Tainted Ideals

MF breakfasts

2011-04-29T14:19:00.000-07:00

After the Day 1 fajitas for dinner, we are hoping to spend the next day as a layover day, with lots of hiking, perhaps fishing (water level allowing), and lounging in a nearby hot-springs. My plan, all things going the way I would like, is to do very simple breakfasts that don't need much preparation or clean up. But since we are hopefully doing a layover day that first morning, I thought we'd do something a little more involved. So here are the proposed breakfasts:

Day 2 (first on-river breakfast): Fresh cinnamon rolls, french toast, sausages, orange juice.

Day 3: Scrambled eggs, bacon, english muffins, orange slices.

Day 4: Cold cereal, milk, cantaloupe.

Day 5: Oatmeal, bacon, honeydew melon.

Day 6: Breakfast burritos, english muffins.

Day 7: French toast, bacon, sausages, whatever we have left.

This is, as always, tentative and open to revisions if folk don't like what is there.

New tent!

2011-03-20T07:32:00.000-07:00

Sparky and I have several tents, but for extended rafting trips, the tent we used to use was pretty crappy. It was something cheap we found on Sierra Trading Post, and it had two really good things going for it: 1) no sleeves to run the poles through (all clips), and 2) it was quite roomy (10'x10') and tall enough for either of us to comfortably stand up in. However, you get what you pay for, and after several uses, it developed a large hole in the seam where the floor connected to the wall.

So we've been looking for something to replace it that shared many of the good qualities of the old tent but was made of higher quality materials (and with a better warrantee). The tent we settled on is a little smaller (9'x9') but still has the attributes we like: the Eureka Tetragon 9.

Here is what it looks like:

(image from website)

Aside from the sleeveless design and adequate headroom, this tent has a more robust rainfly than the old tent, a two pole design which makes it much quicker to erect, a built in organizer to keep your small stuff off the floor (glasses, flashlight, book, etc.), plus it has a lifetime warrantee on materials and workmanship if a defect develops down the line.

It took me under 10 minutes to get it put up by myself without the instructions, from the time I opened the box because it is so simple with just the two poles and the Eureka "pin and clip" system of attaching the poles to the tent. They even color coded one of the attachments of the fly to the tent body so it is difficult to put the fly on wrong. Overall, I think this is going to be a really good tent for us.

My one reservation is that this tent (and the old crappy one too) uses fiberglass poles, which I have had splinter in high winds. I personally prefer aluminum poles (like in one of our other tents) and though I've heard of them kinking in high winds, I've never had it happen myself.

Middle Fork food

2011-03-10T18:50:00.000-08:00

Yes, it has been a long time since the last post, but I have an excuse: I've been doing stuff. Still am, still will be, but I need the outlet of writing so I'm back. For now.

As it happens, Sparky actually drew a Middle Fork of the Salmon permit this year. WooHoo! Since planning that far ahead would be foolish, here I go. Mainly, we're going to plan meals early for taste testing and portioning, which actually kind of makes sense to do well ahead of time.

We are planning on spending seven days (six nights) on the river, and we'll focus mainly on dinners for now, though breakfasts and lunches will come soon.

We have three requirements for these meals: 1) Relatively healthy, 2) Easy to make, and 3) Easy to clean up afterwards. Some of them we've done before, some will be new for on the river (hence the testing).

Day 1:

Mexican theme, Fajitas. Most likely chicken, though I may push for the estrogen enhancing tofu option.

Ingredients: Onion, Bell Peppers (red and green), Mushrooms, Garlic, Mild Chili-Peppers (canned), and either chicken or tofu. Garnished with shredded cheese, sour cream, guacamole and served on tortillas, this is a classic.

Day 2:

Trailer park theme, Sloppy Joes. Turkey sloppy joes specifically, this is another meal that, when served properly, requires no plates or bowls, thusly cutting down on dishes to be washed.

Ingredients: Turkey, bell peppers, onion, corn (canned), black olives (canned), garlic, Manwich sauce, Lipton Spanish rice (to thicken the mixture), served on a bun.

Day 3:

Asian theme, Mongolian Beef. A relatively spicy dish, we'll add vegetables to the main course to make it at least somewhat more healthy.

Ingredients: Thin cut lean beef strips, rolled in sugar, flash fried with broccoli and snow peas and served over rice. This is a difficult dish to prepare on a home stove because most stoves don't get hot enough. We'll test it on our Coleman propane stove and see if it will work in the wild.

Day 4:

Middle Eastern theme, Falafel. A vegetarian dish, this is another one pan meal prepared on the stovetop, keeping us from having to tote along a bunch of charcoal.

Ingredients: Falafel, onion, bell peppers, garlic, sauteed and served with tzatziki sauce on a Greek pita.

Day 5:

Italian theme, Lasagna. Very easy to build on the river, we'll probably do it with turkey bacon for flavor.

Ingredients: Lasagna noodles, Spaghetti sauce (because we're lazy), non-fat cottage cheese, mozzarella cheese, garlic, mushrooms, bell peppers, black olives, and turkey bacon. Served with garlic bread.

Day 6:

Uno mas Mexican theme, Enchiladas. Canned chicken enchiladas that is. This is another easy to make on the river dish, usually saved for the last day because almost all the ingredients don't need refrigeration.

Ingredients: Canned chicken, enchilada sauce, garlic, onion, bell peppers, corn (canned), black olives (canned), mild chilis (canned), black beans (canned), rice, tortillas, cheddar cheese (the only thing that needs refrigeration). Served with sour cream and guacamole (ok they need refrigeration too).

You may have noticed that there are a lot of the same ingredients these dishes, specifically, bell peppers, onions, corn, garlic, black olives, etc. This is primarily because these vegetables travel well with little to no refrigeration (especially the canned stuff). What changes are the spices, meats and condiments. I don't think anyone will find these meals anything but superficially repetitive, but they will certainly be healthy.

This is of course a first draft, things may change if some of the experimental food doesn't come out good, and of course we'll be adding desserts before all is said and done. Feel free to comment/give ideas for meals if you care to.

Green Wall fun

2010-01-25T09:27:00.000-08:00

This is a video from 1993 of some rafters running the Green Wall on the Illinois River in Oregon: lots of carnage. Most water I've ever seen on the Illinois too. I like the second raft (2:50ish): another example of what happens when you hit big waves with no momentum.

Hat tip to Will Volpert who found it

In the Holiday mood

2009-12-15T23:04:00.000-08:00

Good Rhetoric

2009-12-03T14:43:00.000-08:00

Diane Savino speaking about gay marriage. Apparently not persuasive enough, since the bill was shot down.

Implicit social-darwinism

2009-12-03T06:46:00.001-08:00

Rush Limbaugh apparently endorsing an institutionalized eugenics program:

The country will, according to Limbaugh, be a better place if those who can't afford health care are allowed to die.

US Open final

2009-09-14T17:26:00.000-07:00

So I watched a lot of the men's final: Federer vs. Del Potro. Federer did not play his best match. He served poorly, towards the end he mis-hit a lot of balls, it just wasn't one his best efforts. Del Potro played very well, but the thing he did that I think won the match for him seems counter-intuitive.

Federer could have still won the match even playing what was for him, sub-par tennis, except Del Potro somewhere in the third set figured something out that seems to have escaped just about everyone else. What he did, was he slowed his first serve down.

Federer is known as one of the best returners in tennis right now. But this is because he doesn't really do a lot with his return: he typically (especially on first serves), just blocks the ball back in play down the middle of the court.

From his perspective, as long as he doesn't hit the return poorly, he can out-groundstroke just about anyone on the planet. When guys are bombing in 130 mph serves, this is usually enough: just seeing those balls coming back is frusterating enough, knowing that they then will have to trade groundstrokes with arguably the best player in tennis history to win the point is downright disheartening.

Rafael Nadal has long taken advantage of this "weakness" in Federer's game through happenstance: Nadal doesn't use his serve to hurt his oponent, he simply uses it to start the point with the expectation (well deserved) that he will be able to out-groundstroke just about anyone on the planet.

So Del Potro slowed down his first serve because Federer typically doesn't attack first serves. This raised his first serve percentage to well over 70 percent during the last two sets, and got him a lot of balls in the middle of the court so he could dictate the point.

By raising his first serve percentage, Del Potro gave Federer a lot fewer second serves to attack, and in my opinion, this is what won him the match.

Federer in my opinion needs to be just somewhat more aggressive on his return game, both first and second if he is going to beat Del Potro or Nadal consistently in the future.

Unless he just plays out of his mind like he did in the semi against Djokovich.

This is one of the best (and ballsiest) mid-match adjustments I've ever seen at the pro level (especially without a rain delay to permit coaching), and Del Potro richly deserves his win.

Penn and Teller

2009-08-30T21:21:00.000-07:00

I'm pretty sure I'm not explicitly anti-catholic: if people want to believe that a cracker turns into human flesh in their mouth, I think they have that right. On the other hand, I'm generally against the oppression of any class of people, institutionalized pedophilia (or any pedophilia for that matter), and I pretty much think global over-population is the elephant in the room that most people seem to be ignoring. So here is 25 minutes of Penn and Teller and their take on the church.

Penn & Teller, Bullshit! The Vatican from Brewster on Vimeo.

-----------Update---------------
Apparently there was some sort of copyright problem. Sorry, it was funny. So instead, here is a video by Louis CK that is most certainly anti-catholic:

Krantz at the Smithsonian

2009-06-18T11:39:00.000-07:00

Just a few pictures of the Grover Krantz exhibit at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. I think he would have liked being located next to the interactive Forensics lab there. As usual, click on the picture to get a bigger version.

I saw this exhibit first: I never did learn why this guy was yanking on the goat. One of those things you really don't want to know the answer to.

Green Truss

2009-02-09T11:14:00.000-08:00

Nice video of rafting on the Green Truss section of the White Salmon: looks like a hoot.

Found through Will Volpert and the Molalla Kayaker.

Feline Flush

2008-12-12T14:47:00.000-08:00

More evidence that cats are inherently evil (not to mention environmentally unaware):

Via Greg Laden.

Soon it will be whitewater time

2008-12-01T13:25:00.000-08:00

OK, not too soon, but within a third of a year, Sparky and I will be back on the water, and here are some teasers to whet the appetite. Enjoy.

Who the hell is "Louis CK?" and why does he seem to read my thoughts?

2008-11-22T20:20:00.000-08:00

Snaked from Bad Astronomy.

In which my verbosity is exposed

2008-11-10T18:30:00.000-08:00

The Philster left a comment on the last post, and my reply has grown to the size that it deserves it's own post (for size, not for content).

The Philster writes:

Dude! I love how you call him out on a fundamental misunderstanding (mischaracterization?) of the scientific enterprise, then apologize for possibly rambling. Iron fist, velvet glove technique.

To which I inanely reply:

I really don't want to alienate him: it really is probably me who has it wrong, but I'm not sure where my reasoning has gone off the rails. This seems to me to be something that was pretty well thrashed out by David Hume a couple of centuries ago. Not the pedagogical part, but the understanding that science isn't going to produce knowledge that is "true" in an absolute sense of the word. Mind you, the logical positivists may have tried to revive the notion, but they're pretty much all dead anyways.

I've been feeling pretty good recently epistemologically speaking, but I'm discovering a disturbing post-modernist streak running around the Anthropology department, and now this. Can't we all just get along? Can't we just accept that while there may not be any absolute truth to be found in the world, the methods of and tools of science can and are working to get us vanishingly close?

I've heard arguments that science shouldn't be a privileged source of knowledge (from the post-modernists), but what other source of knowledge is nearly as reliable? Is self-correcting? Doesn't presume to be absolute? And probably most importantly, what other source of knowledge is so spectacularly successful in producing information that allows humans to manipulate and predict empirical reality? For good or ill, science is the schema that works.

Even the "false" (to use Slater's terminology) science of Newtonian mechanics works so well that using it alone we can build machines that have flown to Mars. Maybe it isn't strictly true, but those are some pretty good results for a theory that is "false." I'll take that kind of false any day over the "truth" derived from other methods. But that's just me.

I am however reminded of a couple of XKCD comics:

As I understand it, that's a graph of the microwave background radiation that permeates the universe. The solid line is the curve predicted by Einstein, and the dots that are hard to see because they are mostly obscured by the line are the observed values.

And this one that I'll just link to.

False Science: What is it good for?

2008-11-10T14:11:00.000-08:00

So I was over in the Philosophy department at the University of Idaho trying to ask a couple of questions about the Philosophy of Science in regards to Post-modernism last Friday afternoon. Of course I should have realized that no one philosophizes on a Friday afternoon, so literally, no one was there.

In a display case, there was an article by Matthew Slater titled "How to Justify Teaching False Science." This intrigued me, so I found me a copy and read it that night. I thought it was very interesting, but seemed to be in my opinion, somewhat confused about the nature and scope of scientific inquiry. His argument was based on the deductive reasoning:

Newtonian mechanics is a false scientific theory.

We should not teach any false scientific theory; therefore,

We should not teach Newtonian mechanics.

So I wrote him a letter. Here it is (and sorry for the length):

Dr. Slater,
I happened to come across your article, “How to Justify Teaching False Science,” and was wondering if you could help me understand your position better. Your background in Philosophy is obviously much superior to mine, and I certainly have not kept up with the recent literature, but it seems to me that the thrust of your argument is in fact based on a false premise.

While I wholeheartedly agree with your conclusion (if I understand it correctly) that what should be taught K-12 should be much more concept, historical and method laden in regards to science rather than theory laden, I disagree (I think) with your emphasis. I think (and I think you do too), that science education should be more concentrated on teaching students how to think scientifically rather than what to think.

However, I think science education should be much more focused on the epistemological limitations of the scientific endeavor, which in my opinion would make the question of the truth/falsity of any scientific theory moot. Therefore, I would dispute your premise that “Newtonian mechanics is a false scientific theory.”
A scientific theory cannot strictly be “false,” because epistemologically, no scientific theory can be strictly said to be “true.” While there are many scientific facts that for all intents and purposes can be said to be true, the theories that attempt to explain them are always conditional.

In one of your footnotes you state (with qualifications) that, “I assume here (for simplicity) that these best theories—general relativity and quantum mechanics—are true theories, when they cannot both be. Maybe neither is. It does not matter much for my point. They are both at least contenders for truth.” Earlier, (pg 528) you state, “Cosmologists do not ask about what the universe was like 10 billion years ago in hopes of discovering some practical use of that knowledge in our society.” It seems to me that both these statements illustrate a fundamental misunderstanding of what the limitations and goals of the scientific enterprise are.

In the first case, the misunderstanding is in the idea that any scientific theory will be true. Because any scientific theory is based on a logically inductive method, it will never establish absolute truth: all scientific (empirical) knowledge is therefore contingent, not necessary. All scientific theories are open to Popperian falsification (by definition) and in my opinion should be viewed as tentative explanations, rather than unconditionally accurate reflections of reality.

In the second case, I disagree that the motivation of cosmologists in this instance, and historical scientists in general, is simple curiosity. I think the scientific endeavor is fundamentally pragmatic and utilitarian: it seeks knowledge that is or at least potentially will be in some way practically useful. While these applications may not always be obvious, or even arguably useful, that is the ideal. In this example, cosmologists try to determine the nature of the universe 10 billion years ago not simply because they are curious, but because what they can learn about the universe then does have practical implications now. They look at the nature of the universe in the past because that can help them test how accurate their current theories are. If their current theories match up well with the historical data, this adds strong evidence to their views on the current nature of the universe as well as their theories’ predictive power about the future of the universe.

Speaking of Newtonian mechanics specifically, I think the most persuasive reason to teach it to secondary students has more to do with the math. In all cases in physics, the math that is used to support a theory is based progressively on the math used to buttress the theory that came before. So without the math developed by Newton to describe his mechanics, the theory of Relativity couldn’t be adequately operationalized. Likewise, the math that underlies Quantum mechanics was built on the math developed in Maxwell’s equations. The math that supports (according to some) String theory is built on the math of Quantum mechanics, etc.

This progression almost makes it necessary to learn the mathematics of Newtonian mechanics to have any clear understanding of Relativity in the same way that learning the basics of addition is necessary to learn multiplication.

In regards to the idea (Bauer’s) that scientific literacy does or does not aid in helping people answer policy questions, I think the most reliable information available should be used to inform one’s opinions. But again, my understanding is that science provides only conditional descriptions of what “is.” At least ideally, this information is itself value neutral (perhaps a naïve view) and as such cannot be “good or evil.” To ask it (science) to provide “oughts” is of course to commit the naturalistic fallacy.

In conclusion, in my view, science renders information that at best models reality in a Platonic sense. We can’t truly know the nature of reality, but science can and does deliver knowledge that is at least conditionally reliable. In this sense, Newtonian mechanics is fantastically reliable within certain parameters. Reliable enough to send a person to the moon and bring them back (alive). But this knowledge is, as I’ve noted, always tentative and conditional.

With every “iteration” of science, the models reflect better and better what reality is like, but as with any ideal, a perfect reflection will never be achieved. In this sense, no theory is “true.” But with every iteration, the reflection comes closer to the ideal. This view is both pedagogically utilitarian and optimistic in that it does accurately reflect the epistemic realities of science and also illustrates that there will always be scientific work that needs to be done since the models can always be made better.

Thank you for your time, and sorry if I rambled,
James Knobbs

Don't know if he'll respond, but apparently, I am way out of the loop as far as both Epistemology and the Philosophy of Science goes.

Arthur Benjamin

2008-11-08T07:22:00.000-08:00

I read this guy's book a couple of years ago and was impressed. I even taught myself how to square any two digit number my head. But in person, he impresses even more: just how quickly he does it is amazing (even when I was doing it a lot, it still took me several seconds to do a two digit number).

via Greg Laden.

As a bonus, here's a talk by Jared Diamond on why societies collapse:

Via Ted.

Otzi was a dog!

2008-11-03T10:40:00.000-08:00

Ok, I don't know if it's me, but it seems like this Reuters article, is simply stupid. They assert: "Ancient iceman probably has no modern relatives" in the headline. Then they use mtDNA to support this hypothesis. See the problem yet?

I'm going to assert exactly the opposite, and I have even better evidence in my favor, since my hypothesis matches well with how Otzi was killed.

I say Otzi is in fact the ancestor of all native Europeans. The fact that he was bludgeoned and shot with an arrow supports my supposition that in fact he "knocked-up" literally every woman in Europe at the time. The men of Europe subsequently got together, took him up to the mountains and killed him.

