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By Sara Graves ummertime in northern Illinois is a time to relax, unwind and enjoy the few short months of warm weather in the Midwest. Bob North, a Rockford area paddling enthusiast, will enjoy the scenery as he canoes down the Kishwaukee River from Baumann Park, in Cherry Valley, to the Rockford Lithuanian Park at this years Kishwaukee Paddlefest on July 27. In its fifth year, Paddlefest is put on by the Rockford Lithuanian Club (RLC), a private social club of which North is vice-president. Shuttles begin running at 9 a.m. and are available every few hours into the afternoon. An 18-passenger van with an attached trailer will load up paddlers and their vessels for a 15-minute drive from the club to Baumann Park, where participants will begin a roughly two-hour paddle down the Kish. Food
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Smart Living Weekly
and live music await paddlers when they finish the journey. Rocktown Adventures, a local retailer specializing in outdoor activities, provides kayak rentals to experienced paddlers. Never paddled before? Good news; Rocktown Adventures offers lessons throughout the season. “The Kish is a small, mostly friendly river,” says George Wulf, a Paddlefest veteran. “But if you don’t know how to control a canoe, it can get a little tricky.” Wulf not only books the entertainment for Paddlefest but performs with his band, Swingbilly RFD. The five-man
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Dawn Wulf Photography photos
Kishwaukee Paddlefest Returns July 27
band from Rockford plays classic honky-tonk music from the ’40s and ’50s. Acoustic duo, Paper Airplane, also from Rockford, will perform. Paddle enthusiast Jerry Vandiver, an award-winning songwriter, and musician who has written hits for country music stars like Tim
