Canoe the Slough

By: Claire McHenry 

This past weekend, the Truckee Meadows Parks Foundation hosted our 2nd Canoe the Slough event: an exclusive, once-a-year opportunity to paddle through the serene waterways of the Rosewood Nature Study Area. For most of the year, boating is not allowed on site, which makes this event truly special. For one morning only, participants had the chance to launch kayaks into the slough and experience the wetland from a completely new perspective by gliding across the water rather than walking its trails.

There’s something undeniably magical about moving quietly through the native vegetation by boat when all that’s heard is the gentle splash of your paddle and the calls of birds echoing all around. Surrounded by native vegetation, attendees spotted muskrats swimming alongside them, baby ducklings weaving through reeds, and even caught sight of a pelican floating high overhead. The distinct calls of Virginia rails added to the serenity, and just on the walk out to the launch site, participants were treated to sightings of killdeer darting through the grasses. It was a calm, connected, and deeply peaceful experience; one that showcased the thriving biodiversity of the wetland and reminded us all why Rosewood is worth protecting.

In addition to connecting our community with the beauty of Rosewood, Canoe the Slough served as a fundraising effort for Phase II of the Rosewood Capital Campaign. Thanks to the incredible support we've received we have raised over 50% of our fundraising goal and we’re well on our way to making exciting additions to the nature study area. Phase II will bring:

• An expanded outdoor classroom space

• A new amphitheater-style meeting area

• A pollinator garden gazebo

• Ten new interpretive signs exploring themes like Water is Life, Who Lives Here, and Everything is Connected

• Directional signs and miles markers

This campaign allows the Parks Foundation to connect its community to a unique educational and accessible restoration site.

We’re grateful to Natural Grocers and Sprouts for their generous support, which helped us provide healthy “snackleboxes” and drinks to all event participants. A special thanks to the Natural Grocers store and crew in Reno, NV, who are thrilled to support the Canoe the Slough fundraiser for Truckee Meadows Parks Foundation. Through their outreach efforts, Natural Grocers aims to reconnect humans to food, nature, and the land on which they live. They also offer a wide range of free community classes focused on nutrition and health. Check out their upcoming events here: Organic & Natural Grocery Store in Reno, NV. 

If you’re inspired by what’s happening at Rosewood, here’s how you can be part of it:

• Donate to the Rosewood Capital Campaign

• Become a member and support our mission year-round by heading to https://www.tmparksfoundation.org/membership 

• Schedule a tour of the Rosewood Nature Study Area by contacting Claire McHenry at claire@tmparksfoundation.org

Thank you to everyone who joined us to celebrate nature, community, and the next phase of Rosewood. We can’t wait to see you again soon! Be sure to subscribe to our newsletter to hear about events similar to Canoe the Slough.

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About the Author:

Claire McHenry 

Development Director

Claire joined the Parks Foundation team in 2023. Claire grew up in Seattle, Washington but has since moved around the United States. She received her bachelor's in Geology with GIS and statistics minors from Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota. After school, Claire moved to Louisiana to do statistical machine learning and GIS analysis for the U.S. Geological Survey. Following this position, she found her way back to the west and settled in Incline Village, Nevada where she currently lives. In her freet ime, she can be found climbing peaks throughout the Sierra Nevada and making art.