The mtDNA supports my hypothesis just as much as it supports theirs. Why you ask? Because mtDNA is passed down matrilineally, so even if Otzi knocked up all the women of Europe as I contend, his mtDNA was never passed down (by him) regardless of how many children he had.

Their research shows that Otzi's mother's mtDNA line probably died out (didn't have enough female descendents), but it really says nothing about Otzi's descendents. To say anything relevant about that, you would need to look at his nuclear DNA. You could even trace his male descendatnts by looking only at his Y-chromosome.

Anyway, I'm done. I see that John Hawks noted the same thing.

Thanks to JeanM. for the "jealous husband" idea.

Cross-posted at Campus Trash because I felt like it.

Skateboarding is not a crime

2008-10-16T22:18:00.000-07:00

It is however often amusing for the rest of us:

Why do people find a guy wracking his raisins funny? I know I do.

Geomorphic processes in action

2008-09-29T08:22:00.001-07:00

Of course they always are, but this instance is pretty dramatic as seen from the magnificent remnants of other geomorphic processes:

That's Redwall Cavern in the Grand Canyon.

Via PAW.

Forty couple minutes of horriblation

2008-09-24T00:17:00.000-07:00

It's been around a while, but I still find it amusing:

If I were in charge of the world, it would be a musical.

In which I am once again beaten to the punch

2008-09-21T15:06:00.000-07:00

Another idea of "mine" that someone else thought of before I did. And of course actualized in the empirical realm, cementing their claim to have thought of it first:

An online, three-dimensional archeological collection of Arctic animal bones being created at Idaho State University will be an important tool for researchers worldwide from a variety of academic backgrounds.

My idea didn't involve the Arctic specifically, but the online three dimensional thing has been rattling around in my head for at least a week.

Via Archaeoblog.

Playing with bones

2008-09-21T14:58:00.000-07:00

OK, this isn't funny, but it's pretty interesting (to me).

via Afarensis.

How can these guys keep a straight face

2008-09-04T12:11:00.000-07:00

Stewart illustrates the two-facedness of some of the on-screen folk. Once again, the kind of crap I find amusing in a scary-how-do-these-chuckle-heads-get-paid-for-this-crap kind of way.

It's like a jungle sometimes, sometimes it's like a particle accelerator

2008-09-02T22:55:00.000-07:00

Simply because this is the kind of crap I find funny:

Eagle Cap Peak

2008-08-25T16:57:00.000-07:00

For our 5th anniversary, Sparky decided we needed to go for a hike. A friend of ours recommended what he called an "easy" hike up one of the forks of the Lostine River to the top of Eagle Cap Peak in Oregon.

"It's all on good Forest Service trail." he said.

While this is in fact true, he failed to mention both the actual mileage covered and the elevation gain. Which in my opinion were prodigious.

So here are some pictures:

Entering the Eagle Cap Wilderness:
One of the bridges over the Lostine was washed out, so we and the dogs got to improvise:
One of the waterfalls coming from the upper valley:
One of our first glimpses of Eagle Cap Peak. It looks like it's a long ways away. And it is.
Getting closer:
Our options once we reached the head of the valley:
Sparky wetting down the dogs for the hot and exposed push to the top:
Looking East towards one of the many lakes at the head of this basin:
Sellie the puppy going for a slide:
Getting ever closer: note the two large dikes of darker rock. As far as I could tell, they were basalt intrusions into the older plutonic granite. I didn't realize the Columbia Basin flood basalts reached so far south. Though perhaps they are remnants of a different event.
Looking back North from the top of the peak. The valley on the left (that we came up) is as classic a glacier carved valley as I've ever seen: U-shaped, heading almost directly north and almost perfectly straight. Very cool.
One of the other lakes seen from the peak:
Sparky, me and the dogs. We hauled champagne up to the top for our anniversary toast:
One of the few pictures taken on the way down:
It turns out the hike was just shy of 19 miles long, with an elevation gain of just about 4000 feet. Eagle Cap peak is about 9800 feet high, and seeing as how Sparky and I live about 500 feet above sea level, the last couple thousand feet were quite difficult for us. We'd walk about 20 or 30 yards (steeply uphill), and stop for a couple of minutes until our hearts stopped racing. We did this for probably the last mile to the top.

The reason we have so few pictures on the way down is because of exhaustion. I find walking downhill quite painful (too much knee abuse when younger), so I went very slowly. By the end, though I had no blisters, the bottoms of my feet were very sore, and each step was torture. Sparky was even worse off: she'll lose the toenails on both her big toes, and she developed several large blisters to boot.

The following day, I was so sore I just stayed in bed and watched the Olympics. I'm really looking forward to what Sparky wants to do next year. Really.

Selway Day 3: The big stuff

2008-08-04T10:50:00.000-07:00

OK, I've calmed down. So back to the trip. We had been camped at Tony Point campground, which seems like where everyone camps before running the big rapids. Just upstream from the confluence with Moose Creek, Tony Point is a great camping area, though the landing kind of sucks. Moose Creek is big. It just about doubles the flow of the Selway, and makes the river much less like a mountain stream and more like a big water river. This bears keeping in mind for those who haven't been down there before.

I didn't keep that in mind, and just about paid the price for my inattentiveness.

The first big rapid of the day was called "Double Drop." Looking at it from the left bank, It looked pretty nasty. For both CB and me, the initial impression was to do a center-working-left kind of run whereas to avoid the absolutely huge hole at the bottom right of the drop. But both of us had heard/read that the best run was a powerful right to left run thereby taking the top rocks out of play. So we decided to trust someone else's expertise, and went right.

That was a mistake.

There was so much current pushing to the right after the initial drop, neither one of us had a chance to avoid the hole. We both opted to run it backwards to take advantage of the greater power available when pulling on the oars (though I have to admit, I went backwards as much because I really thought I was going to flip, and I just didn't want to look at the hole: once I started dropping into it, I never did look anywhere except straight ahead (back upstream)).

What little downstream momentum I was able to develop by rowing backwards (I think) made the difference: I definitely got stood up, stalled and momentarily surfed, but I hit it straight on (pretty good for not looking), and was able to power my way over the top of the backwash. CB, who was right behind me, didn't have enough time to change plans, so he ended up doing pretty much the same thing.

Meanwhile, everyone else was still standing on the rock on the left above the rapid watching to see how to do it. We showed them how not to do it, and through a complicated set of hand signals, expressed our belief that the center run would probably be better. Still, they stood there, pondering something for quite a while.

Finally, Sparky stepped up to the plate, and took her cat through. It was the lightest boat in our group, and she smoked through the center run. Eventually, the others followed suit, all taking the center approach and did great.

This is Double Drop from the scouting rock on the left: even now looking at it, I don't see how I convinced myself to run it right to left. If you giganticize it, you'll see that most of the water is pushing to the right, CB and I may have been able to make it if we had simply started with our butt ends pointed to the left and gotten up a good head of steam to the left before we even entered the rapid, but we didn't. And got lucky.

Here comes a bunch of pictures in no particular order from day 3.

The yummy enchiladas. Lois revolutionized the way we make them: still just as good, but even easier to put together. Yay for Lois!

The apple crisp for dessert: I unfortunately cooked it too long so the apples got (in my opinion) too mushy, but it still tasted good.
Little Niagra: rated class IV in both our guidebooks, at the flow we were there, there was a completely flat run down the right side.
Ladle rapid: again, rated class IV, but at our level, it was an easy run pretty much down the center, though admittedly, if you got off line, it would have gotten ugly really quick.
A-frame and Backstroke lounging after a long day. This was Tango Bar beach.
Myself, Lois, and MTM building the enchiladas. As usual, there was tons of help in the kitchen, and everything went both quickly and smoothly.
Even the can crushing: Lex using the preferred "two-rock" method.
A-frame showing her mastery of the local fauna: perhaps we should change her net-name to "Fishkiller." That sounds much more ferocious than the more accurate "catch-and-release girl."
Breakfast back at Tony Point.
And the loading of the boats: everyone dressed more warmly anticipating the big whitewater just downstream.
The excellent eddy at Tango Bar:
Tango Bar was my kind of camp: big and sandy with scantily clad women strewn all over the place.

Selway Day 2: Hambone

2008-07-18T12:33:00.000-07:00

I had a whole bunch of really insightful and interesting stuff written about this day with much commentary regarding the photos, but somehow it got deleted. So now, I'm not just pithy, I'm pissy. I was able to retrieve the photos easily enough (with Sparky's help), so here they are, I might try to rewrite some stuff, but maybe not. I'm quite annoyed right now.

Building the lasagna: someday I'll invest in an anodized rectangular dutch oven so I can stop having to break the noodles apart to fit them in the round D.O. (not to mention straightening out my loaves):
MTM entertaining the troops with his hammock show:

Selway Day 1: Downstream

2008-07-17T13:19:00.000-07:00

When we got up in the morning, we began the arduous task of inflating and rigging all the rafts. Besides Sparky and me, CB, Shebe, The Dicer, MTM, and Bunyan were on hand to make the work a "work party."

Since we had a launch site right by our campsite, we just did everything there. When we got a raft rigged and loaded, one of us would float it down the White Cap to the confluence with the Selway, secure the boat, and then walk back up to the campground to help rig another boat. In this fashion, we got all the boats loaded and ready to go in a very reasonable amount of time.

There really wasn't an eddy at the "official" Selway launch ramp, so at least at the beginning, we secured all the boats in the large eddy under the bridge over the White Cap (Selway in the background):
When they arrived, our parking the boats under the bridge kind of freaked out CB's father who had arranged our shuttle for us: we had moved one raft to the actual ramp (just downstream), and since that was the only boat he saw, he thought at first we were going to try to fit everyone on the one raft. I kept telling him there were other rafts under the bridge, but I think he didn't believe me.

Here is the bottom of the official Selway launch ramp with The Dicer and MTM holding the boats against the current:
CBsr and the shuttle crew showed up within 15 minutes of the agreed time to meet: pretty impressive for a seven hour commute. With them came Lex, Lois, Backstroke and A-frame. Logistically, it just worked out better for them to ride with the shuttle people, though they got out of rigging any boats that way. On the other hand, it was purely a coincidence that the poop bucket got stowed on Backstroke's raft: even if he would have been there to rig, it just worked out that he had the perfect spot on his boat. Really.

Eventually, we got all the beer stowed, and worked out who was going to ride where. I was somewhat insulted that no one wanted to ride with me, but I suppose there is only so much "pithy" one person can stand.

And then we were off:
The first day on a new river is always a somewhat anxious time, and this was no exception. Both guides we had of the Selway were pretty bad: poor or no descriptions, lots of rapids that weren't even listed, inconsistent ratings between the two guides on the rapids. Lots of that kind of stuff.

Add to this that for both guides, the listed class II rapids on that first day without exception would have been classified as class III on any other river, and I have to admit, I was getting a little "puckerish" as the day wore on. We had no major mishaps, but seeing as I was the "probe" boat (I tell myself that's why no one wanted to ride with me), I was feeling the pressure to not screw up. And find a camp-spot (preferably before I got downstream of it).

We had planned on doing a fairly short float on that first day: only about 10 or 11 miles since we were getting a relatively late start, but the first place we wanted to camp called Archer Camp kind of sucked. Though it did have a nice eddy, it was full of cheat grass, and even worse, this thing was parked pretty much in the middle of camp:
It may be hard to see (unless you bigificate by clicking), but that there is a classic Western Diamondback rattlesnake. Now I'm no herpetologist, but in my limited experience, rattlesnakes get really cranky when they're molting (I think they get kind of itchy). Every rattlesnake I saw on this trip must have been molting, because without exception, they were all cranky. So we got out of there.

Our next choice was a place called Goat Creek camp. And though it looked really cool, and I would like to camp there sometime, it was unfortunately too small a camp for our group. It also had a really poor (read "non-existent") landing area, as evidenced by MTM not even being able to stop his raft. Either way, we were moving on.

Interestingly enough (to me), the place we ended up camping was called "Little Goat Creek Camp". But the camp was much bigger than Goat Creek Camp. So was there a smaller goat there? A smaller creek? I saw neither. It was however a good camp: plenty of spots for tents, a very secluded spot for the pooper, and a nice big communal area for the kitchen. The only thing I didn't like was the landing area: no real eddy, boats pulled up on rocks etc. etc.

Here we have A-frame, Lois, and Shebe building skewers for our first supper on the river:
Later, after the guys had found the liquid courage to help (watch):
The broccoli with sweet chili-sauce side dish: yummy (served over rice)
The Kabobs. In hindsight, I wouldn't do kabobs again. They seemed so simple in the planning, but they were a very labor intensive food, both in the building, and also in the tending when on the grill. Though they were well received, I felt bad for CB and Shebe who did the lion's share of the cooking of this meal because it was so much more work than the other dinners. However, the brownies and ice-cream for dessert was both easy (other than keeping the ice-cream frozen), and really good. That is definitely a keeper.

Perhaps the most difficult way to do the dishes: but no one made fun of Backstroke and Lex for doing it that way (to their faces): reminds me of the old SNL skit about "squatters:"
The secluded "pooper with a view:"
Next:
Our first real class IV rapid of the trip.

Selway Day 0: Paradise campground

2008-07-16T11:30:00.000-07:00

Sparky and I took off for the put-in a day early as was mentioned previously. We wanted the option of just lounging around and taking our time rigging Sparky's cataraft without the rush that always seems to accompany a launch.

We finished up the grocery shopping in Missoula and took off south to find the put-in. We anticipated a much worse road than what we found: there were definitely some bad dirt areas, but I was surprised by how much of the road was paved. As in most of it.

This is the view from Nez Perce pass (paved over the top):

Paradise campground was anything but. While it was a nice little campground, it had several bajillion mosquitoes that were seemingly intent on making a meal out of me. I was getting bit even through what I considered to be thick clothing. Even after spraying myself with copious amounts of DEET, I still seemed to be getting chawed on.

And don't even start me about the snakes (too late). I thought there weren't supposed to be snakes in Paradise. In the morning I went looking for some water to fill my bottle, and there was a big old rattlesnake right in the road, all shaking his tail at me and all. It was disturbing. One of the other campers said (after we set up our camp) that he saw a rattlesnake in our campsite the day before.

During the day and a half that we were there, I saw four snakes. The one rattlesnake, one bullsnake (couldn't fool me), one garter snake, and one snake that I'm going to call a "poopsnake."

I've never seen a snake like the poopsnake before: it was truly the color of poo, it was about 15" long, definitely not a pit viper, and had a very stubby tail. Perhaps the tail had been eaten by something else, but it didn't look like it. I wish I had gotten a picture of it; I'm sure it's a new species, though I'm not sure I'd want to have a snake that for the life of me looked like a turd named in my honor.

After doing about 5 minutes of online research, it turns out that it wasn't a new species. Surprisingly, it isn't called a "poopsnake" either. Apparently it was a "Rubber Boa." Which doesn't roll off the tongue nearly as well as "poopsnake." But I digress.

So I spent the morning (after pissing off the rattlesnake) rigging Sparky's cat while she slept in taking full advantage of our leisure time.

Paradise campground is located about .25 mile from the Selway river up a large tributary called White Cap creek. There were a couple of obvious places in the campground that could be used for launching boats, and we were camped by one, so I took Sparky's cat and floated it down to the main put-in on the Selway. There was a commercial group putting on that day, so I actually made landfall under the bridge over the White Cap, where there was a much better eddy anyways.

Sparky surprised me by showing up in our truck at that time and offered to drive me a couple miles up the Selway so I could float back down. How could I refuse that? So we went upriver about two and a half miles and I floated back.

The Selway is one of the most regulated floatable rivers in the U.S. Below the Paradise put-in (and above Selway Falls 47 miles downstream), only one group of floaters is allowed to launch each day of the summer season (May 15th through July 31st) . Fortunately, the river above the put-in is completely unregulated, so I could do anything I want there. Like float.

It was a nice little class IV section of river with a couple of very cool narrow canyon sections:

Anyway, that was fun.

Later, some of the other crew showed up with the rest of the gear. We hunkered down for the night to get ready for the real work of rigging the boats the following day for our launch.

More things I just don't get

2008-07-14T13:24:00.000-07:00

So while we were gone, there has apparently been what we in the business call a "minor shitstorm" concerning a kid in Florida who went to a Catholic Mass, received his body of Christ, didn't eat it, has received death-threats, been denounced by Bill Donohoe, etc, etc. One of the bloggers I link to, Paul Myers, made fun of the situation, has also received death threats, and had his job threatened by Bill Donohoe. Lots of digital ink has been spilled in this regard, so I feel somewhat obligated to do the same.

So in support of Dr. Myers, I sent this letter to the University of Minnesota Morris administration. I'm sure it will do lots of good.

In my opinion, while I consider what Dr. Myers advocated to be tasteless and silly, it's inconceivable (perhaps I don't know what that word means) that it warrants any kind of response from the administration of UMM.

This situation to me seems like a textbook example of a group of people taking an unexamined belief much too seriously. After all, if the guy had eaten the cracker, the body of christ would now primarily be fecal matter. Maybe this will spur an examination of this and other oddly strange customs, and perhaps even lead to a movement within the Catholic church to begin "mainlining Christ." Of course that would put the pressure onto the kidneys (not to mention make "piss Christ" a mundane piece of art). But on the positive side, Catholics everywhere could say unequivocably that Christ is #1.

Hope this helps,
DS

Good interview here.

Selway pics

2008-07-14T10:09:00.001-07:00

Here are some of the pictures from our Selway trip. We just got back yesterday, and it was a great time. Perfect weather, good river level, fabulous food, great company, I can't think of anything I would change (other than my run in Double Drop).

I was out of the money as far as our pool goes: the river dropped quickly in the days before our launch. It was close to my level when Sparky and I actually arrived at the put-in: 3.8' but we got there a day early, and by the time of our launch, it was down to 3.2'. So Backstroke won the pool. Very disappointing. On the other hand, it was still a very good level to do the river, especially for a first time, as it was for all of us. (As usual, click to embiggen)
Here is some of the crew on Nez Perce pass, the typical route to the put-in.

Here are the players in this drama (without the drama). From left to right, Shebe, CB, Lois and Lex:
Here in the foreground, we have A-frame and Backstroke:

Here we have MTM, Bunyan and The Dicer:
Rounding out the team were of course Sparky and I, and here we are with me pointing at the absolutely huge hole in Double Drop that you want to avoid. Later I showed everyone that it wasn't really that dangerous:

There will be much more later, both in the way of pictures and commentary (pithy of course).

