The Events

Vendors Open at Mill Park

Friday, June 13th 3pm-7pm, we'll feature locally produced, handcrafted, quality items from artisans and craftspeople from all over Maine. Jewelry, jams and jellies, handmade games, photography, tole paintings and more. Also at Mill Park will be a showing of 'The Kennebec', a 22-minute movie about the river, and the people who live, work and play along its shored.

Chowder Supper at Le Club Calumet

Friday, June 13th at 5pm enjoy the Chowder Supper at Le Club Calumet, 334 West River Road, Augusta. The Club will feature a chowder dinner, musical entertainment, and a terrific presentation about the Kennebec River, by Nate Gray, Kennebec River Restoration Leader for Maine Dept. of Marine Resources, and staff from the Kennebec County Soil and Water Conservation District.

The Old Fort Western

Located on the East side of the Kennebec River in Augusta. This famous National Historic Landmark will be hosting a variety of activities and presentations about Augusta's history, and our ties to the Kennebec River. Find out more about Old Fort Western, click here!

Old Fort Western will host its ninth-annual Fort to Fort Canoe and Kayak Expedition on Saturday, June 14th. Click for more info.

Model Display of Wooden Canoe Construction

Saturday, June 14th at Old Fort Western, 10am to 5pm. Burt Libby, of Burt's Canoes in Litchfield, will have a fascinating series of model canoes on display. The exhibit takes you through the whole construction process of a wooden canoe, step by step, right from putting the first parts of the frame together, through stretching canvas over the nearly-finished boat. The display makes a great companion to the full-scale boats at the Fort, and is a show of true craftsmanship in its own right.

3rd Annual: The Spring Running Festival Arts and Crafts Show, Mill Park, 10am to 5pm

Visitors will be treated to a wonderful gathering of Maine farmers, artists, cooks and crafts people featuring their products and work from 3:00pm to 7:00pm on Friday, June 13th and 10:00am to 5:00pm on Saturday, June 14th. Come join the people who pride themselves in taking the time and extra effort to create the handmade items that Maine is renowned for.
Vendors include:
-Karrottop Jewelry, Old Town: Hand crafted jewelry
-Moonbender Photography, Brunswick: Maine scenes
-Country Bumpkins, Washington
-Gerouxs's Gifts, Gardiner: Maine Gourmet foods, Baking Mixes, Preserved items, jams and jellies
-V.K. Enterprises, Southport: Tole Paintings

For information about "The Spring Running River Festival Arts & Crafts Show" or to obtain a vendor application, please contact the Vendor Coordinator: Vicki Huskins, at vkwolf@adelphia.net, or by phone at (207) 633-2404.

Japanese Fish Prints (Gyotaku)

Saturday, June 14th, 10am to 5pm at Mill Park. Fish prints (gyotaku) are a traditional Japanese art form, but you can try for yourself at The Spring Running. Great fun for kids of all ages. By applying paint to a fish such as an alewife, and then pressing it onto paper, you get a print that has really great detail, right down to the lines in the scales. Each print is an original work of art, and we'll have space available to dry and display your fish print.

The Alewife Harvesters of Maine, Old Fort Western, 10am to 5pm

Come try a Smoked Alewife! These delicious fish will be available free (donations encouraged) at Old Fort Western, while the supply lasts. At the booth you can also learn about this historic fishery, the role of the alewife in river systems and the ocean, and about some of the current scientific work being conducted on this important fish. Smoked alewives are a Maine tradition - come taste them and you'll see why!

Live Alewife Display

Saturday, June 14th, 10am to 5pm at Mill Park. Alewives are a critical part of the Kennebec River ecosystem, and a key piece of the food web. Mink, otters, eagles and other wild animals depend on them, and they are used by humans as food (like smoked alewives!), lobster bait, and garden fertilizer. The Maine Dept. of Marine Resources lifts, traps and trucks literally thousands of alewives every year, so they can get past dams, and return to their spawning grounds. Come see the trucks, tanks and other equipment that the biologists use, and watch a school of live alewives as they are helped in their upstream journey!

Bagpipe Music

By Jeff Herbster, Saturday, June 14th at Mill Park, after 2:30pm. Jeff is a noted bagpiper, teacher and entrepreneur, and operates The Bagpipe Store, an on-line source of instruments and equipment. He plays at private and public functions throughout the region, and will be playing at Mill Park and elsewhere on Saturday afternoon during The Spring Running. Jeff covers a variety of music, from fast marches to slower marches and airs, piobaireachd, and non-traditional music adapted to the Great Highland Pipes, and the Scottish Smallpipes. www.scottishmelodies.com

Penobscot Nation Drum Group, Mill Park, 1pm

You won't want to miss this fascinating Native American presentation conducted by members of the Penobscot Indian Nation. Come listen to the melodic rhythms of the drums and learn about Native culture as sung through their songs. Saturday, 1:00 pm at Mill Park.

Fly-tying and Fly-casting Instruction, Mill Park, 10am to 5pm

Great for the novice and the established fly fisherman alike, members of Trout Unlimited, Kennebec Valley Chapter will be set up and ready to help you with tying flies and improving your cast. This is a very popular part of the program at The Spring Running, and sure to be an attraction for the kids and the young at heart. We have plenty of space to lay out some line, and the KVTU group is fully equipped with an enclosed tent and lots of tying materials.

Wooden Canoe Heritage Association, Northeast Chapter, Old Fort Western, 10am to 5pm

Look for the Northeast Chapter of the Wooden Canoe Heritage Association stationed at Old Fort Western. There will be demonstrations of seat caning and paddle carving, and displays of restored, partially restored and un-restored canoes, together with a special display of a genuine Birchbark Canoe from the Penobscot Marine Museum. Ten to 15 canoes will be available, and some will be launched from the Old Fort Western boat launch, conditions permitting. Visitors are welcome to bring their old canoes for identification. Come see these beautiful canoes, pick up some useful skills, and talk to experts in canoe repair and building!

Demonstrations, Displays and Presentations, Mill Park, 10am to 5pm:

  *  Maine State Grange
  *  Children's Discovery Museum
  *  Maine Coastal Program
  *  Penobscot River Restoration Trust
  *  Womens Agricultural Network - WaGN
  *  MaineWatch Institute
  *  Natural Resources Council of Maine
  *  NOAA Fisheries
  *  Fish Prints
  *  Fly Tying Instruction
  *  Fly Casting Instruction
  *  Alewife Display Tank
  *  Maine Dept. of Marine Resources
  *  Kennebec Valley Chapter of Trout Unlmited
  *  Time & Tide Resource Conservation and Development Area
  *  University of Maine Marine Extension
  *  Kennebec County Soil and Water Conservation District, including the Kennebec River Initiative
  *  American Chestnut Foundation
  *  Friends of Merrymeeting Bay
  *  Kennebec Land Trust
  *  Maine Dept. of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife
  *  Maine Lakes Conservancy
  *  Sebasticook Watershed Association