We have moved our blog to its own site. All of our future posts and videos will be found at...
http://kayak559.com
C-ya there
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Wednesday, August 8, 2007
Ocoee River
Hey guys,
Daniel and myself just got back from Tennessee. We spent three great days on the Ocoee River. It was my first time boating on the east coast, and it was a lot of fun. We camped with our friends Bret and Mark, along with the Memphis Whitewater club. They are a huge club with many different kinds of paddlers.
The Ocoee is a class III river with a large amount of playspots. It is incredibly crowded compared to even the S. fork American. There are literally hundreds of rafts and tons of kayakers. We saw a lot of old school boats as well as the latest playboats.
The weather was hot, as you can imagine, but not too bad. It cooled off at night which made camping nice. The water was warm and we boated with only our rash guards.
After we played for three days, we stopped by the Jackson Factory on our way back to Nashville. Carman and EJ both gave us a tour of their facility. It was fun seeing how the boats are assembled. Thanks to both of them for taking time out of their day to visit with us.
After a long flight home, we made it back to the 559. It was a really fun trip and I hope to make it out there for Creek Week in February.
Take care
Evan
Daniel and myself just got back from Tennessee. We spent three great days on the Ocoee River. It was my first time boating on the east coast, and it was a lot of fun. We camped with our friends Bret and Mark, along with the Memphis Whitewater club. They are a huge club with many different kinds of paddlers.
The Ocoee is a class III river with a large amount of playspots. It is incredibly crowded compared to even the S. fork American. There are literally hundreds of rafts and tons of kayakers. We saw a lot of old school boats as well as the latest playboats.
The weather was hot, as you can imagine, but not too bad. It cooled off at night which made camping nice. The water was warm and we boated with only our rash guards.
After we played for three days, we stopped by the Jackson Factory on our way back to Nashville. Carman and EJ both gave us a tour of their facility. It was fun seeing how the boats are assembled. Thanks to both of them for taking time out of their day to visit with us.
After a long flight home, we made it back to the 559. It was a really fun trip and I hope to make it out there for Creek Week in February.
Take care
Evan
Monday, July 23, 2007
Hans checks in from Washington
With the ongoing Cali drought in full effect, I decided to pay a visit to my old friends Bruce Weide and Pat Tucker in the North Cascades of Washington. Pat's family homesteaded a "stump farm" near Darrington, in the early 1900's. The property now serves as a retreat for the Tucker clan and is known to the locals as Tuckerville. It is also close to some great wilderness whitewater runs.
I flew in to Seattle and rented a car and drove to Seattle Raft and Kayak. At the urging of EJ Lloyd, I passed on all the larger volume river runners and demoed a Jackson FUN. It didn't dawn on me till later that when it is 98 degrees in Seattle, all the glacial fed rivers go to flood stage! Which is what the local Darrington rivers (Sauk and Skagit) are. So, when I pulled my boat out of the back of the rental car, Bruce looked at me and said "I think we have tupperware in the cabin bigger than that".
Bruce had back surgery 9 months ago that repaired and fused two vertebrae. Also, added a couple of metal rods. So my expectations for river difficulty were low, because he sounded unsure of his ability to boat. But, in classic Bruce style, when I showed up he was ready to tackle anything below class V, of course. We decided to drive and scout some of the local runs. All of them (Sauk, Suiattle, and Skagit) looked intimidating to Mr.California - big, cold, opaque with glacial milk, and worst of all, full of wood. We decided to do the Skagit the next day because it seemed the easiest and had a road right next to it (for obvious reasons!).
The Skagit is a big river, and for us it was extra big. The guide book said that the best flows were from 2000 to 8000 cfs. Because of the high temps, today it was 12000! Couple of practice rolls in 38 degree water (can you say ice cream headache!) and we're off. We started out unsure, but slowly gained confidence in the class 2 rapids. The sceanry was incredible. Jagged peaks, glaciers, cascade rain forest, and wildlife. After eight miles of pretty moderate rapids we came to the S-Turns. These are a series of class 3+/4- rapids that drops through a narrow basalt canyon for about a half mile. As we approached, I thought about my little "tupperware" boat and my friend Evan Jackson. As it turned out, the S-Turns were big fun! Big crossing waves, much like River Rat on the Kings, only bigger. Wish I had pictures, but I was to afraid to eddy out. Both Bruce and I had so much fun, we bike shuttled and ran S-Turns again.
On boating day two, we decided on the upper Sauk River. Again, both of us were nervous because of the nature of the river (wood and high water!) and that neither of us had done it. As had happened for us on Brush Creek, at the take-out, a guardian angel was waiting to save our butts. Kelly boated a Cat with oars, and had run this section of river maybe a thousand times. He also taught river rescue and first aid. He needed a shuttle, and we needed help. All good!
We put on at Bedal campground, where at 11am it was already 90 degrees. The first class 3 rapid ended with a snag protruding dangerously into the heart of the rapid. Either miss it or limbo. We all missed it. I asked Kelly if anyone had ever thought of cutting down the snag with a chain saw. Revealing his wilderness ethics, he explained that this was a wilderness area, and that the snag "had more right to be here than you". End of story. We had a great day with Kelly guiding us through the many channels and log jams. He was full of information and was quick to point out things of interests. Like the house that washed away in a flood and now resided in a log jam. Or the 18 wheeler that went for a swim that didn't turn out so good. We finished with a rapid named Rocky Road (class 3) that was the highlight of the run. The run was so good (scenic beauty and rapids) that we ran it again with Kelly the next day. It was as good or better the second day.
I had to take the boat back to SRK and pick up my wife in Seattle. We ended the week with a few days of strenuous hiking near Darrington. It was a great trip for me for two reasons. One, I was able to boat in an area that I had never been before. It was incredibly beautiful and had challenging whitewater. I would recommend this as a kayaking destination to anyone. Second, and most important, I was able to boat with a great friend, who had overcome serious surgery and was able to enjoy kayaking again.