Selway prognostication

2008-06-27T13:20:00.000-07:00

Amongst our group of boaters going on the Selway this July, there has been alternate talk of either there being too much water, or a low (but doable) flow. Early on, there were those who thought the water was going to be too high (7-8' on the Paradise gauge). I thought it would drop to an easy level by our launch date, but there was much wailing and gnashing of teeth.

Then as the weather started to warm up, all talk of the water being too high was silenced, and folk began talking as if it would be a low water float. This was fueled by the NOAA forecasters who seem to think no amount of water in the present will keep the Selway from regressing to it's mean in more than a week's time.

So now we have a little pool going regarding the flow on our launch date (July 6th). I'm still betting higher than the rest: 4.2 feet on the Paradise gauge at 1pm on July 6th. Even a couple of days ago the NOAA forecast was reading as if it was going to be down under 3 feet (Paradise converted). Now if you follow the link above, the forecasters are saying even I might be a little low. Personally, I think they need to find a better logarithm for their long (medium?) range forecasts. (Oops! That was supposed to be "algorithm")

This is the conversion table for the Selway between the Lowell gauge and the off-line Paradise gauge:

37,800 cfs at Lowell = 10' at Paradise.
30,900 cfs at Lowell = 9' at Paradise.
26,400 cfs at Lowell = 8' at Paradise.
22,000 cfs at Lowell = 7' at Paradise.
20,000 cfs at Lowell = 6' at Paradise.
16,300 cfs.at Lowell = 5' at Paradise
12,500 cfs at Lowell = 4' at Paradise
8,750 cfs at Lowell = 3' at Paradise
7,500 cfs at Lowell = 2.5' at Paradise
5,000 cfs at Lowell = 2' at Paradise
3,000 cfs at Lowell = 1.5' at Paradise
1,600 cfs at Lowell= 1.0' at Paradise
900 cfs at Lowell = 0.5' at Paradise

We'll see how it all works out on the 6th, I don't even trust the newest forecast, so I might still be out of the money, but I'm feeling pretty good about my guesstimate for now. And don't even start me on this whole "feet" thing.

An even quicker Middle Middle (Snoqualmie)

2008-06-25T06:39:00.000-07:00

Since it was on our way, we stopped and did a quick run on the Middle Fork of the Snoqualmie River: the section known as the Middle Middle. It was a good fun level, about 2500 cfs, so it went pretty fast. We put in at the place I believe is called "First Island Drop" though I may be mistaken. It wasn't an easy put-in, and the take-out is a long carry (for a raft), so we only took the cat with Sparky rowing. This was good trip to help build her rowing skills and confidence for the Selway.

Putting on my scarily inadequate life-jacket:

One of the many boulder gardens that comprise the Middle Middle:

Some even bigger boulders: this may be the bottom of House Rocks rapid, the only class IV rapid on the river, but I honestly don't remember.

Sparky at the take-out learning self-sufficiency (or maybe just me being lazy):

Careful, that water looks deep:
Sure, I made her carry the boat out, but I had to do the bike shuttle: surely an equitable distribution of labor.

Shortly thereafter we were back on the less crappy side of the mountains, and it was all good: we even went on a short hike up the Cooper River:

Many kayakers are said to run the Cooper, but there weren't any there when we were.

Perhaps I'm mistaken, but to me, the Cooper looks very R-2able. There may be rapids that I didn't see that would make it unraftable, but they weren't along the section I scouted. I probably wouldn't be able to get Sparky to go with me though, generally I can't let her see the tougher rivers we do before taking her on them. Now that she's seen the Cooper, I don't think I could get her in my raft.

Quick Greenie (1300 cfs)

2008-06-24T05:45:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures of the Green River. It takes a lot to get me back into Western Washington, but the Green River in June is worth the crap. We even had decent weather (for Seattle that is). As usual, click on the picture for a bigger view.

I love this sign: makes me feel like an "expert boater."

We hooked up with Lex: he brought his kayak, but felt rightly that most of the river was over his head.

One of the over 30 class III/IV rapid on this reach:

Sparky styling a big ledge drop:

Some of the amazing cliff faces along the gorge:

Falls just past the Franklin Bridge: I've never seen that much water there.

More rapids: I wouldn't want to paddle raft this section of river, it would be exhausting.

More rapids and waterfalls:

Sparky just below Paradise Ledge:

Sparky back-surfing Paradise Ledge:

The "Hanging Gardens:" Hundreds of Maiden hair ferns and other plants make this part of the gorge unique in all of Washington.
Those who haven't been there, embrace your jealousy. Between the rapids and the scenery, this is, in my opinion, one of the very best whitewater day trips around. Good luck waiting for runnable water again (at least in the summer).

Klickitat River 2000cfs

2008-06-22T22:04:00.000-07:00

Sparky and I have been really busy with work, but have still managed to get out a few times the past few weeks, so here are some pictures to prove it.

We did the Klickitat with some friends as part of a fund raiser for the Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.

Here we are at the put-in giving the ubiquitous safety talk.

Floating like we knew what we were doing.
One of the great waterfalls that are interspersed along the Klickitat.

The yummy enchiladas for dinner.

Some of the midstream wood we had to avoid (yes, I said "wood").
Some of the basalt cliffs that make the Klickitat very unique.

Sparky enjoying her new cat-frame.

A large basalt hump (yes, I said "hump.")

A waxing moon over the canyon.

Selway menu

2008-06-10T11:46:00.000-07:00

As it turns out, it looks like we'll only be three nights on the Selway, for some reason I thought we were going to be four. So the menu gets simpler. As of now, it will tentatively be:

Day 1:
Breakfast: Dutch oven cinnamon rolls, bacon, juice, whatever anyone else wants to bring since we'll still be at Paradise.

Lunch: K-rab salad sandwiches, BLT's (fat chance), turkey roll-ups, pb&j, chips, cookies, watermelon.

Dinner: Grilled meats (shrimp, chicken, pork) on skewers with veggies, onion soup potatoes, strawberry shortcake.

Day 2:
Breakfast: French toast, sausages, cantaloupe.

Lunch: Roast beef, turkey, left-over meat sandwiches, sliced apples, cookies, chips.

Dinner: Lasagna, garlic bread, brownies with ice cream, green salad.

Day 3:
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, English muffins, bacon.

Lunch: Roast beef, turkey, left-over meat sandwiches, sliced apples, cookies, chips.

Dinner: Enchiladas (chicken, crab, possibly veggie), roasted broccoli with a sweet chili sauce. Giant cookie with ice-cream.

Day 4:
Breakfast: Strata, English muffins.

Lunch: Whatever's left in the ice-chests.

I know I said we'd do the crab-cake thing, but with only three nights, that's the most complicated dish, so it gets dropped. I also said I'd post on the "shrimp fritter" and though I cooked it, it, in my opinion sucked. So that's off the table.

I of course want feed-back, and if anyone has any dietary issues, please let us know.

Recent Lochsa footage

2008-06-05T11:44:00.000-07:00

Here's a new video put out by the Beckers of some good ol' Lochsa Falls carnage. From the 2008 Memorial Day weekend. Sparky and I were a drainage or two away on the Riggins stretch of the Salmon: have to admit, this looks like more fun...

On the water again!

2008-05-05T09:54:00.001-07:00

Sparky and I finally got out on a river this Spring. As seems to often be the case in the last few years, our first foray onto the water occurred on the Moyie River in north Idaho. To make a long story short, we had to go to Sandpoint this last weekend on an unrelated matter, but coincidentally hooked up with some friends on Saturday who wanted to see if the Moyie had changed at all over the winter. They were going to kayak it on Sunday, and were interested to know if there was any new wood in the water. So we broke out our two 10.5' rafts and did a quick afternoon reconnoiter. Without further ado, here are some pictures:

The put in I normally use has been destroyed (by bridge reconstruction), so we went to this place a little further downstream. Note the big pile of snow behind the raft on the left: this is going to be a good water year for those of us who like the whitewater. And no, we weren't trying to maintain our anonymity: there was just a lot of light behind us. That's Sparky on the left, Backstroke in the middle, and me on the right. A-frame took the picture.

Sparky and A-frame having a good time:
Backstroke and I were patient, but they just wouldn't flip the boat over for us:
This was the closest they came to flipping (not surprisingly) in Hole-in-the-Wall: they did hit the right wall, lost an oar and finished the rapid backwards, but really weren't in any real danger of flipping. Kind of disappointing for us with the camera.
Sparky chauffeuring me to the takeout:
Moyie river, 5/3/08, 1150cfs.

Friday Crab fest!

2008-04-17T14:20:00.000-07:00

Unless someone on the Selway trip has a shellfish allergy, this is definitely going to be on the menu. It was good. Really good. We will possibly serve it with tortillas so people can make it into a burrito if they want (I'm a big fan of food you eat with your hands).

This was a "crab-bake:" basically, one giant crab-cake. So far, it has been the best received dish we've served on our Dutch Oven Friday feasts, but unfortunately also one of the most expensive. Since we used real Snow-crab (as opposed to K-rab), this one giant crab-cake cost about $40 to make. It was plenty of food for 7-8 people, so it certainly could have been worse.

We served it with an avocado/jalapeno mayo, and it was great, though Sparky found it to be too spicy. She didn't realize the mayo itself was spicy, so she kept putting more on her crab-cake to try to cool it down. I found this amusing, though I ended up trading her portions since I'm more spice-tolerant.

In addition, we served a simple "Lipton Onion Soup" over roasted potatoes (easy and good in a D.O.) and green beans roasted with a sweet chili sauce.

We just had strawberry short cakes for dessert: nothing special, but my personal favorite dessert.

Next time: Shrimp Fritter-bake!

Dutch Oven Friday

2008-04-09T10:01:00.000-07:00

Steamin' Fiesta Chicken:

Sparky and I have been invited on a 4 day Selway trip this summer, and have been put in charge of meals. So to prepare a good menu, we're doing a dutch oven meal every Friday evening we're in town.

We've gotten some good recipes from several different places, and this week we're going to highlight one we found on Byron's Dutch oven pages that we'll probably use on the trip.

Our criteria for trip inclusion are three:

It's got to taste really good.
It's got to be really easy to make.
It has to appear as if we've done more work to make it than we have.

For all the recipes we will end up using, there will be "the right way" of making the food, and then the way we'll do it. Which will entail a lot of short cuts. If we make brownies (which we will), they'll be out of a box, not from scratch. Simply because, even though we want to eat well, we don't want to spend all of our off-river time in the kitchen.

So if we have garlic bread with our Lasagna (a possible menu item), we won't be making the bread from scratch, we'll be probably be using something like this.

Which tastes fine I might add. But will appear to the others (if we're careful) that we've done more work than we have.

From Byron's recipes, we decided to try his Fiesta Chicken with Black Beans. It fit well with our criteria: though it has a lot of ingredients, it's relatively simple in that you pretty much just combine all the ingredients in the dutch oven (other than the chicken seasoning) and cook it. Another appeal is the number of canned ingredients: on river trips, that just makes one less thing to keep refrigerated (always a difficult issue to balance with the beer).

We served it with baked brown rice and flour tortillas, and most folk made it into a burrito. The only things we would change about the recipe would be to leave out the can of whole tomatoes (it has enough tomato flavor with the paste, and the extra chopping means it's the can to be left behind), and we would cube the chicken instead of cutting it into strips: the strips cooked themselves into funny shapes (one came out shaped like Elvis, but Sparky ate it before I could even get a picture: probably could have sold it on E-bay). The funny shapes were of course funny, but for the people who wanted to make burritos, they made strange lumps.

Everyone very much liked the recipe, it's actually strangely similar to the chicken enchiladas we made last year on the Middle Fork of the Salmon trip, except of course with this you make your own wrap: we'll have to decide which way we want to go. The enchiladas require a little more prep work, but with that recipe, the rice is cooked inside the enchiladas, so one less dutch oven is used.

On the other hand, we've been experimenting with lining the dutch ovens with aluminum foil which can then be recycled or thrown away. CB brought the idea to my attention last year on the Middle Fork, but I thought the foil would create too much of a thermal barrier to work effectively. I was wrong. It works great. They're even selling pre-formed aluminum dutch oven liners at Sportsman's Warehouse, though they're amazingly expensive.

When stuff gets cooked (or burned) onto the foil, it can be easily thrown away. This of course is wasteful, so I'm working on alternatives, but for now I can't justify not using it, since it saves much time and water on the river, both of which come at a premium.

My improvised cooking surface:

The giant cookie for dessert:
The baked rice:The Fiesta Chicken with melted cheese:

NSFW, but funny in a kind of sciency way

2008-04-06T09:49:00.000-07:00

Snaked from Troy Britain's site.

Cataract Canyon thrashing

2008-04-05T22:51:00.001-07:00

Why I prefer a self-bailer:

Oar musings

2008-04-01T11:56:00.000-07:00

It's been a while, but I'm starting to get the itch again. Both to write, and to boat. Not necessarily in that order.

Once again, I paid my six bucks to the Forest Service for the "four rivers" lottery, and once again, I got shut out. That makes me 0-14. Fortunately, a friend, probably in his first or second try, pulled a Selway permit, and invited Sparky and me. I've never been on the Selway, so it should be an adventure.

A day or two ago, through a mutual friend, I was asked about oar length and boat size, and since my opinion on such things should be of great value to everyone, I'll reprint my answer here so as to enlighten the hoi polloi.

I don't think I know more about it than Chris, but in my opinion, the two most important variables to consider are the pivot width (frame width) and oar stand height (which includes tube diameter). In my opinion, if you really want to power your raft, you need to have close to a 2 to 1 ratio of oar outside the pivot to inside. This means the oars will feel relatively heavy when they're out of the water, but if too much of the oar is inside the pivot point, it will feel light, but you lose leverage, and won't be able to make the raft move well.

If you're concerned about how heavy they feel, you can get counterweights from Cataract that will make them feel really light. Given my preference and a frame that will handle them, I run 9-9.5' oars on my 14' boat, 10' oars on a 16' and 11' on an eighteen.

The big consideration I'd have with buying the ones from Colorado would be the shipping cost to Alaska: I don't know what it will cost, but I'd be willing to bet you wouldn't save much if any money over buying them new locally. Though I also have no idea what they cost locally.

If possible, you want your oar handles at nipple height when you're pulling back: ergonomically, that's the most efficient position. That means that when seated, and the oar handles are at arms length and nipple height, the blades of the oars are completely but just barely under water. This (coupled with the 2 to 1 rule), is how I determine what length oar I use on a given raft. Additionally, ideally, you want the handles to only have about an inch or two of space between them at their closest point. If you find that the handles hit you in the chest this way, you need to either move your seat back or your oar stands forward (either is easy with an NRS frame). If your oars have much more space between them than that, you again put your shoulders in an un-ergonomically efficient position, and you won't be able to push or pull as strongly.

When Chris' dad and I were on the Grand Canyon, one of the people who was driving a small cat had a really strange set-up where he had almost 18" of space between the oar handles, and had his oar towers as high as he could make them. So when he went to pull, his hands were really far apart and almost over his head. Needless to say, even though he didn't have a particularly heavy boat, he was having a hard time making pulls, and moving downstream. At one lunch about halfway down the river, I messed with his oars while he was on a hike: pivoting his oar towers out so they were lower and wider, and moved the handles closer together (by moving his sleeves down the oar). This got him in a much better position ergonomically, but now he had the pivot points of his oars too far out so he didn't get much leverage. I fixed that by stealing the oar extenders off CBsr's spare oars. After we started floating again, he was amazed at how much easier it was to row, and how much more powerful he felt. He wanted to make me a saint. The point being, this stuff does make a big difference, both for how you feel rowing, and for how well you can move your boat.

But on the other hand, I am a rowing snob.

Hiatus

2007-11-06T13:19:00.000-08:00

Tainted Ideals will be going off-line for a while: other interests are consuming too much time. Regular posting will resume at some point, definitely by spring. Until then, thanks for stopping by, I'll be reading the rest of you when I get the chance.

And by the way, apparently, I am Picard: make it so.

Another fun spot back East

2007-10-22T14:06:00.000-07:00

If I ever get back East with a (small) raft, the Tallulah Gorge is going to be on my list of must float places. Sparky may see it differently, but we have video confirmation that it can be done:

Though not always successfully: I'd be doing the left line.

Here is how it looks from below:

Russian single-handed rafting

2007-10-18T19:08:00.000-07:00

Since I'm always searching the cutting edge of rafting, I feel compelled to share this, thought it is in words of Sparky, "Kind of twisted."

This definitely won't go in the Motivational posts.

I been tagged!

2007-10-16T11:44:00.000-07:00

With a blog "meme" that is. I've never done this before (thanks Hipparchia) so we'll see how it goes.

There are a set of questions below that are all of the form, “The best [subgenre] [medium] in [genre] is…”. Copy the questions, and before answering them, you may modify them in a limited way, carrying out no more than two of these operations:

You can leave them exactly as is.
You can delete any one question.
You can mutate either the genre, medium, or subgenre of any one question. For instance, you could change “The best time travel novel in SF/Fantasy is…” to “The best time travel novel in Westerns is…”, or “The best time travel movie in SF/Fantasy is…”, or “The best romance novel in SF/Fantasy is…”.
You can add a completely new question of your choice to the end of the list, as long as it is still in the form “The best [subgenre] [medium] in [genre] is…”.
You must have at least one question in your set, or you’ve gone extinct, and you must be able to answer it yourself, or you’re not viable.
Then answer your possibly mutant set of questions. Please do include a link back to the blog you got them from, to simplify tracing the ancestry, and include these instructions.

Finally, pass it along to any number of your fellow bloggers. Remember, though, your success as a Darwinian replicator is going to be measured by the propagation of your variants, which is going to be a function of both the interest your well-honed questions generate and the number of successful attempts at reproducing them.

My great-great-great-great-great-grandparent is Pharyngula.
My great-great-great-great-grandparent is Metamagician and the Hellfire Club.
My great-great-great-grandparent is Flying Trilobite.
My great-great-grandparent is A Blog Around the Clock.
My great-grandparent is archy.
My grandparent is Why Now?
My parent is Over the cliff onto the rocks.

The best creepy pedophilic* novels in SF/Fantasy is(are): The "Ender" series by Orson Scott Card.

The best “bad” movie in Science Fiction/Fantasy is: Big Trouble in Little China.

