Werner’s Adriene Levknecht Raises Awareness During the Kimberly Expedition

Werner Team paddler Adriene Levknecht is widely recognized as one of the most talented female white water boaters in the world.  After a busy 2009, making the US Freestyle Team, competing at the Worlds in Switzerland and countless top extreme race results; she is turning her attention in early 2010 to an expedition to help raise environmental awareness. 

Below Adriene puts the importance of the Kimberly Expedition in her own words.
“During a 6 week journey to the Kimberly Wilderness of Western Australia, me and eight other people will raise awareness to fight the proposed industrialization of this pristine region.  A region which not only is home to such endangered species as the hump back whale, marine turtles, Dugongs and the Golden Back Tree Rat, but also is still home to one of the oldest human cultures in recorded history.  During this trip we will be spending a month on the Fitzroy River, which during flood season is regarded as the highest flow river in the world.  With raft support along the trip we hope lightened boat loads will allow us to truly explore this river and its tributary creeks.
The group is meeting in Melbourne in mid-January and driving cross country to the put in and start of our adventure. Along the way we will be speaking to Aboriginal people, learning of their tricks to live off the land and the ways of their forgotten culture. We will be taking pictures of possibly never before seen Aboriginal paintings and exploring unknown gorges along the way down the river.

“Great, another kayaking vacation!”  Hardly.  Certainly this is an amazing opportunity to put all my kayak training to use on a highly challenging expedition and of course leave the stress of the real world back at home.  However we are going with a mission at hand.  While experiencing a historic cultural few ever get to learn about first hand, we hope to share with others what we learned about them and the wilderness that is so important to not only them but the ecosystem of our planet.  This type of short sighted raping of the wilderness is not just occurring in the Kimberly.  Closer to home regions of Quebec and Ontario are being logged and dammed at alarming rates and let’s not forget about unsubstantiated oil exploration in our own country.  With our time spent in the Kimberly Wilderness and on the Fitzroy we will produce a full length movie of our endeavors and increase avenues to raise money and awareness of the Kimberley.  Along the way showing more and more people the harm that will come of thinking less and less about the values of the pristine regions around us.

I am certainly stoked for the adventurer in me as well; there is so much we are all hoping to get out of this trip personally. Learning about the Aboriginal people, seeing new animals and plants and being able to live off the land.  Not to mention the chance to boat some HUGE water along the way! We have set up a page for our expedition and it will be more put together once the crew all gets in one place but feel free to check it out and see what this is all about.  Also be sure to check in here for updates as well as my other blogs I have been working on. 
www.adriene-spankinit.blogspot.com
www.liquidlogicladieslounge.blogspot.com

Thanks Adriene.  Everyone at the Werner Paddles Blog is stoked that you are embarking on this expedition not only as a paddler, but as a tiny little soldier for the environment. 

Comments

[ubau]

Nice picture! :)
And boat is in proper colour! :)

[ubau]

Nice picture! :)
And boat is in proper colour! :)
/user of Double Diamond/