Outstanding Recreational Resource
Friends of the Kaw considers the Kansas (Kaw) River a 171-mile linear park to be enjoyed by families and outdoor enthusiasts. We continue to partner with river communities to develop boat access, river front parks and hiking and biking trails along the river for public use.
The Kaw River Inventory
The Kansas River Inventory is a detailed investigation into the state of the river and the riparian forest along its banks. It includes information and GPS referenced photographs for all physical structures in and along the river banks:
- Pipes discharging to the Kaw
- Bridges, dams, and weirs
- Wastewater treatment outfalls
- Outfalls from industrial facilities
- Municipal stormwater discharges
- Outfalls from dredging operations
- Agricultural drainage tiles
- Crossings for overhead power lines
- Crossings for underwater utility lines
- Access Ramps
The inventory documents areas in need of monitoring, cleanup, and/or restoration. There is also a down river photograph at every river mile and a survey of the state of the riparian forest along the banks.
In 2007 Friends of the Kaw completed the first data gathering phase for this comprehensive guide. The Riverkeeper and a working group of volunteers collected data on 5 multi-day kayak excursions covering the entire 171 miles of the Kaw. Data consists of over 500 photos linked to GPS readings and accompanying written descriptions. We used aerial photographs to inventory the riparian areas adjacent to the river on both banks, recording areas of mature trees, new growth and areas with no trees. In 2008 the Riverkeeper, RJ Stephenson, and Dr. Annett kayaked from Junction City to Edwardsville in one eleven day trip, adding data taken during a lower water period and an additional 500 photos. You can read about that journey on the River Blog.
This project compiles the FIRST accessible, comprehensive inventory existing for the Kansas River. It provides invaluable, first hand information to be used for watershed assessment and will be useful to address specific needs, define goals, and create and implement action plans for protection or restoration of the Kaw watershed. The inventory will be available for other groups or state agencies to use and will also be useful for planning recreational float trips.
We recently completed the first phase of the development of a Microsoft Access Database with the assistance of our interns, and are in the process of making it available as Excel Spreadsheets online. The riparian vegetation will be analyzed during the spring and summer of 2010 by interns at Kansas State University, with funding we recently received from the Kingsbury Family Foundation.
We have uploaded 500 photographs from the 2008 inventory into a Picasa Web Album which is linked to Google Maps and Google Earth. The photos are GPS referenced and appear on the maps at their approximate location. We will continue loading phtographs from the 2007 inventory, adding notes and captions, and building the guide to make it user friendly.
Stay posted, new material will be added to our website all during the year as we complete the development of the Kansas River Inventory Database. You can see the Riverkeeper's presentation with more details by clicking here.