The best sexy song in classic rock is: “Wicked Game” as performed by Chris Isaak.

The best Gulf and western album in country music is: White Sport Coat and a Pink Crustacean by Jimmy Buffett.

*It amazes me how many people aren't creeped-out by these stories.

Since I don't imagine any of these folk are reading this, I'm tagging:
Chris O'Brien at Northstate Science
Monado at Science Notes
Jim Anderson at Decorabilia
Joe Meert at Science, Antiscience and Geology
and Figaro at Figaro Speech

Did I forget to piss off anyone? Sorry if I did.

Another red scare!

2007-10-15T20:45:00.001-07:00

Well, I sent a letter (email) to a couple of people at American Whitewater, and a guy at NRS, regarding RAC. Unfortunately, I wrote the letter, so it both rambles and isn't particularly direct. On the good side, I didn't use the word "shit." On the other hand, I did bring up the specter of the "Red Menace." So will they take it seriously? Will they even read it? Never can tell. Here it is in it's entirety:

To the awesome whitewater powers that be:

I’m just a guy, but a guy who loves whitewater. As such, I appeal to you, the folk who have the ear of many in the whitewater world, in this time of great need.

Actually, the time of great need isn’t here as of yet, but owing to my fabulous foresight, I can predict that time coming, and coming fast.

I am referring to a matter of “river ethics,” that apparently isn’t generally discussed.

What I’m talking about is River Access Competence (RAC). Or “etiquette.” Or “courtesy.” Maybe “decorum.”

Whatever you want to call “it,” it is the way people represent themselves at river access points (put-ins and take-outs).

So why is there a need for this?

In the twenty years I’ve been whitewater boating, it seems to me that access point confrontations are cropping up with increasing frequency.

As our great sport becomes more and more popular, there will be more and more pressure put on these communal access points by more and more users.

These places can become quite chaotic when overloaded, sometimes leading to confrontations and even fist-fights. Typically these confrontations are caused by people getting in each other’s way.

If these kinds of problems become common, governmental agencies may feel obligated to intervene.

In my experience, governmental intervention typically has negative consequences. In this case, I know of two places where intervention has already occurred.

On the Clark Fork River, the Alberton Gorge reach is probably the single most popular day stretch of whitewater in Montana. There, the Forest Service has a ranger directing people at the Cyr Bridge put-in on high-traffic mornings and at the Tarkio take-out in the afternoons.

So far, this has not been a detriment to boaters, but how long will the Forest Service provide this service? At some point, I think they will want the service to fund itself, and that means user fees.

On the Deschutes River, the “Maupin” reach is probably the most popular day stretch of whitewater in Oregon. There, the county sheriff maintains a presence at the Sherar’s Falls take-out on heavy use days to keep the peace.

Someone has to pay for the government’s presence, and in the end it will be us. There is already a fee to use any part of the Lower Deschutes including the Maupin day stretch; I worry that will become the norm on many rivers in the future.

I’ve been to both rivers at times when these governmental representatives were very much needed. I do appreciate their presence. But I think with better RAC, they wouldn’t be necessary.

Fees like this certainly aren’t there only because of problems at access points, but there are two principles at work that need to be considered.

First, as a general rule, governmental entities will exercise power if they can: “the man” likes being in charge.

Second, generally, if there are no problems (access point or other), no notice will be taken, and we’ll be able to skate by under the bureaucratic radar without intervention from “the man.”

Access point problems are red-flags to the controlling agencies: high-profile examples for why we need more regulation. Good RAC gives them one less reason to notice us.

So what is “good” RAC?

In my opinion, good RAC can be achieved by following three simple principles. First, never block an access point. Second, if you have to block an access point, get out of the way as quickly as possible: do the vast majority of your rigging or de-rigging somewhere out of the way. Third, lend a hand and don’t be afraid to ask for help: generally, it will be appreciated.

I think if people followed those three rules, access point problems would be negligible.

For the most part, I think the people causing the problems at access points are not “bad” people: just people who don’t know any better.

As such, I think educating whitewater folk will go a long way towards keeping places like the Lower Deschutes the exception and not the rule.

What I’m proposing is nothing earth-shattering, or even particularly difficult. Simply including RAC guidelines in all discussions of river-ethics should be sufficient.

Perhaps I’m overly optimistic, but the vast majority of people I see on rivers practice good river-ethics: for instance, they wouldn’t consider dumping their empty beer cans in the river because they know not to.

But RAC isn’t thought of as a part of river-ethics, so for most people it isn’t even considered. They don’t know how to comport themselves at access points because there are no extant guidelines for RAC.

That’s where you guys come in.

You are in a leadership position in the whitewater world, and as such have influence over the common discourse. Make RAC an issue.

It is in all of our best interest to keep the government out of our business: poor RAC is just the sort of unnecessary issue that gives “the man” an excuse to keep us down, and make our sport less fun (and more expensive) than it should be.

I don’t want to sound like an anti-government activist, I’m not: I think the role of government in protecting its citizens and common resources, is unfortunately both necessary and important. But without a genuine need, we should endeavor to keep government at bay. Better RAC is one step towards that ideal, poor RAC forces a step towards a nanny-state. And who wants that? Commies, that’s who.

Respectfully,
dogscratcher

Is it possible for me to be serious for a significant length of time? It doesn't seem like it.

Brush Creek madness

2007-10-09T06:07:00.000-07:00

Speaking of R-2ing, here is a great video of some guys in California making it look easy (for the most part):

Don't know how I missed this: it's definitely going in the "Motivational Posts."

The Jackass challenge

2007-10-08T08:08:00.000-07:00

First, a little personal background.

I like a challenge. I don't always succeed when challenged, but viewing a situation as a challenge has always been something that motivates me. At least for a while.

But sometimes, I get very stubborn about challenges. To the point of being self-destructive. About stupid things too.

For instance, a couple of years ago, I was on an overnight rafting trip. Someone mentioned they had some Jiffy-Pop popcorn if anyone wanted it.

One of the other guys on the trip stated flatly that "You can't make good Jiffy-Pop over a campfire because it always burns."

I said that I had made Jiffy-Pop over a fire without burning it. He called Bull.

It's that easy to get me to do something stupid.

So I got my dutch oven glove on and grabbed the Jiffy-Pop.

The keys to making Jiffy-Pop over a campfire are three.

First, you can't get it too hot or it burns.

Second, once the emulsified oil melts, you can't stop moving the pan, or again it burns.

Third, once you start, you can't let it cool off or else it won't pop completely.

So the problem with cooking it over an open fire is that it's easy to get it too hot and because of the "diffuse" heat of a campfire, it's difficult to keep it over the heat without burning your hand.

I thought the glove would protect me. And it did to some extent. But not completely.

So there I was, shaking the Jiffy-Pop over the fire. Even through the glove it started to get really hot. So hot I could tell my knuckle was burning. But hey, I'd been challenged. So I stuck it out, even knowing I was getting burned. Paul Atreides would have been proud.

I ended up with a second degree burn on my knuckle that was so deep it took almost six months to heal.

On the other hand, the Jiffy-Pop was perfect. So I won. Kind of.

By the way, we did have a camp stove.

So that should set the stage for this:

A long time ago, before I married Sparky, I dated another woman for a couple of years. Very nice gal, but we kind of drove each other nuts. So after a couple of years of being mean to each other, I decided to break it off.

So I met her at her house and told her the bad (good) news. At this point she becomes somewhat irrational. I was endeavoring to stay calm, but she was saying a lot of crazy stuff because she was so upset. Finally, I just told her I was leaving and started walking out the door.

That's when she challenged me. She probably doesn't even remember saying it, but her words resound crystal clear in my mind even to this day.

"You'll be back," she stated, "you won't be able to stay away."

Where I come from, that there is what we call a challenge. So I didn't ever go back, didn't call, write or anything else.

"So dogscratcher, how exactly is that self-destructive?" you ask.

Well as it turned out, I had left some stuff at her house. Like a raft, frame and oars. But I couldn't go back: she challenged me! So I wrote it off.

How is that for self-destructive?

So the years passed with no communication.

Then a couple of days ago, she emails me. She says she is moving, and if I want my stuff I need to come and get it.

I was surprised. I would have thought by now she would have sold, destroyed or given away my stuff.

But I wanted the raft even though I am now the proud owner of a fleet.

So I went and got my stuff. We had a good conversation, buried the hatchet and all that, and I for one feel a whole lot better about that episode of my life, and I think she does too.

It turned out I had left more than just the raft, frame and oars there though. Because I didn't use them often, I completely forgot the two wetsuits and a drysuit I had left at her place. But most amazingly, I had left this:It may not seem like much, but what had happened to that wetsuit sock (that I used very often) has perplexed me for years. I've hung onto the other one all this time thinking I had just misplaced this one. To find out that it was at her house all this time just boggles my mind. I could have sworn I'd used them as a set since the break-up. But apparently not.

So now I have more rafts and equipment than some outfitters (sorry Mark). If liability insurance wasn't so exorbitantly high, I would start my own business.

I'm quite glad to get this boat back: it is a carbon copy of my other 10.5' raft but in much better shape (sitting in her basement for 7 years saved it a lot of use). NRS doesn't make this size self-bailing raft anymore, but I for one think it's the perfect size for "R-2ing," which in my opinion is the most fun way of rafting.

Sparky and Wanderer R-2ing the "older" 10.5'raft:

Compare that to the "new" boat:
Certainly not in perfect condition, but still much better than the old one.

So I'm feeling good right now, but one thing keeps nagging me: did I lose the challenge?

Kootenai denied

2007-10-01T09:22:00.000-07:00

Well, our last rafting "expedition" of the year was a bust. For a host of reasons. A confluence of unfortunate circumstances.

First, we had a couple late cancellations: Several people I knew couldn't make it, but as of Friday, I still thought we had a group of six. On Sunday, that had turned into three.

Second, the three of us who did show up didn't find each other quickly. Sparky and I camped on Saturday night at the Yaak Falls campground, about twenty miles from Kootenai Falls. We chose to camp there because we knew camping there was free.

CB was supposed to drive up Saturday night with someone else and also camp at Yaak Falls. But the person he was coming with bailed, and CB didn't know where the campground was. So he camped at the mouth of the Yaak river in the campground there (which it turns out is free right now because it is the "off season").

So by the time we found him, we had burned most of the morning.

Third, once we got up to the falls, looking at the rapids, both CB and Sparky got very uncomfortable. The last drop in particular was not completely cheatable:The river left side (which you can't see in this photo) is crazy looking: pretty much a guaranteed flip in anything we had with us. The far right looked much more doable, but there is a deep reversal at the bottom that could possibly flip a boat too.

On the other hand, it is the last rapid: even if you flip here, there are several miles of flat water before you get to the take-out. So unless you get held, while you would be wet and miserable, you'd be alive and done with the whitewater.

But boating when you're uncomfortable is dangerous: people tend to develop tunnel-vision and only see the crap they want to avoid rather than the routes around it. They tend to get tense and not react quickly and decisively. So this was a bad sign.

CB probably would still have gone if I did it, and Sparky too, but I won't make anyone boat if they're uncomfortable: it's just a bad idea. I would make them go if I was certain they could do it, but this was unknown territory for me too, so I couldn't be sure even for myself.

But for me, the biggest reason I didn't boat was the Falls itself. I had gone up there several times in the past to scout the situation, and my plan was to line my raft over the falls on the left side and start my run from the base. But I'd never been up there when the water was so low. I'd seen it anywhere from 17,000 cfs down to about 8500, and my plan would work well at any level in between. But on Sunday, they were letting about 6100 cfs out of the Libby dam. I was expecting something like this (minus the kids in front):And what I got was this:The channel I had planned on using to line the rafts over the falls was completely de-watered. It may have been possible to line the rafts over the center channel:But it definitely would have been trickier (especially since there are actually two drops in the center: another downstream of this).

So the logical thing to do would be to portage them around the left side. This would certainly be possible: there is a good trail over there, but again, we were down to three people, and while it could have been done, it would have been a lot of time and work.

So the situation as I saw it was this:

We were short handed.

We got a late start.

It was going to take longer than expected.

The crew was uncomfortable.

It isn't often that I allow "good sense" to trespass into my conscious mind, but in this case, things just weren't adding up, so I pulled the plug and we went and had lunch here:I highly recommend Odie's: large portions (none of us finished), good menu, good service, good price.

Here are some random pictures from the day:

The pool below the left side of Kootenai Falls (now stagnant):
And the remnants of a kayaker's bad day:
The second to the last drop (cheatable on the left):
Pig pile in the middle (I'd run left):
Looking upstream towards the right channel of the Falls: nothing about that side of the Falls looks like fun.
Looking upstream from just above the center channel of the Falls:
CB and I returning after scouting the last drop:
Second to the last drop from the upstream side (sorry, no shot of the left chute):
One of the several trains we saw while we were there:

We now own a "fleet" that isn't inserted rectally

2007-09-26T07:22:00.000-07:00

At least not like this one.

It's now official: we don't just have a couple of boats, we have a fleet. Sparky and I now own a 10.5' raft, a 13.5' paddle raft, a 14' raft, a 14' cataraft, two single person inflatable kayaks, a two person inflatable kayak, and now a 16' raft. That's a fleet. Or possibly an armada.

Our newest baby:
Note how the bow looks like a "smiley face."

16 feet of heavy duty Hypalon, this is going to be our "gear hauler." We have all four thwarts if we do want to paddle it, but that would involve finding at least five or six other people we'd want to paddle with, and that's unlikely.

This isn't the perfect gear hauler mind you: notice there is no "D-ring" on the bow. What's a guy supposed secure his gear to (much less hang his cargo deck)?

It will actually need several more D-rings on both the front and back end to be functional as a gear hauling raft.

"Why so many rafts?" you might ask.

Because every river is different, and every situation requires different equipment. You wouldn't ask your car mechanic why she has so many different wrenches would you? You use the proper tool for the proper job. One size does not fit all.

Those are the best rationalizations I can come up with off the top of my head: suffice it to say, we like some very different kinds of rafting.

The big raft for big water and multi-day trips. The 10.5' raft for small technical raft "creeking." The 13.5 paddle raft for when we want to take friends (when we get some friends anyway). The 14' raft for multi-day trips as the second raft (Sparky wants to "row her own" now). The cataraft on difficult rivers where Sparky wants to row a boat but isn't confident in her skills. The inflatable kayaks anywhere we aren't worried about looking stupid.

Anyone with a Grand Canyon permit, we're now ready. Just let us know the dates.

Good times on the Tieton

2007-09-25T10:44:00.000-07:00

Without much further ado, here are some pictures with little commentary of our 2007 trips on the Tieton:

Some of the typical scenery.
Wanderer.
Sparky and Wanderer at the take-out.
Runaround and Sparky enjoying the ride.
The privatization of safety signs: brought to you by Pepsi (lower left).
It's hard to believe, but someone actually slept in that small tent. And you know what they say about the size of a man's tent....
Cooking on the stove: no fires or charcoal allowed, time to improvise.
Pack of wild dogs hunting for chipmunks.

Some spectators firing up a blunt.
The put-in safety talk: even babies are welcome.
Getting ready to launch.
One of the many riverside clusterf#$ks that are part and parcel of Tieton rafting.
Wet Planet Rafting company. Always in my experience, they get out of the way quickly. Kudos to them.
Bikini Girl making sure all the guys smile for the camera.

I'm hungry for some good take-out!

2007-09-18T12:49:00.000-07:00

This is going to be the post where I bitch like a dog in heat.

But first some background.

I worked for 9 years as a commercial rafting guide in Idaho. I learned the trade from a guy who had been around the business for 20 years before that.

Since I "retired" as a professional guide, I have rafted scores of rivers in the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia. Reasonably successfully too.

I've seen a lot of funny stuff on the river, and a lot of unsafe stuff too. I've done a lot of funny and unsafe stuff.

I am in no way claiming to be perfect, nor do I expect others to be perfect either.

But the longer I raft, the more this one thing sticks in my craw. Puts a bee in my bonnet. Bugs me. ***update*** I forgot "Puts a bur under my saddle."

This thing isn't confined to either commercial or private rafters, and in my experience seems intrinsic to both.

I've seen stellar exceptions amongst both privates and commercials, and appreciate it for the beautiful and rare thing that it is.

What "it" is, is River Access Competence, or "RAC." And I for one appreciate a nice RAC.

RAC is defined as how one comports oneself at river access points: put-ins and take-outs.

A big part of RAC is simple consideration. Are you actually aware that there are other people who are also trying to use these communal access points?

It seems like more and more, the answer to that question is a resounding NO!

When on the Tieton River this past weekend, the "traffic jams" at the take-out were amazingly large. But what was most amazing in my opinion, was that people didn't seem to realize both that they were a problem, and that there wasn't really any reason for there to be a back-up.

The most popular "private boater" take out on the Tieton is just below a highway bridge over the river. There is ample parking for cars and trucks, and even room for trailers. The take-out itself is in a relatively small eddy, and there isn't room for more than two or three boats on the shoreline.

On Saturday, after our first run, we were lucky to get there when there wasn't anyone blocking the shoreline. We landed and quickly moved our rafts out of the way. There were probably a half dozen other rafts strewn around the landing area at this point.

Bad Brad the Cad (BBC) walked down the highway about 100 yards to get his vehicle and trailer.

In the meantime, a truck and trailer backed down the slope from the highway and parked in such a way that no one else could back down, and it would be very awkward to even carry a raft up the slope around them.

This by itself was not bad: throw your boat or boats on the trailer, drive back up by the highway and secure your gear out of the way, and this would be a very efficient method of egress.

But they didn't do that.

Instead, they de-rigged their boats, put them on the trailer, drank some beer, secured their boats, and then drove out.

While this was happening, about eight more rafts showed up at the eddy. The first three actually started de-rigging their boats while still on the river, thereby not even giving the others waiting in the eddy a spot to land.

And the slow-down just snowballed.

BBC drove his rig fairly close to the top of the slope, and we just ended up carrying our rafts up the slope, slapping them onto his trailer, and moving to a less stupid area to secure them for the drive back up to the put-in.

It was even worse on Sunday.

If this was an isolated incident, it wouldn't bother me too much, but this seems to be happening more and more the longer I raft.

Just this year:

Groups not leaving any room in the put-in eddy on the Middle Fork of the Salmon despite the posted Forest Service sign.

One private group taking up all seven "slots" at the take-out at Cache Bar on the Main Salmon.

