Fraser Fest returned to the Upper Fraser this year, bringing paddlers together for a weekend of whitewater, camping, and community near Mount Robson Provincial Park.
One of the biggest priorities this year was protecting the river and surrounding watershed. In collaboration with BC Parks, we received a letter of authorization allowing the festival to proceed after BC Parks had restricted access earlier this year. We established a dedicated boat cleaning station at the Robson Meadows Group Campsite to help mitigate the risk of spreading whirling disease and other aquatic pathogens between waterways.
Before paddling, participants were asked to have their boats inspected, cleaned, drained, and dried. With paddlers travelling from different regions and potentially bringing boats that had recently been used in other rivers, this was an important step in reducing the chance of transporting contaminated water, mud, or organic material into the Upper Fraser watershed.
Working with BC Parks to put these measures in place was an important part of making Fraser Fest possible this year. It also gave us an opportunity to raise awareness within the paddling community about the role we all play in protecting the rivers we recreate on.
The timing also couldn’t have been much better. River levels came up on Thursday, just ahead of the festival, setting us up for great flows throughout the weekend. Combined with beautiful weather, the higher water made for an incredible few days on the Fraser and ideal conditions for paddlers to enjoy the river.
A huge thank you goes to BC Parks, the Alberta Whitewater Association, our volunteers, and every paddler who cooperated with the cleaning process and helped make the weekend possible.
Fraser Fest is ultimately about enjoying incredible whitewater while doing our part to protect it for the future.
- Big thank you to Chris Johnson for his efforts in ensuring this event continues! | 
