Selection of 2006 Trip Reports!

    

 

Eel River Camp Out May 13-14 @ 4000 CFS

 

It was an interesting couple of weeks watching the river gauge at Fort Seward.  Dropping down to 10,000 cfs, then spiking back up over 14,000 cfs, snow melt was happing. By May 1st, daily flows seemed to average an overall drop of about 1000 cfs with peaks that came later each day.  Then we found out that the road down as far as the RR tracks at the put-in had finally been graded, so with flows down to 4000 cfs, the decision was made.  The trip was on. 

Early Saturday morning we met three POST paddlers, Bill, Jan, new POST member Paula, and started hauling gear down to the beach.  It was impressive to see how this winters high flows altered the beach.  Mr. Doty, shuttle driver, arrived and we settled down for the long wait.  Two and a half hours of watching water flow by, catch up on gossip, getting entertained by the local teens (quads, dirt bikes and chain saws), and loading boats.  Finally drivers returned and off we went.

First stop was an old traditional one, Steelhead Creek, for a leg stretch.  Then on to Island Rock where we decided to go around the bend for an easier climb up to the tunnel. Check out the '64 high water mark at the up-river end. This is also where we set up camp as Scout Troup #16 was behind us, and they needed the larger area.

 We tried out the club's new table, our old creaky backs all said "Thank You", settled down to chips and other munchies, and waited for dinner.  Of coarse the wind blew but Peter had fun creating a great wind block for the Dutch Oven.  After dinner we all helped Pam celebrate her birthday.

Next morning being Mother's Day, the guys cooked breakfast.  Us gals enjoyed the special treatment.

Gear packed, boats loaded, off we went to see what Dobbyns Creek drop looked like.  Big hole, nasty eddy, but we all made it through upright.  Another stop at Basin Creek for a stretch, then down to a no-name creek for lunch and explore the train trestle before heading to the take-out.

Good byes are said, POST heads home, we head north.   Thank you all for helping make this a good weekend.

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Steele Bridge Camp out

 

It was a lovely weekend once we passed Willow Creek and the smoke tinted air.  This year we had a rather small turn out, but we still had a relaxing time.  Jake was able to work on his paddling skills, and was a very enthusiastic sand excavator at camp.

 As with the Eel River, there was a considerable amount of change from the winter and spring high flows.  The canopy of trees lining both banks is pretty much history, point bars are being established.  This year the landing area at camp is now much easier as the majority of the flow is on river left of the new gravel bar.  Check out the photo.

This year the Loundenslager's outdid themselves when it came to ordering the entertainment.  In years past we see an occasional drift boat with fishermen and just maybe someone in a raft floating by.  This year we watched two rafts float past, one raft seemed to hold the experienced boater persons, the other the novices.  Next a foursome in kayaks.  The first two paddlers in low volume high performance ww kayaks with helmets and PFDs.  Their friends, in river touring kayaks without spray skirts, helmets or PFDs.  Following them was a family of three in a large tandem Aire inflatable, but with a rowing frame.  They came equipped with PFD's, fishing poles, and looked like they knew what rivers were all about.  The final group won the prize.  The group consisted of two gals in inner tubes, lashed together, carefully  guarding their cigs and fifth, the fellas followed in a huge drift boat hitting every third rock.  We passed them about one half hour above camp.  It took them four hours to get to us. They were having a grand time.

Sunday morning after Pam McMuffins, loaded up the boats and headed down stream.  Right below camp, we surprised a black bear -- our first sighting in 14 years.  Now we know there is really a body behind all the scat found over the years.  Awhile later, a bald eagle buzzed us and alighted in an oak tree.  Dave refused to keep the canoe steady, so the pictures are blurry.  Further down, where a bluff had been freshly eroded, Dave and Jake looked for deposits to collect.  The plan was to "pan" for gold while shuttle has being run.  It was a fun, but unprofitable, adventure.

Vehicles arrived, and time to head home.  Thank you everyone.