Dude rigging his raft at the bottom of the stairs of the BZ Corners put-in on the White Salmon so people couldn't even walk down the stairs, much less bring a boat down.

Commercial group running their trailer into someone else's raft at the take-out on Northwestern Lake (more of an instance of "trailer backing incompetence" than inconsideration I suppose).

The problem has become so bad that I know of at least two places where law enforcement has had to intervene on a continuing basis to help keep things running smoothly.

One of these places is the Sherar's Falls take out on the Deschutes river in Oregon. One of the most commonly utilized day stretches of whitewater in Oregon, the local county sheriff puts a deputy at Sherar's Falls every weekend afternoon during the peak use season. For the express reason that there are so many putzes who both don't know how to efficiently use the take-out, and who also can't get along with each other.

The other place I've seen this is on the Clark Fork river in Montana. There, the Forest Service has an employee at the Cyr Bridge put-in in the mornings during peak season. The same employee (I think) then polices the Tarkio take-out in the afternoons.

When Sparky and I were there on the 4th of July, the Forest Service Ranger was run ragged by idiots at Tarkio who seemed to think the boat ramp was a great place for socializing and beer swilling, despite the fact that there were literally dozens of people waiting to use the ramp.

After Sparky and I tossed our boats on the trailer, and she asked us how much longer we'd be, she seemed honestly astonished when we said we were done: we'd finish de-rigging in the parking lot.

While I think it is grand that these agencies provide this service, I just don't think it is really necessary or good in the long run. I don't think most of the people who are problems at these access points are intrinsically jackasses. Certainly there are some who no matter what you do will cause problems, but I think they are the vast minority.

I think it is simply a matter of education. An education "initiative" as it were.

But how do you educate such a fiercely independent group of people? And who is to do this educating? As noted before, I don't like to tell people what to do unless they're paying me, and that is amazingly unlikely to happen in this case, but here are some suggestions.

1) It has to come from the top. Why would a bunch of able bodied adults want to take advice from me?

So the local and national whitewater organizations will need to take the lead. American Whitewater (AW) is the closest thing to a unifying group in U.S. whitewater community: I think this "initiative" will have to start with them. Local clubs will need to become involved too, and even raft manufacturers like NRS and Aire can make an impact when selling new inflatables.

2) It has to be standardized. Like all nautical conventions, it won't help if guidelines are different in different areas, since part of the allure of rafting is exploring new areas. Again, AW would be the logical unifying organization. Unless you want to go governmental and put it in the hands of the Coast Guard, but I think that's a terribly bad idea.

3) It has to be simple. Rafters are not necessarily the most sophisticated bunch.

So here is my proposed guide for good RAC: 1) Keep your shit out of the way. 2) If you have to be in the way, get your fat ass out of the way as quickly as possible.

Too complicated?

The thing is, it's in everyone's own best interest to follow these rules (no matter what size your ass happens to be). As rafting becomes more and more popular, there will be more and more pressure put on access points as more and more people attempt to use them.

It is in no one's best interest to involve the government: they'll just end up making us pay for it somehow. Like they already do on the Deschutes. And who the hell likes that?

So I expect all 5 of you who read this crap to alert the media, call your congressperson, tell all your friends (if you have to read my stuff for entertainment, I can't imagine that's a big undertaking), post a sign, do whatever it takes to get the message out: RAC is important.

At least it is if you want to keep "the man" out of your business. Because if there is one thing we should know by now, "the man" is just looking for an excuse to get up in your business. Let's not give it to him! An excuse that is. Instead, we're going to "stick it" to the man.

I will write something to the AW to start us off. Without using the word "shit."

Go team!

What the flip are they talking about?

2007-09-12T12:51:00.000-07:00

Flip-Flop Flipping Rafting Season | KIMA CBS 29 - News, Weather and Sports - Yakima, WA - Yakima, Washington 29 | Local & Regional

Sparky and I are going up to the Tieton this weekend, so when I saw this story in my news reader, I thought there might be some useful information.

I was wrong.

I don't know who does the fact checking there, much less the editing, but this in my opinion, is a terrible story on both counts.

Sandy Rogers a local rafter says, "This is the only river you can go on this time of the year."

Not really, the White Salmon and the Deschutes rivers are still runnable.

The flip-flop happens every year.

That's true.

For 10 days water gets lower in the Yakima River and higher in the
Rim Rock Reservoir, which leads to rolling rapids in the Tieton River.

Factually incorrect. The "flip flop" usually lasts between three and four weeks, the water gets lower in Rimrock Reservoir since that is what feeds the Tieton, and the Yakima below the confluence with the Naches river stays pretty much at the same level due to the increased flow from the Tieton (a tributary of the Naches). Above the Naches confluence, the Yakima does get lower because the US Bureau of Reclamation shuts off releases from some of the other dams in the system.

Lester Stoltz is a rafting guide and says, "I did notice that this last weekend that we had a little more water than usual."

Dude, if you don't notice when they start doing the release, you shouldn't be a guide: typically the flow at least doubles if not triples (from about 800cfs to 2000 or so).

Dale Yount a visiting rafter says, "Yeah, yeah three to four hour drive the other ones are from Idaho and we've got the Alabama couple."

Total non-sequitor: what does that have to do with anything else discussed? Terrible editing.

But with two river drownings earlier in the summer, the Yakima Sheriff's Office is keeping a close watch on the Tieton.

On the Tieton? Where did these drownings happen?

Osprey Rafting is trying to take advantage of the last minute push and work with the visitors bureau to start a flip-flop rafting campaign.

Maybe they can get John Kerry to be spokesman.

This was originally a video report: perhaps due to time constraints they had to edit out a lot of the information that would have made this intelligible.

For more information about the "flip flop" and the whole Yakima river basin, try here.
For the Yakima river basin and it's many reservoirs: the Rimrock "teacup" and gauge is on the lower left.

Double trouble

2007-09-05T14:34:00.000-07:00

Woman Drowns In Santiam River - News Story - KPTV Portland

This story is about a woman who drowned a couple of days ago down in Oregon. She wasn't rafting or kayaking, she was "tubing." Apparently, she and two friends were floating the class II section of the North Fork of the Santiam a few miles below Mehama.

This was an accident where two of the most dangerous elements of river running came together at the wrong time for this woman.

The three friends, who had tied their inner-tubes together, came to a bend in the river and hit some rapids.The swift moving water forced the girls toward the shore, where Liddell became entangled in logs and debris, officials said.

One problem was the craft: inner-tubes aren't the most maneuverable in the best of circumstances, having the three tied together probably only made that worse. They basically had to go where the current took them.

Members of the Linn County Sheriff's Office Dive Team recovered Liddell's body. They said the rope used to tie the inner tubes together was tangled in the debris and likely prevented her from resurfacing.

Loose lines, and wood in the river. A terrible combination, with terrible results.

Maybe I'm too much of a control freak, but I've never seen the allure of "tubing:" I'm all for going downstream, but I still want to be able to actively maneuver whatever craft I'm in.

Besides, my armpits chafe on an inner-tube.

The linked story has an embedded video with more information if anyone is interested.

Let's book a flight!

2007-09-05T06:21:00.000-07:00

Airline sacrifices goats to appease sky god | Oddly Enough | Reuters

As if the last post wasn't wacky enough, I came across this story just after I posted.

The goats were sacrificed in front of the troublesome aircraft Sunday at Nepal's only international airport in Kathmandu in accordance with Hindu traditions, an official said.

"The snag in the plane has now been fixed and the aircraft has resumed its flights," said Raju K.C., a senior airline official, without explaining what the problem had been.

That's good enough for me.

At least they aren't impoverished anymore

2007-09-05T05:44:00.000-07:00

Christianity vs. the old gods of Nigeria - Yahoo! News

I don't want to be the guy to always rag on religion: I say if it makes you feel better and it doesn't hurt anyone else, feel free. But damn if a lot of these religious folk don't break those rules. Their religion both makes them feel bad, and they end up hurting others. This story is a case and point:

Born to a family of traditional priests, Ibe Nwigwe converted to Christianity as a boy. Under the sway of born-again fervor as a man, he gathered the paraphernalia of ancestral worship — a centuries-old stool, a metal staff with a wooden handle and the carved figure of a god — and burned them as his pastor watched.

That's the kind of religious leader everybody needs: one who isn't threatened by old superstitions.

"I had experienced a series of misfortunes and my pastor told me it was because I had not completely broken the covenant with my ancestral idols," the 52-year-old Nwigwe said of the bonfire three years ago.

Oops. Nothing superstitious about that statement.

As poverty deepened in Nigeria from the mid-1980s, Pentecostal Christian church membership surged. The new faithful found comfort in preachers like evangelist Uma Ukpai who promised material success was next to godliness.

What a beautiful doctrine.

"Since the curses and covenants do not automatically disappear when we repent, Rev. Dr. Uma Ukpai is a man called by God for the total liberation of mankind," he says on his Web site, claiming to have the spiritual backing of Jesus to break the curses.

So were these false gods, in which case where did the curses come from, or real gods with power that only Jesus can trump?

The National Commission for Museums and Monuments, which is responsible for protecting the country's cultural antiquities, has responded with a sensitization campaign.
"We are ... telling the Christians that they can't detach themselves from their past, that there is a beginning to their history," said Omotosho Eluyemi, a senior commission official.

Actually, I think "detach(ing) themselves from their past" is the whole point of that "redemption" thing. I don't see them buying into this. That would require "reason" and it seems as if they're rejecting that outright.

OK, so no one is actually "hurt." Except all the archaeologists and historians who won't be able to get grants to study the destroyed artifacts and culture. But I feel for them.

"Danger" is my middle name

2007-09-04T13:20:00.000-07:00

ABC News: White-Water Rafting: Dangerous Sport or Fun Activity?

This story is about the recent spate of deaths on the Arkansas River in Colorado.

The outdoor recreation industry estimates that between 2 million and 3 million people did some guided white-water rafting this summer, which included commercial tours lead by trained guides.

Strange assertion: "guided white-water rafting" kind of implies "commercial tours lead by trained guides." If not, who was the guide?

The article concludes with some "Safety Tips:"

Experts suggest knowing your limitations before hitting the water and telling the tour company. This usually means the rougher the rapids, the greater the chances of getting tossed into the river. If that happens, swim defensively.

You can't overpower the rapids so when you get to calmer waters, swim ashore.

This is on it's face good advice, but exactly what does it mean? "Knowing your limitations..." while great advice when facing Dirty Harry, in the context of whitewater rafting, a person's limitations are often what they are in fact testing. Most "risk" sports are doing just that: finding that fine line between control and chaos and flirting with it like Charles Firth with a Baptist.

"You can't overpower the rapids so when you get to calmer waters, swim ashore." What if "calmer waters" aren't for a couple of miles downstream? Seems a little too simplistic for my tastes. Why write "Safety Tips" if they really don't inform?

Update: The links to ABC weren't working there for a while, but I re-embedded them and they seem to be working now. DS

Wetsuit pimpin'

2007-08-28T12:11:00.000-07:00

Last call for whitewater fun

This story from Canada highlights some of the whitewater destinations within a day's drive from Calgary, and serves as a rude reminder that we are running out of time to go boating without artificial means of keeping warm.

While I personally look forward to Sparky in tight neoprene, the extra layer of work involved in cold-weather rafting is something I could do without.

But to quote the Bard, "Dress for the swim, not for the weather."

Raising dough outdoors

2007-08-25T14:55:00.000-07:00

Love In A Tent: Rising to the Occasion

One of my "hobbies" is in fact camp cooking, and over at the Love in a Tent blog, Michelle Waitzman has a post describing how to bake bread on a stove-top.

I've always used a dutch oven, and been very pleased with the results, but this would be a great way to get fresh bread on trips where charcoal and open flames aren't allowed. Which seems to be happening more frequently out West here.

You don't know the half of it.

2007-08-23T13:40:00.000-07:00

Rare view reveals dynamic nature of Uranus's rings - space - 23 August 2007 - New Scientist Space

The rings around Uranus have changed dramatically since the Voyager 2 spacecraft observed them in 1986

Yeah, everything is starting to sag.

Perhaps not quite as juvenile:

Via Bad Astronomy.

-------------------------- Update: -------------------------

Since I'm already showing my immature sense of humor anyways, this was my all time favorite Uranus joke:

I was guiding a raft trip down the Lower Salmon river many years ago, and the group was sitting around after dark just looking up at the stars. Down in the valley away from all the lights on a night with no moon, people would often remark about how many more stars they could see than at home (wherever that happened to be).

One of the other guides was trying to show off her astronomy knowledge and impress the guests. She was telling the guests that a reddish planet that could be seen just over the ridge was Jupiter.

It was actually Mars, which I happened to know because I saw an article about it being clearly visible in that area of the sky in the newspaper before we left.

She asserted it was Jupiter, and I asked if she was sure, trying to give her the opportunity to make the correction. But she kept on saying it was Jupiter, and I kept questioning her.

Finally, she asked me, "You don't think I know what planet that is?"

Of course, I had to reply, "That's correct, I don't think you'd know Jupiter from Uranus."

A rim-shot would have made it better, but that had to be the biggest laugh I ever got on the river.

Nuanced faux news?

2007-08-23T12:01:00.000-07:00

Why does this seem to be the most accurate version of U.S. mideast policy around? Isn't this supposed to be the "fake" news?

Shredded Sweets

2007-08-22T09:31:00.000-07:00

Interesting video of a raft stuck in a hole at Sweet's Falls on the Gauley in West Virginia, and the two guys who got it out after abandoning their Shredder.

White Nile

2007-08-21T11:04:00.000-07:00

These are a couple of good videos from Africa.

The first has the best carnage, the second is longer but has a good overview of the whole run on the White Nile.

Maybe not whitewater,

2007-08-20T10:35:00.000-07:00

But a conclusive beatdown nonetheless:

Via Kayak Cult.

A whiz for the ages

2007-08-20T08:43:00.000-07:00

Because I know how much it concerned you all, after doing more research (I looked at a map), I have discovered the spot in Montana where you could in theory pee into three different oceans at once. Kind of.

As you would expect, I was not the first have this thought, and in fact, this place is named "Triple Divide Peak." At 8029 feet, it is now on my official short-list of places I want to go. Ahhh... for no reason in particular. Excellent description here.

New blog feature!

2007-08-19T06:34:00.000-07:00

Alway important to use an exclamation point when posting news about your own blog: perhaps not quite the impact of ALL CAPS, but I'm a low key kind of guy.

In any case, I decided to put a new feature on the sidebar: a series of "Motivational posts." These posts all have one thing in common: someone or some group of people getting "beat down" as the kids say. In a whitewater setting of course.

Not necessarily on my own site (though most of the first entries will be), these are supposed to be examples of only the best whitewater carnage.

Because I like it.

Nominations are always welcome: I find a lot of these myself (because I look for them), but I'm sure there are many posts elsewhere as well as innumerable stand alone YouTube videos I haven't seen that would be worthy of a link.

So if any of (the five of) you see something you think praiseworthy, send me link or stick one in a comment.

Here is an example.

Nasty Emission

2007-08-17T14:43:00.000-07:00

This is a short video of a "blowout" that occurred at Deer Creek on the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon a few weeks ago.

I don't know if this blowout caused any lasting change to the river's flow, but they can be very dangerous (even if you aren't camped at the mouth of the creek). If enough sediment is deposited into the river, it can temporarily dam the river, and create a new rapid, radically change an existing rapid, or even destroy a rapid.

Generally, you don't want to be the next person to go through the area when this happens.

Kaituna, the big fish of New Zealand

2007-08-16T12:31:00.000-07:00

This is the Kaituna River in New Zealand, home of the highest commercially run waterfall in the world (so they claim). 23 feet high, you'll see it in the middle of this video. Kootenai Falls isn't quite that high, and they make it look easy (like falling off a log).

I'd like a jelly, Clark (Fork)

2007-08-15T08:48:00.000-07:00

Quick factoid (the kind of worthless thing I tend to remember):

Montana is the only state in the union that has river drainages that eventually flow into three different oceans. I'm not certain, but I think there is one spot in Montana where you could stand and pee, and eventually, some of that urine would end up in the Pacific, Atlantic, and Arctic Oceans. Wouldn't that be something?

In other news, we went over to Montana last weekend and floated the Alberton Gorge of the Clark Fork. Three times for me. Twice on Saturday, once on Sunday.

The first time on Saturday, I went with a group of kayakers. I paddled my inflatable kayak, and discovered something profound: even with all the straps holding the seat in, it still sucked. The seat that came with the IK simply doesn't support one's back in any sort of useful manner.

I happen to know they have improved the seat since then, but the one I have is pretty well nonfunctional. Just to take some of the pressure off my back, I ended up kneeling to paddle in almost all the flatwater.

I forgot to take my camera on that run, so there is no photographic evidence that I did in fact IK the gorge, but I'm sure I can get testimonials if that becomes necessary.

I did end up swimming one of the rapids: Fang. At most flows considered to be the most difficult rapid on the Alberton Gorge, I definitely made it look that way.

Later that day, we went again, this time both rafts and kayaks. My Sparky rowed most of the river on her cataraft, I paddle-captained our small raft with two Heathers doing most of the work. There was one other kayaker from "our" party (which was supposed to be much larger: I was led to believe there would be about 15 people, not 5), and then three kayakers from Montana.

These were people associated with the most excellent Montana Eddy-Hop blog, an informational blog with lots of great river lore regarding Montana.

Here is "Oldschool" early in the trip: great guy, but what's up with that life-jacket? I wonder if it still floats?

This is Montana "Sparky:" a generous soul who would even give me a ride and a beer (that is a rare combination).

My Sparky and one of the Heathers.

Sparky guiding the Heathers below Fish Creek.

On Sunday, I got to row CB and Sinbad down the Gorge. CB didn't like just sitting there, but as been previously noted, I don't like to give up the oars.

Those goofy guys on the cataraft who should have borrowed some straps from someone.

Trainman looking good in Fang (one wave before he flipped).
This is Oldschool doing a seal-launch at Triple-bridges.

West Virginia rafting death

2007-08-14T08:12:00.000-07:00

A woman died on a commercial trip in West Virginia on the Gauley River last Saturday August 11th. From the Charleston Daily Mail:

The woman fell out of a raft and was pinned underwater against a rock about 12:30 p.m., Ranger Frank Sellers said. The woman's body was recovered about 4:30 p.m. Her name is being withheld pending notification of next of kin.

