Hanford Reach June 1 2008

On a beautiful Eastern Washington sunny Sunday a group of OOPS paddlers kayaked part of the Hanford Reach of the Columbia River. This was a scheduled OOPS trip led by Pat Daly and co-led by Tim Mattson and Don Beale. The rest of us paddlers were: Dave Beckett, Frank Blangeard, Jay Buckingham, Ed Kraft and Greg (didn't catch his last name).

I'd heard about the Hanford Reach of the Columbia for years. The last free-flowing non-tidal stretch of the Columbia in this country. Pretty much undeveloped due to it being a restricted area since the 1940's. Well, except for an old reactor here and there. Basically a wildlife refuge now. I've wanted to visit there for a long time. So when I saw that an OOPS trip was going there I was really excited. And I was thrilled when I heard that it was being led by Pat Daly, a guide who really knows the paddling in that area.

The plan was to launch near Vernita Bridge (where Washington Highway 24 crosses the Columbia about 30 miles north of Richland). We would then paddle about 21 miles of the Hanford Reach and take out at the White Bluffs boat ramp.

We met at the beach on the north side of the river just west of Vernita Bridge, got boats and gear situated, then did the car shuttle to the take-out. We got on the water about 11am.



The water was pretty high (not surprisingly), running at appr 200,000 cfs. So once we got paddling we were moving -- soon about 6 - 7 kt. Though there was alot of water, it looked pretty clean to me. Often a few upwellings here and there. And some nice crisp eddylines. With the current it was pretty easy paddling watching the scenery breeze by.

I borrowed a Greenland paddle from Don. I'd used one for the first time at OOPTIKS and really enjoyed it. Now I wanted to know how it would feel to use one on an all-day trip. Short story: I loved it.

After about 4.5 miles we got to Reactor B, the first of the large-scale plutonium production reactors. It's of course closed down now. The juxtaposition of the undeveloped desert landscape and these Cold War edifices was striking. Also striking was the wildlife. Since non-Hanford people are allowed on such a small fraction of the Hanford Reservation area, animals pretty much have it to themselves. We saw lots of deer, some otter, some large fish, and lots and lots of birds from hawks to geese to swallows.

About 6 miles from the launch we got to Coyote Rapids. Pat described the rapid to us and we all decided that yes, it sounded like alot of fun. We were told that at typical flow levels it's not much of anything, but given the high water we had it might be fun. The rapid can be easily avoided by going river left, so of course we were all hugging river right. We got to a little riffle and Tim and Don stopped to play in it. Pat called them onward: "Hey, the real rapid is down there!" There hadn't been much life-threatening excitement thus far on the trip so they were taking advantage of every feature they could find. But when we got to the rapid... we were all impressed. A couple nice clean waves with some bouncier waves behind. And a nice big eddy on river right that allowed easy access to the rapid. Again and again :)





We played there for quite awhile. The Hanford folks could do great things with that location... I'm thinkin a little parking area, we don't need a fancy launch site, just put kayaks in using the river's beach either above the rapid or in the eddy, a nice cafe selling cappuccino and ice cream with a deck to watch the kayakers play in the rapid, a barbecue place and microbrewery, maybe some cabins and a B&B...

I went through the rapid four or five times. It was my first time working with strong current and rapids using a Greenland paddle. I was pretty happy with it. Bracing worked very well. Stern rudder worked well. Had a bit more trouble getting up to speed quickly. Once I managed to get across to the smooth waves and surfed for just a bit. I'm sure it wasn't very long, but it felt great. Anyway, I had a great time. I could have stayed there all day. Like Deception Pass, but with sunshine!

After the rapids we continued our fast and easy trip to our lunch spot. More wildlife, more sunshine, a couple more old reactors, some dead-fish polo.



We stopped for lunch at the point where the river bends to the south (see map). Yep, still sunny.

After lunch we paddled pretty much south along the White Bluffs. Beautiful scenery, and very different than the Lower Columbia where I paddle so often. Kayaking in the desert, a nice change.



As we got closer to our take out a S wind kicked up against us, making us work a bit for the first time that day. Since the wind slowed me down I was able to really focus on various aspects of my forward stroke using the Greenland paddle.