I flew in to Seattle and rented a car and drove to Seattle Raft and Kayak. At the urging of EJ Lloyd, I passed on all the larger volume river runners and demoed a Jackson FUN. It didn't dawn on me till later that when it is 98 degrees in Seattle, all the glacial fed rivers go to flood stage! Which is what the local Darrington rivers (Sauk and Skagit) are. So, when I pulled my boat out of the back of the rental car, Bruce looked at me and said "I think we have tupperware in the cabin bigger than that".
Bruce had back surgery 9 months ago that repaired and fused two vertebrae. Also, added a couple of metal rods. So my expectations for river difficulty were low, because he sounded unsure of his ability to boat. But, in classic Bruce style, when I showed up he was ready to tackle anything below class V, of course. We decided to drive and scout some of the local runs. All of them (Sauk, Suiattle, and Skagit) looked intimidating to Mr.California - big, cold, opaque with glacial milk, and worst of all, full of wood. We decided to do the Skagit the next day because it seemed the easiest and had a road right next to it (for obvious reasons!).
The Skagit is a big river, and for us it was extra big. The guide book said that the best flows were from 2000 to 8000 cfs. Because of the high temps, today it was 12000! Couple of practice rolls in 38 degree water (can you say ice cream headache!) and we're off. We started out unsure, but slowly gained confidence in the class 2 rapids. The sceanry was incredible. Jagged peaks, glaciers, cascade rain forest, and wildlife. After eight miles of pretty moderate rapids we came to the S-Turns. These are a series of class 3+/4- rapids that drops through a narrow basalt canyon for about a half mile. As we approached, I thought about my little "tupperware" boat and my friend Evan Jackson. As it turned out, the S-Turns were big fun! Big crossing waves, much like River Rat on the Kings, only bigger. Wish I had pictures, but I was to afraid to eddy out. Both Bruce and I had so much fun, we bike shuttled and ran S-Turns again.
On boating day two, we decided on the upper Sauk River. Again, both of us were nervous because of the nature of the river (wood and high water!) and that neither of us had done it. As had happened for us on Brush Creek, at the take-out, a guardian angel was waiting to save our butts. Kelly boated a Cat with oars, and had run this section of river maybe a thousand times. He also taught river rescue and first aid. He needed a shuttle, and we needed help. All good!
We put on at Bedal campground, where at 11am it was already 90 degrees. The first class 3 rapid ended with a snag protruding dangerously into the heart of the rapid. Either miss it or limbo. We all missed it. I asked Kelly if anyone had ever thought of cutting down the snag with a chain saw. Revealing his wilderness ethics, he explained that this was a wilderness area, and that the snag "had more right to be here than you". End of story. We had a great day with Kelly guiding us through the many channels and log jams. He was full of information and was quick to point out things of interests. Like the house that washed away in a flood and now resided in a log jam. Or the 18 wheeler that went for a swim that didn't turn out so good. We finished with a rapid named Rocky Road (class 3) that was the highlight of the run. The run was so good (scenic beauty and rapids) that we ran it again with Kelly the next day. It was as good or better the second day.
I had to take the boat back to SRK and pick up my wife in Seattle. We ended the week with a few days of strenuous hiking near Darrington. It was a great trip for me for two reasons. One, I was able to boat in an area that I had never been before. It was incredibly beautiful and had challenging whitewater. I would recommend this as a kayaking destination to anyone. Second, and most important, I was able to boat with a great friend, who had overcome serious surgery and was able to enjoy kayaking again.
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Getting Loopie at the Mystery Hole
Now that we have found a deep hole that we can throw some ends in, we're trying to learn some tricks. Check back and see how we progress over the next few weeks. Hopefully you will see some McNastys, back loops, and entry moves very soon. For now, we have lots of cartwheels and loops.
Enjoy the video
Saturday, July 7, 2007
Jeff checks in from the Kern
You missed a fine trip, 7.5 miles Thursday, 12 Friday, lots of fun class 4 thrown in with a 5+. One of our crew "Monterey Pete" ran the 5+ "Royal Flush" our second day, laughed at it after it was over. Balls the size of grapefruit!
As you folks know, I don't like driving too far for kayaking, but this run is 2.5 hours away from Frresno and well worth it (best thing this close to us besides Kaweah), so I'm going back soon. We bombed down this run both days, but unfortunately didn't get any shots of us running the rapids.
Jeff
Jeremy in the hot springs on a hot day
Jeremy's ready for more
As you folks know, I don't like driving too far for kayaking, but this run is 2.5 hours away from Frresno and well worth it (best thing this close to us besides Kaweah), so I'm going back soon. We bombed down this run both days, but unfortunately didn't get any shots of us running the rapids.
Jeff
Jeremy in the hot springs on a hot day
Jeremy's ready for more 
Friday, July 6, 2007
Down in a hole
Hey boaters,
This year we have managed to have a tremendous amount of fun on 47% of our average snow pack. Thanks to a wonderful group effort, it looks like we are going to have a little bit more fun. On July 3rd, I was on my way to work. I passed by an intersection that I go through everyday. For some reason, I glanced down the canal at Shaw and Brawley and I saw a horizon line. Curious, I pulled over and walked down to the water. What was found, was a gentle little hole that had a lot of potential for fun. I returned later that day with Larry in tow.
Brawley Hole
The hole is fairly deep and super mellow. It is the best hole I can imagine for someone just starting out in hole surfing. It is very forgiving with good eddies and playful shoulders. We managed to play in the hole for about 45 minutes, then the cops showed up. They were nice and told us to leave. We talked with one officer at length, and he said they generally don't write tickets for playing in the canal. (Just FYI).
