Invest in a clean, accessible White River!
We invite you to make a tax-deductible donation in any amount to help us protect and improve clean water in and recreational access to the White River.
About the WRP
The White River Partnership (WRP) is a membership-based, nonprofit organization formed in 1996 by a group of local people who shared common concerns about the long-term health of the White River and its watershed. The WRP envisions a White River watershed in which individuals and communities work together to make informed decisions that protect and …
Learn MoreAnnual Volunteer Events
To promote long-term stewardship of the White River watershed, we organize numerous seasonal opportunities for people of all ages to do something good for their communities and their river. May: Green Up the White cleanup To kick off the river recreation season, the WRP coordinates a river cleanup event in conjunction with Vermont’s Green Up …
Learn MoreGet Involved
The WRP depends on volunteers, members, and donors to accomplish much of our important work. Here are a few ways that you can get involved and support our work: Learn more The WRP posts information about on-the-ground watershed improvement projects on our Facebook page. We invite you to “Like” the page in order to stay posted …
Learn MoreAbout the White River
Vermont’s White River is the heart of a picturesque working landscape, rushing down forested hillsides, bubbling along farm fields, winding under covered bridges, and rolling through historic villages before joining the Connecticut River in White River Junction. The river’s largely rural watershed contributes to cold, clean water, making the White River a popular recreational destination, and warm weather brings thousands of residents and visitors alike to enjoy tubing, swimming, paddling, fishing, wildlife viewing, and more.
The White River watershed encompasses 710 square miles, draining portions of Addison, Orange, Rutland, Washington and Windsor Counties, including 50,000 acres of the Green Mountain National Forest. The White River originates in the Town of Ripton on the slopes of Battell Mountain, then flows southerly and easterly before merging with the Connecticut River in the Town of Hartford. The 56-mile main stem of the White River has 5 major tributaries: the First Branch, the Second Branch, the Third Branch, the West Branch, and the Tweed River. Follow this link to view a map of the watershed.
The White River is significant for being one of the last free-flowing rivers in the State of Vermont, and is the longest un-dammed tributary to the Connecticut River, which was the first designated National Blueway.
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Upcoming events
Wednesday, May 25: Water quality monitoring begins
The 2022 water quality monitoring season begins on Wednesday, May 25!
Since 2001, WRP staff and trained volunteers have kept tabs at 22 sites throughout the watershed, including popular swimming holes and the mouths of major tributaries.
It takes 24 hours to get the monitoring results, which we share on our website, Facebook page, and Instagram page. Or contact Christian at christian[at]whiteriverpartnership.org to request monitoring results via email.
Sunday, June 5: Bethel Floodplain Project tour with VT Fish & Wildlife
Join the WRP and VT Fish & Wildlife on Sunday, June 5 from 10am-noon for a free tour of our Bethel Floodplain Restoration Project site along the White River (map).
VT Fish & Wildlife acquired the farm field along Rt 107 in Bethel in the 1960s in part to protect Parkers Hole for Atlantic Salmon returning to the White River Hatchery. The field remained in agriculture until 2015 when the department began efforts to restore the field to a floodplain forest, one of the rarest natural communities in Vermont.
Space is limited, so sign-up today! For more information and to register for the event, visit the VT Fish & Wildlife website.
Stay posted on WRP projects
The WRP posts information about on-the-ground watershed improvement projects, events, and volunteer opportunities on Facebook and Instagram. We invite you to “Like” or “Follow” us in order to stay posted on our work to improve the long-term health of the White River and its watershed.
The WRP also distributes a regular electronic newsletter to share information about upcoming events, volunteer opportunities, project updates, and more. We invite you to sign-up to receive our e-newsletter by completing the form on the right-hand side of this webpage.
Support the WRP
The WRP depends on contributions of time and money to support our on-the-ground work in the watershed. Please support our good work by making a donation today!
Select the “Donate” button on the right-hand side of this page to donate via credit card or PayPal.
Or print and return our WRP Membership Form with a check.
For more information
Please contact us for more information about our projects, upcoming events, or other ways to get involved!
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Green Up the White on May 7!
We invite you to help us Green Up the White on Saturday, May 7, 2022!
To kick off the river recreation season, the WRP is coordinating a river cleanup event in conjunction with Green Up Day to remove as much trash from the White River and White River Water Trail access sites as possible.
In order to maximize our collective cleanup efforts, we have created a system that interested volunteers can use to sign-up to cleanup a specific White River site – see more information below.
How to Get Involved
Interested in helping us Green Up the White? Please follow the steps below to sign-up for a specific river cleanup site:
Step 1: Find a cleanup site – Please open the Green Up the White Sites List to find a list of river access sites in need of cleaning-up.
