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
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