Registration is now open for a free Summer tour by motorboat in the Kansas City area to see wildlife and scenery.

According to a news release, staff from the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) will offer a free boat tour of the river 5:30 to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 1. The tour will give participants a chance to experience the river on the water, a far different perspective than glancing at it from a bridge while riding in an automobile. Registration is required for the river cruise and opened July 1. Space is limited. For more information or to register, call the Discovery Center at 816-759-7300.

MDC’s Anita B. Gorman Discovery Center will host the Missouri River boat trip from LaBenite Park in Sugar Creek downstream to the general area of Fort Osage, and then back to LaBenite. A ride on the river provides a chance to see wildlife, but the river also offers a unique vantage point to observe the Kansas City area. The trip will include discussions on the river’s history, ecology, hydrology, and changes made for navigation and flood control. Discussions will also include public river access sites and using the river for canoeing, kayaking, and fishing.

“There’s unique wildlife viewing,” said Heather Shellenberg, MDC education specialist. “We’ve seen deer, a couple of bald eagles, beaver, muskrat, and lots of shore birds.”