Whether it’s plunging over a waterfall in a river kayak or following Alaska’s Inland Passage to recreate the past, a festival of 2019’s best paddling films is being presented Friday, March 22, at Lawrence University’s Warch Center Cinema in Appleton. The films will communicate the adrenaline and beauty of kayaking or canoeing in the wild.

A grant from the Environmental Stewardship Fund within the Community Foundation supported the festival of eight films being presented by North East Wisconsin Paddlers, a nonprofit dedicated to promoting and teaching safe paddling practices.

The festival is open to the public. Tickets are available on the Event Bright website through a link at www.wisconsinpaddlers.org.

The 2019 World Tour Paddling Film Festival brings together the year’s best paddling films for audiences to be inspired to explore rivers, lakes and oceans, push extremes, embrace the paddling lifestyle and appreciate the wild places. The World Tour will visit more than 120 cities, but Appleton is only stop in northeast Wisconsin.

The eight films to be presented are:

Big World – A man and his 7-year-old son embark on a weeklong standup paddle journey down the Karnali and Bheri rivers in western Nepal. (13 min.)

We Are Send – The story of what you can accomplish with a great set of friends, including paddling over waterfalls. (4½ min.)

Dear Liza – A video postcard home highlights the magic and beauty of the British Columbia coast, shot in the Broughton Archipelago and Great Bear Rainforest. (3 min.)

Run Wild Run Free: 50 Years of Wild and Scenic Rivers – The history of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act as told by experts, grass roots organizers, whitewater enthusiasts and members of the Nez Perce tribe in Idaho. (31 min.)

Feel of Vision – The story of Lonnie Bedwell, one of five blind veterans who paddled the Colorado River. Steve Baskis, another of the five, spoke at the NEWP annual meeting in January and also appears in the film. (23½ min.)

Sea Kayak Surfing in Jamaica – A family explores the small and undeveloped surfing scene at a surf camp near Kingston. (5 min.)

Junk Paddle – The story of a paddle made from junk. (3 min.)

The Passage – Two brothers set out with their father and uncle to finish a canoe trip up Alaska’s Inland Passage their parents and uncle undertook in 1974. (25½ min.)

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