Beginning in 2007, Riverside Kayak Connection has partnered yearly with Friends of the Rouge for a kayak tour that highlights the industry of the lower Rouge River.  Launching in Melvindale, paddlers are dwarfed by industry as they cruise past the Ford Rouge Complex, awed by history as they pass under historical suspension bridges, surprised by the great blue herons and kingfishers that frequent the area, and always on the watch for the occasional freighter that makes its way up the river.