The title of our October 13 program was “A River Runs Through Us,” but it wasn’t a play on the title of a Robert Redford movie. It was an informative program about the steps taken by the Friends of the Chemung River Watershed to develop a readily accessible trail that one day may go from Cohocton to the Chemung’s merging with the Susquehanna in Chemung County.

The program was given by Jim Pfifer, executive director of the Friends of the Chemung River Watershed which has the objective of “promote the Chemung River and its tributaries and encourage the public to better use, enjoy and respect our waterways.”

That their program is working is evidenced by the fact that since the group has started its effort, which clearly had to start with ridding the river of years of accumulated trash and debris, more than ten tons of trash has been removed by volunteers over the years. Attesting to that success, Pfifer said, was the fact that in a recent “cleanup sweep” of the river, the volunteers were hard-pressed to find much to pick up.

From its start in the 1970’s with funding from a Cornell Cooperative Extension grant, the effort began with a master plan that, Pfifer said, was “…a great one, but without funding.” For funding, the group turned to the Federal 501 Project for the whole Susquehanna watershed. After that, the group sought the backing of Chemung County which responded positively and hired Pfifer as executive director of the Chemung River Development Office charged with getting all the communities along the course of the river involved in the program.

Activities of the program involve the area’s rivers and the lands through which they flow. Pfifer made a strong point about the beauty of our rivers and valleys and the abundant opportunities they offer for recreation, education, wildlife appreciation as well as boating, kayaking and fishing. “The biggest use of our rivers is on land,” he noted, citing hiking and bike trails, The Chemung Valley History Museum, walk-and-talk programs, and Guided Paddles programs which not only bring groups of all ages to kayaking events, but stress all aspects of water safety…especially river water safety.

Already, Pfifer said, there are 26 boat launch sites along the Chemung/Conhocton Rivers with plans for more. Several sites provide more than just a place to put boats in the water. They have parking areas, solar-powered weather station kiosks, picnic pavilions and some even have permanent barbecue pits.

In one area along the river in Elmira, a run-down park with its cracked and weed-overgrown tennis and basketball courts was turned into a community garden with several raised-bed plots in which locals can plant and grow produce for themselves or for the Food Bank. “That’s turning an eyesore into a useful community service,” he said.

As the program has progressed, partnerships with other community organizations have added to the program’s reach. The Finger Lakes Mountain Bike Club is one such partnership with its “Take Your Kid Mountain Biking” events along the riverside trails. And the cooperation of municipalities all along the river is a prime example of learning from our rivers which know no municipal or political boundaries.

In a parting message to his audience, he urged them to get the fullest enjoyment from our rivers by getting “down inside” the levees where the sounds of the surrounding city are muted and where the sounds of the river between the dikes are as restful as the gently flowing waters. “Take your kids and grandkids down to the river…there are no alligators or sharks to scare them…just birds, and fish, and frogs, and river life under the rocks. You’ll both have a good time.”

In a Q&A session after his talk, one retiree asked if Pfifer’s group was looking into a river launch in Corning. He said they were considering expanding a launch site at the end of Conhocton Street to include a paved parking area and solar-powered weather kiosk and possibly more.

Pfifer provided attendees with pamphlets of the activities and objectives of his group.

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