With our curiosity fully sparked, we called Jeff on the phone and had him jump on Google Earth. Using cell phones to communicate, Jeff navigated us all over the valley, as we combed the canals looking for a safe place to play. What we discovered was terrifying. There are pour overs, in our local canals, that would swallow you up and never let you out. A couple of them, on the west side of town, gave us chills just looking at them. Feeling deflated, we returned to the hole on Shaw to call it a night.
Back at the canal, an employee from the Fresno Water District was there checking the flow. He was a nice fella and gave us a lot of good information on where to find some play spots on the east side of town. At 9:30pm we headed east and thought we found what we were looking for. When we pulled up to the side of the canal, we saw a great pour over that formed sweet holes on the left and right, and a green wave in the middle. We shined our headlights on it for about 20 minutes and then went home, eager to return the next day.
The following afternoon, Paul, Eric, and myself pushed off the bank of our new play spot, only to be sorely disappointed. It wasn't terrible, it just wasn't great. The hole on the right was sloppy and flushed too easily. The hole on the left was much better, but didn't have eddy service. The wave in the middle was hit and miss, as it would glass up, and then turn into a mushy foam pile. Needless to say, I felt defeated. I stared at the hole and shouted out loud, "Why?"
Strike two
Two days later, armed with even more Google Earth locations, I met Dan at the Alta Weir for some surfing. It was pretty fun. The main wave is a bit slow for our short boats, but is still good enough to carve on. Behind the wave is a hole that has a small sweet spot. The hole is fast and turbulent, but it will give up loops and cartwheels. We surfed for over an hour and then decided to check out the canals again.
There is a saying that states, "Persistence pays off." Well today it did. As we slowly drove down the dirt road of an orange orchard, we came upon what is destined to be our new favorite park and play spot. It's a big hole that is very much like Gauge hole, only better. It's deep and retentive, and has a huge eddy on river right. Looking down on it, I was scared.
Reluctantly, I slipped off the bank of the canal and ferried across to the eddy on river right. Dan was on the bank with a throw rope. He had explicit instructions to pull me out if I yelled ROPE! I took several meager passes at the hole, each time getting deeper and deeper into the trough. Finally after several passes, a few rolls, and some cartwheels, we deemed the hole safe. It is VERY retentive, but will flush if you flip and stay down for a second or two. We played for over an hour and had a blast. We worked on tricks, rolled a lot, got window shaded a lot, and went home tired and happy. We've yet to name the spot, so feel free to voice any ideas you have.
DISCLAIMER: (this is the part I hate, I will try not to sound like a prick)
A. It's in a canal
B. It's on private property.
Call me or email me and I will give you directions on how to get there. You can also ask Dan. It is hidden off the road in an orange orchard. We saw the homeowners who live near by and they seem ok. We waved, and they waved back. They didn't call the Sheriff, so for now we're good. We are currently looking for access to the spot, where we don't have to cross any private property. I'll keep you posted on that. So if you will enlighten me, I would like to set up some ground rules for this spot.
1. Drive very slow down the dirt road and try to not kick up any dust.
2. If you run into someone, be really really nice to them and explain to them what you are doing and invite them to watch.
3. If you are asked to leave, do not argue, just politely leave. We want to be as nice as possible.
4. Keep the place clean. Even pick up other peoples trash if you see it. This is not a problem with our group. You guys are great at this.
5. Carpool. Don't play here alone, but don't bring 10 cars either. Find a spot to meet and then carpool in. We don't want a bunch of cars drawing attention to ourselves.
6. Report any positive or negative feedback from the land owners or Sheriff, to our NEW kayak club site.
7. Most important, HAVE FUN! This is a sweet hole. I promise you will love it. If it was just so so, I wouldn't go through all this dialog with you. It's amazing. That said, it is a pretty sticky hole. If you have played at Gauge Hole at 2500 cfs, Chili bar Hole, or Reno, you'll be fine. If not, call me and I'll take you out there to show you the rounds. A strong roll is required, no swimming please.
That's it. Sorry I ran so long. I hope you enjoy the video and even more the hole itself. I'm going to Santa Cruz for 2 weeks. I'll see you when I get back. I hope you all have some great stories to tell.
Take care.
Evan
This year we have managed to have a tremendous amount of fun on 47% of our average snow pack. Thanks to a wonderful group effort, it looks like we are going to have a little bit more fun. On July 3rd, I was on my way to work. I passed by an intersection that I go through everyday. For some reason, I glanced down the canal at Shaw and Brawley and I saw a horizon line. Curious, I pulled over and walked down to the water. What was found, was a gentle little hole that had a lot of potential for fun. I returned later that day with Larry in tow.
Brawley HoleThe hole is fairly deep and super mellow. It is the best hole I can imagine for someone just starting out in hole surfing. It is very forgiving with good eddies and playful shoulders. We managed to play in the hole for about 45 minutes, then the cops showed up. They were nice and told us to leave. We talked with one officer at length, and he said they generally don't write tickets for playing in the canal. (Just FYI).
With our curiosity fully sparked, we called Jeff on the phone and had him jump on Google Earth. Using cell phones to communicate, Jeff navigated us all over the valley, as we combed the canals looking for a safe place to play. What we discovered was terrifying. There are pour overs, in our local canals, that would swallow you up and never let you out. A couple of them, on the west side of town, gave us chills just looking at them. Feeling deflated, we returned to the hole on Shaw to call it a night.
Back at the canal, an employee from the Fresno Water District was there checking the flow. He was a nice fella and gave us a lot of good information on where to find some play spots on the east side of town. At 9:30pm we headed east and thought we found what we were looking for. When we pulled up to the side of the canal, we saw a great pour over that formed sweet holes on the left and right, and a green wave in the middle. We shined our headlights on it for about 20 minutes and then went home, eager to return the next day.
