Friends of the Rappahannock

About Us

Friends of the Rappahannock is a 501c3 environmental non-profit organization with over 2,000 members who share a love of the Rappahannock River.

We work with our members and partners in 18 counties from the headwaters of the Rappahannock River in the Blue Ridge Mountains to Windmill Point where the River meets the Chesapeake Bay.

Our headquarters is located on a 14 acre nature preserve on the Rappahannock River in Fredericksburg, Virginia. We host a wide range of interpretive trips, education programs, partner meetings, and river experiences at this office and encourage you to stop by and say hi. We also have a tidal office in Tappahannock, Virginia at June Parker Marina where we house or River Steward Skiff and run our tidal outreach and education programs.

Our Mission:

Friends of the Rappahannock is the voice and active force for a healthy and scenic Rappahannock River.

Our programs seek to protect and restore the Rappahannock River through Advocacy, Outreach, and Education with on the ground restoration projects and provide environmental education activities for youth and students of all ages as well as adult outreach and education events.

Rainscape Retrofit Program

We work with landowners, businesses, and municipalities to manage stormwater runoff on their property, business, or public space. Our staff can assist with assessment, design, funding applications, permitting, installation, and monitoring. Projects include rain gardens, rain barrels/cisterns, bioretention, native plantings, stormdrain marking, interpretive signage, and more.

River Cleanup Program

We work with our members, volunteers, and partners to identify waterways in need of trash cleanups. We encourage groups of all ages and sizes to tell us about their local creek, stream, or river section that needs a cleanup and we can provide all the materials (gloves, bags, litter grabbers, trucks, trailers, canoes/kayaks, disposal etc) to make the event a success.

Headwater Stream Initiative

We work with our partners at the Piedmont Environmental Council to plant trees and shrubs along creeks, streams, rivers, and other waterways to protect water quality and improve habitat for fish and wildlife. This program provides 100% of the costs for design, materials, and installation for qualifying projects.

Student Stream Team

We work with schools and other student groups to provide environmental education lessons, activities, and student action projects focused on water quality. This can include sampling for macroinvertebrates, chemical and biological water testing, and a variety of restoration projects from the programs listed above. This program focuses on middle and high school age groups. Groups do not need to be school sponsored (scouts, faith based groups, JROTC, etc all welcome).

Water Quality Monitoring

One of the major focuses of our work is to protect and restore water quality. To track the progress of all the work happening in our watershed, we work with our members and volunteers to provide training, materials, and monitoring locations for citizen scientists interested in water quality sampling.

Oyster Reef Restoration

This program is focused on select tidal tributaries. We invite partners and volunteers to monitor and restore oyster reefs with our river steward.

Interpretive Trips and Outreach Events

Throughout the year we offer a wide range of outreach events and interpretive trips. These can include paddle trips, guided hikes, bird counts, tours of historical resources along the river, oyster and wine tastings, and more. We welcome all ages to join us!

For additional information on the programs we offer please visit our website at www.riverfriends.org