November Cleanup and Info Session at Richard B. Harrison Park

Our next cleanup will be on November 25th, 9:30 am to noon at Richard B. Harrison Park, We will meet at the end of South Street (where it intersects with the bike path).

To celebrate the end of our 12th season, we will have coffee and snacks on hand. 

Also, staff from the Upper Thames Conservation Authority will be on hand to show us some of the aquatic species (fish, fresh-water mussels, and insects) that live in the river. This will be an informal information session; aquatic biologist Erin Carroll will chat with volunteers about the diversity of river species that our clean-up efforts help to protect.  

See you at the river!

Cleanup Gibbons Park, Sunday October 1st

 Our cleanup on SUNDAY OCTOBER 1st, 9:30 am to noon at Gibbons Park.  Meet us at the splashpad and we'll clean up along the bike path and near the river.

August 19th Cleanup - Ivey Park

Our next clean-up will be on Saturday August 19th at Ivey Park.

9:00 am we'll meet at the London Bicycle Cafe (320 Thames Street) for free coffee and cookies.

9:30 am we'll walk to the "Staging Area" which near the flagpole at the forks. We will clean up along the bike paths near the river.

As there has been an increase in people camping rough along the river, we encourage you to read our COMMUNITY page that details ARR's respectful and safe approach.

July 15th Cleanup - Charles Hunt Club Park w Councillor Skylar Franke

Our July cleanup is in partnership with Ward 11 Councillor Skylar Franke and will take place on July 15th, 9:39 am to noon at Charles Hunt Park (formerly Carfrae Park).

We'll meet at 9:30 am at the bench on the south side of the river.  We will clean up the Carfrae Park (both sides of the river) and a bit of Richard B. Harrison Park.

June 17 Cleanup - Brittany Towers

Our next cleanup will be on Saturday, June 17 starting at 9:30 to noon at Brittany Towers (880 Kipps Lane, London).  We'll clean up the green space between the towers near Killaly Trail.

Please meet at the back of the parking lot between Tower 1 and 2.

See you at the river!

May 27th, Meadowlily Bridge - river cleanup and invasive garlic mustard pull

On May 27, ARR in partnership with Thames Talbot Land Trust and Urban Roots will conduct a river cleanup and invasive garlic mustard pull near Meadowlily Bridge.  

Please meet us at Urban Roots and Meadowlily Nature Preserve (see map below) at 9:30 am for snacks and cold brew coffee and the event will conclude at 12:00 noon.

ESA Cleanup with Ward 3 Councilor Peter Cuddy

On May 20th we have a cleanup with Ward 3 Councilor Peter Cuddy around the Killaly ESA beginning at 10:00 am till 12:00 pm.

Please meet us at the edge of Killaly on the Bridle Path in the Kipps Lane Townhomes complex (960 Kipps Lane).  There is plenty of street parking at this location.

ARR Season Kick-off - Cleanup at Ann Street Park

Hello Antler River Rally Volunteer!

Our clean-up season kicks off on Sunday, April 23rd, 9:30 am to noon as part of the Annual Thames River Cleanup.

Our "Staging Area" will be Ann Street Park and will have groups clean the bike paths to the north and south.

We'll provide garbage bags and gloves (we also have a few garbage grabbers). Apart from weather appropriate clothing we recommend you wear long pants, sturdy boots or hiking shoes and bring a bottle of drinking water.

Families are welcome, however parents must be responsible for their children at all times.  

See you at the river!

April and May Cleanup List

Spring has arrived and with it, our cleanup events have blossomed!

Aprill 22nd is Earth Day and we encourage all our volunteers to join the annual Thames River Clean up. Location and contacts can be found on this website: https://www.thamesrivercleanup.ca/contacts.htm

On April 23rd Antler River Rally will be holding a cleanup (as part of the Thames River Cleanup) at Ann Street Park starting at 9:30 am. 

On May 20th we have a cleanup with Ward 3 Councillor Peter Cuddy. 10:00-12:00 followed by a bbq. Location: Killaly ESA (exact meeting location TBD).

On May 27th in partnership with Thames Talbot Land Trust and Urban Roots we'll do a river cleanup and invasive garlic mustard pull. 10:00-12:00 Meeting spot: North side of Meadowlily bridge at TVP. More details will be provided closer to the date.

Westminster Ponds Spring Clean-up

Hello ARR Friends,

Our first cleanup of 2023 will be in partnership with ReForest London and will take place on Sunday March 26th from 2:00 - 4:00 pm at the Westminster Ponds ESA.

We will have two meet-up locations (The Reforest London Office and Tourism London Welcome Centre).  Once you have registered, you will receive an email informing you of your meetup location/address and parking information.  

We'll provide garbage bags and gloves (we also have a few garbage grabbers). Apart from weather appropriate clothing we recommend you wear long pants, sturdy boots or hiking shoes and bring a bottle of drinking water.

Please click HERE to register for the cleanup.

See you at the river!

November 12th Cleanup - McNay Drain and Kilally Meadows ESA

Our next cleanup will be on November 12th, 9:00 am to noon, at McNay Drain and parts of Kilally Meadows ESA.

Our "Staging Area" will the north end of Arbour Glen Crescent near the dumpsters behind the building (see image below).

We'll provide garbage bags and gloves (we also have a few garbage grabbers). Apart from weather appropriate clothing we recommend you wear long pants, sturdy boots or hiking shoes and bring a bottle of drinking water.