Carol

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Lets do the Klamath. No, how about the Trinity? Er, no is this the Rogue River report?

by Jan Dooley

This was the trip that kept changing. Due to reports of obnoxious smoke levels along the Klamath River, I changed the location of our 5 day trip to the Trinity the eve before we met. Instead of going to Sarah Totten we would camp at Hayden Flat where the smoke was very mild on Sunday. Local reports were good on Wednesday morning. As we drove out to Hayden, the smoke started in Redwood Valley. It got worse and worse. It became obvious as we passed the Hawkins Bar put in that the smoke was going to prevent paddling. After passing the New River confluence, the smoke did let up, so we continued on to Hayden. After two hours, we abandoned the campground. I had asthma. Chuck had a sinus headache. Without a cell phone, we left a note at the campground message board. On the way back, we looked at every car for "the Babes"- Kit, Alice, Jeanna and Kate. We thought we spotted them a few miles past Blue Lake, so we pulled over to see if they would turn around and come looking for us. Unknown to us, they also pulled over and waited for us to turn around. Ah, great minds think alike, but fail to connect. Fortunately, Charlie and Dan coming from the Redding side and the Babes coming from the Arcata side simultaneously arrived at Hayden and found our note. They swam, relaxed and called us. We decided to camp in my backyard. So much for the first day of camping on this 5 day canoing trip. Jake was delighted. He's been making our backyard onto "Jacoby Creek State Park" for weeks. He had campsites, trails, bathrooms, etc. all planned out. After many internet searches and phone calls, I found out that the Rogue River reported no smoke and had camping available. I owe a big thank you to the Josephine County camping reservation clerk who picked up the phone at closing time on the fifth ring. She went through all the campgrounds on the Rogue and told me which ones had availability. I was too late to reserve spots, but at least we knew we could get a place to camp. The Wednesday night campers agreed to the plan, so I started making phone calls and messages to let everyone know about yet another change. Several people canceled, so the trip ended up being the 4 Verhaeghs, 3 Wrights and 2 McMeyers, 4 Neffs and 1 Dan Hocoy. That was 8 adults and 6 children. We all wanted to paddle class 2 with the emphasis on the kids getting fun canoing or kayaking experience. The group worked really well together.

On Wednesday, we arrived at Whitehorse campground near Grant's Pass and claimed campsites in an empty campground. We had time to do a short run. The interesting part was figuring out what to paddle. Chuck and I had paddled there many, many years ago, before we were boaters. My memory didn't recall anything accurately. Western Whitewater had two sentences about the runs. After getting lost on the way to the put-in, we changed plans, yet again, and went for something safe. The county put information boards at most boat ramps. Those turned out to be the best info source. There's something magical sometimes about making up a trip as you go. We put in at Whitehorse and paddled eight miles of class I to the Robertson Bridge. The biggest hazards were the jet boats. The first two jet boats' wakes washed us ashore. Their wakes created breaking waves two feet high. Next time, we were better prepared and kept a little out from shore and faced the boats. Much to our surprise the boats, spun donuts and killed their wakes. The paying customers screamed and applauded. They challenged us to spin our boats, which we quickly did. In hind sight, I think the jet boats always spin donuts there. We just happened to be in the right place. They nicely kept their speed down until they passed us. The next set of jet boats caught me and Ruth in the middle of the channel. We pulled for shore as fast as we could, but I was very worried about being swamped. The driver quickly slowed, then sped up again. This unexpectedly made the wake easier for me to deal with. Thank you, driver! The other jet boats were mostly very courteous. The last one even stopped to see how far we were going. The next day, we headed for the section we couldn't find on Wednesday. The map we had was wrong and a local steered us right. We paddled Hog Creek to Almeda (12 miles). This is a popular section as it goes through Hellgate Canyon. The resort at Galice rents inflatables and rafts for this section. There was no map at the put-in, so we took a leap of faith and just paddled it. Who cares that we knew nothing about the river except that it was class II and Chuck and Jan did it in a raft 16 years ago. This time, the jet boats went by while we were at the put in. They came back while we were still there. They can only go a few miles past Hog Creek before the class II rapids stop them. Hellgate Canyon starts with a class II rapid then rapidly narrows. I was really glad the jet boats were elsewhere. The canyon has beautifully sculpted rocks from the swirling currents. We paddled everything with boat scouting and no coaching. It was a good challenge to paddle an unknown river. Chuck did a great job leading. The only swims involved the teens in the kayaks, and they had fun.