The following afternoon, Paul, Eric, and myself pushed off the bank of our new play spot, only to be sorely disappointed. It wasn't terrible, it just wasn't great. The hole on the right was sloppy and flushed too easily. The hole on the left was much better, but didn't have eddy service. The wave in the middle was hit and miss, as it would glass up, and then turn into a mushy foam pile. Needless to say, I felt defeated. I stared at the hole and shouted out loud, "Why?"
Strike twoTwo days later, armed with even more Google Earth locations, I met Dan at the Alta Weir for some surfing. It was pretty fun. The main wave is a bit slow for our short boats, but is still good enough to carve on. Behind the wave is a hole that has a small sweet spot. The hole is fast and turbulent, but it will give up loops and cartwheels. We surfed for over an hour and then decided to check out the canals again.
There is a saying that states, "Persistence pays off." Well today it did. As we slowly drove down the dirt road of an orange orchard, we came upon what is destined to be our new favorite park and play spot. It's a big hole that is very much like Gauge hole, only better. It's deep and retentive, and has a huge eddy on river right. Looking down on it, I was scared.
Reluctantly, I slipped off the bank of the canal and ferried across to the eddy on river right. Dan was on the bank with a throw rope. He had explicit instructions to pull me out if I yelled ROPE! I took several meager passes at the hole, each time getting deeper and deeper into the trough. Finally after several passes, a few rolls, and some cartwheels, we deemed the hole safe. It is VERY retentive, but will flush if you flip and stay down for a second or two. We played for over an hour and had a blast. We worked on tricks, rolled a lot, got window shaded a lot, and went home tired and happy. We've yet to name the spot, so feel free to voice any ideas you have.
DISCLAIMER: (this is the part I hate, I will try not to sound like a prick)
A. It's in a canal
B. It's on private property.
Call me or email me and I will give you directions on how to get there. You can also ask Dan. It is hidden off the road in an orange orchard. We saw the homeowners who live near by and they seem ok. We waved, and they waved back. They didn't call the Sheriff, so for now we're good. We are currently looking for access to the spot, where we don't have to cross any private property. I'll keep you posted on that. So if you will enlighten me, I would like to set up some ground rules for this spot.
1. Drive very slow down the dirt road and try to not kick up any dust.
2. If you run into someone, be really really nice to them and explain to them what you are doing and invite them to watch.
3. If you are asked to leave, do not argue, just politely leave. We want to be as nice as possible.
4. Keep the place clean. Even pick up other peoples trash if you see it. This is not a problem with our group. You guys are great at this.
5. Carpool. Don't play here alone, but don't bring 10 cars either. Find a spot to meet and then carpool in. We don't want a bunch of cars drawing attention to ourselves.
6. Report any positive or negative feedback from the land owners or Sheriff, to our NEW kayak club site.
7. Most important, HAVE FUN! This is a sweet hole. I promise you will love it. If it was just so so, I wouldn't go through all this dialog with you. It's amazing. That said, it is a pretty sticky hole. If you have played at Gauge Hole at 2500 cfs, Chili bar Hole, or Reno, you'll be fine. If not, call me and I'll take you out there to show you the rounds. A strong roll is required, no swimming please.
That's it. Sorry I ran so long. I hope you enjoy the video and even more the hole itself. I'm going to Santa Cruz for 2 weeks. I'll see you when I get back. I hope you all have some great stories to tell.
Take care.
Evan
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
Brawley Hole
Could this be the playspot we've been lookking for? I doubt it, but it is food for thought. If this is right in the middle of town, there has got to be a more secluded hole we can play in. It's your mission to go find it.
It's a real mellow spot. It's shallow in the trough, but gets deeper in the foam pile.
Nice shoulders and eddies on both sides
It's a real mellow spot. It's shallow in the trough, but gets deeper in the foam pile.
Nice shoulders and eddies on both sides
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Guage Hole @ 2500 cfs
Daniel dropped off a video tape that he filmed earlier this year. It was a one of our first playboating sessions at Guage hole at the 2500cfs level. We were trying to get the hole dialed, while working on some moves. The results were a sloppy fun time. Daniel also hit his first Re-entry move, and loop. Way to go brother.
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
American River Festival
Saturday morning Gary Eggerts, Glenn Boxx, Evan Lloyd and I made it to Chili Bar, where Evan registered to participate in the rodeo. With bib number 32 in place, he headed out for some practice. Evan headed out to Chili Bar Hole for a warm up session. You could see how much he had been practicing. He nailed cartwheels, split wheels and some loops.
The format for the rodeo was two 45-second rides. The scoring was to be done on the best two tricks. Evan’s first ride included some cartwheels and split wheels. On his second ride he nailed a loop. Evan took home the bronze!
Glenn headed down Chili Bar with another paddler. Evan, Gary and I headed down to the Gorge after the rodeo. We decided to start from camp Lotus and play at barking dog. There were only 13 people sitting in the eddy. We got in a couple of rides and then headed down stream. We had forgotten how much flat water there was from there down to the Gorge. There were also hundreds of rafts on the river. It was crazy!
Once in the Gorge we all had a great time and enjoyed some nice rapids. This was my third time in the Gorge and I decided to hit Satan’s Cesspool for the first time. I caught the seam down the middle...no problems.
Saturday night we headed to the awards ceremony. Evan was awarded the bronze medal and $150 cash. In support of the American River Conservancy we also participated in a raffle. I won a kayak coffee table book, semi-dry top and a used Dagger Kayak.
