We hope you are having a great time at the WRRR Green River Cleanup BBQ! If you want to pay your donation through PayPal, using your account or a credit card, you can do that here.
One person ($5):
Two people ($10):
Three people ($15):
Brenan has put together a great map showing Mercury, the Nozzle, and Let’s Make a Deal. This should help people run this section of the Green Gorge without some of the problems we’ve seen in the past. See you on the river!
PDF: Green River Mercury Nozzle Safety Eddy Map
Here’s a screen capture of the map for people having problems with the PDF. Click the image to enlarge.
With the Green River Cleanup coming up in a few days, we thought it would be nice to republish the Waterlog from 2013 with an article about the Green River. Be safe and have a good time out there!
The Waterlog, with articles like this, is one of the great benefits of you WRRR membership.
Washington Recreational River Runners
Board Meeting April 9, 2014
Washington Recreational River Runners
Board Meeting February 12, 2014
Not a fan of Facebook? Tired of the ads on the Yahoo list that doesn’t always work? We have a new forum system that is owned and operated by WRRR! You can find them by using the “Community” menu above, or by going to wrrr.org/forums.
Over the past couple of years, two new gauges have been added to the Sauk River drainage – one at Darrington and one on the Suiattle.
You can find out about all of the Sauk River area gauges by clicking here.
In the future, you will still be able to find this page by going to the River Info menu.
On June 1, 2013, WRRR members voted to revise the club by-laws.
The revised by-laws are available at the page WRRR By-Laws, which can be reached from the About WRRR menu above.
(This article was originally published in the May 2013 issue of The Waterlog)
This months’ Rapid segment focuses on the Wenatchee River. Most all the “tough” carnage happens at Boulder Bend. At high flows there are some nice hit and huge holes over on river center spread all the way across to river left. At far river left there is some pretty hairly “code red” in the form of logs and other junk that accumulates in high water. Most paddle rafts get wiped out in the Geary Hole (River Center) and end up having a very long swim, get pushed over river left, and get thrashed. For me, I have a nice Green Highway on river right that I prefer to use. To enter the highway I take my exit right after the hwy 2 bridge at the Bent tree on river left. That is my cue to start working right. With a nice easy forward paddle, we end up about 40 feet off the river right bank at the start of the 120 degree turn. Once there it’s an easy shot around the bend and we find a few of the larger holes and cut back river center right after the huge rock(river center/ rapid center). There’s some nice ledge waves to hit and usually gets everyone on the paddle team fired up for the rest of the river.
I’ve seen lots of carnage and boats rolled up after this rapid. The most spectacular is engraved in my mind though. Everytime I run the rapid I chuckle a little. I had just made my way back into the center of the river to hit all the big wave trains at the bottom left, looked back to see an empty boat. I quickly blew the whistle and got our boat ready to go pickup and assist the swimmers. With my paddlers ready to receive, I took a quick glance back to make sure we were on the right track and WTH, they were all back in the boat. What had been maybe 10 seconds, Koker had climbed back in the raft and already had 4 paddlers in the boat. In the next 2 paddles strokes we took heading his way, he had grabbed them all. Cool I thought, gave him the OK, got one back and we turned around to go finish out the rapid. What must have been 20 seconds later I looked back to check on the other rafts to see the most spectacular swiftwater dive ever. He was full on horizontal like a little missle wearing a PFD. Not knowing what was going on, I started to worry. Back to rescue mode. I thought maybe he was missing someone underwater? What could he be doing? His crew which was having a tough time moving the boat at the beginning of the rapid was now looking like an all star paddle team even with their guide in mid air. Another whistle blow and by the time I turned around the guy was back in the guide seat guiding again!!! Lucky for me, He was after my favorite guide stick and he got it! Wow, I couldn’t stop laughing and wow.
I told the story the next day at my guide safety talk. I also colorfully describe my swims there, and that I really don’t mind it and kind of enjoy swimming the wenachee at most places. Wouldn’t ya know it, they were paddling like banchees through Boulder Bend………..
In conclusion any description wouldn’t be complete without my favorite places to get paddlers wet. Right after the Dam is probably my favorite spot on the Wenachee. Most call it Upper and Lower Gorilla falls, but I call it the Gopher Holes. Reason: If you see a hole, you go fer it. The best one for our Aire raft is River Center Left right under the bridge. This thing hits hard and usually sends me up to the front of the raft. After getting rocked around we get our raft drifting to the outside of the river to line up for some other big holes on river right at the outside of the bend. Whether you like running big or conservative there’s a line for you on the Wenatchee.