As there has been an increase in people camping rough along the river, we encourage you to read our COMMUNITY page that details ARR's respectful and safe approach. 

See you at the river!

 

 

October 22nd Cleanup, Adelaide Street Bridge to Egerton

Hello Antler River Rally Volunteer!

Our next clean-up will be on Saturday, October 22nd, 9:30 am to noon along the bike path from the Adelaide Street bridge to Egerton. 

Our "Staging Area" will be at Grampa and Grama's Chipwagon at 12-26 Adelaide St N.  

We'll provide garbage bags and gloves (we also have a few garbage grabbers). Apart from weather appropriate clothing we recommend you wear long pants, sturdy boots or hiking shoes and bring a bottle of drinking water.

As there has been an increase in people camping rough along the river, we encourage you to read our COMMUNITY page that details ARR's respectful and safe approach. 

See you at the river!

September 17th Cleanup - Richard B. Harrison Park

Our next cleanup will be on Saturday, September 17th, 9:30 am to noon at Richard B. Harrison Park.

 

Our meeting spot or "Staging Area" will be the beside the bike path adjacent to the parking lot at BrokerLink, 69 Wellington Road South.  We will clean up the area near the bike paths.

 

We'll provide garbage bags and gloves (we also have a few garbage grabbers). Apart from weather appropriate clothing we suggest you bring a bottle of drinking water.

 

Families are welcome, however parents must be responsible for their children at all times.

 

As many of you who have attended a cleanup will know, it is common for us to encounter people camping rough along the river.  Homelessness is a multi-factor issue that stems from a complex of social issues including (but certainly not limited to) a critical lack of affordable housing, and addictions and the opioid crisis. The City of London is currently monitoring about 350 active camps in this city; many are located along the river where we hold our cleanups.

 

It is ARR policy and practice not to disturb or enter active camps (unless invited). We cleanup garbage around the camps and along the watercourse. We do not pickup items that appear to be in use, and where possible, we reach out to urban campers to inquire if we can remove any of their unwanted garbage. We regularly give out Tim Hortons cards so people can get a meal, and we practice respect and empathy when engaging with people camping rough.

 

On our cleanups, we often encounter needles and other equipment used for consuming drugs. We ask volunteers not to handle these items unless they are trained and comfortable doing so. Volunteers may simply make a note of the location of these items and inform a trained volunteer (trained volunteers are identified at the beginning of a cleanup).

 

At the beginning of each cleanup, the cleanup coordinator welcomes everyone and goes over the safety protocols. If you have any questions during a cleanup, please don’t hesitate to reach out to the coordinator(s) or experienced volunteers. 

 

See you at the river!

August 27th Cleanup - Carfrae Park

Hello ARR Volunteer!

Our next cleanup will be in Carfrae Park and we'll meet at 9:30 am at the bench on the south side of the river.  We will clean up the Carfrae Park (both sides of the river) and a bit of Richard B. Harrison Park.

We'll provide garbage bags and gloves (we also have a few garbage grabbers). Apart from weather appropriate clothing we recommend you wear long pants, sturdy boots or hiking shoes and bring a bottle of drinking water.

Families are welcome, however parents must be responsible for their children at all times.

As many of you who have attended a cleanup will know, it is common for us to encounter people camping rough along the river.  Homelessness is a multi-factor issue that stems from a complex of social issues including (but certainly not limited to) a critical lack of affordable housing, and addictions and the opioid crisis. The City of London is currently monitoring about 350 active camps in this city; many are located along the river where we hold our cleanups.

It is ARR policy and practice not to disturb or enter active camps (unless invited). We cleanup garbage around the camps and along the watercourse. We do not pickup items that appear to be in use, and where possible, we reach out to urban campers to inquire if we can remove any of their unwanted garbage. We regularly give out Tim Hortons cards so people can get a meal, and we practice respect and empathy when engaging with people camping rough.

On our cleanups, we often encounter needles and other equipment used for consuming drugs. We ask volunteers not to handle these items unless they are trained and comfortable doing so. Volunteers may simply make a note of the location of these items and inform a trained volunteer (trained volunteers are identified at the beginning of a cleanup).

At the beginning of each cleanup, the cleanup coordinator welcomes everyone and goes over the safety protocols. If you have any questions during a cleanup, please don’t hesitate to reach out to the coordinator(s) or experienced volunteers.

We thank our volunteers for helping to build a community of care and respect at the river. 

See you at the river!

July 16th Cleanup - Ivey Park

Our next clean-up is scheduled for Saturday, July 16, 9:30 am to noon at Ivey Park.

We'll meet in Ivey Park by the flagpole at the forks and will clean up areas along the bike paths and near the river.

We'll provide garbage bags and gloves (we also have a few garbage grabbers). Apart from weather appropriate clothing we recommend you wear long pants, sturdy boots or hiking shoes and bring a bottle of drinking water.

Families are welcome, however parents must be responsible for their children at all times.

See you at the river!

 

ARR Cleanup with Oneida Nation on June 18th

 

 

I'm excited to share that the next Antler River Rally cleanup will be in partnership with Oneida Nation of the Thames and Brandon Doxtator (Environmental Coordinator at Oneida). 

 

It will take place from 10:00 am-12:00 pm on Saturday, June 18th. 

 

We need volunteers to help us tackle a sizable garbage hot spot along the river right beside Oneida. 

 

Please click the link below to register for and learn more about the event.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdbp8qy78fF9M7ejljWpdgqhrHQxXy_N-SnIPTQenpmqJcnVw/viewform