Michigan’s Wood Canoe Club again joined the 5th annual paddle and swim event. The 2-hour paddle excursion originates at Tuscola’s new canoe launch and finishes at Frankenmuth’s Heritage park. This program originally began to recognize the much improved water quality of Michigan’s Cass River. Since that time other reasons have emerged. Get people on the water! Enjoy our natural resource in our “backyards”, learning paddling/swimming techniques, experience nature, etc.  

Quasi founders the Bavarian Inn’s Lori Payne and Bill Zehnder began this a local event and expanded to include their motto “any one and every one, paddle or swim”. Each year Michigan’s wood canoe club has participated yet wanted to further endorse the use of the river by co-sponsoring the event.

We quickly recognized the numerous groups that gathered for this fun outdoorsy experience. Noticed were: The boy scouts and their leaders with the many canoes they supplied, *Riley’s “Runyakers”, eleven swimmers, Wood canoe club, and the numerous families that paddled together. For example, the McDowell’s of Davison MI. This would be six sisters and their Mom. Of the sisters making the entire paddle with Mom Tracey included Noel, Haley, Sidney and Cassidy.

And of course the many families and friends that paddled together or as singles, doubles, etc. The day was beautiful with sunshine and temps in the lower 70’s accompanied by a slight breeze. Wild life sightings reported were: Two American Bald Eagles, a fawn, marsh rabbits, many turtles and 1 Jackalope (oh really?). 

*Note: The 15 “Runyakers” ran 5.3 miles from heritage park to the village of Tuscola, boarded their kayaks and paddled back to Frankenmuth, led by the world’s longest runyaker Riley McLincha (Flint MI to Niagara Falls). They chose to celebrate National Runyaking Day at our 5th annual paddle and swim.
The MI wood canoe club (wcha.org) co-sponsored the event and furnished food and beverages. A Bratwurst and a soda pop to every person finishing at the Heritage Park Canoe launch. The final count was a total of 71 participants. Frankenmuth Jaycees furnished the intense labor force staffing the brat stand including Sarah Mahoney, Luke McClure and Kieshan Counts.

The wood canoe club featured 11 wood canoes and kayaks on display in Heritage Park where the event’s social took place. Many of those canoes participated in the 5-mile paddle event. These beauties consisted of canoes as old as 111 years (1905) to newer ones built recently (2014). 

​Thanks of course to the many that volunteered and staffed the pontoon boats assisting swimmers and paddlers as needed throughout the 5-mile route. In appreciation- Wood canoe club volunteers Laurie and Seth Vukonich, Dave & Roxie Wermuth, Jan & Steve Szymanski, Janette and Bill Hart.

By Tom Lounsbury

Tuesday, October 27, 2015 was a very important day for a lot of folks. It was Ribbon Cutting day for the Frankenmuth Fish Passage Project. Daring young folks from the Frankenmuth Community Youth Advisory Committee had literally stretched a wide blue ribbon across the river, and had a big pair of ceremonial scissors ready to do the job. The countdown was Frankenmuth style, in German, and that worked for me!

I have very strong ties to the Cass River and anything that affects its future is extremely important me, because it is nearly in my backyard, and has been for most of my life (and I owe it deeply for some great childhood memories).  I’ve gotten the impression over the years, that as most Michigan rivers go, the Cass River has often been considered a bit of a “Rodney Dangerfield” (unjustifiably referred to with no respect) in the eyes of many, but for those of us who know it well, the Cass River offers a lot and it has the obvious potential to provide plenty more. 

An organization that realizes this is the Cass River Greenway and since their beginning not that many years ago, they have made great strides in not only in putting a spotlight on the value of the river, but also in improving and promoting its quality both environmentally and recreationally. The group has been very instrumental in developing canoe/kayak launching sites for better accessibility at several locations on the river, and they perform annual “cleanups” on set stretches (this entails bringing out countless tires, all kinds of garbage and even an engine block or two, believe it or not). They also have been working with all the municipalities located along the Cass River towards monitoring better water quality, and to me their impact is quite obvious.

I first met Bob Zeilinger and Joe Toth of the Cass River Greenway a couple of years ago on the banks of the Cass River, right next to the Frankenmuth Dam, and it was then I learned there had been and were still talks in progress about fixing, improving, or completely redoing the dam. The idea that caught my attention was the one that would allow fish to migrate upstream, something that certain fish species haven’t been able to do since the Frankenmuth Dam was first built in 1850.

