2024 Run the Riffles

Join us for the 6th Annual Mill Creek Alliance "Run the Riffles" Event!

Enjoy the Great Outdoors on the Mill Creek!

Various activities throughout the day are available. Join us for an Urban Stream Adventure on the Mill Creek with the expert guides of the Mill Creek Yacht Club (MCYC) or one of many other outdoor activities. MCYC supplies all necessary equipment for the paddle trip.

Opportunities for paddlers of every level.

• 10 am - 1 pm: A "Mini" Urban Stream Adventure" from Salway Park to Yellow Bridge. (~1.3 mile). This is a Paddle Loop trip, with the return trip back to Salway on bike or by foot.
• 10:30 am- 1 pm: Upstream Float! Put a canoe in at Salway for a short and easy paddle with a stop on a sand bar for exploration. Round trip, put-in and take-out is less than 30 minutes from Salway boat ramp.
• 10 am- 1 pm: BioBlitz! - Walk the trails at Salway Park and learn about local species. Make observations using iNaturalist app and capture data for the 2023 Mill Creek Species Count.
• 10 am - 1 pm: Water Quality and Habitat Activity Table. Explore macro invertebrates in the creek near Salway Park.
• 10 am-11:30 pm: Celebrate Nature's Flow with Place Keepers Artists, Creekside painting demonstrations, folk music, and pop-up poetry! This free encounter is sponsored by the talented artists of Urban Appalachian Community Coalition and Originary Arts Initiative.
• 11:30-12:30 pm: Take a free Outdoor Modern Dance Class with Alissa Stachowski (of the Great Global Water Dance group) on the banks of the Mill Creek, and watch a dance performed at Global Water Dances Day. MORE INFO

Registration for the paddle is open now through noon on Thursday, September 19th, or until all available seats have been reserved. Bring your own boat or use one of ours. MCYC boat seats are limited. Once tickets are sold out, you will be put on a waiting list. If you are on the waiting list, consider stopping down at Salway Park at the time of the event to check on last minute seat availability. All paddlers must sign a waiver form before embarking on the trip. Sturdy, CLOSED toe foot wear is required (sandals will not be allowed). Come prepared for sun & bugs, wet & mud.

Opportunities in this section include: stream life (plants and animals-load of fish, turtles, heron and more), interesting architecture and bridges, familiar route via unfamiliar territory, highly populated, hands dirty/feet wet, and so much more.

Challenges on this section of the stream include: jagged and sharp objects in stream, required portaging of your canoe or kayak, low-head dams that can be hard to navigate, slow current and shallow waters during dry spells, strainers – overhanging branches where water current and depth are navigable, rocky riffles that are difficult to paddle or portage.

View a paddle map of this section of the Mill Creek.

See below for important safety information before registering*.

Our current MCA water quality monitoring program results indicate that the Mill Creek meets secondary recreational contact standards. (The secondary contact recreation classification describes aquatic activities when immersion is unlikely, such as boating, wading, and rowing.) Until we are able to achieve primary contact standards (under which swimming and full body immersion is considered safe), we recommend paddlers take care not to ingest or swim in the water and wash carefully after recreation activity.

In full disclosure, there are inherent risks involved in paddling local streams. Paddlers may need to climb out of the canoe to get past shallow spots and low-head dams. You will need to be sure-footed in some places. Potential safety hazards include sudden drop-offs, hidden holes, foot entrapments, slippery algae, submerged obstacles, jagged objects and sealed bottles with volatile ingredients. Germicidal gel and a simple first-aid kit will be available.

* In 2012, Ohio EPA recommended no contact with waters of the Mill Creek because it can have high levels pathogens from time to time, especially within 48 to 72 hours of a rainstorm heavy enough to cause combined sewer overflows. Many improvements have been made since 2012 but Ohio EPA has not yet lifted these recommendations.

It is your personal choice on whether to participate, based largely on the strength of your immune system and your willingness to take a calculated risk. If you have an open cut or weakened immunities, you should not go. You should be 18 or older to be on the water with us or be paddling with a parent/guardian.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Salway Park, 4336 Spring Grove Ave., Cincinnati, United States