DRBC recently held an Upper Delaware River Roundtable for local partners at the offices of the Upper Delaware Council (UDC) in Narrowsburg, N.Y.

Attendees included:

  • Laurie Ramie, Executive Director, UDC 

  • Lindsay Kurnath, Superintendent, NPS Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River

  • Ingrid Peterec, Chief of Interpretation, NPS Upper Delaware Scenic & Recreational River

  • Dan Corrigan, owner, Northeast Wilderness Experience

  • Jeff Dexter, UDC Representative, Damascus Township

  • Christine Martin, UDC Representative, Town of Highland

  • Alex Horton, field representative for U.S. Congressman Marc Molinaro

  • Matt McPhillips, Legislator, Sullivan County

  • Heather Jacksy, Director of Planning, Sullivan County

  • Theresa Ferrigno, Planner, Delaware County Planning Department

  • Sherri Resti Thomas, Deputy Director, Friends of the Upper Delaware River

Several DRBC staff members also attended, as well as reporters from WJFF Radio Catskills and The Epoch Times.

The conversation focused on how to best support and encourage increased use of the river corridor for recreation while ensuring public safety, protecting water quality and respecting private property.

  • UPDE saw 327,000 visitors last year, who spent over $16.5 million in park-adjacent communities

How to best manage more visitors while protecting the environment is a topic that's top-of-mind for many of our Upper Basin partners.

The main takeaway? Partnerships and working together are key, and we look forward to continuing the discussion on this topic and others important to Upper Delaware communities and partners.

A short raft trip led by Northeast Wilderness Experience followed, with folks rafting from the Damascus access to the Skinners Falls Bridge access. It was the perfect way to end the day.

A hearty thank you to all attendees for your time, input and commitment to safe, responsible recreation!

Folks gathered in the UDC conference space for the roundtable. Photo by the DRBC.	Folks gathered in the UDC conference space for the roundtable. Photo by the DRBC.	UDC's Laurie Ramie (left), Northeast Wilderness Experience's Jamie Poston (back), Damascus Township's Jeff Dexter (middle) and DRBC's Elizabeth Brown (right) rafting on the Delaware. Photo by the DRBC.
A raft sits along the Delaware River ready for passengers. Photo by the DRBC.	From L: Northeast Wilderness Experience's Dan Corrigan & DRBC's Chris McCann raft the Delaware. Photo by the DRBC.	From L: DRBC's Chris McCann and Delaware County Planning Department's Theresa Ferrigno are all smiles on the river. Photo by the DRBC.