Winter Boating...lessons (re)learned

 Winter boating is beautiful!

Well its finally became time to dust off the poagies and extra layers and hit the river.  For me breaking out the poagies is the official start of winter boating.  Its easy to take going to the river for granted when it becomes such a routine procedure.  However, once the air and water temps start approaching freezing the room for error decreases and the consequences greatly increase.  Snow and ice make routine scouting and portaging epic and swims can quickly become life threatening.

I love paddling in the wintertime, especially in the snow. There are, however, a few more considerations that should be taken when heading out - no matter if its an old favorite or a Personal First Descent.  This past weekend was a great couple of days on the river getting in two laps on the Upper B on Friday and a run on the Top Yock in the pouring snow Saturday.  Although there were no serious mishaps, a few things happened that had me thinking about my personal and our group's preparation for the trip.

After a swim and a lost paddle, Steve busted out a breakdown - that turned out to be a lefthand control paddle and didnt know it, better than nothing but better to know that sort of thing in advance.  We also learned that duct tape is not good for the connection so dont tape the ends the residue sucks!  Fortunatly Russell had his own breakdown and was fine.  However, losing a paddle means no poagies.  I generally carry extra gloves should I need them for any rope work or other emergencies.  But left them in my truck back in DC.

I started to think about what else we had as a group and individually to be prepared for the worst.  Russell brought along a down puff jacket and a winter hat, two great things to have should you have to spend the night in the woods.  We all had some extra food and water, headlamps and drysuits which are really nice, but also a piece of safety equipment in my opinion when it comes to winter paddling.  After looking back, I realized I was so pumped to go get on the river, that i had forgotten a few key things I always bring along for winter paddling, so I brainstormed and made a small list here of things i think everyone should carry along when heading out to boat this winter.  Its a little extra weight, but if its an easy get-in and get-out than no big deal, if its a hike-in than its great training for Cali! 

Here is a list of the stuff I think anyone paddling in the winter should carry along individually to make for a prepared trip to the river and should the occasion arise, a survivable night in the woods:

Pin kit
first-aid kit
waterproof matches and starter material
limb saw
neoprene gloves
dry beanie
an extra dry layer (down puff or fleece)
emergency blanket
headlamp
glowstick
breakdown paddle
2 throw bags
water and or purifying tablets
knowledge of surrounding area - access/egress points

-nice to have:
compact stove + fuel
liquor
dry gloves
cell phone if you think it might work



If you carry other essential items please comment!

Back to the Potomac for a little while...

 Me nailing the wheelie at Grace Under Pressure

Well the whirl-wind road trip is over for a little while.  Its time to earn some money and do some "on the couch" boating, or maybe its "off the couch", I don't know, but there is a couch in my life again and a roof over my head - many thanks to my good buddy Brett Mayer-Achoff. 

The wonderful thing about working and living in Bethesda is at least you know you can go paddle anytime.  Dawn Patrols, evening runs, and even the infamous lunch-break falls session...love it.

I've had the chance to get out on the Center Lines at Great Falls the last four days, and got some cool photos thanks to Brett.  Saturday I also got to take Fastlane down the fall for his first time.  A good time was had by all.  Grace has to be one of the best feeling boofs around, especially today as the water came up a bit to about 3.75 ft on the little falls gauge.

Fastlane strokin' it at Grace

Me about to stomp it down

 

Then you get this sweet drop

Life in the Fastlane

It was an awesome afternoon paddle and really cool light as we were taking out.  Its nice being back on the Potomac for a little while paddling with friends and enjoying the wonderful escape that Great Falls provides to the local paddling community. 

All photos from the Falls

Finally back home...a little boatin' in Virginia

The goods

After a few good weeks of paddling in the Southeast I thought it was all over. But low and behold it Hurricane Ida spread its rain all over North Carolina and Virginia. I considered heading back to NC, but waited a day with the hopes of doing some Blue Ridge Mountain creek boatin'.

After some phone calls it sounded like the Nelson County steeps were going to be going. One and a half hours later I arrived at the NF of the Tye takeout to find a solid crew consisting of just about every creek boater in Virginia. I think the added displacement brought the creek up just a bit. The rapids were good, it was a little scrappy in-between, but a good morning on a classic Blue Ridge Mtn boulder garden style run. Looking at the gauges it looked like the Paul's Creek drainage got more rain so we headed over there pumped to get on the steepest runnable half-mile in Virginia. After hiking in, I was concerned it might be too low but continued hiking after reassuring claims of "Oh I've done it lower than this" from some of the Paul's creek regulars. Just less padding I guess! So we headed on up and gave it a go. It was definitely steep and fast. There were some good lines and some good pitons, a sore elbow and a lot of laughs.

