2025 Channel Cat Talks
Tuesdays & Thursdays from 9-10:45 a.m.
NEW! Season Passes for $200 (choose 13 Talks) and Buy 3 Tickets - Get 1 Free!
- May 27 (Tuesday Only) - The Inside Pitch: Minor League Baseball in the Quad Cities
- Dave Heller, Owner, QC River Bandits
- River Bandits' owner Dave Heller will discuss the history of Minor League baseball in the Quad Cities, the Kansas City Royals, and the future Major League stars currently or recently in the Quad Cities.
- May 29 (Thursday Only) - Lock & Dam for Kids!
- Anthony Heddlesten, Civil Engineer, USACE
- Geared toward the younger audience, children and their parents will learn about the purpose of a lock and dam, its functions, and how our navigation system works from dredging to operations to environmental restoration. Participants will have a chance to experience locking through a dam (navigation queue permitting) during this exciting and informative journey.
- June 3 & 5 - Paddle to the Amazon
- Dana Starkell, Adventurer & World Record Holder
- At age 19 Dana and his father paddled a canoe from central Canada to the mouth of the Amazon River in Brazil. The Mississippi River was a memorable part of this 2-year Guinness World Record Breaking trip. Listen as Dana shares entertaining stories from their adventure, giving a unique perspective of life on the river.
- June 10 & 12 - Raptors Along the River
- Dave Murcia, Director, Wapsi River Environmental Education Center
- See a live raptor up close and personal as you learn from a Scott County Conservation Naturalist as he discusses birds of prey found in Quad Cities habitats. Hear about the local ecology and the impact humans have on these amazing flying predators.
- June 17 & 19 - RiverCurrents Tour
- Ben Schwind, Education Manager at Common Chord
- A history of American Roots Music up and down the Mississippi River. We'll discuss jazz, blues, gospel, rock & roll, and country and its origins in towns along the river. This presentation will feature live performances along with recorded examplies of some of the legends of American music.
- June 24 & 26 - Upper Mississippi River Fish & Wildlife
- John Duyvejonck, US Fish & Wildlife Biologist, Retired
- This presentation will cover a wide variety of topics relative to the Upper Mississippi River including: Wildlife, Navigation, Invasive species, Water Quality Issues, River Management, Recreation, etc.
- July 8 & 10 - WEDG & Our Mississippi River
- Kathy Wine, Executive Director, River Action
- The goal of WEDG (Waterfront Edge Design Guidelines) is to create the best possible waterfront through resilience, ecology, and access. Take a cruise, explore, and discuss how the Quad Cities is applying these guidelines and standards to our Mississippi riverfront.
- July 15 & 17 - Channel Cat - Behind the Scenes
- Jennifer Hirsch, Manager of Administration & Jake Cassidy, Director of Maintenance
- Guests will learn what it takes to maintain the boats and prep for the season, how projects are funded, and what’s on the horizon for passenger ferryboat service in the Quad Cities.
- July 22 & 24 - Our Unique River Landscape
- Professor Norm Moline, Augustana College
- Pool 15 from Rock island and Davenport to Hampton is a core segment of the Mississippi in the Quad Cities. Its east-west orientation, its flow characteristics, its split into two channels around the Arsenal, and human modifications set the context for the variety of waterfront uses here. Come and enjoy this fascinating landscape mosaic.
- July 29 & 31 - Bix & Friends
- Josh Duffee, Musician / Jazz Historian
- Josh Duffee celebrates the music of the 1920s by playing recordings and talking about the music that Bix Beiderbecke and other groups recorded during the Roaring 20s. Sign up for both days, as the music and information will be different for each channel cat event!
- August 5 & 7 - Living Lands & Waters - Helping Our River & Community
- Andrew Layer, Programs Manager, Living Lands & Waters
- Learn about the history and mission of Living Lands & Waters, driven by founder, president, and East Moline Native, Chad Pregracke. Cruise the river and discuss Andrew's role as Programs Manager, what LL&W does to keep our rivers clean, and the impoact they've had on our community.
- August 12 (Tuesday Only) - History of the USCG Auxiliary && the American Waterway Watch
- Charles Brennan, US Coast Guard Auxiliary Public Affairs Specialist
- Hear a brief history of the US Coast Guard Auxiliary and learn about the America Waterway Watch - a public outreach program that encourages participants to report suspicious activity to the USCG or local law enforcement.
- August 14 (Thursday Only) - Always Ready in the Heartland: a brief history of the US Coast Guard on the Mississippi River
- Todd Wilkinson, US Coast Guard Auxiliary Public Affairs Specialist
- From maintaining aids to navigations to responding to record-breaking floods and protecting the Mississippi River's unique and vibrant ecosystem, learn more about the U.S. Coast Guard's role on America's inland waterways with US Coast Guard Auxiliary Public Affairs Specialist Todd Wilkinson.
- August 19 & 21 - The Water Quality Cycle - River to Faucet to River
- Bob Bohannan, Water Quality Chemist
- The Quad Cities is fortunate to have the Mississippi River as a valuable natural resource. The water quality of this river directly affects our drinking water supply. Human activities at both the regional and local levels influence the river, our drinking water, and wastewater management, which in turn impacts the river itself. Discover actions you can take to help improve the water quality within the water cycle.
- August 26 & 28 - Gongoozling with USACE
- Anthony Heddlesten, Civil Engineer, USACE & Josh Hendrix, Geotechnical Engineer, USACE
- 2025 is the 250th anniversary of USACE’s founding by General George Washington’s appointment of the first engineer officers on 16 June 1775! Following along 2024’s 200th Anniversary of the first regulation to start cleaning up the Mississippi River and the first appropriation to start working on creating navigable waterways, we will explore some USACE history, we will lock through the first lock constructed in the 1930s for the 9-foot channel system (navigation queue permitting) and learn how it operates, we will discuss why the system was built, and we will share about the maintenance and upkeep required to keep it running for over 90 years.
CLICK HERE to go to the 2025 Riverine Walks full schedule and details.
NEW! Season Passes for $200 (choose 13 Talks) and Buy 3 Tickets - Get 1 Free!
A special thanks to our 2025 sponsors:
Click below to make a general donation to River Action via PayPal.