I seem to be seeing more stories about rafting deaths this year than last. Maybe because there are more, or possibly because I use a better news aggregator.

This accident occurred in a rapid called "Iron Ring," here is a short video of it:

It looks plenty nasty. I'm hoping more information will be forthcoming, as it sits, it just seems like another freak accident. If you consider drowning in intense whitewater a freak occurrence. Which I do.

The commercial company she was boating with was Songer. They have a long and impressive safety record, and put out some of my favorite Gauley River carnage videos. Like this one:

My condolences to all involved. More info here and here.

What's an azzhole got to do get an R rating around here?

2007-08-13T19:34:00.000-07:00

Maybe spell correctly:

Mingle² - New York Singles

OK, no more #@%$ing around.

Via Science Notes.

Forkin' funny

2007-08-13T16:41:00.000-07:00

We were out on the Clark Fork last weekend, and had a great time. More on that later. For now, just look at this picture (click on it for a better view). I don't want to come off as arrogant or snotty, but this had to be the stupidest thing I've ever personally witnessed in 20 years on rivers.

Let me explain what you are seeing.

1) In the far background you see Tumbleweed rapid, a steep class III drop, typically thought of as the second toughest on this section of the Clark Fork.

2) The first rafters you see (from the back) are part of a group who was helping right an oared raft that had flipped in Tumbleweed. The raft that flipped lost both of it's oars. Apparently they didn't tether them to the frame. Typically, the oars would be found floating downstream somewhere, but the rower in this case used counterweights. So $350 of Cataract Oars and blades are sitting on the bottom of the Clark Fork just below Tumbleweed for whoever is willing to snorkel for them.

You might have thought that this was in fact the stupidest thing I'd ever seen on the river, but that was just the warm-up.

3) Just in front of those rafts, you'll see a cataraft that also appears to have flipped in Tumbleweed. But it hasn't. It is in fact upright. Whoever rigged the cat only strapped the tubes to the frame on the outside. The insides of the tubes weren't secured. So when the cataraft went over Tumbleweed, the tubes rolled out, pushed the oars up into a useless position, and left the rower and his passengers sitting in the river.

Actually, a much more stable position since the center of gravity of the cat would then be much lower, but all in all pretty darned silly. That definitely qualifies as the stupidest thing I have ever personally witnessed. I am amazed they made it as far as they did before the tubes flipped out.

I have often said in the past that perhaps the greatest allure of catarafts is that they are just about idiot-proof. I stand corrected.

More from Vail

2007-08-09T06:35:00.000-07:00

Vail Daily News for Vail and Beaver Creek Colorado - News

This is apparently the letter to the editor upon which the opinion piece in the previous post was commenting. Which was a reaction to this article. It's all getting more complicated. Even more on this here. About Nova Guides here. Here is a more in depth article regarding the issue, the comments are interesting in that there seems to be a lot of former guides defending the outfitters, and a lot of former passengers blaming them.

It appears as if the Arkansas River is quite cold even into July: this greatly increases the chances of flush drownings, when a swimmer dies usually after hypothermia renders them incapable of getting to shore.

Are these people wearing wetsuits? Splash-jackets? It is unclear in the articles I've seen. Even those things won't guarantee safety, but they certainly provide a safety buffer. Most outfitters in Idaho and Washington require wetsuits (and provide them) if the water temperature is below a certain point (sometimes based on air temperature too). I'd be interested in knowing if this is the case in Colorado.

As to the question of screening passengers to weed out those that won't be able to pull their own weight (so to speak), there is one really simple solution for outfitters: stern-mount rowing frames. This leaves the guide with much more control of the the raft, even if the passengers end up doing nothing.

This doesn't address the issue of those passengers who are incapable of self-rescue. Even with a stern-mount frame, accidents can and will happen (my only commercial flip was with one). But it gives the guide (and therefore the clients), a much greater margin for error safety-wise when running any section of whitewater.

The route of the Hiawatha

2007-08-08T08:15:00.000-07:00

The relative in the hospital was a bust: by the time we got to Sandpoint, she was getting discharged. This was of course good news, but a cautionary tale for all: poop is bad, e-coli nasty.

So Sparky and I decided to go for a bike ride, and a couple of her cousins came too. Sparky has a lot of cousins, and we would have taken more, but there was only so much room and so many bikes.

I'd been looking at doing the "Hiawatha trail" for about a year since some friends did it and recommended it for a easy recreational ride.

The Hiawatha trail is a "rails to trails" path that has been very successful. I don't know the exact statistics, but on the Saturday we were there, we saw more than 100 people either getting onto or off of the trail, and we got there pretty late. The parking lot at East Portal was pretty much full when we got there.

What makes this trail special are the tunnels and trestles it traverses. The first tunnel from the top, tunnel #20 (don't ask me) is over a mile long by itself. Some of the trestles are over 100' high. It is very scenic, and as we found, very easy.

I had been to tunnel #20 about 15 years ago on a mountain biking trip: this was before the railroad bed had been converted to a trail, so we didn't have access to most of the tunnels or trestles.

But we rode up from Avery, ID to tunnel #20 with the intention of riding through to Montana.

At that time, the Forest service had dug a huge berm at the Idaho entrance to keep people from trying to drive through the tunnel. We left our bikes on the other side of the berm and hiked about fifty feet into the tunnel to see if it would be possible to ride through.

The first thing we noticed was that we couldn't see any light coming from the Montana side, so we weren't sure if it had collapsed somewhere. The second thing we noticed (OK, it was really the first) was the 10 or 12 inches of frigid water that covered the floor of the tunnel. At this point we decided to forgo the biking.

But as we sat at our bikes eating lunch, we were amazed to see a Jeep Wagoneer appear coming out of the tunnel. I was even more amazed when it slowly crawled up over the berm like it was nothing.

We got to talking with the driver, and he told us the tunnel was in fact clear (we had figured that out already), the reason you couldn't see any light from this end was a corner in the tunnel at the Montana end.

He recommended not riding through due to the water, but told us he would drive us and our bikes through and then if we wanted, we could ride back through.

It was an offer we couldn't refuse.

We loaded the bikes into the Jeep, and he, true to his word took us through. It was pretty amazing, and at the time pretty wet. The berm effectively dammed the tunnel which is why there was so much water.

On the other side, Montana looked pretty much like the Idaho we had just left.

We opted to not ride back through and instead took a Forest Service road (#506) back over the top of the mountain.

Something that fascinated me at the time (I probably don't remember it correctly) was at the top of the pass (which constituted the Idaho/Montana border) there was a trail leading off in either direction running along the ridge. I always wondered how far someone could go along the border like that. But I never went back to find out. Didn't this time either.

In present time, Sparky wanted to ride down the trail from Montana and then back up. This on the face of it seems reasonable: though it would make for a long day, the slope up was slight. I think the trail is about 15 miles long and it only loses (or gains) about 1000 feet of elevation. Obviously, this had to be something a train could climb.

The problem that I saw with Sparky's plan was that neither she nor her cousins had been riding bicycles for a while. I don't think the pedaling would have necessarily been a problem, I was much more concerned about the condition of their asses (I'm that kind of guy).

I typically bike commute so my butt is relatively callused, but my thought was that fifteen miles even of downhill biking would be more than enough for their inexperienced hindquarters.

So I insisted that we purchase shuttle passes. This doubled the cost of the trip, but in my opinion, gave us the most margin for error this first time.

By the way, they all thanked me in the end (so to speak).

Here is a map of the trail:

Here is the crew at the Idaho end of "the big" tunnel #20:

Very cold in there, lots of water flowing from the walls:

Sparky's cousin, Speed Racer, enjoying the ride:

One of about 40 interpretive signs along the way (click for a readable view):

Typical view from the trail:

Looking from one trestle to another:

A convenient pit-stop about halfway down the trail. Also a place where a Forest Service road crossed the trail (so you could drive there if you so desired):

The crew, looking back up at the trestle I took the other photo from:

I thought that was a golf term:

The bottom of the trail at "Pearson" with the shuttle bus for the weak (like me):

Sparky standing in two states, Idaho and Montana, about 1000 vertical feet underground:

The car, overloaded, for the drive back:

Trouble brewing on the Tully?

2007-08-07T12:32:00.000-07:00

Here is a video of some rafters on the Tully river in Northern Australia.

A teacher from Britain died there a couple of weeks ago, and it has generated a ton of stories worldwide. Like here, here, and here. Not to mention the round-up here.

The outfitters there may also face new regulation (if they aren't shut down) if this local story is typical.

Note that while there is certainly serious whitewater there, it isn't anything that wouldn't be commonly rafted in the U.S. These kind of accidents happen, even to the well prepared. The odds may not be high, but anytime you have water, the potential for freak accidents is there.

Locally, last year a young boy died while swimming through an irrigation culvert. His shoelace somehow got caught on a bolt in the culvert, the current pushed him over, and he drowned. Literally thousands of kids had swum that culvert over the years, and had no problems.

It is simply the risk that water poses to those of us that can't breathe it.

Getting closer to Kootenai Falls

2007-08-07T07:46:00.000-07:00

The middle Falls: I think I could do it by running a raft kind of down the ledge and thereby only dropping 15 feet instead of 20. What could go wrong?

After exchanging emails with another blogger (who confusingly also goes by the nom-de-net of "Sparky") about running Kootenai Falls, I had to go take another look. I was up in Sandpoint ID to visit a relative in the hospital, and took a few hours to drive up to the falls to take quick peek.

I hadn't seen the falls with this much water before: it was running about 17,000 cfs.

It looked big. Superwave was big, the Falls proper was big, the stuff below the Falls was big.

I'm in.

Even though everything looked big, there also didn't appear to be anything I couldn't cheat if I needed to (other than the Falls itself). My plan is to row the first time through, going around everything I possibly can, then go back and probably paddle it more aggressively.

I need to find out more about the take-outs however: the only place I know to get off the river is the park in Troy, Montana, about 5 or 6 miles downstream. I'd rather find something closer if possible, but rafters can't be choosers.

Kootenai Falls with some of (my) Sparky's cousins in the foreground: typically the kayakers run the section of falls right behind their heads.

Superwave looking meaty:

The creepy cable bridge over the river: not particularly well put together.

Looking downstream of the bridge:

Click on this picture: the waves down there are huge (which simply means that the first time I raft there, I'll be looking at them from the side).

Trouble brewing in Vail?

2007-08-06T14:11:00.000-07:00

Vail Daily News for Vail and Beaver Creek Colorado - Commentary

This is a general commentary about rafting safety. From the article:

It’s up to would-be-rafters to be keenly aware of their limits. Just like a novice skiers should avoid black diamond runs on the first day, new rafters need to recognize that Class IV and V rapids are over their heads.

That ignorance isn’t just limited to out-of-towners. Local residents embarking on their first raft trip probably don’t realize how rough it can get out there, either.

Good stuff, but I would just add that having done a "first raft trip" isn't even enough experience to really know what you're in for when attempting class IV and class V whitewater: until you've swam in a rapid and gotten run into a rock or two, seen the underside of a "bubble pool" without knowing when your next breath will be available, you really don't understand the likely consequences of any kind of swim in class IV/V water. And if you aren't prepared for that kind of swim, you shouldn't be there.

Behe on Colbert

2007-08-06T07:25:00.000-07:00

Michael Behe was "interviewed" by Stephen Colbert last week. To anyone educated in Biology, Geology, Physics, or History, Behe will appear to be a moron. Colbert is of course acting the part of a moron, apparently Behe doesn't have to act.

The funniest part of the interview (in my opinion) is when they are discussing Irreducible Complexity and Behe uses the example of a mousetrap (who would have guessed?). Colbert facetiously points out that there is no other possible use for any of the parts of a mousetrap.

For anyone familiar with Behe's arguments regarding Irreducible Complexity (IC) that was a devastating zinger. But it barely garnered an audience chuckle. It does however show that Colbert did his homework. Good for him.

No Reason to carry Spare-parts

2007-08-01T12:01:00.000-07:00

I am a big fan of NRS. I've gotten stuff from them for over twenty years. They, in the past, have always stood by their products really well.

For instance, I purchased a 14' Otter from them when they first came out with the Otter line. Though the boat had some fabrication issues with the floor, I took it back and they repaired the floor completely to my satisfaction, and it has held air perfectly ever since. While they had my Otter, they even loaned me a different raft so I wouldn't miss any summer boating. That there is good customer service.

They have probably gotten more than $10,000 out of me over the years, and I have always considered the money I sent their way well spent.

Until now.

Sparky and I purchased a used Bandit II inflatable kayak from a friend. This kayak uses small webbing straps to hold the seats in place. At some point, we have lost a couple of the straps. I'm not sure how, but the point is, I need a couple of new ones.

The strapping itself is simply 1" polyester webbing which I was able to purchase at a local fabric store. But the buckle which holds the seat to the strap was a different story. I only need the "male" end of the buckle, since the female end is sewn to the seat itself. But it apparently isn't the kind of standard 1" buckle that my local fabric store carries.

"No big deal," I think, "It'll cost more, but I'm sure NRS must carry replacement straps."

So I called NRS and explained the situation, and asked to buy a couple of new ones. The very nice person told me they would check with the warehouse and see if any were available since they weren't listed in their online catalog.

She very nicely called me back this morning.

I don't think I have a lot of pet-peeves, but one of them is definitely phone etiquette. It amazes me how people have the cajones to call a private number and simply say, "Is Ned Flanders there?"

If I'm on the other end of the line, I pretty much always answer, "Who the hell's asking?(and why do you want to talk to a cartoon character?)"

In my opinion, the caller is obligated to identify themselves: you are calling me, I don't know who you are, and you want me to simply give you information? Not just rude, but stupid.

Especially when calling from a business, a caller should identify themselves and the business before asking for anything from the person who answers the phone.

This person from NRS didn't. I didn't give them the "Who the hell's asking?" since I could tell by the caller ID who it was, but it still set me on edge.

Then she goes into a three or four minute dissembling monologue about how the new models have the straps sewn to the floor and they don't have the parts but I could try maybe tying the straps to the seat....

At this point, it became clear that she was just wasting my time, so I interjected, "Well, thank you very much, but you've been no help at all." and hung up on her.

In my opinion, while it was very professional of her to have called me back, she needed to simplify her approach (and learn professional phone etiquette) so as not to waste my time, and just said something to the effect, "I'm very sorry, but we don't stock spare parts for all the crap we sell, so I'm afraid I can't help you."

Maybe throw in a "Caveat Emptor" or something like that.

So will I buy from NRS still? Probably. One bad experience isn't going to make me forget all the good service and deals I've gotten from them (no anecdotal reasoning here).

I'm probably just becoming the crotchety old man I always said I'd never become. Damn whippersnappers.

On the other hand, I pulled one of the other straps off the kayak, and was able to find a manufacturers name and model on the buckle. A quick web search got me in touch with a place in Seattle that carries them and they are sending me six. For FREE! (that's me yelling).

That's the kind of customer service we had back when I was a kid your age....

If they don't dance, then they're no friends of mine.

2007-07-27T12:01:00.000-07:00

Otter Boy left a comment regarding my aside in the Lochsa post about safety boaters, specifically in this case, safety kayakers. Here is the aside:

As an aside within an aside, if you agree to float with a kayaker as your "safety," you really need to make sure both the people in the raft know what that means, and also that the kayaker knows what to do. The guy these people had floating with them seemed to think being a "safety boater" meant watching swimmers get trashed in multiple rapids while shouting encouragement to them.

Here is Otter Boy's comment:

Interesting aside within an aside. I'm socially inept, so I don't fully understand the points of contention between our two tribes, the Kayaking People and the Raft Folk. I can't disagree though....this guy should have been named the "encouragement boater".

- Otterboy

Just for clarification, I wasn't referring to the almost universally perceived conflict between kayakers and rafters. In my opinion both sides have legitimate grievances: yes, sometimes rafters accidentally run over kayakers playing in holes, and yes sometimes kayakers take advantage of their rafting brethren when it comes to multi-day trips.

But for the most part, those problems are set aside when it comes to working (and playing) together for issues like river access and conservation: we really are all in the same boat (so to speak). It's not like either side are jet-boaters.

Additionally, what I want to clarify, is the role that a "safety boater" is supposed to play in any floating group, whether that boater is a kayaker, rafter, or cat-boater.

On many commercial rafting trips, kayakers, private rafters or cat-boaters are allowed to "tag along" with the group as a "safety boater." The understanding is that in the event of someone falling out of the raft, or the raft overturning, the safety boater will help rescue both people and equipment (it's usually agreed that people come first). The other rafts will help too, but the safety boater is supposed to bear the brunt of that responsibility.

Payment for this service may be as little the cost of the shuttle and lunch, or the safety boater may get as much as regular guide wages for their efforts (but they will have much more work to do as well).

Generally, kayakers and cat-boaters make the best safety boaters. This is because kayaks and catarafts (especially when lightly loaded) are much more maneuverable than rafts, and when picking up either people or equipment, much easier on the operator. Typically, rafts don't make ideal safety boats, unless there are multiple people in the raft (one manning the oars, and at least one to grab stuff off the side).

In private groups, there often isn't any one designated safety boater: the responsibilities are equally shared amongst all the participants.

But assuming there is a safety boater(s), what can be expected of them? Here is a non-comprehensive list:

1) They will stay with the group (I saw a trip once where there were several kayak "safety boaters" opted to stay at a hot-springs long after the rest of the group left: not very safety conscious in my opinion).

2) They will actively help swimmers back to the raft/shore (yelling encouragement doesn't count).

3) They will pick-up/secure/push to shore as much equipment as possible.

That's pretty much all I can come up with off the top of my head: seems pretty simple.

But it really isn't. Just for instance, using a kayak to move a swimmer isn't easy. Both the kayaker and the swimmer have to know what to do. Typically, a swimmer should grab the rear "grab loop" on the kayak, and try to become as "hydro-dynamic" as possible.

The point that I'm trying to make, is that if you agree to be a safety boater, whether you'll be in a kayak, a raft or a cataraft, you need to know both what will be expected of you, and how you will do it.

Accepting the responsibility of being a safety boater shouldn't be taken lightly: this is a "risk-sport" and people's very lives may be at stake.

The instance I cited in the Lochsa post is a great example of this. The people in the raft expected the kayaker to actually help, and he didn't really know what to do when the raft flipped, and so Sparky and I moved into the role of safety boater for them.

