VISITORS and residents will be making a splash in York later this month, when the city’s third Festival Of The Rivers gets under way.

Two weeks of activities will be held on and around the Ouse and Foss, from July 12 to 27.

The opening weekend will include the annual York Rotary Dragon Boat challenge, now in its sixth year, but the event will also feature a raft of other events.

They include cruises, regattas, swimming, dancing, fishing, canoeing, pirates and parties.

Liz Topi, the council’s events and festivals officer said: “This is a fantastic event for York. From cruises to regattas, fishing to canoeing, pirates to parties, lectures and plays, the Festival Of The Rivers has something for everyone and is a wonderful opportunity to put our rivers in the picture.”

Organisers will be hoping the festival goes more smoothly than last year, when torrential rain spoiled the fun, and forced the postponement of a planned duck race on the Ouse.

This year’s event will see the return of the popular Syntan Barge, one of the last remaining Sheffield size motor barges, which will be moored at King’s Staith from July 12 to 20. Visitors can look around Syntan and learn about her history.

Also on July 12, from 10am to 3pm, there will be a demonstration by York Canoe Club in the Foss Basin to showcase a range of paddle sports. There will also be competitions in freestyle, extreme slalom, bungee kayaking and chariot racing.

From 10.45am to 5pm the same day, there will be a Veterans Day at Imphal Barracks in Fulford. Visitors can join Yorkshire’s soldiers for a fun, family day and visit the veterans’ village, where there will be bands, badge making and an exhibition by the Castle Museum.

The next day, July 13, will see the Dragon Boat race in aid of local charities, an event that has been backed by the Archbishop of York Dr John Sentamu among others.

In the programme for the event, Dr Sentamu writes: “Last year’s event was a great success – both in fundraising and fun-raising. Let’s see if this year the Dragon Boats can bring in even more to support this year’s charities.”

Throughout the festival there will be an exhibition in Tower Gardens of river-themed paintings and sculpture by pupils of Applefields School, York.

Other activities include a ‘food for free’ walk along the bank of the Foss, looking at and collecting edible plants, which will then be cooked and eaten on the bank.

The City of Hull boat will be moored at Kings Staith for part of the festival, as will a Humber keel and sloop. On Wednesday, July 23, there will be an event entitled ‘Buzzing by the river’ at the Merchant Adventurers’ Hall. This is a celebration of the myriad insects that flutter along the banks of the Ouse and Foss, featuring performance poetry, projected images and music.

For more details on the times, pricing and nature of the above events and more, visit www.yorkfestivals.com