The Frankenmuth Dam was first constructed of timber (which was readily available close at hand then), and then eventually concrete, and would undergo various repairs over the years. It was discovered along the way that the dam had actually become a part of the river system itself and supported Frankenmuth’s south bank and the Main Street bridge abutments. It also provided the necessary water depth upstream for local and commercial boating as well as maintaining the river profile that we recognize today. There was little doubt at all as to its importance to the City of Frankenmuth, and a whole bunch of folks.
    
A short term fix on the dam would have cost an estimated $350,000, but short fixes are just that and in no time at all you are looking at having to step in again, and invest more, and then more again. Frankenmuth (very wisely in my opinion) decided to go much farther and create a permanent fix that would improve the recreational aspects of their community (fishing, canoeing, kayaking and boating) and also improve the environment by allowing a readily available passage for a variety of fish species through the area that have been denied wonderful spawning habitat (about 73 miles) for more than 165 years.
    
The estimated cost of the project was 3.5 million dollars and the City of Frankenmuth knew that it would have to reach out and collaborate with a bunch of folks including various state and federal government agencies to get it all successfully accomplished. What really helped, due to the recognized water quality and environmental importance of the “Frankenmuth Fish Passage Project”, was that the region attracted national funding of approximately $2.4 million and multiple other funding sources would participate as well. 

Right in the middle of all this was Sheila Stamiris, Frankenmuth’s Director of the Downtown Authority. It was her goal to get everyone involved to collaborate and make what appeared to be impossible, actually happen. And happen it did, beginning with a partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, followed by multiple approvals from agencies such as the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Agency, MDNR and MDEQ. This was obviously no small undertaking of getting everyone on board to hold hands and make it all possible. But all did so for the better good.

The Frankenmuth Fish Project is unique in that it follows a bend in the river and required a tremendous amount of limestone rocks and literal boulders to be trucked in from quarries in Alpena and Bay Port. It is truthfully an amazing sight on completion to behold.

In reality it is no “fish ladder” most folks might automatically assume it is for jumping fish species like salmon and trout. Warm water fish species such as walleyes (a key species for this effort) do not do any jumping, they just swim into the current to get to important places, and hopefully those places don’t make it all that difficult either.

The Frankenmuth Fish Passage is technically a “Fishway” that is a stone ramp topped with stone weirs developed for non-jumping fish species. The weirs form 30 ft wide pools and fish can use these for a resting zone, or continue on their way upstream. The real key to these weirs is to disrupt the water current and to slow its’ velocity down at key spots, to allow migrating fish ready access. The Frankenmuth Fish Passage also takes care of upstream water levels as well as protecting the south bank at high water levels. It is a perfect example of what can be accomplished when dedicated folks get together, talk it over and make it all happen.

A bonus to all this is the visible rapids flowing between the weirs and on down the river. Taken into consideration are the kayaks and canoes that will need to continue on downstream, and now there is an easy portage trail that is available. (I’ve canoed down the Cass River several times over the years and from all the upstream branches too, and I have always had to discontinue that journey before, because of the Frankenmuth Dam and its very non-negotiable high banks. Now I can continue on, a “Bucket-List” sort of thing). I want to paddle all the way to Saginaw some day!
 
I must admit that rapids affair is sort of appealing to me, despite getting long in the tooth. No doubt experienced kayakers are going to give it a whirl, head on. They seem to get all the credit in this fast water environment these days and admittedly and justifiably so, as they are great and very maneuverable watercraft for that challenging atmosphere. But I’m not into kayaks. I’m into canoes, something that the Cass River has witnessed paddling its current for eons, and I know how to wield a paddle in a constructive manner, and have been at it quite awhile.

​Yep, I’ll be checking it all over at high water next spring. The Frankenmuth Fish Passage is truly a wonderment! 

Over 60 volunteers braved a wet and blustery Saturday morning to conduct a special clean up effort on September 19.  The Cass River was especially low due to construction of the Fish Passage project, which required temporarily dropping the water level upstream of the dam.

​The Cass River Greenway Committee and the Frankenmuth Parks and Recreation Department teamed up to sponsor this once in a lifetime opportunity to pick up trash from the exposed riverbanks.
Volunteers were divided into five teams and they walked the riverbanks from Tuscola downstream to the Frankenmuth Covered Bridge.  Overall the group removed approximately eight cubic yards of trash and another six cubic yards of steel and tires.

With the construction on the Frankenmuth dam/rock ramp and the low water level in the river above the dam, the Cass River Greenway Committee is taking advantage of this opportunity to also clean up the river.  The group is planning a special river clean-up on Saturday, September 19 and is looking for volunteers to help.  