Here’s to having some fun in the sun this summer!!!!!
-Pinky
Perhaps the most ill conceived trip of my long whitewater career was on the Wenatchee. It was 1988 and I was 30. I had recently gotten my first IK and run the usual class 3-4 rivers on the west side for a year or 2. I had rafted and canoed before getting the IK. One fine hot spring day, my river buddy and I both had the day off. Everything on the west side of the mountains was running too high. So my buddy says, “let’s go do the Wenatchee.” I said, “it’s running 21,000 and he replied, “yeah but it’s the Wenatchee – like it was no big deal. So we went, mid week, 2 IKs, no one else on the river. The boat ramp and the parking lot were under water, and it was mostly up the front steps of the house next door. Maybe I shouldn’t even be writing this cause I honestly don’t remember very much about the run, but it WAS memorable.
Lack of visibility is what I remember most, due to the huge waves. I knew if I lost hold of my paddle, I probably wouldn’t find it again, and I didn’t have a spare. So I tied it to my boat with some line that I figured I could break, if needed. I only took 1 swim that day and it was in Rock ‘n Roll. I self rescued very quickly without having to worry about holding onto the paddle. Now the yarn spinner in me would love to tell you how the string broke, I lost my paddle and hand paddled through Gorilla and Drunkard’s Drop. But it didn’t, and the next thing I remember was going into Snowblind. We planned to run down the left side but somehow there was a monstrous hole that we hadn’t counted on, so I ruddered just a tad-I thought. The entrance current grabbed my boat and surfed it 30’ sideways in a heartbeat and I was going down the middle. I remember paddling, as hard as I could, into a trough and craning my neck to see the crest of the next wave. I swear it was like looking up at a 3 story building, and knowing you had to paddle over it. Quite a rush when I caught air at the top. I saw my Buddy for an instant 2 waves down, turned sideways. I thought, “don’t swim here.” Then I remember thinking, “I hope I don’t hit Suffocator”, cause I had little clue where I was in relation to the banks or anything else. And maneuvering was really not an option, without being able to see. I was in a canyon of waves with no sight of anything but what was in my immediate vicinity. I knew the rapid would end and I had a hell of a ride. We took out at Monitor because we thought the park take out would be hard to catch. We ended up paddling between the cottonwoods, but at least there wasn’t too much current. When we got off the river, I knew that I would not do that again, and it was one hell of a ride.
-Chris Herman
Boulder Bend: To make it through without any terror, hug the right shore. As you move left you increase the possible terror factor. There is a nice hole near the beginning and center right. At higher levels it can keep you and even flip you if you are not on your game.
Rock & Roll:The current is trying to pull you into Satan’s Eyeball. That is not advised. As you enter the rapid you will probably pass right of an exposed rock. Immediately start pulling left. The current will have other ideas. If all goes well you pass the eyeball on the left, hopefully far enough for comfort. Take a good look at what you avoided. If that is not possible to stay left, try to get right of the eyeball. After that, enjoy the waves but make sure to miss Satan’s Asshole center left near the end of the wave train.
The Dam: Stay left approaching the dam. Look for the sloping boulders. Don’t go too soon or you will be at the concrete part of the dam and will probably die. As soon as you can push over the boulders without hitting wood, do it. Make sure you don’t wait too long or you could go over the high steep part with unknown results. Once over the drop, enjoy the hydraulics and avoid the few (very few) rocks.
Snowblind: Some people say the left side is easiest. Others say the right side is easiest. Still others say the right side is a guaranteed flip. I just head into the middle and push like hell as I hit the holes.
-Ken Gersten
You could be the next WRRR President!
The WRRR Board of Directors is looking for people who want to become club officers in the future. In order to make this possible, we need people to join the Board as Directors-At-Large and learn the procedures. Many of the current board members have been on the board for years, and we can’t just keep going back to the old board members to keep things going. If you have enjoyed being a WRRR member, consider becoming part of the board.
After upgrading to iFeature Pro 5.1.0.7, the white background css broke. The wrapper div that I was setting up is no longer on the pages, so I can’t set it. I was able to set these attributes on .container :
background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);
background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);
box-shadow: 2px 2px 3px 2px #333333;
The box shadow had some problems, in that it meant a shadow around every container, rather than around the whole thing. I was able to mitigate this by not having bottoms and tops on the shadows, but this requires using multiple shadows, which may not work on all browsers: box-shadow: 6px 0 4px -4px #333333, -6px 0 4px -4px #333333;
This helped fix almost everything. Here is a partial image of the page:
The color of the menu is all wrong. It should look like the dark green “Upcoming Events” header. That is what I need help with.