All photos from Pauls and NFT

Mase - NF Tye

Brandon on the first drop on Paul's

Trevar B taking flight near the top of Where's Hayne

Trevar B taking flight again near at the bottom of Where's Hayne

Thanks to the C'ville crew for showing me a good day in the Blue Ridge.

That evening Drew came up to my Mom's house in Roanoke to stay in anticipation of getting on a really classic steep creek just up the road. I checked the gauge the night before and it was way high. That morning we headed out there to find the water over the bridge footing about up to the "N" on a Werner Player paddle, which was about equal to 10" over the footing . Covering the footing is generally considered high, so we knew we were in for a big day - especially since it was Drew and my first time down. We had a good crew who knew the run well, Thanks to Harris Hayne and Eric O'Connell for some beta on the lines. As to be expected with a big crew and high water there was a little bit of excitement, fortunately nothing too bad. A blown skirt, a piton or two, a swim and a pin - it could have been much worse - but we got out in one piece and just before it got dark. This is an absolute classic run, with a portage or two or three, steep, continuous gradient, beautiful scenery, big rapids and the ability to run at a wide range of water levels. Please treat this run with the respect it deserves - it is a difficult run in a remote gorge with tenuous access issues...we dont want to loose this one!

All photos from this run

Drew at the first rapid

Harris lovin' the steepness

John feeling small in the heart of the waterfall section

Harris hookin' it up with the beta

To round it all off I got to head out on Saturday with beautiful blue skies with my Dad to the also classic Maury River. I remember hearing my Dad talk about Devil's Kitchen all the time when I was young as the most daunting stretch of river. Well at one point it was quite daunting for me as well, those days are over, but it is a great boulder garden in a very pretty setting. I ran back p and ran it a few times catching different eddies and taking other lines. After it let up a bit I met my Dad just downstream of the pass, and he put on with the 20 year-old 14.5' Old Town Camper. We continued downstream through some more boulder gardens and wave trains with more water than we had run this section the many times before as kids. Dad did a great job negotiating the rapids in what was probably a less than ideal watercraft.

Pops given 'er in the longboat of choice

Southeast Update...good fall to be boatin' in the SE

As I was driving back from Washington I wasn't sure what the next few months were gonna hold. I was planning on a few weeks of fun paddling on the classics East Coast dam releases.....but got a whole lot more.

I paddled a day and worked a day on the Gauley. Catching the best of the fall foliage in WV was awesome. Rachel and I then headed to the Russell Fork for some high quality big, steep water. From there it was home to drop off some gear and down to the Green River in Saluda, NC. Rachel and I got to weather the rains at Devin and Lindsay's place in Brevard, NC while paddling the Green as well as some classic natural flow runs including: North Fork French Broad, Section 4 of the Chattooga, the Horsepasture River and Overflow Creek. With all the rain, we had options and had to make our decisions based on how we were feeling for the day...epic drops and hikes vs. fun class IV/V with easy logistics....life is tough.

The next week leading up to the Green race brought beautiful weather. Blue skies and warm during the day and cold and clear nights...autumn at its best. This week we spent camping a mile downstream from the Green takeout with good friends: some old and some new. All we really had to worry about was when to wake up and paddle the Green again, and one lap or two.

As the race neared the anticipation grew. I found myself feeling gripped on a river I had become relatively comfortable with over the last few weeks. The anticipation grew into anxiousness as I sat at the first rapid awaiting my starting time on race day, November 7th.

My stomach grew more and more unsettled, then finally it was time: I was in my boat and before I knew it I was off, charging down over a half mile of class five rapids dropping over 200 vertical feet.

I knew there were tons of people littering the rocks lining the creek, but in my tunnel vision the masses were just dots of color like a strange fall foliage yelling at you as you pulled on stroke after labored stroke downstream.

Then the finish line, what a glorious feeling! A cathartic relief, all that preparation and anticipation suddenly gone....I made it, it was over. At least next year it won't be so new, but from hearing the chatter around the river that day, likely just as all consuming as 6 minutes of your life could possibly be. The Green Race is awesome.

Here are some photos from the last few weeks of paddling around the East coast.

The Wet Planet boys gettin' some on the Russell Fork:

Tyler aka Fastlane layin down a Boof at El Horrendo

Dave at Climax

The Horsepasture: Absolutely stunning from put-in to take-out:

The ground had already been saturated before it started raining on Oct. 27th, but it rained nice and hard so we considered the options and picked a good one. The level on Wednesday the 28th was right at .4 on the bridge gauge on Upper Whitewater Road, a great level it turned out. The day could not have been better, blue bird skies and good water, creekin' at its best. The hike in and hike out made you have to want this run, but it was manageable and we took turns scouting most of the big horizon lines.