Sunday morning we headed up to Chili Bar. Glenn volunteered that morning at the slalom race while Evan, Gary and I headed down river. We got to the put-in early and beat most of the rafts out onto the river. We stopped to play at Maya and First Threat. At First Threat there were only 11 people in the eddy waiting to surf. Those waiting included river boarders. We made several rides, with Evan nailing a couple of spins.
I had only run Trouble Maker once before and half of it was swimming alongside my boat. This time I caught the eddy with Evan and paddled over Goal Post. No problems! Gary ran it flawlessly too.
Good times at the American River Festival!
Larry
The format for the rodeo was two 45-second rides. The scoring was to be done on the best two tricks. Evan’s first ride included some cartwheels and split wheels. On his second ride he nailed a loop. Evan took home the bronze!
Glenn headed down Chili Bar with another paddler. Evan, Gary and I headed down to the Gorge after the rodeo. We decided to start from camp Lotus and play at barking dog. There were only 13 people sitting in the eddy. We got in a couple of rides and then headed down stream. We had forgotten how much flat water there was from there down to the Gorge. There were also hundreds of rafts on the river. It was crazy!
Once in the Gorge we all had a great time and enjoyed some nice rapids. This was my third time in the Gorge and I decided to hit Satan’s Cesspool for the first time. I caught the seam down the middle...no problems.
Saturday night we headed to the awards ceremony. Evan was awarded the bronze medal and $150 cash. In support of the American River Conservancy we also participated in a raffle. I won a kayak coffee table book, semi-dry top and a used Dagger Kayak.
Sunday morning we headed up to Chili Bar. Glenn volunteered that morning at the slalom race while Evan, Gary and I headed down river. We got to the put-in early and beat most of the rafts out onto the river. We stopped to play at Maya and First Threat. At First Threat there were only 11 people in the eddy waiting to surf. Those waiting included river boarders. We made several rides, with Evan nailing a couple of spins.
I had only run Trouble Maker once before and half of it was swimming alongside my boat. This time I caught the eddy with Evan and paddled over Goal Post. No problems! Gary ran it flawlessly too.
Good times at the American River Festival!
Larry
Monday, June 18, 2007
N. Fork Mokelumne/Tiger Creek
Recently, American Whitewater secured the rights to several scheduled releases on the Tiger Creek section of the Mokelumne. Many boaters showed up to paddle this great section, and also to show their support to AW. A group of Fresno boaters from the N.E.W. Kayak club came up last weekend and the video documents their run. Enjoy the video and be sure to boat Tiger Creek the next time it comes online. The more people who boat it, the more they will release water for us. It's a fun class II-IV section that is creek-like in nature. I would consider it a great place to practice creeking moves in a class III environment.
Until Next time
Evan
Until Next time
Evan
Sunday, June 3, 2007
South Silver
This weekend was craaazzzy!! Evan and his wife Allison, picked up Jeremy and I in Modesto. The original plan was that Evan, Massa and Gene were going to run the South Silver. Jeremy and I were going to go along for the ride and to film their run. We stayed the night in Rancho Cordova on Friday night and went up to South Silver on Saturday. I had brought my boat along in the hopes of running one or two drops. We met up with Gene and his wife Kristin and Massa. Just as we were rounding up to leave to the put-in, we ran into Thomas and his wife Stacy. Thomas was looking for someone to run with, while his wife ran shuttle. Lucky for us that we met Thomas there, he's run this run five times or so. Even with a map, it's hard to find your way around up there, so it was fun frog-leaping the cars in hopes that the other guy knew the way. Everyone walked down to Autobahn for the start of the run. Jeremy set up for videography and we were off. Autobahn was a crazy slide. I was giggling the whole way down. Everyone ran it clean. After that the drops seems to slide into one another. The teacups were bigger than I thought they would be. Everyone else seemed to have expected it...and were ready for it. Skyscraper came next and was pretty intimidating. Allison, Kristin and Stacy were had hiked up and were taking pics. Everyone ran it so clean (except me, my boat ran it pretty sweet though while I walked it). My boat pinned in the cave at the bottom Off Ramp. Thomas pulled a live bait and swam across and got my boat for me (Thank you, thank you, thank you). Several other big drops followed: nose job, plastic surgery and quadruple bypass and some stuff in between. At the end of the day, it's safe to say, we had all used up our adrenaline reserves and were ready to kick it! That is, after the old booty beer, enjoyed by Gene and yours truly. It was an awesome run that I know I wouldn't have gotten through without Evan's encouragement and Thomas' excellent lines. Massa's positive outlook on the run and no fear attitude was super cool. Thanks to Gene for pulling me out just above Skyscraper (saved me a very ugly swim). And thanks to Jeremy for scurrying along side the river to capture it all on tape, or else no one would have believed me.
See you next time
Brandi Lynn
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Reno River Festival 2007
Reno River Festival 2007 was AWESOME! Last Thursday Glenn and I (Larry) headed to Tahoe to stay at his family’s condo. What an incredible spot, just feet from the water. It was really all about the great views. Friday morning at almost 2 a.m. Jeremy started calling my cell phone from outside the front door. He didn’t want to wake up anyone in the condo next door, which was vacant.
We got an early start the next morning and headed into Reno. The three of us registered for “intro to playboating”. This clinic was scheduled for Saturday morning. We checked out all of the booths, which included all the major companies and local adventure outfitters. After that we headed up to explore the Truckee River.
We decided to run the class III-IV section running from Boca down to Farad. For all of you adrenaline junkies………this first part is reminiscent of the lower Kings. After a lazy float we came to some great rapids. We had scouted Bronco on the way down to Reno earlier in the day. Just when we thought we were there we encountered another rapid upstream. I decided, last second, that I wanted to scout it. I was unable to catch the “mini” eddy and worried that I was headed into what I thought was a hazard. All three of us made it through that without and rolling.
