This Saturday, the waterways of New York City are given their due at City of Water Day. Organized by the Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance (MWA) and its over 800 Alliance Partners, the event recognizes the potential of our city’s waters.

A participatory day-long fete, City of Water Day is celebrated all over the waterfront with a concentration of activities happening at Governors Island, and Maxwell Place Park in Hoboken, New Jersey. Among the goings on are free boat rides, live music, food, and more. Many of the area’s boathouses participate in the rivery fun by journeying to Governors Island in human powered boats. If you’re interested in learning more about this form of transport you can hit up the individual boathouses directly. You can find a list here.

As for the free boat tours, among the options are an Eco-Cruise, a life of the merchant mariner tour, a fireboat tour, and a Newtown Creek tour aboard a Water Taxi. The tours are currently booked, but there is a chance of boarding by way of the standby line. Check the City of Water Day website for full details.

Another highlight of the celebration is the Cardboard Kayak Race. Powered by Con Ed, the race sees teams crafting a seaworthy vessel that they will race later in the afternoon. All the materials needed to build the boat are supplied. Construction commences at 12pm on Governors Island at Kayak Hill, and the race takes place at 2:30pm.

Also, there are plenty of “In Your Neighborhood” City of Water Day events to take part in. The Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (LMCC) is hosting the Paths to Pier 42: Summer Waterfront Celebration, an afternoon of art performances, installations and hands-on science projects at Pier 42. It runs 2pm-6pm. If you’re in or want to venture to Staten Island, the National Lighthouse Museum is holding a walking tour of the lighthouse historic district as well as free tours of the museum between 10am-4pm. And, for those who like to sail, the Offshore Sailing School, in partnership with Brookfield Place, is offering free 45-minute rides on their Colgate 26 fleet for the first 45 people who sign up. Boats depart Brookfield Place at North Cove Marina at 11am, 12pm, and 1pm and it is first come first serve. For a complete list of “In Your Neighborhood” happenings, visit the City of Water Day website.