James River Women+ (JRW) is dedicated to supporting and promoting the inclusion of gender diverse paddlers within the whitewater community. JRW expands access to the James River Park System, and more specifically, the James River, by supporting access to water paddling sports to those who may not otherwise have the means or support to get involved.

JRW started with a group of friends in 2015, as a way to support each other’s endeavors on the river. The following grew over subsequent years, as new women entered the sport. Officially, the group took a hiatus between 2018 and 2020, as the founders moved onto different career pursuits, but informal paddles continued.

In July 2020, with the prompting of a member, a group of 12 women met up to paddle socially distant, of course. After that paddle, there was a collective, “we should do this more often.” Thanks to the urging of Jen Jimenez and Berkley Nestler, the reins of JRW were handed over and weekly paddles have been a regular occurrence for the last two years. JRW also host roll clinics, skills clinics and out of town trips for folks looking to improve their skills and paddle new rivers. 

In 2021, Tom Wilcox, from the Department of Wildlife Resources, contacted the James River Women to gauge interest in applying for the Virginia Wildlife Grant Program (VWGP) that would go directly to supporting our work. In the winter of 2021, we found out we had been awarded the grant! Kayaking, specifically whitewater kayaking, is largely a legacy sport, meaning that new people usually get into the sport through a relative, friend or partner. A very small percentage of the people who learn to kayak do so of their own accord. Our goal is to provide a space for women and gender diverse people to enter the sport on their own.