Rain or shine, The Nature Conservancy’s three-day Wild West River Fest in Cody celebrated the Shoshone River’s conservation right on the river.

In the Stinking Water Sprint and Slalom Saturday, 27 kayakers raced the river from the Hayden Arch Bridge to the Belfry Bridge.

It had been a rainy weekend, but clouds threatening more precipitation Sunday morning didn’t dampen spirits during the Stinking Water Sprint Downriver Race from Demaris Springs to Belfry Bridge.

A cloud surrounded Cedar Mountain like a big smoke ring Sunday. Birds swooped at the frothy green surface as though playing chicken with the river. Then the 29 kayakers came round the bend, careening through the rapids with wide paddles digging into the choppy white water.

One second the stubby kayaks would be bouncing over the suface like buoyant skipping stones. Then, for a breathless instant they would submerge, with only the kayaker’s head and shoulders poking above the seething chop.

Spectators watching along the river and the bluff above whooped and hollered, encouraging the kayakers. Once the boaters reached a smooth bend in the stream, more than one had a smile on their face. They were having a blast.

The slalom, the party and music Saturday night and the sprint Sunday were indeed a celebration and a enjoyable way to advocate conservation of the Shoshone and rivers elsewhere.

The three-day festivities were organized to promote conservation, said Katherine Thompson, Northwest Wyoming program director for The Nature Conservancy. Conservation is ongoing to protect the Shoshone and other rivers, she said.

That’s what Andy Quick, one of the primary coordinators/partners of the event, thinks as well. Quick, who is the owner of Gradient Mountain Sports in Cody, spoke right after the Sunday race.

Supporters are also upgrading the parking area below the Belfry Bridge where anglers and boaters access the river, he said. A changing shelter and picnic shelter are completed, Quick said.

Below the bridge, conservation-related activities were in full swing Saturday morning for youth and families, Quick said.

At the slalom Saturday, helpers had to tough out the rain.

“I was really impressed with our volunteers,” Quick said. “They did a good job.”

The free mini-music festival by WYOmericana Caravan set for the City Park Saturday night was moved to Cassie’s Supper Club due to the wet weather. He estimated 200 people attended the music fest.

“It turned out to be an awesome venue,” Quick said. “It was packed.”

While folks enjoyed a riverside lunch, organizers discussed their conservation progress Sunday.

“We’re interested in habitat conservation,” Katherine Thompson said. The purpose of the festival is to promote that conservation.

For example, The Conservancy partners with ranchers to improve water quality such as providing off-creek water sources to keep cattle from damaging riparian areas. Projects including the removal of invasive plants like Russian olive are ongoing. Russian olive overrun areas, steals water from native plants and offers limited benefit to wildlife, Thompson said.

Christine Adams, deputy director of Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resources Trust, said her organization, created in 2005 by the Wyoming Legislature, has $100 million in its trust. The Legislature would like to invest a total of $200 million into the trust.

The interest from the trust is used to fund conservation projects such as invasive species removal. They look at approximately 80 projects per year.

The trust has invested $3 million into Park County conservation projects since 2006. Trust money is usually the first funding organizations get, so they can employ it as a match or leverage to garner more funding, Adams said.

Thanks to the Buffalo Bill Dam delivering a steady supply when water dwindles in other rivers in August, the Shoshone is still going strong downstream of the dam. People from around the region longing for white water action can find it on the Shoshone.

“We want to get the word out,” Thompson said.

Beginners can safely navigate the Shoshone too. If they wish to avoid the big rapids they can. In most other white-water rivers, either the boaters negotiate the rapids or put in, Thompson said.

Or, if they want to ease into an eddy to plan their course through the swift water they can accomplish that too. “It’s a great place to learn,” Thompson said.