Step 2: Sign-up – Complete the Green Up the White Sign-Up to share your river cleanup plans. We will use the cleanup site information you provide to update the Green Up the White Sites List.
Step 3: Find Green Up Day resources – Visit this link to find more information about your town’s Green Up Day plans, including free trash bag pick-up locations, trash disposal locations, and more.
Step 4: Green Up the White – Visit your Green Up the White site on May 7 and dispose of the trash you collect at the nearest drop-off location (see town-specific Green Up Day info on this link).
Step 5: Share your results – Help us measure success by reporting your Green Up the White trash collection totals via the Green Up the White Trash Collection Report. We will tally the amount and weight of trash collected, and share the totals to celebrate our collective success!
Other ways to get involved
Got a new site? If you have identified a site along the White River that requires trash collection, but does not appear on the Green Up the White Sites List, please contact us: christian[at]whiteriverpartnership.org. We can add the new location to the List.
Questions?
Please contact us with questions: christian[at]whiteriverpartnership.org. We look forward to hearing from you!
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2021 Water Trail highlights
With help from landowners, funding partners, local contractors, and 150 volunteers, the WRP completed a variety of work to protect and improve access to the White River in 2021:
-25 stewards visited White River Water Trail sites around the watershed each month, from May-September, to monitor site use, report hazards, and remove trash;
-25 volunteers monitored water quality at 25 swimming holes around the watershed, from May-September, to help us determine whether the river is safe for swimming;
-100 volunteers removed 10,500 pounds of trash from the river during 2 river cleanup events, including 225 tires; and
-A local contractor constructed parking, walking trails, and a set of stone steps to improve river access in Gaysville.
Check out the 2021 White River Water Trail Highlights report to learn more!
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2021 White River Water Quality Report
The White River Partnership’s 2021 Water Quality Report is now available. The report summarizes data collected by WRP staff and trained volunteers at 22 sites during summer 2021.
THANK YOU to our 2021 water quality monitoring volunteers, to the businesses and partners who stored water samples, and to Vermont Water Quality Division staff and partners who help us analyze our data and plan for the upcoming sampling season!
For more information, please visit our Water Quality Monitoring Program page.
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Got tires in the river? Report them here!
We need your help to remove tires from the White River.
In preparation for our September 2021 river cleanup, we invite you to report any tires (or large trash dumps) you find in the White River. We’ll use your reports to focus our cleanup efforts in September.
Our goal is to partner with the Bridgestone Tires4ward program to recycle the tires we collect. If we collect at least 100 tires, Bridgestone will remove the tires for free!
In order to maximize our collective cleanup efforts, we have created a reporting system that community volunteers can use to inform the WRP about the location of tires and large trash dumps along the river.
We cannot guarantee that we will have the capacity to address all the reported tire and trash dumps that we receive, however we will do our best to address and make a plan for all submissions.
How to Get Involved
Do you know the location of tires or a large trash dump in or along the White River? Please follow the steps below to submit the location of the dump:
- Identify a tire or trash dump along the river – we are looking for the following types of tires and trash dumps:
-A single tires or multiple tires that are in or around the White River – we are looking for tire dumps of any size
-Large items in the river that require an organized effort to remove – we want to know about things like gas tanks, home appliances, large pieces of wood and metal, etc that an individual could not remove on their own
-Large quantities of small trash items – we are looking for intentional trash dumps (multiple bags of household trash)
- Complete the Tire and Large Trash Collection Form
- We will follow up with additional details and clean up plans based on your submission
Questions?
Please contact Christian Pelletier with questions: christian[at]whiteriverpartnership.org. We look forward to hearing from you!
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White River Map & Guide on TrailFinder
The WRP’s White River Watershed Recreation Map & Guide is now available on Trail Finder, an online trails database for Vermont and New Hampshire.
The WRP released the White River Watershed Recreation Map & Guide in 2019. The map was the result of several years of work with partners to create a printed, waterproof map that highlights access points, paddling trips, tubing routes, fishing tips, hiking trails, and more along the White River and its five major tributaries: First Branch, Second Branch, Third Branch, West Branch, and Tweed River – nearly 110 miles of river exploration!
The online map includes a different link for five areas highlighted on the printed map, including:
White River main stem – Granville to White River Junction
First Branch – Chelsea to the White River
Second Branch – Kingsbury Covered Bridge to the White River
Third Branch – Riford Brook Road to the White River
Tweed River – Pittsfield village to the White River
Follow this link for more information about the White River Water Trail and stewardship opportunities in 2020!