As of March 23, the board and staff of the Uncompahgre Watershed Partnership (UWP) has made the difficult decision to cancel the Ridgway RiverFest scheduled on June 27, 2020. We believe there is too much uncertainty about the next few months during the COVID-19 disaster emergency for us to confidently plan a large public gathering to take place three months from now. We understand that due to the COVID-19 disaster emergency declared by local, state and national governments, sponsors are facing uncertainty about finances and many other aspects of their operations and personal lives.
We look forward to the community’s support of the Ridgway RiverFest in June 2021. We continue to be grateful for any donations that businesses and individuals can provide in 2020, to help UWP achieve its goals of protecting and improving our watershed resources. Water is always important to our lives, during good times as well as difficult ones.
The Ridgway RiverFest is a family-friendly celebration of the Uncompahgre River, our watershed and river recreation with all-age river races, live music, local food and drink, kids’ activities, watershed educational and cultural programs. The highlight of the day is the infamous “Junk of the Unc” race in which boaters maneuver their craft, constructed from scrap materials not intended for river travel, through whitewater rapids and others’ junk, trying to keep it all intact for the 0.5 mile finish line.
RiverFest is produced by the Uncompahgre Watershed Partnership, a Ouray County nonprofit watershed group dedicated to helping protect the economic, natural, and scenic values of the Upper Uncompahgre River Watershed.
River Races – the Main Events!
Everyone who comes to the Ridgway RiverFest has a chance to get WET and enjoy the river. You can wade in the eddy and along the riverbanks or play on your watercraft in the middle of the river. For those who are more competitive, we have a few river races you can join. The Ridgway RiverFest features:
- Junk of the Unc homemade boat competition
- Rubber Ducky Race (or Rubber Ducky Hunt during extremely high flows)
- Three boat race categories: inflatables, hard shell boats, and stand up paddle boards.
Learn more on our River Races Page.
2019 FESTIVAL SCHEDULE
(2020 Schedule coming in early June 2020)
9-10:30 a.m. River race registration
10:00 a.m. Silent Auction bidding begins
10 a.m.-4 p.m. Watershed Education demonstrations including River Bug Science, Renewable Energy display, Fly Fishing instruction, etc.
10 a.m.-4 p.m. Kids Eddy activities: snow cones by Voyager Youth Program, face painting, solar oven cookies, and more
10 a.m.-6 p.m. Food by The Ice Box and Ouray Cafe & Steakhouse
Beer by Colorado Boy & Margaritas by Glenda the Blenda
10:30 a.m. River race safety briefing
11:00 a.m. Safety Rope Bag toss contest
11:30 a.m. River races: SUPS, Kayaks and Rafts (please no inner tubes this year due to high flows)
12:30-1:30 p.m. Ute cultural presentation by Regina Lopez-Whiteskunk
2 p.m. Junk of the Unc homemade river-craft race
2:30 p.m. Rubber Ducky Hunt (due to high river flows, we are having a hunt for ducks in the grove with a Grand Prize of a One-Day Jeep Rental with Rockin’ K Jeep Rentals
3-6 p.m. Live Music by Sugar & the Mint
4:30 p.m. River Race Awards Ceremony
5:00 p.m. Silent Auction bidding closes & winners pick up items
6:00 p.m. Music and Festival end
We are a food truck and are interested in participating in your 2020 festival. Can you please send information and the entry fee amount. We do baked potatoes, wraps, and sandwiches.
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The information and fee for the 2020 festival should be same as 2019 festival so you can look at this sheet: https://ridgwayriverfestival.files.wordpress.com/2019/05/2019-ridgwayriverfest-food-vendors.pdf. Where are you located? Our festival is in Ridgway, Colorado (between Montrose and Ouray). You can contact me (Tanya) directly at ridgwayriverfest@gmail.com. Thank you!
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