Statement from the Texas Water Safari Board regarding river access

The flood waters are starting recede and racers will begin scouting what is, essentially, a new river for the 2015 Texas Water Safari, to be held on June 27.  Some sections of the lower Guadalupe river are still in flood stage.  The Texas Water Safari has been working closely with our partners all along the race course, and those entities have asked us to remind the paddling community about river access issues:

• The GBRA reminds us that that the Salt Water Barrier is only available on race days through a special arrangement.
   
• Victoria Port Authority, which owns the land that the Swinging Bridge (the Dupont/Invista checkpoint) is on, reminds us that this area is not available for public use. It is only available during the Texas Water Safari by special permit.
   
• The City of Victoria Parks expects to begin the post-flood cleanup of Riverside Park early next week. The park will reopen in phases, with the boat ramp expected to be cleared by Friday, June 12.
   
• Palmetto State Park is scheduled to be closed during the month of June. They have graciously worked with the Texas Water Safari to allow access to the park during the race and are working diligently to beat this deadline.
   
• Other public access areas have taken a beating from the recent storms and may have crews working on debris removal and/or other infrastructure-type work.
   
• Finally, search efforts for the victims of the flooding are ongoing. Please show the utmost respect to those involved.