We got out at Bronco to take a quick scout. After getting back in our boats we all made some final adjustments. I went down a small drop and my backband came loose. I ended up rolling three times on that rapid because my backband was gone. This was a great section and I would definitely do this section again. Sorry, but we didn’t take the camera along for this part of the river.
On Saturday we headed back down to Reno for our playboating clinic. Jeremy tried out a new boat and spent quite a bit of time in a hole in the slalom channel. Glenn and I both got into the meat of hole 2 & 3, which was lots of fun. I got window shaded, lost hold of my paddle and ended up swimming with a huge crowd there to watch. I don’t understand why no one applauded…..it was a perfect wet exit!
We had a great time watching the playboating events and seeing some of the greatest playboaters competing. We saw E.J., Emily and Dane all perform well. Actually, all three took second in each of their events. We also saw good performances by Jay Kincade, Stephen Wright, Tanya Faux, Ruth Gordon, Nikki Kelly. The kids were amazing and Jason Craig rocked!
Here is the really great news for the festival. A new record was set with over 30,000 people in attendance during the event. Cool!
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Dinkey Creek (Super Dink)
After an infinite amount of time looking at Dreamflows, the N. Fork Kings gauge finally got up to 350cfs. This is a moderate/low flow for the Super Dink section of Dinkey Creek. After some packing and a short drive, Daniel and myself found ourselves at the Dinkey Creek Campgrounds, ready to start our adventure, and an adventure it was.
On Friday, we drove to the highest known put-in for DC. It's on a switchback that puts you just under a mile away from the river. It was a difficult hike, but not too bad. Upon reaching the river, we hiked around a bit, upstream of our put-in location. We found some beautiful waterfalls, log jams, and granite rocks.
Getting Ready
What's left of our season
After our hike, we put in on an easy section of river that was mildly technical, Ala Willow Creek. The easy stuff let up almost immediately and we were soon faced with large granite drops and slides. After the quick portage of a manky drop, we seal launched back in and ran ran some fun slides and drops.
Easy Stuff at the top
After a few more slides, we discovered a fantastic gorge that boasted to 20+ foot drops, more slides, and a few 10-12 footers. Unfortunately, the gorge was walled in and if you decided to run one drop, you had to run them all. Worst part is, there is a class VI drop in the middle that requires fancy romp work to get around. Needless to say, we opted to walk around.
Hiking around the gorge
As we went up and over a large granite dome, we found ourselves at the top of the Super Dink Section, just above Infinislide. After scouting out the slide, we decided to call it a day. It was 6:30 and we still needed to hike out and set up camp. We left our boats and gear next to the river and quickly made our way back to the Quarry. This took about an hour and since we were losing light, we opted to hitch hike back to the car rather than run our Mt. bike shuttle.
Hiking out after first day
By 9pm we had camp set up down by DC-campgrounds, and enjoyed some hot dogs and brownies. Soon after, we were joined by Paul Martzen and Dan Hogg. Both were excited and nervous for the following days adventure. We went to bed with visions of Infinislide in our heads.
The next day we enjoyed a great breakfast, packed up our gear, and headed back up the hill. This time we decided to hike in from the Quarry, and then up to the top of Super Dink. The hike inn was painful for Dan and Paul who were both carrying their boats. Daniel and I helped where we could, and we all made it save to the top in just over an hour. Once there we suited up and made our way to our first drop.
The 1st waterfall was a 15-20 footer with a series of shelves on the left and a clean drop on the right. Dan went first. He decided to go left and had a bumpy but clean run. I opted to run it on the right and boof the drop. That went well, and Daniel soon followed with the same line.
1st drop of the day
Just below was a wild rapid that comprised a series of slides and drops. Daniel and I walked it, but Dan stepped up and ran it. His had a jolting ride, but managed to keep it upright. I was bummed I walked it after seeing his line.
Day 2 Scout
Next up was Infinislide. This slide is a thrill ride to say the least. It is between 1/4 and 1/2 mile in length. It has many small drops, holes, ledges, and mixed in with it's seemingly endless smooth granite slides. The only thing it lacks is eddy service, but there are enough on there to break up the action.
Infinislide
We made our way down the slides in 3 sections. The 1st was the fastest and most thrilling. It went so fast, it's a blur. After that we eddied out and went down the second section. This footage was captured on my helmet camera, as well as by Paul who was filming above.
After one more eddy, we dropped into the last section of the slide. We found some 20-30ft slides into pools, some smaller slides, and then finally a large eddy on river right. Beyond that eddy was a small drop that led into a smaller pool, then straight into a 15-20 foot water fall. We all ran it clean and were all happy to be at the bottom.
Last Drop
After some discussion, we decided to call it a day and hike out. We weren't sure if we had enough time to finish the run before it got too late, so we packed up and headed out. Although we look forward to finishing the run, trying to make it to the bottom may have been difficult for us that day.
The hike out was pure hell. The terrain is steep and there is no trail. It took about an hour and a half to make it out, but we did so safely. Even though we only boated the upper section of Dinkey Creek, we had a great time, and our whistles are wet to do some more.
On Friday, we drove to the highest known put-in for DC. It's on a switchback that puts you just under a mile away from the river. It was a difficult hike, but not too bad. Upon reaching the river, we hiked around a bit, upstream of our put-in location. We found some beautiful waterfalls, log jams, and granite rocks.
Getting Ready
What's left of our seasonAfter our hike, we put in on an easy section of river that was mildly technical, Ala Willow Creek. The easy stuff let up almost immediately and we were soon faced with large granite drops and slides. After the quick portage of a manky drop, we seal launched back in and ran ran some fun slides and drops.
Easy Stuff at the topAfter a few more slides, we discovered a fantastic gorge that boasted to 20+ foot drops, more slides, and a few 10-12 footers. Unfortunately, the gorge was walled in and if you decided to run one drop, you had to run them all. Worst part is, there is a class VI drop in the middle that requires fancy romp work to get around. Needless to say, we opted to walk around.