I don't think the kayaker understood the responsibility of the position he accepted. The rafters didn't know enough to realize that simply calling someone a "safety boater," doesn't make you safe. The rafters needed to make explicit what they expected from the kayaker, and he needed to let them know what he was comfortable doing. Those two things would have prevented the take-out shouting match that ensued.

So why would anyone accept the position of safety boater? For a kayaker on a multi-day trip, the answer is easy: cold beer and a light boat.

Correlation? Causation?

2007-07-26T07:06:00.000-07:00

Oscar the cat predicts patients' deaths - Yahoo! News

PROVIDENCE, R.I. - Oscar the cat seems to have an uncanny knack for predicting when nursing home patients are going to die, by curling up next to them during their final hours. His accuracy, observed in 25 cases, has led the staff to call family members once he has chosen someone. It usually means they have less than four hours to live.

Is he predicting their deaths?..... Or causing them!? Perhaps stealing their breath?

Low water Lochsa

2007-07-25T13:58:00.000-07:00

Sparky, before the camera got wet inside (not too many pictures forthcoming).

A couple of weeks late, but this relates to July 6th and 7th.

The day after our fruitless hike up to Stanley Hot Springs, we got back on the water. Our plan was to run part of the upper section of the Lochsa, from "Nine Mile" river access back down to Wilderness Gateway campground.

The upper section of the Lochsa is considered the tougher section, but the lower section of the upper section is not so tough. Still with me?

Apparently, we missed all the biggest rapids on the upper section.

I've only rafted the upper section a couple of times before, and both were at considerably higher water. Those times, I thought the section below Nine Mile (and no, I don't know what "Nine Mile" is nine miles from) was definitely tougher, but on this day, I had to concur: it was pretty easy. The only "tough" rapid was "Ten-Pin Alley" just above the campground, and it even wasn't a big deal.

Still, it was a good day: the rapid on that section that in the past I've had the most trouble is called "No-see-um." On this day, the name was apt: if it wasn't for the big culverts poking out of the bank, I wouldn't have even noticed it.

The bike shuttle back to the truck was good but hot: rafting down to the campground was nice since Sparky could hang out there and play with the dogs instead of sitting next to the road waiting for me, and I didn't feel rushed to get back.

The next day, I did the bike shuttle in the morning, running the truck down to the take-out at Split-creek pack bridge and riding back to start the rafting. I liked this even better: no reason to rush at all, cooler in the morning, and the dogs only had to stay in the campsite by themselves for a very short time.

The lower section is the one that most folk do, though not quite as tough as the upper at higher water, it still has a plethora of very good big rapids. At really high water, it is kind of like running all the rapids of the Grand Canyon squashed up into a fifteen mile stretch: the waves are huge, and flipping is a constant danger. Unlike the Grand Canyon, which is a classic pool and drop river, at high water, many of the Lochsa's rapids run together.

A couple of years ago, Sparky and I rafted the Lochsa at about 12,000 cfs (I know, all the cool kids only talk about the Lochsa in terms of "gauge feet," but I refuse to use that most archaic metric) in the fourteen foot Otter. We floated with a group from Missoula who ran it in one paddle raft with six people, and one safety kayaker.

As an aside within an aside, if you agree to float with a kayaker as your "safety," you really need to make sure both the people in the raft know what that means, and also that the kayaker knows what to do. The guy these people had floating with them seemed to think being a "safety boater" meant watching swimmers get trashed in multiple rapids while shouting encouragement to them.

There weren't many people on the river that day: our party was the only one we saw. The paddle raft flipped in "Jones Waves" (I think: I don't know the names of most of the Lochsa's rapids), and we weren't able to get them to shore until just above "Lochsa Falls." They swam almost a mile of very cold river, and one woman was clearly in the early stages of hypothermia before we got to the bank.

Unfortunately, we got them to the bank on the wrong side of the river. A couple of the paddle raft's passengers swam to shore on the road side, and I had to ferry them across the river so they had a reasonable crew.

They then ran the falls, and stayed upright, though a couple of people swam, and didn't get retrieved until just above "Old Man."

Them there were some cold folk by the time we got to the take-out at "Knife edge."

I relate this anecdote simply to illustrate just how big the Lochsa can be (and usually is in May).

The river was only flowing about 1200 cfs on our July trip, and the biggest worry was getting stuck on a rock. Or so we thought.

I really wish the camera hadn't gotten wet: the pictures I could have gotten would have been instant classics.

Feeling pretty good about ourselves after having negotiated most of the lower section with the only mishap being getting momentarily stuck on a rock in "Grim Reaper," we decided (OK, I decided) that we should try surfing the hole at "Surf Wave."

Again, at higher water, this is in fact a "wave," but at lower water it becomes a hole and a rock.

We eddied out behind the rock and took a look at the hole. It seemed friendly enough.

We stuck the nose of the raft into the hole, and it stuck. Good. Perhaps too good. For the first few seconds, it was all meat and flowers: we were riding the hole like Slim Pickens on a nuke. Yee Haw!

Then the hole spun the raft sideways, and I fell out into the hole. I managed to hang onto the raft, but I was afraid I would flip it. Being the overly-considerate soul that I am, I let go and washed underneath the boat. I immediately flushed, and surfaced about fifteen feet downstream of the hole.

The look on Sparky's face as I looked back upstream at her peering over the end of the raft, still stuck in the hole, let me know that all was not well.

I swam to shore, and walked back up the shore until I was even with the hole. All the while, Sparky was doing a brilliant job of high-siding, keeping the raft from flipping. But the hole seemed to have no interest in letting her and the boat go.

She tried the classic "reach downstream of the hole and do some quick "draw stokes" with her paddle," but it was to no avail. She tried pulling the boat sideways out of the hole, but that was a "no go" too.

Keep in mind, while she is trying to do all this, the raft is bucking and spinning like a rodeo bull, and she has to work hard to simply stay on the high side of the boat. Especially since that side was constantly and chaotically changing.

Trying to be supportive, I gave her a big two-thumbs up. She gave me the double bird. Trying to yell over the din of the rapid, I tried to get her to use the throw-bag that was still attached to the front of the raft.

She understood my gesticulating if not my words, and grabbed the bag.

The hole (and raft) was only about fifteen feet from shore: an easy throw with the bag. Sparky grabbed the rope end, and threw the bag.... about 13 feet. Sparky made the rookie error of trying to throw the bag to the target (me) instead of past the target.

The bag landed in the river and immediately took off downstream. This by itself was no big deal, she would just have to pull it back in and try again. Except, about this time, the raft took a big lurch, and Sparky dropped the end of the rope.

So now, she is stuck in a hole without a safety rope. Fortunately for her (and me too) looks can't kill, or she would have been by herself too. However, she still had a rope at her disposal: the bowline.

She managed to get the bowline bag free from the D-ring, and threw again. This time the bag at least made it to shore. I was able to grab it, and with not too much effort, pulled the boat out of the hole. The raft swung to shore, and all was good on the river. Or was it?

Short answer, no.

While ropes are invaluable tools on the river, they can also be killers. Unsecured lines on a raft can tangle arms, legs and clothing, and in a flip situation, cause drownings. Ropes in the river can become entangled with rocks and pose a very serious hazard to anyone swimming due to entanglement.

Our lost throw-bag is now a hazard. We didn't see it again as we floated down the river to Split Creek, but on the drive back up to the campground, we stopped by "Old Man" rapid which is just below "Surf Wave," and there it was, stuck in the middle of the rapid. No possible way of getting it at 1200 cfs, it was pretty much in the middle of the river, in the middle of the rapid.

It appeared as if the knotted loop on the end of the rope had gotten caught between two rocks near the top of the rapid, and the rope was stretched downstream almost to the bottom of the rapid. At least it didn't appear to be "looped." But this is still dangerous for anyone who ends up swimming that rapid.

The following day as we were heading back home, we stopped and couldn't see the rope at all, but unless it is actually found elsewhere, I would still assume it is there. After we got home, I posted a notice on the Idaho Whitewater yahoo news group message page, and sent direct emails to the two commercial outfitters that appeared to be still running trips there.

So we have done what seemed reasonable to warn others: chances are, the rope will cause no problems, at least it happened very near the end of the boating season so not many more people will be put at risk this season. Hopefully, when the river gets a lot lower (and it will) someone will see the rope, and be the recipient of their own "river booty." At my expense. That galls.

This is a map of the sections of the Lochsa that we ran. You can click on the pictures to get a readable view. Remember, on most river maps (this one included) the river flows from the bottom up.

The 12 advertising "Master Formats"

2007-07-25T08:37:00.000-07:00

Interesting Slate magazine video about commercials (and they don't even talk about sex!)

Rapid Ratings - A Critique

2007-07-24T13:10:00.000-07:00

Rapid Ratings - A Critique

Over at Kayak Cult, Otter Boy has a good article about river ratings. I agree with pretty much everything he says. The most important thing he articulates in my opinion, is that more information is better, but that includes honest information about yourself.

More flip photos

2007-07-17T13:36:00.000-07:00

Here are some photos of our Husum Falls flip from another angle:

Looking good here:

Again, simply too far left.

This was the previous day from the same perspective:

Here you can see Sparky "hip-checking" me out of the raft:

It was lonely under there:

First out, first up:

Sparky on the downstream (bad) side of the raft:

Burnt Frog in his kayak preparing to rescue:

This was a cold, rocky swim:

I'm not used to missing my lines when in a raft: hence my near obsession with this abject failure.

Hot Springs(?), hotter hike

2007-07-16T16:14:00.000-07:00

A stinking trail map would make a good addition here:
Many years ago, I visited Stanley hot springs. This was on a backpacking trip in early May. The plan was actually to go to the Seven Lakes basin, but due to inclement weather, we ended up bushwacking our way down Cantaloupe creek to Stanley Hot Springs.

It was one of the many occasions in my "outdoor life" where I kind of got lucky: in this case, lucky there was a hot-springs in the vicinity. The weather turned so bad so quickly, from 60 degrees and sunny to mid-twenties and blizzard-like, if we hadn't been able to get to the hot-springs, I'm sure one of us at least would have lost some appendages. As it was, it turned into just another memorable "adventure."

So when Sparky and I decided to forgo the river for the day and hike directly to Stanley hot-springs from Wilderness Gateway C.G, I was hoping to relive some of those good old memories.

But things had changed. For one, I'm not even certain this was a "wilderness area" on my previous trip, though it is now. And true to the name, the Forest Service is trying to keep it as "wilderness-like" as possible. This means in some cases letting foot bridges collapse and not replacing them, or something as simple as not replacing missing trail signs.

We didn't have a map of the area, so we were relying on my memory to guide us.

The hike up most of the way was uneventful, but the day was turning oppressively hot. About five miles in, we came to a place for which I had absolutely no memory.

When I was there before, there had been a kind of cool raised foot bridge over Boulder Creek. That bridge is now gone. But even the area looked different, and I thought I had taken a wrong turn at the previous junction.

We forded Boulder Creek there anyways and walked up the trail on the other side for a couple of hundred yards, but I just couldn't tell if we were on the right track or not, so we went back to the creek and had lunch.

I was hoping someone would come by with a map-assist, but that didn't happen.

The dogs were very glad to be able to cool themselves off in the creek, so we hung around there for about an hour before heading back.

The day had gotten progressively hotter, and the trail back to Wilderness Gateway was fairly exposed to the South: in other words, it was going to be hot. We "purified" some water using our new handy dandy Miox purifiying system, and took off.

The trail back was hot. At least it was for the most part downhill. It wasn't so bad for Sparky and me, but the dogs suffered.

Our dogs are not very smart when it comes to hiking. On the way up, Sparky and I had walked a little more than five miles. The dogs, running full tilt a hundred feet ahead and then back to us a couple hundred times, had probably done twice that far. So they were considerably more tired by lunchtime than Sparky and I anyways.

On the way back, the trail had gotten so hot, it was burning their paws. But they came up with a great strategy for themselves.

The trail was so dusty, I was walking about 75 feet behind Sparky so I wasn't breathing all the dirt she kicked up. The dogs would run ahead of Sparky to the next shady spot and lie down and wait. As soon as I caught up to the dogs, they would get up and sprint down the trail to the next shady spot where they would again lie down and wait.

I thought this was quite clever (for them). This continued all the way back to the campground.

It was back at the campground that we talked to some people who had been to the hot-springs recently, and informed us that the bridge I remembered was gone and in fact we were on the correct trail, we just needed to continue another quarter mile or so to have gotten to them.

I rationalize to myself that I really didn't need to go to the hot-springs anyways: it was too hot to have sat in them in any case. But I still feel like a dufus.

Doggin' it in Montana

2007-07-12T12:39:00.000-07:00

To help quench Sparky's newfound thirst for rowing, we drove over to Montana over the 4th of July weekend to float the Clark Fork. We took two boats: the 14' cataraft, and the 10' raft.

On the 4th proper, we floated the Clark Fork through Alberton Gorge. This is probably the single most popular day stretch of whitewater in Montana, less than three hours of driving from Spokane, and under a half hour from Missoula.

I had rafted there once before, Sparky not at all.

The Alberton Gorge section of the Clark Fork (named after the Clark of "Lewis and Clark" fame), is a really nice class three section of whitewater, on a relatively warm river. The 4th turned out to be a freakishly hot day, so we took the dogs with us.

Both dogs have their problems when in a raft. Porter, the Springer Spaniel, while not minding getting splashed, has separation issues with Sparky. In other words, he whines like the transmission of a 92 Kia Rio (that's a lot) when Sparky is in a different boat. Sellie the pup likes to be in the front of the boat until a wave splashes her, and then she dives for the back end of the raft, while I generally clock her with an oar as she goes past me.

Sparky rowed the cat, and I rowed the 10' raft. We left a bicycle at the Tarkio take-out, so I could run a shuttle when we were done floating, but a really nice couple offered me a ride back up to the Cyr bridge put-in, so I didn't have to do the ride.

Most of the time, I actually look forward to doing the bike shuttle, but on this particular day, it was so stinking hot, I was really glad someone offered me a ride. It would have been miserable riding along I-90, sucking up the exhaust of the passing motorists, and baking in the sun to boot.

Not much happened on the trip itself: dogs did their respective freaking out, Sparky purposely screwed up a couple of rapids, but nothing happened, as usual, I went around almost all of the big features, so we rarely even got wet.

All in all, a typically good day on the river (but aren't they all?)

Dogs and Sparky early on:

Triple Bridges. You can see that Porter is agitated about Sparky being so far away: at this point he was sounding like a Nissan pick-up with bad brakes.

More dogs on rafts:

Here, Porter was calm (Mommy was near), but Sellie was considering making a break for the shore.
Yes, it would have been more pleasant for me if Porter had ridden on Sparky's boat, but it is a well known truism that cats and dogs don't get along well, and in this case that was especially true.

We considered hanging around Montana for a day or two, but there were so many people on the water, the camping didn't seem that great, and it was, as previously noted, stinking hot, we decided to head over the mountains into the Lochsa drainage.

Going through Missoula, I found another curious thing: the Rosauers grocery store on highway 93 also carries dry-ice. Not that we needed any, but I have a hard time finding dry-ice locally, and couldn't find any when we were preparing for the Middle Fork trip in Couer d'Alene either. But it seems that every grocery store I've ever stopped at in Missoula carries it. I wonder why?

After Missoula, we headed up highway 12 to Lolo pass. This is a very dangerous section of highway: besides it winding a lot, and being very narrow (not particularly good for bicycling), there is a lot of wildlife. The big kind. The kind you need to avoid, but aren't always able to. This poor man found out the hard way. We saw the aftermath on our way over the pass.

We made it to Wilderness Gateway campground by late evening, found a very nice site, and hunkered down for the night.

Next: A hot hike and some clever dogs (surprisingly, ours).

The real White Salmon carnage

2007-07-09T07:51:00.000-07:00

	This is the second, less successful run of Husum Falls.
	Here we are looking good: everyone is down low ready for the plunge.
	Here, you can see the raft is already starting to tilt to the right.
	Still looking alright here, except for one thing: there is no longer anyone on the left side of the boat.
	Good submersion (if you like that kind of thing).
	Surfacing upright, but I for one, am already gone. About this time, I was feeling my back getting pounded onto the riverbed (good thing a whitewater lifejacket gives you padding as well as floatation).
	The spectators thought Sparky (in the yellow) was trying to pull the raft over. You can see why in this photo.
	There she goes!
	And here we have all surfaced. The only thing lost was my glasses. I stupidly forgot to take them off at the top. If the White Salmon wasn't so cold, I'd have gone back and snorkeled for them (not much chance of finding them though).
Overall, despite Sparky pushing me off the side of the raft and then pulling it over on herself, this flip was completely my fault. The key lies in the difference between these two photos:
	Here, on the previous run, you can see that we are just to the right of the "white plume," going (as much as possible) down the green tongue of water.
	Here, you can see we are about two feet further left, and our left front is actually on the "plume." That effectively slows the left side of the boat enough to cause the flip.

So the bottom line is that I lined us up too far to the left. If we would have had more forward momentum, the left side of the raft may have not stalled, but momentum really wasn't the problem, placement was. In rafting, as in real-estate, it's all about the location.

White Salmon carnage

2007-07-03T11:10:00.000-07:00

This was a good trip: we met some new people who were quite nice, got to run some good whitewater, and got to explore the area a bit. The first day, Sparky rowed her cat, Wanderer and Burnt-frog paddled their kayaks, and I paddle-captained the 10' raft with Irish and Hip-hop as crew.

At least that's how it started. Just a couple of quick drops into the run however, Wanderer broke his paddle clean in half. He tried paddling with our spare raft paddle, but couldn't roll with it, and felt too exposed.

So we strapped his kayak onto the back of Sparky's cat, and he joined us in the 10' boat. This worked out well, especially at Husum Falls, where the added crew balanced the raft quite nicely.

First day, good run. Second day, really good run, at least until we got to the falls.

This was Wanderer before his paddle broke.

Sparky with the head-cam as we strap Wanderer's kayak to her cat.

Hip-hop and Burnt Frog in front of Maiden-hair Fern Gully.

This is the sequence of the successful run of Husum Falls.

From the back left clockwise is Wanderer, Irish, Hip-hop and me.
We didn't submarine, and barely got wet at all.

This was much better than the next day, but that will have to wait for another post. When the pictures become available.

Sparky did well in the cat, but discovered perhaps the most distinguishing characteristic of cat-boating: it really takes no skill. She didn't run the falls in the cat, but the frame held up well, and the next day we lined it over the falls and all the welds held up perfectly.

