between Beecher Street and Lincoln Avenue has been overgrown with non-native and aggressively invasive Phragmites.

Finally, south of Lincoln Avenue, we reach a stretch of the river bordered by parklands with a more natural setting.

There is even an old beaver lodge, now abandoned, that housed an active beaver until recently. To me it is a symbol of hope for the urban wilderness.