We got the the take out, which is one end of an old ferry route, got boats and gear packed up, and we all headed for home. A really nice day on the river!

On the water: 11:05
Off the water: 15:50
Distance: 18.4 nm
Max speed 11.1 kt
Average speed 4.9 kt

Tenasillahe Island May 2008

Date: 5/25/2008
Time on water: 12:40
Time off water: 15:50
Trip distance: 5.36 nm
max speed 5.5 kt
moving avg: 2.7 kt
moving time: 2 hrs


I took Stephanie to Skamokawa for a kayak class with Columbia River Kayaking. She had come to Alder Creek's PaddleFest in April and really enjoyed kayaking so wanted to take a class to build a good foundation for having fun and being safe kayaking. And depending on conditions I would find some fun place to paddle while she was taking the class.

Due to warm weather the week before and alot of recent rain the water level of the Columbia was pretty high. It rained for most of the drive up to Skamokawa, but soon after we got there the rain stopped. I introduced Stephanie to Ginni. It was good to see Ginni again. Back from Mexico she was nicely tanned :)

I helped Stephanie sort out a bit of gear and clothing and I looked at the water and the charts to figure out what I was going to do with the day. Though the water was high, it didn't look brown and churning. Low tide was appr 13:30, but the current was basically ebbing all the time I would be out. So I planned to paddle across the river to Welch Island and Tenasillahe Island. The idea was to allow the current to take me downstream a bit to the north end of Welch Island. Then I'd paddle upstream in the shallow water near the islands as far as I had time. Then back across the main channel to the Washington side where the current would be stronger and let that strong current take me back to Skamokawa.

I got setup and headed out. Once I got into the shipping channel it was clear that there was alot of current. I basically followed my plan and ended up at the north end of Welch Island for lunch. Then paddled upstream, found the shallow water at the south end of Welch Island, crossed Red Slough over to Tenasillahe Island where I stopped for a hike on the trail around the perimeter of the island. I paddled a bit further south along Tenasillahe Island and headed back across the main channel. Once I'd crossed the shipping channel I turned downstream to enjoy the pretty strong current spiriting me back to Skamokawa.

Along the way I saw a few blue herons, alot of ospreys hunting, a bald eagle on Price Island eating something with a number of vultures hanging out nearby just waiting...

I got back to Skamokawa Center and found that Stephanie's class had just come ashore and were doing navigation stuff in the classroom. After her class, Stephanie and I headed over to the River Rat in Cathlamet to toast the day! It sounded like she had a great class and a good day on the water as well.

Hammersley Inlet to Hope Island

Date: 5/19/2008
Launch time: 12:30
Off water: 18:10
Distance 14.2 nm
Max speed: 7.8 kt
Moving avg: 4.0 kt
Moving time: 3:32

On an overcast Monday in May Ken and I paddled Hammersley Inlet. I was going to be up in Olympia working with him for a couple days so we decided to take part of Monday and go kayaking somewhere in his neck of the woods. I'd never done the classic Hammersley Inlet trip and the tides were favorable for it on Monday: low tide was appr 1pm. Our plan was to launch and land at Walker County Park near Shelton and paddle out to Hope Island for lunch.

We set out for Walker County Park and managed to get lost along the way. Note to self: always remember to bring the guidebook. The maps we had just weren't detailed enough to figure out how to get there. So we started a bit later than we'd hoped, but the tide was still ebbing and we got some nice help from it. I really enjoyed the Hammersley Inlet neighborhood. Kindof woodsy, some areas of nice older houses. I could picture living there, having a nice garden and doing some fishing.

As we got out into Pickering Passage the tide was just starting to flood and Ken wondered if there might be a nice little tide race off Steamboat Island which was on our way to Hope Island. It turns out there was so we played on it for a few minutes til the rising tide flooded the feature.

We then paddled over to Hope Island for lunch. Took a walk around the island. I could be a settler there. Nice afternoon. After lunch we completed our circumnavigation of Hope Island and headed back.

