'Stop minding your own business': Pitch in to save river access in Saskatoon, says paddler

Canoe enthusiast Mike Smith is recruiting like-minded people to try to keep the river accessible in Saskatoon.

"Stop minding your own business," urged Smith on CBC Radio's Saskatoon Morning.

Smith started a Facebook page after budget cuts forced the Meewasin Valley Authority to close the Fred Heal Canoe Launch, Paradise Beach and Poplar Bluffs.

• Meewasin Valley Authority closing river access sites, reducing staff after budget cuts

"I'm an avid paddler. I love the river. I use it all the time," he said.

Less online talk, more action 

Smith wants people who love the river like he does to pitch in and keep those sites open. But after starting the Facebook page he quickly realized it was not enough.

"Hey, man," he said to himself, "you are actually going to have to get out and take some initiative or else it's all talk."

This weekend he urged members of the group to come out to the canoe launch.

"The water was just like glass; the geese are landing and starting to nest; you can see Beaver Creek from the beach. It's just a beautiful spot."

That beautiful spot, however, comes with rusty nails and garbage underfoot, so the group went to work cleaning up the site, showing that users might be able to take on the responsibility.

Party with a garbage bag 

Smith is unsure what stakeholders think about the work his group is doing. The City of Saskatoon, the Meewasin Valley Authority and surrounding rural municipality are meeting later this week to talk about the implications of closing the sites. Smith hopes to learn more then.

In the meantime, there is one other group of users that Smith will go after. He said people who party on the beach should learn to party with a garbage bag and take out what they bring in.   

"These are the people that make the messes and these are the people that we need to get through to," he said.