Snowmelt has begun, and sundown is late enough to allow for after work runs. There are several options, with the most common being the Middle Middle (MF Snoqualmie), the SF Stilly (Wiley Creek to Verlot), the SF Snoquamie (below Twin Falls), the Upper Green River Gorge, and the Cedar River. Most trips are announced on the Yahoo group and/or Facebook page.
We meet at 5:20PM at the takeout on Tanner Rd (see map below) and head to the put-in. The put-in is either the Granite Creek access or the First Island Drop access depending on flows and water level. You can find a description of the run and flow information here.
For more details, contact David Elliott at dce@dcell.com
Show off and brag about being part of the best whitewater club. We will have WRRR club shirts, hats, hoodies on sale at our upcoming club events. If you want a particular color or style shirt, fleece, etc.. we are doing a speicial order this month. So now is the time to tell us the exact WRRR wear you have been dreaming of. Please email (Nancy Douty <pinkclouds@comcast.net>);or call Nancy Douty (425.413.0948) as soon as possible for custom orders. See you on the River!
Thankyou all for helping us with the 2022 Green River cleanup!!
Save the date for the 39th ANNUAL Green River Cleanup!!!! Saturday 5-6-23
Join WRRR, Paddle trails, OWA, WKC, BeWett, Nature Nuts, Boy Scouts, MGRC, WA state parks, and other several local clubs (If we missed your group let us know!) , neighbors and friends at the 39th Annual Green River Cleanup on Saturday May 6th!!! Every year lots of outdoor enthusiast enjoy the day recreating along the river, and cleaning up trash at the same time. As always, there will be lots to do for boaters and non boaters. River stretches are rated class 2-4. The last 3 years proved that we will boat no matter the flow! Hiking and ground crew sections are available from flat trail to adventurous river corridor cleaning. We found some huge trash areas and have local neighbor’s helping out as well!
Bob Johnson was one of the founders of WRRR, and every June we get together at the Wenatchee River to celebrate WRRR and its founders. We have a potluck, prize raffle, and lots of fun!
WRRR members can enjoy free camping at the Tumwater Campground, and enjoy a fun weekend of rafting and kayaking on the Wenatchee and nearby runs such as the Chiwawa River and Peshastin Creek. The main put-in is the river access in Leavenworth. See the map below for the campground directions.
WRRR has safety scholarship money available! WRRR will pay up to 1/3 of tuition costs for river-related safety classes for our members. NOTE: Classes required for professional guide training are not covered by the scholarship fund.
How can you get in on this action?
Remember these are first come first serve funds, so don’t delay.
Several years ago (2003 or 2004), a group of inflatable kayakers in WRRR started a tradition of running the Cedar River on January 1, and this tradition is still going strong. For 2013, we had quite a large group of around 23 people come out on a sunny winter day to get their boating year started.
There are photos from the trip in the photo gallery – photos courtesy Chris Herman and Erik Smith.
If you have been dreaming of a WRRR hoodie all year, now is the time to drop hints and get your loved ones to buy the WRRR wear of your dreams. Of if you want to be sure that your family and friends are showing their WRRR pride the holidays are a great time to give the gift of WRRR wear. We have t-shirts, sweatshirts, hoodies, hats, and don’t forget the beverage cozies! We can even do custom orders. Please contact the WRRR wear genie (aka Nancy Douty) by eamil pinkclouds@comcast.net or call 425.413.0948.
The WRRR Board is planning a get together on October 6, 2012 to repair boats and gear. We hope to have some gear swapping going on too. We believe it would be very helpful to provide a space and the know how to help our members repair their gear. So we have found a location and have invited Steve Dumanis to advise us. If we are lucky, maybe our editor will join us as a mentor too. We are inviting you to bring your gear, and whatever supplies you will need….glue, D-rings, patches and valves, and we will attempt to fix it on the spot. We recommend you bring your repair kits Please be sure that you have new glue. We are offering a prize for the BEST repair kit. We are hoping to put together a GLUE POSTER, which would show all the different glues and their best uses. We encourage you to bring along any gear you no longer use to sell or trade to other club members. This can be a great opportunity to clear out your storage space and pick up some needed items. Even if it’s not in prime shape, it may be perfect for someone starting out. Steve has been repairing boats for years and will be available to help you with your repair [if you are glue-challenged] for a minimal fee.