When we back into Hammersley Inlet the flood was really going, especially near Cape Horn. I got up to 7.8 kt! It was pretty swirly too. But pretty fun. On the return trip I really enjoyed the scenery in Hammersley Inlet. I could live there.

Got back to Walker County Park just as it was starting to rain. A good day out.

Clackamas River: Barton to Carver

On a cold Sunday in April we did a whitewater kayak voyage from Barton to Carver on the Clackamas River. Alder Creek was doing one of their Fundementals of Whitewater Kayaking classes and Katlyn and I tagged along as alumni on the river run day of the class (Sunday).

Both of us needed to get back in the whitewater kayak saddle. The last time we had been out on whitewater was December '07. The plan was to go out in late April because it would be warmer than winter. Well, nice plan. Turns out this weekend we had freak cold weather. Snow and sleet around Oregon and Washington. It was cold! The water was really cold. Much of our day out it altnerated between a really cold rain and sleet. Drysuits are truly a gift from the gods. Or from Kokatat at least :)

It turned out to be a good group. The Alder Creek coaches were Paul, Annette and Shawn. There were five students in the class, and two alumni (Katlyn and I). Can't remember all the students' names. A few were Marin (sp?), Jo, Kevin, and Chris. All good folks to hang out with.

Neither Katlyn or I had been whitewater kayaking since December. She did pretty well. I was definitely feeling rusty. So it was good to get out. I was paddling much better by the end of the day. But at first, not so much. And early on my roll sucked -- I was definitely shocked at how cold the water was so tried to roll before getting setup properly. I (almost) always got it on my second try. But in one rapid I was doing great, then slipped up in some way and I was just over instantly. I again was too hasty in my roll attempt and it didn't work. As I was taking my time getting setup for my second attempt I ended up in fast moving water about six inches deep moving across a shelf of very slick clay. So I was dragged along for awhile before the water got deep again, the result being that one side of my drysuit was caked in clay. Katlyn thought this was hilarious. I'm glad I was able to provide some entertainment value.

Then after lunch the sun came baking down. At this point in the trip we were often just in deep water. I took a good bit of time practicing my rolls in various situations, got used to the cold water, and got it back. So yep, practice, a good thing.

The water was bigger and much more swirly than when we were out in December. Of the non-instructors, almost everyone went over a number of times. But folks were in general doing pretty well. And when they went over most requested an Eskimo rescue and it worked. Katlyn did well. She was just calm, had this great upright seated position and nice strokes, and loved the rapids. Never once went over unintentionally. Her only problem was that her hands were very cold alot of the day. Understandable. The instructors congratulated her for coming out in the snow in December and the sleet today and promised her that her efforts would be rewarded by great days paddling in the sun in July.

Date: Sunday April 20, 2008
Distance: appr 5.25 mi
Class II
Appr 2900 cfs (at Estacada)

Circumnavigation of Lord and Walker Islands

On a pleasant Sunday in mid-April an intrepid band of OOPS paddlers kayaked around Lord and Walker Islands (in the Columbia River near Longview).

This was an OOPS trip. Joanne Barta organized the trip and was one of the leaders. Don Beale and Ken Durbin were co-leaders. There were 11 of us total. The plan was to meet at Dibblee Beach on the Oregon side of the Columbia River at 9am and be on the water by 10am, paddle downstream in the main channel taking advantage of the current, have lunch at the north end of Walker Island, and return to Dibblee Beach upstream via the slough on the Oregon side. High tide in Longview was at appr 9:40 and the next low tide was at appr 18:40, so we'd be paddling on an ebb the entire trip.

The weather prediction was chance of showers, winds W - NW 7 - 10 mph.

After everyone got their gear ready and we talked about the plan for the day and safety we got on the water at 10:10.

The day started off overcast and cool, with very little wind, but it looked like we could get some showers. We headed out into the main channel of the Columbia and it was easy paddling with the current. We watched a freighter pass a tug pulling a barge. Looked like a very slow-motion drag race.



The day had warmed up a bit by the time we stopped for lunch at the north end of Walker Island. We had a very nice lunch stop. We even had entertainment! Joanne was practicing throwing her harpoon and then giving others who wanted to try it a bit of instruction.



