Guided paddle with Mt. Arlington Mayor

September 02, 2021| Community, Recreation

By: Donna Macalle-Holly

For our second guided paddle of 2021, in cooperation with NJ Paddle, we invite you to join in the fun of a guided paddle with Mount Arlington Mayor Michael Stanzilis! 

This group paddle will take place on Saturday, September 18, starting at 10 am on Lake Hopatcong. Bring your own kayak or canoe and join Mount Arlington Mayor Michael Stanzilis, LHF Grants and Program Director Donna Macalle-Holly, and avid paddler and photographer Jeremy Travers as they lead you on a paddle along the east shore in Mount Arlington Borough to Jefferson Township and along the west shore in Hopatcong Borough.  Along the way, Jeremy will share his knowledge of wildlife and birds, Donna will discuss lake history and lake ecology and Mayor Stanzilis will share some anecdotes about the Borough of Mount Arlington.

We hope you can join us for this group paddle as we explore and learn about New Jersey’s largest lake!

Paddle details:

• Saturday, September 18, starting at 10 am.
• Space is limited. Registration is required.
• Bring your own kayak or canoe.
• PFD must be worn.
• A port-a-john is available at the launch site.
• The launch site is a sandy beach.
• Paddlers should be able to get in and out of their kayaks/canoes without assistance or have another paddler with you to provide assistance.
• More details on meeting time and place will be shared after registration. 

Cost: $25 donation/per person

Duration: 2.5 hours

This paddle is sold out and registration is now closed. 

Your guides

Mayor Michael Stanzilis has served as Mayor of the Borough of Mount Arlington since 2016. Prior to that time, he was a Councilman and Land Use Board Chairman.  He is an Assistant Scout Master of Troop 188 and is the Vice President, Membership, and Government Affairs at Morris County Chamber of Commerce.  Mike and his wife Laura look forward to joining us on this group paddle to explore Lake Hopatcong together. 

Donna Macalle-Holly has been boating and living on Lake Hopatcong for over three decades.  As the grants and program director for the Lake Hopatcong Foundation, she is responsible for environmental, educational, and recreational programming at the Foundation.  She is an avid paddler and oversees the Foundation’s Water Scouts program, which educates volunteers on how to identify and remove aquatic invasive species such as Water Chestnut. Donna and her husband Bruce live on Lake Hopatcong across from Liffy Island, which is preserved open space.     

Jeremy Travers began paddling on Lake Hopatcong 35 years ago from his childhood home on Bertrand Island.  Since then Jeremy has been exploring and documenting through video and photography all his paddling trips around NJ and around the country.  Over the last nine years, he has spent time on the waters within the upper Musconetcong Watershed and surrounding lakes and sharing his outdoor experiences through social and digital media.  Jeremy volunteers for the Lake Hopatcong Foundation and the Musconetcong Watershed Association and is a founding board member for the newly formed non-profit PEACENJ (People Enjoying Active Conservation of the Environment in NJ) in Hackettstown.

Our partner

NJ Paddle was founded by Brian Garcia. Their website, NJPaddle.org, provides detailed maps of over 50 different paddle locations in New Jersey. They also have a large Facebook group of over 4k members, called the NJ Paddlers. They work by connecting the paddling community with local water-based, non-profit organizations.