Rainbow Falls: the Put-in

Scouting Staircase (aka Stairmaster) awesome horizon line #1

Half-way down Stairmaster

Rachel Boofin'!

Jeff eying his next move

Eric flying off one of the big rapids in the middle

The last part of the last biggie Highway to Heaven...a very rad rapid.

The take-out. It feels like the edge of the Earth.

Dave took Rachel and I down his old home run, the SE Classic Section IV of the Chattooga

Dave having a Zen moment

The fall colors reflecting off of Tugaloo Lake on the paddle out

Overflow Creek, in the headwaters of the Chattooga

The Green River:

Rachel dialing in her race line at Frankenstein


Andy charging the Notch

Drew spankin' the monkey

Andy at Sunshine

Curt at Sunshine photo: Chris Baer

Looking downstream from Sunshine at Drew

The last of the summertime goods...the Cispus

At a time of the year when the majority of the creeks in the country are drying up its exciting to know that there is still plenty of creek boating to be had out here in the Northwest. The Upper Upper Cispus has been our saving grace for that rush of class 5 adrenaline. The White Salmon is still great for everyday commuting, sprint laps and work of course, but knowing that there is still water in the Cispus is awesome.
I first got on the Cispus towards the end of July with good water flows (around 750 cfs). It was BROWN and awesome. Even at lower flows (approx. 450 cfs) the upper upper Cispus still provides tons o' fun. It helps having been down it a few times so you know where the rocks are and aren't.

The run starts off with a bang: A sweet double tiered 15' er into a small pool, then immediately duck the trees. The upper section is a bit bony even at good flows, then Adam's creek generally doubles the flow about a mile and a half into the run. Its a great east meets west style run: East coast boulder gardens and rock banging and some big West coast style drops, namely Bohemith. This is one awesome rapid. There is a fun lead in rapid that you dont want to mess up then a small pool above the big one. At this point you are committed, its unscoutable and unportagable from the pool above. Its one heck of a horizon line because you are looking way down past the next rapid. The rapid just following Bohemith, Righty Tighty is awesome as well. Enough talkin' check out the goods:

Andy styling the first drop

Drew ducking the trees immediately following the first drop. Oh yea, there's lots of interesting wood on the Cispus!

Andy running left at Island around 750 cfs (its a sweet slide to boof!)

Trevor on BOHEMITH!

Looking down from Bohemith into Righty Tighty...awesome section of river!

After running all the good class 5 there is an awesome little side hike up a very narrow and remote gorge that can only be accessed from paddling down the upper upper Cispus and swimming into this gorge that gets you to this beautiful waterfall. Its a nice treat after some good quality kaykaing.

Stay tuned east coast updates are coming soon. Im in Highlands NC today having great runs on the Green, Russell Fork and today the Chattooga. Yeeehaw!

A True Classic: The North Fork of the Payette

Staying in the flow, heading downstream and keeping it upright: the best NF beta

Photo: Brian "BReal" Ward

Ever since reading the description of the North Fork of the Payette in the Western States Whitewater guidebook a friend gave me last year I was instantly drawn to the mystique of this run. HUGE waves, HUGE holes and HUGE RAPIDS was pretty much what I got out of it. Last month I got the chance to check it out for myself. It sure enough lived up to its reputation. On the ride up we looked at Jacob's Ladder and Nutcracker. Its hard to appreciate the size and complexity of any of the rapids from anywhere but in a kayak. Not long after putting on Drew's friend, how was our guide, felt really squirrely and said "I'm gonna die out here if I dont get out now." So he took out and we continued on, following very limited info that Drew remembered from his last visit. We had a healthy flow of about 2,300 cfs. Some of the rapids felt like they went on forever, it was awesome!!! Having a guide is helpful in places, but more often than not you are just cruising down the middle wavetop scouting for massive holes. Its so big and fast that you can punch a lot of stuff you wouldn't expect to be able to punch. We did all 15 miles top to bottom the first day and the upper 10 miles the second day then headed on back to the Gorge. It was a nice change from lots and lots of creekboating. One more of the 50 Classic runs in North America down. Big Water is a much different and really rad animal!

Me feeling small in the massive North Fork whitewater

Photo: Brian "BReal" Ward

Me launching a boof towards the bottom of Nutcracker

Photo: Brian "BReal" Ward

Boby (Zee German) styling the famous "rock drop" boof  in Jacob's Ladder

Drew Austell and the North Fork making the Green Boat look small in Jacob's Ladder