After lunch we meandered in the wetlands of Lord Island. Very pleasant paddling. We saw eagles, ospreys, geese and lots of different ducks. We stopped for a bit to stretch our legs and Joanne and Don showed us that you don't need to be near dry land to do that!



The paddle back to Dibblee Beach gave us a nice bit of exercise paddling upstream. That promised west wind never did really get very strong so not much wave action at all. Since the day was so nice we took some time to practice towing. The water was still pretty cold so folks weren't too enthusiastic about practicing rescues quite yet :) But some of us did practice our rolls just before getting back to the beach. And it never did end up raining :)

All in all a very pleasant day paddling and hanging out with a good group of folks.

Date: 4/13/2008
On the water: 10:10
Off the water: 15:40
Total: 9.9 nm

(Click on any of the photos for larger versions.)

Boston Harbor to Devils Head

On a chilly Tuesday in early April, Ken and I paddled from Boston Harbor to Devils Head and back.

I hadn't been paddling in the South Sound in some years and Ken had been wanting to take me out kayaking there and show me his neighborhood. Ken lives in Olympia and so knows many of the little nooks and crannies of the many and various arms of the southern part of Puget Sound. I'd read about many of these areas for paddling in Washburne's book "Kayak trips in Puget Sound and the San Juan Islands", but had only paddled once in the Nisqually Delta. And that was some years ago.

Given the tides and the time we had, Ken chose a trip starting from Boston Harbor, just north of Olympia, to Devils Head and back. The plan was: The tide was ebbing so the current would help us going east to Devils Head. We would have lunch at Devils Head. Slack was at appr 14:15. We would return to Boston Harbor with the help of the flood current. Sounded good to me!

We got on the water at appr 12:30. It was cool, with just a bit of a breeze from the south. As we went through Dana Passage we could really feel the ebb current. Ken told me that on the flood if there's a west wind opposing it you can get some steep waves there. We got hungry well before Devils Head so stopped at Dickenson Point for lunch. Lots of mussels and sea anemonies on the rocks. Lots of goeduck clams sticking there necks out in the shallow nearly-low-tide water. It was cool but sunny at lunchtime.

We got back on the water and headed east toward Devils Head. Got a bit of a south wind as we crossed the mouth of Henderson Inlet and a bit of wind waves.

The wind subsided as we approached Devils Head and we had a lovely paddle in that area. Stopped for a rest on the beach. Then as we saw dark clouds to our south and east we decided to head back. The flood current was definitely helping us. But then we got into a small squall with a bit of rain and appr 12 kt west wind in Dana Passage. And yes, we got those steep waves. Not too big -- appr 1.5 ft. But it was work paddling against the wind. But as Ken noted, paddling against the wind gives you a good opportunity to work on your forward stroke. Since your forward progress is slowed way down you can focus on each aspect of the stroke, like, well, in slow-motion.

But then the wind subsided, we still had a nice flood current, and we were cruising along at over 6 kt! We got a bit of tidal race action in Dana Passage which was lots of fun.

Then we turned south to get back to Boston Harbor and all was calm again. A very nice day on the water.

Date: 4/8/08
Total: 14.2 nm

Scappose Bay

On a mild Saturday in late March, Kristin and I explored the Scappoose Bay waters. Our goal was to get out and do some mellow wetland paddling. Due to time constraints we also needed somewhere relatively close to town so we chose Scappose Bay.

We put in at the Scappose Bay Marina about two hours before low tide. Since the water was ebbing, we first paddled out of Scappoose Bay, across Multnomah Channel, and up the little river flowing out of Sauvie Island across from Scappoose Bay. Then, as the tide was beginning to flood, we paddled back in to Scappoose Bay to explore its wetlands as they filled with water.

Well, they weren't filling up very fast so we found ourselves paddling in about 12 inches of water alot of the time. We were thus thankful we were paddling kayaks. It was a beautiful spring wetland paddle where we saw alot of birdlife: geese, including some beautiful white ones, ducks, herons, etc. And we startled alot of carp in the shallow water.

Date: March 22, 2008
Appr 8.5 miles.