In addition to favorites such as hikes, family science activities and river cleanups, the community can attend or participate in events designed with inspiration from waterways: making or viewing art, writing poetry or doing an urban waterways trek through Downtown Indianapolis in costume.
“The festival’s goal is to reach audiences throughout the watershed with our messages about the value of the White River and the actions each of us can take to improve its water quality, as well as that of the streams and lakes connected to it,” said Heather Bacher, festival project manager. “A diversity of events up and down the river, held over an extended period, allows us to reach a large audience with these messages and provides our partners great visibility for their programs and organizations.”
Festival highlights will include:
• Shoreline fishing trip down the river from Noblesville through Indianapolis, 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Sept. 11.
• Watershed investigations at The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, 11 a.m.-1 p.m. and 2-4 p.m. Sept. 13-19. Participants can check out microorganisms under a microscope and discover how human activity affects waterways.
• Urban wildlife walk, noon-1 p.m. Sept. 16 and 5:30-6:30 p.m. Sept. 22 behind the National Institute for Fitness and Sport at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. Learn about wildlife while looking for herons, foxes and other animals.
• In pursuit of Pogue’s Run, 6:30-8 p.m. Sept. 16. Trek through the heart of Downtown Indianapolis in search for the historical path that Pogue’s Run once carved through the city.
• Tour the Lilly ARBOR restoration project along the White River at 6 p.m. Sept. 18, followed by the showing of the documentary “DamNation.”
• Outdoor experience at Fort Harrison State Park, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sept. 19 and 20. Indiana’s largest recreational event features more than 50 activities, including fishing, canoeing and others that celebrate our ties to water.
For registration information and details on all events, visit www.whiteriverfestival.org.