More than 400 people will hit the Conasauga River on Saturday as part of Georgia River Network’s Paddle Georgia 2016. The canoe and kayak journey will end seven days and 103 miles later in Rome.

The 2016 edition of Paddle Georgia will begin in the Whitfield County community of Beaverdale and end in downtown Rome’s Heritage Park on the Coosa River June 24. Along the way, participants will paddle on the Conasauga, Coosawattee, Oostanaula and Coosa rivers and get an up-close look at these rivers that cut a swath through northwest Georgia’s Ridge and Valley region.

Paddlers hailing from across Georgia, 13 other states and even Australia will make the event the largest weeklong canoe/kayak camping adventure in the country with participants ranging in age from 4 to 84.

The Paddle Georgia Fall Float on the Flint is scheduled for Oct. 8-10. The three-day, 56-mile trip will begin at the Mitchell County Landing on a Saturday and end in Bainbridge on a Monday. Last year, more than 140 paddlers participated in the Fall Float.

Registration is not yet open for this event, and more information will follow.

This year marks the 12th anniversary for Paddle Georgia. In the event’s first 11 years, GRN has introduced more than 3,600 paddlers to more than 1,100 miles of water trails on 12 Georgia rivers. Along the way, the event has generated more than $300,000 for river protection.