We liked the rapids at Galice so well that we paddled them three days in a row. The second time, we put in at Ennis Riffle. This started below where the jet boats go. It also avoided a mile of flat water above Ennis. Dan wore a life jacket upside down with his legs through the armholes to protect his "nethers" and one on like a normal person and floated through a rapid for everyone's edification (pictures available). We paddled all the way to Graves Creek, the put in for the wilderness, permit section. As we paddled downriver, the canyon got narrower and the walls got higher. I kept expecting to come around a corner a see some horrible rapid. Each corner showed more flat water with even prettier canyon around it. After paddling, many of us hiked to Rainie Falls. The Falls looked a lot like Hell Hole on the Trinity, but three times bigger. On Sunday, the Neffs and Verhaeghs decided to paddle Ennis to Argo again. This included almost all the class II rapids and avoided the beautiful, but flat section of canyon at the end. We were entertained by a run, bike, paddle triathlon along our way. They finished by paddling through the Galice Rapids. We rescued boats until we could finally leave with no more flipped boats in sight. It turned out to be a great trip, despite all the planning going to waste. It was really nice to have a flexible group that worked well together. Meals got cooked, dishes got cleaned, rapids got paddled, kids had fun despite no idea what we were doing at times.

Jan

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Smith River Report

By Jan Dooley

    Shhhhh! Don't tell anyone that the Smith River in Montana is a great canoeing river. Of course, you have to win a permit to paddle there, so some one knows how enjoyable it is. But most of those people are fisherman looking for trout. Canoeists are they ones who should be all over this river.

Eleven of us paddled the Smith starting on June 27th. Regulations limit you to four nights. We spent a fifth at the put in. Paddlers included my family, Jake (the permit holder), Chuck, Ruth and Yukon with friends Dave and Carol Krueger, Eric and Pam Loudenslager, Kit Hewitt, Alice Wright, Tallulah Hollingswood. We missed the company of Charlie Wright and Dan Hocoy who are very sorry (and will be reminded forever of how sorry they are) they had to cancel. The flow was low to moderate, about 300 cfs. This meant the drift boat had to stay behind, along with some of the gear. However, we managed to cram everything into 5 canoes.

The Smith flows south into the Missouri near Great Falls. It runs between the Big and Little Belt mountains,  a couple of ridges east of the continental Divide. We traveled the 59 miles between Camp Baker and Eden Bridge. Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks does a great job of managing this river. The land is mostly private and camping is limited to official sites. You declare your campsites before departure, so you know where you will be each night. The campsites are well situated and very nice. Our biggest complaints were about outhouses being too far and goose poop on camp sites. I was just happy to have outhouses and tent sites.

Most of the sites were on grass, a luxury on such a heavily used river. Of course the grass makes it because of the plentiful rainfall. We had great weather, in the 80s and sunny. The only thunderstorm happened on the day we erected a tarp for shade. It was a spectacular storm that only lasted an hour. Things dried off the next morning in time to break camp. We know of paddlers who spent most of their trip in rain.

In general, we spent about four hours paddling each day to travel 12 miles. The paddling was technical due to shallow, winding water. It wasn't difficult. You just always had to pay attention to find deep water. There are two class II rapids late in the trip. Our group handled them easily. The gradient is relatively steep for a class I river. I found myself leaning back at times because it seemed so steep. The river erodes away the limestone rocks, so there are few obstacles.

We spent time each day hiking side canyons or trails. The scenery is outstanding. The river flows along limestone cliffs that tower hundreds of feet directly above the river. The river benches included grass a gorgeous green color and mixed pine forests. There were fossils, geodes, caves, trout, wildflowers , clear water, beautiful rocks and more. I wish we could have another day to layover doing more hiking. Eric and Pam caught whitefish for appetizers one night. They reported the fishing as only fair, probably because of the heat. But the heat made it great for swimming and lazing.

It's hard to say why this is such a rewarding river. It's a combination of wonderful canoeing, spectacular settings and beautiful flora. Combine this with side activities of fishing, hiking, geology, history and it's hard to beat this trip. We also had a great group who had paddled together before. The mix of adults and children worked well. Every one pitched in willingly to get things done. Thanks to my companions, to Montana FWP for allowing us this opportunity and to Jake the permit holder who invited us along.

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Trinity River Report: You Know It's Bad When They Name the Fire After Your Campground.

By Jan Dooley

            I might never lead another trip. Don't take me wrong. The group is great - easy to work with, fun on the river, trustworthy in danger. I feel like a yoga instructor, master of flexibility. I'm just tired of multiple changes of plans required one the first day.

