Blazing Paddles Paddlefest was an early birthday gift to the City of Cleveland!
/Happy Birthday to the City of Cleveland! July 22nd is the anniversary of the 1796 date when Moses Cleaveland and his boat of Connecticut Land Company surveyors landed at the confluence of the Cuyahoga River and Lake Erie, establishing a capital city of the Connecticut Western Reserve. Seven years later, Ohio became our nation's 17th state. In 1832 the Ohio & Erie Canal was completed. The Gilded Age (1870s to the early 1900s) in American history ensued, fueling Cleveland’s rise as a major American city and industrial manufacturing superpower.
It's no accident our Blazing Paddles Paddlefest is held on the weekend closest to this important anniversary. Mark your calendars (Facebook event link) for the 8th annual Blazing Paddles Paddlefest on July 17-18, 2026! We will be an #America250Ohio event for #America250.
Thank you to our vendors, site and hospitality partners, safety armada (led by Argonaut), our take-charge team leads, and our amazing and indefatigable volunteers (click the hyperlink for a super-analogy) who made Saturday’s brilliant day on the Cuyahoga River possible for our guests!
This is an iterative blog post as it will be updated with new images, video, and text (drone video and stills are in process). But images of a large-scale outdoor event are like fish and news - both are best enjoyed when served fresh!