Volunteers will meet at the Frankenmuth boat launch on Tuscola St. at 8:00am, divide up into groups, and then head out to certain sections of the river. The cleanup is expected to be done by noon. The committee hopes to clean approximately six miles of river from the Frankenmuth dam upstream to Tuscola. Volunteers are needed primarily to walk along the sides of the river to pick up trash, tires, and other debris.  Because of the low water levels and the bottom of the river being exposed, it is expected to be very muddy.  Volunteers are encouraged to wear old clothes and shoes or hip boots/waders. 

Individuals that are interested in helping in this ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ event are asked to contact Frankenmuth Parks and Recreation at 989-652-3440 or parks@frankenmuthcity.com.  For the last seven years, the Cass River Greenway Committee has held an annual river cleanup in July.  During that time, section by section, they have cleaned more than 35 miles of river from Caro to Bridgeport.  This special cleanup is being done in addition to those annual cleanups because of the abnormally low water levels. 

The Cass River Greenway Committee is a group of local volunteers, assisted by professional resources and municipal leaders, working to enhance recreational opportunities and the environmental well-being of the Cass River corridor. For more information about the group and its activities visit www.CassRiver.org

Many thanks to the Saginaw Bay RC&D for helping spread the word about Cass River Greenway's work! Featuring details on CRG's streambank stabilization efforts in the Cass River, the newsletter article provides many thanks to the project parters and supporters. Read below!

The Saginaw Bay Resource Conservation & Development (RC&D) Area and the Cass River Greenway Committee recently received a Christmas present of sorts with the announcement the Saginaw Bay Watershed Initiative Network (WIN) has allotted an additional $20,000 to streambank stabilization in the lower Cass River. “These funds double the amount of work which can be done” said Jim Hergott Executive Director of the RC&D. “We will focus our efforts in the Lower Cass River Watershed, which starts at Vassar and extends downstream to the Saginaw River” Hergott said.  “It includes Cole, Perry, Dead and Millington Creeks, as well as the main channel of the Cass River. There have been 23 stream bank erosion sites identified in Cole creek alone!” Initial efforts will be focused on conducting field visits, developing plans and securing permits with plans for construction in coordination with the Frankenmuth Dam upgrades next summer which WIN is also associated with. WIN is a volunteer organization which includes citizens and organizations focusing on the social, environmental and economic aspects of projects which improve and sustain the quality of life in the Saginaw Bay and its’ Watershed. Local Community Foundations and Corporations provide funding to WIN, which in turn distributes the funds and includes: Bay Area Community Foundation, Consumers Energy Foundation, Harry A. and Margret D. Towsley Foundation, Midland Area Foundation, Rollin M Gerstacker Foundation, Saginaw Community Foundation, The Dow Chemical Compnpay Foundation, The Herbert H. and Grace A Dow Foundation, The SC Johnson Fund, the Cook Family Foundation, C.S. Mott Foundation, and the Saginaw Bay Foundation. The RC&D and Cass River Greenway Committee recently received funding from various groups including: Bay Area Community Foundation (under the Saginaw Bay Restoration Fund) and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, with commitments from Star of the West Milling Company and Frankenmuth Conservation Club.  Stream bank stabilization efforts reduce sedimentation, improve fish habitat and enhance recreational activities in the Cass River Watershed. To learn more please contact Cass River Greenway Committee at www.cassriver.org, Saginaw Bay RC&D at www.saginawbayrcd.org or email the RC&D at saginawbay@aol.com. To contact by telephone, please see above contact information.

Saginaw Bay RC&D, Cass River Greenway Committee and other partners recently completed a Watershed Management Plan for the Cass River Watershed. The watershed management plan identifies sources of pollutants including: stream bank erosion, on-site septic management and agricultural associated runoff. The RC&D and Cass River Greenway Committee recently received funding from various groups including: Bay Area Community Foundation (under the Saginaw Bay Restoration Fund) and U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, with commitments from Star of the West Milling Company and Frankenmuth Conservation Club. We will focus our efforts in the Lower Cass River Watershed, which starts at Vassar and extends downstream to the Saginaw River. It includes Cole, Perry, Dead, and Millington Creeks, as well as the main channel of the Cass River. There have been 23 stream bank erosion sites identified in Cole creek alone! Our initial efforts will be focused on contacting landowners with the most erosive sites and conducting field visits from now until Spring of 2015. Plans for construction will be in coordination with the Frankenmuth Dam upgrades. Stream bank stabilization efforts reduce sedimentation, improve fish habitat and enhance recreational activities in the Cass River Watershed. 

To learn more about the Watershed Management Plan, please contact Cass River Greenway Committee at www.cassriver.org or Saginaw Bay RC&D at www.saginawbayrcd.org or email the RC&D at saginawbay@aol.com or contact Jim Hergott, 989-450-0567 or Robert Zeilinger, RJZEI@aol.com.