Short version

We were divided by fire but not conquered. The only damage was two lost days of paddling. It's good to paddle with a group who handles adversity so well.

Long Version

Plan A was to camp at Hayden Flat over Labor Day weekend like we always do. After canceling a trip there in early August due to excessive smoke, I looked for an alternative campsite. Now you have to realize that the previous disaster at Hayden was plan B on that trip. Plan A was to camp on the Klamath River at Sarah Totten for five days. The Somes fire intermittently closed hwy 96 through Orleans due to burning debris on the road The smoke was so thick in Orleans and in the Scott Valley, that headlights were required at noon. So on the morning of departure, I changed the camping location to Hayden Flat on the Trinity River. My family got there early and hung out at the beach. Now, I don't have asthma, but after two hours I was wheezing. Chuck's sinus headache was becoming bad, so we cancelled the trip. The other paddlers found our note and decided to come camp in my backyard and regroup. We ended up with plan C on the Rogue River and had a great time running a brand new river with no clue as to what was downstream.

For over two weeks, I gathered information about where the smoke was and how bad. I spent most weekends paddling on the Trinity and got to do some more scouting in person. The office clerk at the Big Bar ranger station even surveyed  group campsites for me during her lunch hour. Who says government employees are lazy? I decided the best odds for clean air was at Pigeon Point group campsite. I made the reservation, paid our money and warned everyone that conditions were variable.

Twenty-six POST paddlers arrived at Pigeon Point by 9 AM Saturday. We admired the campsite with its huge shade gazebo, serving tables, picnic tables, plenty of tent sites, pretty view, afternoon breeze, good swimming spots, etc. There was no water and parking was about 100 yards from the kitchen area, but it was well worth a little more driving and money. Keith made French Toast. Tim set out lunch. We all hugged and chatted and caught up with each other. We set up two trips. The class III paddlers went for Big Flat to Del Loma while the class II paddlers headed for Hawkins Bar.

Don and Karen set off early to scout the take out at Shurber Slough. Discussion centered over whether it was a class III or class V take out. They saw the Kruegers putting on at Hayden Flat. The Big Flat group took off a few minutes before the Hawkins Bar group. They encountered a fire starting upstream of Big Flat. By the time the Neffs and Verhaeghs arrived, they had to dodge burning pine cones and arriving fire engines to get to Hawkins Bar. The van was a few minutes behind. The road was closed by then.

When I passed the fire, it was 10 yards wide and 100 feet high. I watched the smoke swirl up through the overhanging trees The limbs burst into flames. One firefighter described it as "perfect firestorm conditions". We assumed the fire would quickly be put out and the van would join us by the time we set up shuttle. They had all those fire crews for the Bar Complex and Somes fires. Well, shuttle was done and still no van. Poor Pat and Eileen were stranded since their kayaks were on the van. They were good sports and decided that spending the day swimming and exploring was OK. They would keep my dog company and drive the cars down to the take out. If the van showed up, the riders could unload and quickly put on the river.

This was my first time paddling Hawkins Bar since the very high flows in the spring. There were some minor changes. Ruth was my bow paddler and we managed to surf on four different waves. The weather was perfect for water fights and swimming breaks. Despite the late start, the wind was mild. The water was amazingly clear. The take out turned out to be a class III take out. A narrow, steep path through willows for 30 yards, then up a ATV path that steeply climbed to the road. The group pitched in and got the job done. The kids picked delicious berries and fed everyone until their hands turned purple.

Pat and Eileen met us at the take out. Still no van. The fire crew they talked to said the road should be open by five. We hung out at the Salyer store and ate ice cream, filled up water jugs, etc. The store owners thought the road would be closed for a couple of days. We headed back toward Pigeon Point to find out for ourselves.

At Hayden Flat, Caltrans had the road closed from there to Junction City, upriver of our campground. The worker had little information. No cell phone had reception and power and phones were out up the road. After discussing options, using restrooms, rinsing gear, etc., we headed down stream to try every pay phone we could find. What do you do with 19 people separated from their camping gear?

