Reflection & Celebration: HRRP's Remarkable 2025 Journey

2025 Year in Review

What an amazing year of growth, community, and adventure it has been! 

We have accomplished so much over the past twelve months, and we would like to thank all of you: the community. You all have shown up on rainy days, come out on scorchingly sunny days, walked through brush and vines, and picked up literal TONS of trash, 7000 pounds of trash were picked up with your help!!!

We’d like to highlight our year to celebrate all that has been done, and to get us started for 2026, which is looking to be a stellar year ahead. Registration is already open on our website for January Winter Walks and Invasive Removal events.

Winter

30 - yes, 30 - participants came out for our first Winter Walk of the year to Split Rock in Pelham Bay Park, despite the below freezing temperatures. We learned about the history of the Eastchester Creek canal (basically the Hutchinson River) and the industrial Northeast Bronx/Southeast Mount Vernon. We discussed Anne Hutchinson, the river’s namesake, and learned how the myth of Split Rock is just a myth - but it is a story that has tied people together for generations. 

Our second Winter Walk of the year took us to Willson’s Woods Park in Mount Vernon. We discovered that the Hutchinson River was a viable source for drinking water in the 19th century, and access to this resource helped Mount Vernon grow into the densely populated city it is today. We explored a short trail and shared fun memories despite the chilly air.

Our third and final Winter Walk took place at Nature Study Woods in New Rochelle. We went on a deep dive into the New York, Westchester, and Boston Railway - a now-defunct train line that once ran from the Bronx into Westchester County. We caught the early signs of spring, and shared joyful laughs while getting in some great exercise.

Spring

In April and May 2025, Board Member Don and staff members Frank and Branden repaired and prepared our pontoon boat, which had been stored on land for the winter, for launch by late May. Our pontoon boat, temporarily named Sweetwater, supports all of our river cleanup events and is used throughout the season to take participants on educational and historical EcoTours along the Hutchinson River.

Tour participants enjoyed birdwatching, learning about the river’s history, and sharing personal memories of growing up in the Bronx and lower Westchester. They experienced both the beauty of the river as a natural reserve alongside the Pelham Bay Park Nature Reserve and the stark reality of industrial and other sources of pollution along the waterway.

Our EcoTours have been a major success, helping to expand our outreach efforts and strengthen community involvement and stewardship among the communities along the Hutchinson River.

Later in April, we partnered with Amtrak to engage in a small waterfront cleanup along the train tracks at the end of Erskine Place in the Co-Op City section of the Bronx. Even with only a few volunteers we still picked up 500lbs of garbage from the area! 

Our official cleanup season launched in May with our first large community cleanup at Turtle Cove in Pelham Bay Park. HRRP volunteers and community members picked up a staggering 1000lbs of garbage!

Throughout the spring season, HRRP board member Amelia participated in weekly river herring/American eel migration monitoring at Wilson's Woods Park, facilitated by Seatuck and the Long Island Sound Study. She had the pleasure of observing a river herring trying to make its way over the waterfall at the dam! This is the first documented sighting of a river herring on the Hutch since 2020 - a sign of good health for the river.

Summer

In June, 15 HRRP Members and community residents joined us in Mount Vernon’s Migui Park (though, we don’t know if this park has an official name!) for a massive cleanup where tons of trash were removed from the river’s shoreline. Some of the interesting finds include a mannequin, a microwave, and a comically large firehose. We removed 1 ton of garbage, and had a ton of fun. 

We lit up July with a staff cleanup to trial run cleanups with canoe assistance. Staff and board members picked up 300lbs of miscellaneous car parts and garbage and now, we are all better trained to help support our participants!

Later in July, community members from the Bronx and Westchester joined us for a second shoreline cleanup at Turtle Cove, near Rodman’s Neck. This cleanup was a lively one, with 19 volunteers joining us, and 800lbs of trash removed even after the cleanup only months before!

We launched our EcoTour series - weekend boat rides on our own vessel! Participants enjoyed birdwatching, learning about the history of the river, and sharing memories of growing up in the Bronx and lower Westchester.

Also in July, our board members Melissa and Adjie embarked on their own tour of the Hutch - exploring the river in Westchester and discovering the river’s source in Scarsdale.

Unfortunately, it was brought to our attention that a concrete plant in Mount Vernon was discharging waste into the Hutch, north of the Thomas Pell Wildlife Sanctuary. The EPA quickly responded, and the company was adequately cited. However, despite the bad news, this is an example of how community power can work. TwoFeetOutdoors, a YouTuber who kayaks in New York’s waterways first brought the issue to our attention. The issue grew traction on social media, and was picked up by News 12. The rapid rise of awareness of the problem led to a swift response.

Additionally, after an exciting summer, HRRP sat on a panel at the Environmental Justice Citing Law informational session with Save the Sound, WeAct, and LIPC. We spoke about how the Hutch has long struggled with pollution floating up and down the river, affecting largely working-class communities in lower Westchester and the Northeast Bronx. We also highlighted the lack of safe, public access to the river - a true problem when multiple studies have shown that access to nature benefits mental health.

Fall

In September, HRRP went back to Erskine Place for another cleanup with 17 participants. We cleaned the river’s shoreline, but also responded to community concerns about trash on the street side. We were joined by students from Capital Preparatory Charter School, who enjoyed their time just being outdoors. It is estimated that we picked up 500 pounds of trash.

In October, a steadfast group of brave volunteers joined HRRP and the NYC Urban Park Rangers for our annual canoe-based Thomas Pell Wildlife Sanctuary cleanup. Despite the rain and an impending nor'easter, we managed to pick up at least a half ton of trash, including an abandoned Citibike on the river’s shoreline.

Later in October, community members and friends engaged in our annual Sandford Sweep Cleanup at East Sandford Boulevard in Mount Vernon. 990lbs of trash and metal were removed from the narrow strip of land between the Target parking garage and the river channel.

Our work is getting nationwide attention! From October 28-29, we attended and presented a poster at the Living Shorelines Tech Transfer Workshop, an exciting event for sharing what we have done, but also for collaborating with and learning from others. We visited multiple restoration sites in different stages of restoration along the Naugatuck River. We also listened to lectures about living shorelines, restoration efforts along the Sound, and methods being implemented and studied on the Sound.

 These seasonal accomplishments reflect our commitment to restoring and preserving the Hutchinson River, made possible by the collective efforts of our volunteers, partners, and the supportive community.