We won't be posting for a while: more rivers to run, but we'll take lots of pictures, and think of pithy things to say when we get back.

And here is the video. "Textbook!" I say.

Not sure why it says there is over 3 minutes of video: just watch the first 40 seconds or so, everything else is black. DS

Cat frame

2007-07-02T08:39:00.000-07:00

So now, Sparky is feeling very good about rowing, and wants to do more. This is fine by me, but I worry that she will no longer want to paddle, which I also enjoy immensely. Since we have gotten back in civilization, she wants to get a new frame for her cataraft.

We purchased her cataraft used about a year and a half ago. The frame that came with the package deal was simply more frame than the tubes were comfortable carrying. The cat tubes are 19" diameter, which while quite adequate, are not made for carrying large loads. The frame that came with the tubes by itself weighed about 100 pounds. That's a lot.

The guy we bought the cat from had the frame custom built from heavy gauge steel. Exactly why is unclear. It is a very good frame, if paired with 22 or 24" tubes, it would be a great gear hauling setup. But way more frame than the 19" tubes can adequately carry.

Because we had this cumbersome frame, and Sparky was reluctant to row in any case, we very rarely used that boat. But post MF Sparky is a different person.

Before we even made it home, she was talking about building a new frame for the cat. We have a friend who is a very accomplished welder, and by the first Monday after we had gotten back from the MF, Sparky had convinced him to help us build her a new frame (though it was really more like us helping him, since neither of us really knows much about metal fabrication).

We chose to use steel conduit, it is relatively light, it is really cheap, it is relatively easy to bend, and it seemed like it would be easy to weld. We were wrong about that last part. Our friend informed us that conduit is so thin, it is really easy to burn through, so it isn't as easy to weld as thicker tubing.

Here is the frame as it was just taking shape:

Here is Sparky checking the dimensions when it was almost complete:
Next: Taking it down the White Salmon. Will it survive? Will we?

MF Epilogue

2007-06-27T11:46:00.000-07:00

Just some random thoughts about the trip.

Rafts:

I really need to do some work on our small raft: it leaked air atrociously. Maybe some of this stuff.

The Otter once again exceeded my expectations: this was one of their first generation rafts, and it has held up really well for a "low-end" boat. I keep expecting it to develop major problems, and it just hasn't happened.

Camping equipment:

We need to carry a somewhat bigger saw in our kitchen box. The ability to cut the firewood into smaller hunks would have been much appreciated. The saw we now carry is just too hard to use for firewood.

I need to set up fixed loops on our big table. Attatching the mesh dish drying hammock to our table was a pain: fixed loops on the ends would solve this problem.

Buckets:

We used five gallon plastic buckets for a lot of our dry storage on this trip. We replaced their original lids with "Gamma Seal" lids. This worked out pretty slick. They kept their contents dry, were easy to open and easy to pack. I was very pleased with them. A kind of low-tech solution to keeping your stuff dry in this age of high-end aluminum and plastic boxes and expensive dry-bags.

As a bonus, the buckets have good handles so they're easy to carry (and secure) and can double as a stool in a pinch.

Food:

While the food was consistently good (even the brownies: they looked funny, but they tasted fine), there was also consistently too much. We ended up having to throw away a lot of cooked food (lasagna, enchiladas, falafel, cakes), and at the end of the trip, there was a lot of uncooked meat and produce that had to be thrown out. On one hand, you would definitely rather have too much food than too little, but my Scotch ancestry cringes at the waste.

Still working on portioning, but some things, like the cakes, just come in one size, and that size is too much for a group of 5.

Drag bags, zipper style:

To keep a lot of our drinks cool, we used small mesh bags with just a few drinks in them that we hung off the back of a boat while we were in camp. This worked well, but then we got greedy, and tried to cool all the drinks in a large zippered mesh bag. This turned out to be not only very cumbersome, but sand lodged in the zipper making the bag impossible to open. With a little work while wading, the zipper cleared, but this was more work than it was worth. We'll be sticking to the small draw-string type bags from now on.

Cost:

When all was said and done, we we're able to do this trip for just under $200.00 each. We carpooled from Couer d'Alene, since CB has a crew-cab pick-up and between his truck and our trailer, we were able to carry everyone and everyone's gear.

This saved us a lot of money since we only had to pay to have one vehicle shuttled to the Cache Bar take-out. That cost $260.00, the food cost was about $350.00, which was too high (we had a lot of extra). The use fees ended up being $120.00 ($4.00 per person per day) there was a bunch of money spent on fuel in the truck, and a few odds and ends here and there. But $200.00 for a six day wilderness trip? Almost as good as river booty.

Crew:

I've known CB for many years and wouldn't hesitate to boat with him again.

I was a little apprehensive about Backstroke and Bama before the trip having never met either one previously. But CB vouched for them, and his judgment was sound. Both were very easy going, a lot of help around camp, and willing to "go for it" in rapids that challenged their current skill. Both of them in my opinion got better at both reading water and hitting their lines as the trip went on, but that first day was kind of scary. I would boat with either again (I don't know if they'd want to boat with me though).

Sparky. What can I say. When we were first invited on this trip (it was Backstroke's permit), she just wanted to ride on my boat, and maybe do a little rowing in the easy areas. Personally, I don't like that kind of arrangement: as noted before, I like to row. It is notoriously difficult to get the oars out of my hands (though in hindsight, she would have been a lot more help in camp).

So I suggested she take her own boat. At first she was adamantly against it. But I kept working on her, and eventually her adamantium crumbled, and she agreed, at least tentatively to row her own. I wasn't certain, even when we were camping at Boundary Creek, if she would actually go through with it though: CB offered to let her row his cataraft some of the time (which would have allowed him more time in his kayak), and she seemed to be seriously considering it.

But the love of my life stepped up boldly and with courage, and extended her limits. I know this was very difficult for her: just putting her boat on this river was a big step for her.

When we are both in the same boat, she always defers to me in any big rapids (and I'm only too willing to take the oars from her). This sport can be very scary, especially for the inexperienced.

So rowing her own boat on a river that neither one of us had been on before wasn't just a step, it was a leap. I've never been more proud of her (and I've often been very proud of her), than when she actually "saddled up" and started floating away from Boundary Creek.

Throughout this trip, her confidence grew. Actually seeing Backstroke mess up a couple times and laugh about it that first day really showed her that most of the mistakes you make on a raft aren't a big deal (but some can be). By the last day, she wasn't just following my line through rapids, she was reading the river herself and choosing her own lines.

Even when she flipped, despite swearing like a drunken sailor, she was laughing and having a good time riding the bottom of her raft through a class IV rapid. I think I would have been a little more agitated myself.

So in any case, she is my heroine, my diva, my exemplar. I'll boat with her, hike with her, swim with her, follow her anywhere she wants to go. Except a mall. If she wants to go to a mall, she's on her own. Too many people aimlessly consuming. Gives me the willies.

MF Day 6, 6/15/2007: Last MF day.

2007-06-26T13:37:00.000-07:00

Mile 87.9 (Parrot Cabin) to mile 99.7 (Cache Bar take out)

Woke up both sad and excited. Sad because it was the last day, and excited because supposedly some of the best whitewater of the trip was just downstream.

Here are a lot of photos of some of that last day on the river with little commentary (though some).

Sparky with Backstroke, Bama and CB getting ready for the big water. Notice here that Sparky is dry:

Here is the video of Sparky flipping. This happens in a rapid that is un-named in my guidebook, just above Rubber rapid. One of the other guidebooks said the rapid is called "Son of Rubber."

Her raft flips because she tunnel visions onto the large first wave, and while she hits it squarely, she doesn't see the large diagonal coming from the right just below it, and it catches the front starboard corner of her raft and peels her over like a ripe banana. I go through right in front of her, notice that when I'm on top of the first wave, I make just a subtle jog to the right, which is what keeps me upright.

She does a good job of keeping her head above water, and an even better job of getting herself onto the bottom of her boat before it goes through the class IV Rubber rapid.

I dubbed Jon Mellencamp's "Hurts so Good" over the audio track of the video because Sparky requested it. "Why?" Let's just say after this episode, we were considering changing her nickname to "F-Bomb."

Swearing in front of a little lamb: shame on you Sparky!

This is a series of photos of Sparky running Cramer Creek rapid on the Main Salmon after the Middle Fork joins it. It had the biggest waves we saw on the entire trip (of course the Main Salmon was flowing with about 5 times the water of the Middle Fork, so it kind of made sense). This is another rapid that was made much worse by a recent blowout: 10 years ago, there wasn't much rapid here at all.

Sparky entering the tongue:

Sparky disappears into the maw of the rapid:

Still gone:

Sparky explodes upward towards the sun:

As she frees herself from the powerful grip of Cramer Creek:

Here is the money shot of Sparky driving through the big curler at Cramer Creek:

DS showing good form in Cramer Creek:

Backstroke and Bama making it look easy.

CB winding down towards the take-out.

Sparky relaxing after her big day, with the take-out at Cache Bar in sight:
Fin.

MF Day 5, 6/14/2007: Impassable Canyon.

2007-06-25T07:05:00.000-07:00

Mile 75.7 (Fly Camp) to mile 87.9 (Parrott Cabin Camp)

Morning at Fly camp. Note the nice sandy beach, the big eddy with lots of room to park the boats. A very nice campsite, but not a lot of tent sites.

Yes, that is a buttload of bacon. Two pounds to be exact. For 4 people (I don't eat bacon). And it was all eaten. No BLTs for lunch.
Other than the bacon, we had my special "French toast bake" for breakfast, but I forgot to pack cinnamon, so it was less well received than it should have been (apparently I should have substituted bacon).

Back on the river, we floated on down to the aptly named "Waterfall Creek:"
Just past Waterfall Creek, was Big Creek and the official beginning of "Impassable Canyon." Though it sounds imposing, and there were a lot of big rapids there, the "impassable" had more to do with the canyon walls. Up to then, there were trails that followed the river, sometimes on both sides. At Impassable canyon, the trail makers gave up and the trails left the river.

This is an important place for another reason too: once a boater enters Impassable Canyon, the Forest Service allows you to only camp one night, and then you must leave the MF behind.

From there we floated down to "Veil Falls." Though this was a pretty steep climb, it was well worth the effort.

The "cave" behind Veil Falls, pictures really don't do it justice: it was huge.

Some pictographs up there behind Veil Falls:

Sparky getting a shower in the Falls (she was due).

Sparky and Backstroke at the base of Veil Falls: so tall I can't get the whole thing in the frame.
We run a couple of the bigger rapids on the river this day, Redside and Weber. Neither were exciting enough at this flow for me to remember, though they are famous for a high water fatality back in the seventies on a trip in which Tom Brokaw was a member.

Our last camp at Parrott Cabin: Once again, given a choice, I wouldn't camp there again.
This was a little waterfall up a slot canyon very reminiscent of the Grand Canyon. Just a short hike up from Parrott Cabin. Well worth the walk.

An aerial view of Parrott Cabin Camp. Note the rocky landing area. One more strike against it as a campsite.
The "cabin" at Parrott Cabin was about 6' by 8'. No roof anymore, it is really hard to imagine a guy spending his whole winter in there.

CB and Bama preparing themselves for a night of much beer (and so a night of much peeing).

Backstroke trying to get CB off the ice-chest so he can get started on beerfest.

This was vegetarian Sloppy Joes night. All was eaten, clean up was minimal, it was all good. The greater part of the German Chocolate cake for dessert disappeared too.

MF Day 4, 6/13/2007: One longer MF day.

2007-06-24T07:31:00.000-07:00

Mile 51.8 (Cave camp) to mile 75.7 (Fly camp).

Our longest day on the river. 23.9 miles.

Sparky had been very careful about using lots of moisturizer on her hands, being in the water so much really dries out the skin. However, she forgot to moisturize her feet, so this day one of her heels began cracking. If you've never had that happen, it is amazingly painful. Also difficult to keep sand and dirt out of. Let that be a lesson for you all: first, don't end sentences with prepositions, but perhaps more importantly (as if anything is more important than good grammar), when on extended river trips, take care of your skin! Moisturize!

By the way, "How do you fix a cracked heel?" One word, "Superglue."

A friend of ours, Shelly Becker, a quite accomplished rafter had been down the MF three or four weeks prior to our trip and had told us that the most trouble she had was in Tappan Falls, where she ran too far left and ended up surfing the hole for 15 minutes. This may have been an exaggeration, time seems a whole lot different when you're stuck in a hole, but I have no doubt it was an epic ride.

So when we approached the falls on day 4, we did it cautiously, and scouted. The run was obvious, near the right bank. But the group that had been following us wasn't worried, so they just ran it.

This guy is too far left, but the level was forgiving enough, he only stayed in the hole for a few seconds:

More bad video of Sparky:

CB hitting the correct line.

We all made it through Tappan Falls with no issues (other than Sparky dropping a well placed F-bomb), I need to once again reiterate: we floated this river at a very forgiving level.

Our next stop of note was "The Flying B Ranch." The Flying B is most notable for having a small "store" where you can buy some stuff you may have been missing from the outside world. Like ice. Or insect repellent. Or an ice-cream bar. But only if you bring cash or check. No plastic accepted.

Don't expect "Wal-Mart" pricing either, I think my ice-cream bar was $3.00, and Bama's bag of ice was $5.00.

Still, it was handy to get a cold treat in a wilderness area. There is also a "restaurant" there but only available by reservation. I think it would be kind of fun to make a reservation online, then float down to eat there. Maybe next time.

The "gate of death" leading to the store.

Haystack rapid was next on the agenda: another rapid that has been changed dramatically by a "blowout." This time, it was made easier. The blowout occurred below the rapid, backing up the river and effectively drowning the lower part of Haystack. My guidebook recommended running the left side of the rapid, which we did, but the right side sure looked easier to me. I don't really trust guidebooks.

Finally we made it to Fly Camp, where we all took a break and sat drinking some beers, hard lemonades and other cool libations (Bama used his newly acquired ice to make iced-tea, but it wasn't "hard" so the rest of us didn't partake)

That was falafel night, with carrot cake for dessert. Both quite a hit.

MF Day 2, 6/11/2007: MF booty?

2007-06-23T08:15:00.000-07:00

I forgot to relate this. I am always looking for booty. River booty. Swag, loot, boodle. The law of the river says "you smelt it, you dealt it." But it also says, "finders keepers" if found item is not well labeled, and/or apparently abandoned.

In the past, I have stocked my boating larder with many a free item in this manner: an unlabeled Gore-tex jacket, several paddles (put your name and number on stuff if you want it back), money ($.57 on this trip alone), two hatchet covers, three hatchets, a plethora of tent stakes. The list goes on. Let's just say, I'm always ready to make a "booty call."

This trip was no exception. While we were floating in between Pistol Creek rapid and Indian Creek Guard Station, I saw a small log jam midstream, stuck on a huge boulder. It appeared as if there was a rope tangled in the logs, so I eddied out behind the boulder and climbed up to take a look.

I almost fainted. I had hit the motherload. Not only was it a rope, it was a throw bag, and not one of those little cheap ones the kayakers carry. It was an NRS Standard Rescue Bag. Maybe not the top of the line, but still a $45.95 retail value. A very fine haul in any river pirate's estimation.

I had to be careful not to get too excited. This was a dangerous situation: as I keep mentioning, you have to very cautious around any midstream wood, and this was definitely no exception.

Very carefully, I moved out onto the logs feeling much like a parody of this:

Which is of course a parody in itself.

In any case it took me about 10 minutes of careful jimmying to get the rope untangled from the logs. Sparky says it was more like a half hour, but she doesn't wait well either.

I was once again feeling very good about myself. There was no name on the bag... it was mine! It apparently hadn't been in the water that long, stuff gets quickly covered with slime if it sits in a river very long. That didn't bother me of course, it just meant I didn't have to clean it.

The rest of the party was suitably impressed by my find: I could sense the envy as we pulled into Indian Creek for lunch.

Then my bootilicious world crumbled before my unbelieving eyes. CB went to tie up his boat, and couldn't. He had been using his throw bag as a mooring line (in my opinion, a major river faux pas in itself), and it was gone.

What had apparently happened was that before he ran Lake Creek, he didn't fasten the buckle holding the bag to his frame adequately, and it fell off in the rapid.

Since there was no name on it, I tried to tell myself (and CB) it was a coincidence; yes he lost his, but this wasn't it.

I think he would have conceded the bag to me, it was found fairly on the high seas after all, but that was the only rope he brought, so I finally relented.

Booty denied.

The aforementioned $.57 helped, but I couldn't help but feel disappointed. I'm a guy who likes his booty, and I like my booty big. Overall, this trip was a booty bust.

MF Day 3, 6/12/2007: One long MF day.

2007-06-22T16:27:00.000-07:00

Mile 32.6 (Sunflower Flat) to mile 51.8 (Cave camp)

This was one of our longest days on the water, and the least eventful day as far as rapids. The river had moved along really well the first couple of days: even in between the rapids there were few eddys, and the character was definitely not "pool and drop."

The third day, that changed, and the Middle Fork began looking (and acting) more and more like its larger brethren, the Main and Lower.

We went from Sunflower Flat at mile 32.6, to Cave camp at mile 51.8, not quite 20 miles, but still a healthy distance to be on the water. Because the river became more pool and drop like, and less rocky, there was less maneuvering to do, so I still felt much more energetic that night than I had the previous two.

The highlight of the day was stopping by Big Loon Camp and taking the short hike (1 mile) up to Loon Creek hot springs. Big pool. Good temperature. Saw a bullsnake. Otherwise just another day on the river. Therefore a good day. Here are some pics:
The aforementioned bullsnake:

Sparky and Backstroke yucking it up in Loon Creek hot springs.

CB, Backstroke and Sparky on the hike back from the hot springs, nice flowers.

Yours truly checking out Hospital Bar hot springs across from Cave camp. The hot springs were nice, but the people actually camping at Hospital Bar hung out at them most of the evening, once again making peeing in the river uncomfortable. The really old naked guy who sat around in the hot springs in the morning didn't do much for my breakfast appetite either.

This was the beach at Cave camp. I would consider camping there again with a small group (on the assumption that naked old guy will be long gone).

This was enchilada night. Very good, but I had a problem with the brownies for dessert. Instead of having that kind of glazed top I associate with brownies, the top was riddled with small holes. I'm not sure why that happened, it happened once before when cooking with a dutch oven, but I don't yet see a pattern.