At the Burnt Ranch store, the phone worked. We called Kit. Thank goodness we knew someone who actually stayed home that weekend, and that it was someone all of us would think to call. Emergency contact information comes in handy. Kit was very glad to hear from us and only sounded moderately worried. Thank you Kit for the e-mails, calmness and reassuring link to the rest of the world. Fortunately, the van had one cellphone that got reception. We could communicate. Hurrah! The van group was enjoying an abundance of dinner and wine. They wished we were there. I think they paddled the Junction City to Pigeon Point run (some details got confused). Why waste a perfectly good paddling day worrying about a little fire? They felt safe and were willing to wait until the morning to see what it would bring.

The Big Flat group caught up to us at Burnt Ranch. They spent the time hanging out at Big Flat watching flames and breathing ash. The Straw House was closed due to no power. The Trinity Adventure Campground owner was ready to hose down his place to save it from the fire.

A need for food and info topped our list, so we headed for dinner at Cinnabar Sam's in Willow Creek. It's one of the few post-paddling repasts where I heard nothing about the runs we did that day. After much discussion and mulling of options, the group stranded downstream drove to the coast to bed down with the Six Rivers locals. Once again, my trip ended up camping in my back yard. Only this time, they didn't have their camping gear. We scrounged up tooth brushes and beds and pajamas for everyone. We prayed that the road would be open in the AM. Thank yous to the Loudenslagers, Verhaeghs and Tim for hosting everyone.

The morning brought a multitude of rumors. My biggest frustration through this situation (and the last one) was the complete lack of reliable information. Should we drive the six hours on the sure path or go boating and chance the road opening? If we were wrong, it would cost an extra three hours of driving, but get a day of boating in. (This was a tough choice). AAA maps showed alternate roads that none of us locals knew. Caltrans said just that the road was closed, and to use an alternate route. The CHP dispatcher gave us hope that road clean up was proceeding well. The van folks still felt safe and were ready if needed to pack up and leave. They didn't think anyone was being allowed into the area. The debate was what to do with the downriver people's gear. The priority was to bring out the Bay Area's paddlers' belongings. The locals could drive over later and get their gear. We waited and waited for the road to open.

Finally at 9:30 AM, we decided the road was closed until late afternoon. The control point at Junction City promised us that we would be allowed into Pigeon Point to evacuate our belongings, assuming conditions remained safe. Off everyone went south on 101 east on Hwy 36 then up hwy 3 to Junction City. Jon had lunch makings in his car. Hayfork provided a nice park for a lunch break. Fortunately the drive was only about four hours.

Unfortunately, the van's group got evacuated from the campground just before the rest of the group arrived. The flames were just over the ridge. They piled everyone's tents, sleeping bags, coolers, chairs, duffels, etc wherever they could find space. They refused to throw out the uneaten food. Fortunately, the control person allowed Pat and Eileen to be escorted in by very nervous officials to retrieve their truck and camper. They got a great view of helicopters dropping water. The van found a dirt road on which to sort gear. It looked like a garage sale. Everyone went around collecting their own stuff. Only a few items went home with the wrong folks. Thank you to Charlie, Dan, Bruce, Jan L., Bijili, Ray, and Barbara for saving our gear.

Trip Participants - Jan Dooley, Chuck, Jake, Ruth, Yukon Verhaegh, Charlie Wright, Don Jarrell, Karen Peterson, Keith Gale, Dan Hocoy, Bob Lansberg, John Marold, Jan Lockie, Barbara Bitner, Bijili Abbey, Wit Ashbrook, Ray Casell, Bruce Hall, Eileen and Pat Nolan, Eric and Pam Loudenslager, Tim Clohessy, Robert, Nancy, Sam, and Jeremy Neff

Flow - 450 cfs out of Lewsiton Dam

Afternotes

Highway 299 opened up again Tuesday afternoon to one way traffic with an hour delay.

There was a back road. I think it goes form Big Bar up the ridge to a junction with a road that goes back down to Junction City. Partly gravel but two wheel drive OK. I now have an excuse to do some backroad exploring.

Some raft trips got stopped on the Pigeon Point run. They were evacuated above Hell Hole. The river remains closed from Sky Ranch road (where 299 heads away from the river over the ridge to Weaverville) to Big Flat.

The fire is officially called the Pigeon fire. It turned away from the road before it got to Pigeon Point campground. Officials expect the fire to burn until it snows. They plan on it merging with the Bar Complex.

I found out later that the Red Cross flags we passed in Salyer were the official emergency shelter for folks evacuated from the fire. We heard some other people ran into trouble due to being separated from medications.

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