Hiking around the gorgeAs we went up and over a large granite dome, we found ourselves at the top of the Super Dink Section, just above Infinislide. After scouting out the slide, we decided to call it a day. It was 6:30 and we still needed to hike out and set up camp. We left our boats and gear next to the river and quickly made our way back to the Quarry. This took about an hour and since we were losing light, we opted to hitch hike back to the car rather than run our Mt. bike shuttle.
Hiking out after first dayBy 9pm we had camp set up down by DC-campgrounds, and enjoyed some hot dogs and brownies. Soon after, we were joined by Paul Martzen and Dan Hogg. Both were excited and nervous for the following days adventure. We went to bed with visions of Infinislide in our heads.
The next day we enjoyed a great breakfast, packed up our gear, and headed back up the hill. This time we decided to hike in from the Quarry, and then up to the top of Super Dink. The hike inn was painful for Dan and Paul who were both carrying their boats. Daniel and I helped where we could, and we all made it save to the top in just over an hour. Once there we suited up and made our way to our first drop.
The 1st waterfall was a 15-20 footer with a series of shelves on the left and a clean drop on the right. Dan went first. He decided to go left and had a bumpy but clean run. I opted to run it on the right and boof the drop. That went well, and Daniel soon followed with the same line.
1st drop of the dayJust below was a wild rapid that comprised a series of slides and drops. Daniel and I walked it, but Dan stepped up and ran it. His had a jolting ride, but managed to keep it upright. I was bummed I walked it after seeing his line.
Day 2 ScoutNext up was Infinislide. This slide is a thrill ride to say the least. It is between 1/4 and 1/2 mile in length. It has many small drops, holes, ledges, and mixed in with it's seemingly endless smooth granite slides. The only thing it lacks is eddy service, but there are enough on there to break up the action.
InfinislideWe made our way down the slides in 3 sections. The 1st was the fastest and most thrilling. It went so fast, it's a blur. After that we eddied out and went down the second section. This footage was captured on my helmet camera, as well as by Paul who was filming above.
After one more eddy, we dropped into the last section of the slide. We found some 20-30ft slides into pools, some smaller slides, and then finally a large eddy on river right. Beyond that eddy was a small drop that led into a smaller pool, then straight into a 15-20 foot water fall. We all ran it clean and were all happy to be at the bottom.
Last DropAfter some discussion, we decided to call it a day and hike out. We weren't sure if we had enough time to finish the run before it got too late, so we packed up and headed out. Although we look forward to finishing the run, trying to make it to the bottom may have been difficult for us that day.
The hike out was pure hell. The terrain is steep and there is no trail. It took about an hour and a half to make it out, but we did so safely. Even though we only boated the upper section of Dinkey Creek, we had a great time, and our whistles are wet to do some more.
Friday, May 4, 2007
Overnighter on the Tuolumne
Dan, Daniel, and myself did our first overnighter on the T last weekend. It was a really great time. We arrived at the takeout to find Jeremy Lynn waiting to take us to the Put in. Jeremy made this run possible and we can't thank him enough for it.
We put in at 3pm and paddled until about 5:45pm. The 1st 3-4 miles were amazing class III-IV rapids. They kept us very engaged and happy. At about mile 5, we hit Clavey Falls. At this level (900 cfs) there was a nice line on the right and a easier line on river left. We all ran it right. While scouting the rapid, Daniel spotted a small rattle snake in the rocks. It was fun to look at. We ended up eating it for dinner. Just kidding.
After paddling around 9 miles, we took off the river at a nicee sandy beach and camped for the night. Dan kept us all well fed with Tri-tip and spicy sausage. We spent the evening talking by the fire and then we hit the sack. Dan and Daniel had an intimate Brokeback moment that I can't really get into here.
The next day we ate some breakfast, broke down camp, and then hit the river around 9am. We paddled 1-2 class IV rapids and a bunch of III's. When we reached the final rapid we were greeted again by Jeremy, who had come down to take us to Rainbow Pools.
After a late lunch, we arrived at Rainbow Pools and played for about an hour on a nice 15-17 foot drop. It was sweet running it both in and out of a kayak. Jeremy and Dan were doing some cool cliff jumps, while Daniel filmed us.
We had a great run and hope to do it again soon. Unfortunatly, we read and ran almost everything, so I had very little time to film anything. I did manage to get a few of the rapids. I hope you enjoy the video.
Take care
We put in at 3pm and paddled until about 5:45pm. The 1st 3-4 miles were amazing class III-IV rapids. They kept us very engaged and happy. At about mile 5, we hit Clavey Falls. At this level (900 cfs) there was a nice line on the right and a easier line on river left. We all ran it right. While scouting the rapid, Daniel spotted a small rattle snake in the rocks. It was fun to look at. We ended up eating it for dinner. Just kidding.
After paddling around 9 miles, we took off the river at a nicee sandy beach and camped for the night. Dan kept us all well fed with Tri-tip and spicy sausage. We spent the evening talking by the fire and then we hit the sack. Dan and Daniel had an intimate Brokeback moment that I can't really get into here.
The next day we ate some breakfast, broke down camp, and then hit the river around 9am. We paddled 1-2 class IV rapids and a bunch of III's. When we reached the final rapid we were greeted again by Jeremy, who had come down to take us to Rainbow Pools.
After a late lunch, we arrived at Rainbow Pools and played for about an hour on a nice 15-17 foot drop. It was sweet running it both in and out of a kayak. Jeremy and Dan were doing some cool cliff jumps, while Daniel filmed us.
We had a great run and hope to do it again soon. Unfortunatly, we read and ran almost everything, so I had very little time to film anything. I did manage to get a few of the rapids. I hope you enjoy the video.