We will be meeting at the Auburn Airport where Randy Rogers has a hangar that will be available to us for shelter. The address is 2527 “E” St. N.E., hangar # 503. There is a locked gate so if you have a trailer, you can contact Randy on his cell phone and he can open the gate to let you drive in. 206-669-1877
We will start at 11:00 am so we will have plenty of time for the glue to dry. WRRR will be providing pizza and you should provide you own beverages. Any questions, comments, ideas or needs, please call me at 425-413-0948 and leave a message on my home phone
Come Join WRRR for camping at the dustbowl. Primitive camping available for all! WRRR provides toilets. All are invited to join a river community potluck at the wrrr camp Saturday night – Bring your favorite dish to share. Trips are running all week usually with several launches a day through the wrrr camp. The wrrr camp is just downstream of BlueSky. Stay tuned for more info, directions and details.
Trip Leader: WRRR board, or hop on any trip floating. Just make sure to arrange a shuttle, before you get too excited!!!
Camping: New camp location this year at Newhalem Campground Loop C, August 9th – 12th. Please note this is different than before. We missed the reservation time at our usual place. We are excited about this new area, as there is pull through sites, trailer turnaround, and maybe even more room than before. Look for the wrrr signs, or Pinky. Remember camping is free for WRRR members but non-member guests need to pay.
Poker Fun: A poker game played with skill, you draw cards at river stations while you float the Skagit River at Newhalem. Not to be missed, the WRRR Poker run is one of the club’s most popular events. The Skagit River is one of the few rivers still running late in the summer, the run is rated easy class 2-3 at most levels. Other activities include camping and a potluck dinner in the North Cascades National Park. Bring the family. There are usually groups running the river on Friday and Sunday also. Contact any board member for more information or check out the YahooGroup (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wrrr)
Logistics: Meet at the Upper Skagit River put in @ Goodell Creek Campground. Poker hands go on sale at 10:00am. Safety Olympics Registration at 9:30am. Poker hand sales close at 11:30 and the sweep boat launches at 11:30. Don’t get behind the sweep boat or you will miss out on this game of skill. For the 3rd year in a row, the wrrr safety olympics will be happening. Sharp skills will lead the champion to victory.
TRIP LEADERS: Lyles Larkin, VP River Ops at 425-894-5465 or ik4fun@comcast.net or any other board member for more information.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED: Anyone interested helping with this event by running a river station please contact any board member.
Goodell Creek Put in Directions: Located south of SR 20 at mile post 119. 13 miles (21 km) east of Marblemount, 74 miles (119 km) west of Winthrop. http://www.nps.gov/noca/planyourvisit/upload/Goodell.pdf
Newhalem Campground Directions: To reach the North Cascades, drive State Route 20, the North Cascades Highway, from Burlington on the west or Twisp on the east. Newhalem Campground is located at Mile Marker 120 on State Route 20.
Come Join us for the WRRR White Salmon Weekend. Camping Friday July 20th and Saturday July 21st.
The White Salmon trip is coming up in July. Join us on this annual WRRR sponsored trip on a class 3-3+ run with one optional portage around Husam Falls. Some folks choose to run the eight to ten foot drop — some don’t even flip. We meet at the takeout (Northwestern Lake) at noon on Saturday for the shuttle. There is a sign on State Route 141 about five miles from the town of White Salmon. We will put in at BZ Corner.
The White Salmon got hit hard by the storms this year and may have issues with wood. Tune in to the group site & Facebook for a wood report. Camping is free for WRRR members at Hollenbeck Park near Trout Lake, WA. This will be the 2nd year at Hollenbeck Park. The camp site has a large grassy area with spectacular views of Mt. Adams. Address: 33 Mt Adams Rd. (off Hwy 141 to Mt. Adams)
PLEASE NOTE: When we have a WRRR event where WRRR pays for camping, we charge $10 per person for non-member camping. It’s often a hard thing to collect from people because club members don’t always prepare their guests for this, and the board member doing the collecting ends up being the baddie. Please make sure that your guests know that there is a fee. You will need to make your own arrangements for food, drink and camping/cooking gear.
SYOTR
Chris Herman and Paula Tarp have organized a "Beginner Boater" trip next Wed. 4/25 for the lower S. Fork of the Stillaguamish (Stilly) from Jordan Rd. bridge (Chapel Bridge #87) to River Meadows Park. It is about 8 miles and should take about 3 hours on the water. It is a great training run with no scary wood (that I've ever seen) and easy put in and take out. We'll meet at 10:30 at the Rite Aid in Granite Falls, just across from Subway at the W. end of town when you come in east on 92. I know some of you have sick days and spring fever qualifies ;>)
For information contact: Chris Herman (WRRR safety and education chair) 206-525-3969 after noon
