Butler County Conservation has announced the opening of a fully adaptive dock at Sportsmans Park in Clarksville. Conservation Naturalist Annette Wittrock.
“A fully adaptive dock means it includes an accessible dock and a ramp, as well as a bench that slides out over your kayak or canoe launch, so those with mobility issues can get into and out of their boat on that bench,” Wittrock says. “So this launch will hold the boat steady and out of the water, and then there’s holds for them to pull or push themselves out into the water. We think this will be a great addition, not only for our public users, but it’ll also come in handy during some of our events with schools and those less experienced paddlers. So hopefully they’ll stay out of the water. So we hope that it provides a place for everyone who wants to come out and fish and boat at Sportsmans Park a way to do that easily.”
The project was completed with donated funds from the Dorothy Winkey Estate, which was specifically donated for work at Sportsmans Park. They also received matching funds from the McElroy Trust and Guernsey Foundation.
Wittrock says an event will be held Friday at Sportsmans Park, where people can see the new dock in action.
“The Iowa Department of Natural Resources allows all people to fish without a license from Friday, June 7th through Sunday, June 9th this year. So it’s a way to get those who may have never fished or want to try it a chance to do so without purchasing a fishing license. We’re going to have an event on Friday, June 7th in the evening at Sportsmans Park. We’re going to bring all of our kayaks out to the pond, and we’ll have fishing poles, bait, and lures available for those who want to join us. We’ll have a couple door prizes available and everyone who comes can enter to win one of those. We’re going to be out at Sportsmans Park from 5:30 to 8:00 in the evening.”