Take care
Tuesday, May 1, 2007
Dinley Run on the Kaweah
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Paul Martzen Honored
Recently, Paul Martzen was honored, by AW, for his work on the San Joaquin River. You can read about it at HERE!
Paul I'm sure I speak for everybody in our sport, when I say we are proud of you and greatful for all of your hard work.
Paul I'm sure I speak for everybody in our sport, when I say we are proud of you and greatful for all of your hard work.
Monday, April 9, 2007
Spring Break on the Kings
This time of year the Kings river is beautiful. There are wild flowers everywhere you look and the boating is a lot of fun. We had a great group boating with us, and had a lot of fun.
Sunday, April 8, 2007
Willow Creek
Hey there campers,
We're just getting back from our low water adventure on Willow Creek. Daniel, Dan, Dan #3, Ian Berkley (from San Jose area), and Myself decided 40-50cfs would be a good flow to give it a go. We were wrong. Shortly after putting on, we realized that we needed at least 60+ cfs to make it fun. At 40-50cfs, it was a lot of work with periods of fun. All in all it was a good day.
Dan hits his boof
Junkie section
Our main objective was to document this run for the AW page, and I feel that we did that fairly well. We took tons of pictures and lots of video, and we'll be updating the AW page shortly. I'll post here when it's ready. If you decide to run this section, there is a pretty camp ground at the Take Out. You can run the upper, camp for the night, then run the lower section the next day. You are also just a few minutes from Big Creek, another fantastic run.
Evan slides while Dan stretches
We hope you enjoy the video. It should give you an idea of what this run is all about.
To sum it up, it's lots of fun drops and slides, a really junkie section, and then 3-4 more quality drops. Is it worth all the effort? Not at this flow, but at a higher flow it's a good time.
We'll be hitting the lower section of Willow Creek in the next week or so. Stay tuned.
Take care
We're just getting back from our low water adventure on Willow Creek. Daniel, Dan, Dan #3, Ian Berkley (from San Jose area), and Myself decided 40-50cfs would be a good flow to give it a go. We were wrong. Shortly after putting on, we realized that we needed at least 60+ cfs to make it fun. At 40-50cfs, it was a lot of work with periods of fun. All in all it was a good day.
Dan hits his boof
Junkie sectionOur main objective was to document this run for the AW page, and I feel that we did that fairly well. We took tons of pictures and lots of video, and we'll be updating the AW page shortly. I'll post here when it's ready. If you decide to run this section, there is a pretty camp ground at the Take Out. You can run the upper, camp for the night, then run the lower section the next day. You are also just a few minutes from Big Creek, another fantastic run.
Evan slides while Dan stretchesWe hope you enjoy the video. It should give you an idea of what this run is all about.
To sum it up, it's lots of fun drops and slides, a really junkie section, and then 3-4 more quality drops. Is it worth all the effort? Not at this flow, but at a higher flow it's a good time.
We'll be hitting the lower section of Willow Creek in the next week or so. Stay tuned.
Take care
Monday, April 2, 2007
April Fools Day on the Merced
On Saturday March 31st we had twelve paddlers on the Merced River. We did a nice easy run from Guage Hole down to Briceburg. There was plenty of playing along the way. Allison did great, as usual, and Lisa did very well paddling on her first river. Both of these women have great balance.
A group of five paddlers headed to Redbud campground for our overnight stay. After setting up camp we headed out to do some scouting of the Merced Gorge. There is some awesome whitewater along that stretch. Later we were joined by Dan Hogg and the next morning by Jeremy Lynn.
Sunday morning we took our time getting up and getting ready to hit the river. The put-in was Nightmare Island, which proved to be merely a "daydream". We continued down the river and enjoyed lots of playing along the way.
The sight of the day was seeing Dan disappear into a hole and then get launched, like a rocket, four to six feet into the air. IT WAS WILD!
Good times.........
Merced River April Fools' Day
Sunday, March 18, 2007
Merced strikes again
The Merced delivered again with another beautiful day. Mike, Hans, Jeff, and myself had a nice ride down. Jeff is quickly becoming a really strong boater. It's been fun watching him progress.
At the end of the day, everyone agreed that, while the paddling was great, watching Mike playboat in a canoe was the very memorable. I look forward to running more rivers with you all soon.
Evan
At the end of the day, everyone agreed that, while the paddling was great, watching Mike playboat in a canoe was the very memorable. I look forward to running more rivers with you all soon.
Evan
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Kayaking The Merced on 3-14-7
Jeremy, Brandi and I headed to the Merced River again. This river is on the top of our list for fun right now. It's flowing, lots of fun holes, and very little flat water paddling.
We started at the South Fork and continued past Briceburg. When we got to Split Rock (class IV) we all got out and scouted. We decided to run it one at a time with two of us staying on the side of the river for safety. Jeremy and Brandi got into a discussion about who was going to get to go first. Brandi usually wins the argument and gets to go first. Jeremy got to go first this time. Brandi wasn't too happy with his run and later was heard saying, "if you dink over, then just dink-up". I am actually thinking of making that into a bumper sticker now. "If you dink over, just dink up".
Enjoy the Video!
Larry
We started at the South Fork and continued past Briceburg. When we got to Split Rock (class IV) we all got out and scouted. We decided to run it one at a time with two of us staying on the side of the river for safety. Jeremy and Brandi got into a discussion about who was going to get to go first. Brandi usually wins the argument and gets to go first. Jeremy got to go first this time. Brandi wasn't too happy with his run and later was heard saying, "if you dink over, then just dink-up". I am actually thinking of making that into a bumper sticker now. "If you dink over, just dink up".
Enjoy the Video!
Larry
Kayaking the Merced River on 3-14-7
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