Verde River Blue Trail
In an effort to preserve the Verde and connect local communities to the river through recreation, such as fishing, boating, and wildlife watching, American Rivers and our partners are creating a Blue Trail. (A Blue Trail is a river adopted by local communities that are dedicated to improving recreation and advancing conservation goals.)
Through the creation of a Blue Trail, we will raise awareness about the river and the benefits it provides, build support within the community for flow protections, and boost the local economy by providing important opportunities for residents and visitors to enjoy it through recreation.
UPDATE SPRING 2013:
American Rivers is working with community leaders, recreational users, and conservationists to develop and implement a vision for the river that will improve recreation and protect river flows from groundwater withdrawals. We are excited to announce we have an official logo!
During the summer of 2013, we will create two new boat launches near Clarkdale, a new ADA accessible wildlife and river viewing platform, launch a new waterproof map of the Verde River Blue Trail, and open this stretch of blue trail to the public for paddling.
About the River
The Verde River is an important tributary to the Colorado River and a unique resource in Arizona. One of the few perennially flowing rivers in the Southwest, the Verde sustains lush riverside forest, a large and diverse wildlife population, and provides critical drinking water to many Central Arizona communities. Aboriginal cultures have been present in the area for thousands of years. Cliff dwellings can still be seen in the rocks above the river.
However, increasingly frequent groundwater water pumping is severely depleting the river’s flows.
Learn more about the Verde:
- Check out this two-page photo essay on the Verde River Blue Trail from the American Rivers newsletter
- Learn about the river in our 3-part blog series! (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3)
- Follow the Verde River on Facebook
- Tour the Verde River in Google Earth
- Visit the Verde River Institute
- Watch a video on the benefits of Blue Trails
Check out this photo gallery from the Verde River:
