Escalante Creek (4/21-22/14) Trip Report

A reproduction of my journal entry from 4/21/14:

Monday, 21 April 2014 ~ 1845

I should have gone...

As I write this I am sitting on a BLM park table near the takeout for the Lower Gorge of Escalante Creek.  Sensing my opportunity finally at hand, I left not as early as I had hoped from Salida this morning and made the mad-dash west.  There is no gauge on this little creek, so the catching of it always has to be a mission.  The drive to here along the Gunnison is just gorgeous and this remote canyon is like a small slice of Utah and the Canyonlands.

'57 Chevy

So I get here by 1300 or so and the guy I knew would be here from the Buzz had already put on 45 prior, according to is friend who had run shuttle and was hanging around the takout.  So heck, I missed my possible run.  I explored around.  Took some photos and actually saw Josh and his two friends come through '57 Chevy.

It sure looked low, but it went.  Then later, after they all had changed, this other solo kayaker (Tyler) just appeared out of nowhere and walked up.  He had just taken out above the Lower Gorge and was contemplating running it... which he did eventually....

Tyler entering the Lower Gorge

I should have run it with him.  Instead, I opted to watch because at the time I felt the need to warm up on the Upper Section before just hopping in the mank of it; but then, of course I watch this fellow run down and I immediately regretted that decision.

That is certainly not a decision or feeling I enjoy and I do not want ever to live my life that way.

Now, after walking down to the water for a bit and taking some photos, I do feel a bit better about not boating at all.  I know it's good to listen to that cautious instinct, but I must remember to keep it in check!  Now I am even more psyched on having a solid run tomorrow.  And if Wednesday is even better, I can still stay the extra night...

~ end of entry ~

And the next day did indeed see a glorious run.  In the end there were four of us and we managed to get a fairly early start.  As it turns out, the fellow who showed up Tuesday morning and I had actually run Browns Canyon of the Arkansas many many year earlier.  He was a bit older and I and certainly put my memory to shame!

Looking into the Lower Gorge with Esca Falls

I wish it ran more often because Escalante Creek is really one of my favorite runs ever.  It has a pool drop character as the larger rapids are distinct, but between them is a lot of Class III & IV fun.  On this day we guess that the flow was about 300 or 400 cfs or so... That's kind of on the low side of medium, but I have no qualms with getting friendly with rocks.  Unless you're running with someone who knows the creek, my advice would be to scout every drop you can not see.  It isn't that the lines are particularly difficult, but many drops consist of picking the correct kayak wide slot and having the correct angle when you leave the lip.  If not, you're staring at a very steep piton situation.

On this day we did not run the main Escalante waterfall.  It is broken jumble of a falls and would need a bit more water to feel at all clean.  That is personal preference.  It was run that day by another group, but the line was very manky and could have gone very wrong.

The Lower Gorge consists of the Teacups, '57 Chevy, Escalante Falls, S Turn, and Magnetic Wall.  The Teacups and S Turn are pretty straight forward.  '57 Chevy is fun as you drive up and over the pillow above a rock fin that makes the drop and in doing so get surprisingly close to the wall.  Then lastly is Magnetic Wall.  It is basically a drop leading into a boil on river right that you charge into and then manage to not get pushed hard against the left well immediately thereafter.  Super fun stuff.

In the end, the only run I got in was this one on Tuesday.  There was weather coming in that evening and temps were dropping.  So was the creek.


Thanks to everyone who became a part of this adventure.  I can't wait to try and get back next weekend!

The author in the Lower Gorge.  Thanks to Brian Bank for this great photo!

Techno or Reggae?

It is amazing how distracting life can be.

I haven't written anything here since last summer!  Here it is in the mountains of Colorado.  It has been snowing like like mad just lately and more is on it's way.  Last I heard the drainage area for the Upper Arkansas River is at something like 114% snow pack.  I have been skiing the last two days on some great snow and will back up there tomorrow too... and yet all I can think about is kayaking.

I am obsessing over gear and boats.  Should I get a new Astral Green Jacket, or roll on with the one I have for another season?  How about a new boat?  Right now I'm on the fence about if I will get a Liquid Logic Stinger or a Dagger Green Boat.  They are both built for creek racing, but do I get one that's more techie, and faster... or do I go with a boat that's still a racer, but more of a go-anywhere racer?  Techno or Reggae?

Another problem I struggle with is fit.  I am not large: 145 with all my gear, skinny, 32" inseam.  I have noticed that Liquid Logic kayaks that are appropriate for my overall size and weight are way too roomy in the knees with too high sidewalls.  I have also heard that as it compares to the Remix 79 (the large one), the Stinger's cockpit area is a bit taller, but much more narrow.  So it remains to be seen if that means I will be swimming in it or not. 

Any readers with experience here who want to chime in are welcome!

In the Springtime of our Stress

Spring time is a stressful time in the mountains of Colorado.

We wait all winter, just skiing to pass the time, then we wait a bit more for the waters to start flowing.  Then everything runs... several all at once.

I have spent hours upon hours studying gauges and books, stressing myself out.  Obsessing over every cfs fluctuation, imagining rivulets of melting snow flowing together, getting held up behind some fallen wood until rushing forth once again.  I feel I'm almost willing it to flow to where we can float in the new waters.

Then there is the coordinating.  Calling, texting, messaging via any of half a dozen social media sites.  Waiting to hear back.  Trying to rally a crew that's scattered over many hundreds of miles of Colorado.  What to paddle?  When? Who with?  Who has what kind of a car for a shuttle?  Do I need to have the dogs looked after while I go camp for a weekend, or can they come with me?

We all know it won't last for long once it starts.  Even sooner, at least for me, work will start up in earnest once the commercial rafting starts up on the Ark and I won't have the luxury of taking off any three of the best days.

Yesterday I was hiking low water laps on the Pine Creek rapid, now today it's snowing.

Spring is stressful in the mountains Colorado....

I Love Photography

It's true, I do love photography,  It's such a wonderful excuse to go slow and really take in what's around you... especially when floating down a river.

SO..... I have just made another blog (yes, I know) that is my new gallery.  To avoid confusion, it's called RiverVibe Photography.  I will be updating it often with new work, so please take a look and tell me what you think.

Yay Photography!  Thanks!

GearHeads Unite!

Back in April I read an interesting article from the Matador Notebook about the gear that technical photographers and film makers take with them into the field.  It's true, even if you're not a professional film maker, you still end up spending a good deal of time thinking about what gear you want with you.  Your gear is like you support system, especially when we venture out to explore the planet in a kayak.  No matter how fantastic your companions are... what makes or breaks your day really comes down to you and your equipment.  At least... I obsess about it...

Hello and welcome to RiverVibe's famously new blog concerning my generally river related doings!

While the descent to some tedious and tepid pool of narcissism is always a very real and dangerously slippery slope (and I'm sure we will eddy out there from time to time), it is my intent as set forth here to stay true to my intentions of maintaining a personal and pertinent review of the tools, materials, and techniques that allow me to live, love, and explore the rivers of our living Earth.

And now for maybe a little background...  I currently live in the middle of the most beautiful Rocky Mountains, in a little town called Salida, Colorado.  We have a river here.  The mighty Arkansas River is born just a couple of hours north past the town of Buena Vista and turns east at Salida on its way to Pueblo and beyond into the fields of Colorado's Eastern Slope.  There is a nifty whitewater park within walking distance of my home.  

During the summer, I work as a professional river photographer.  Many of these days start, after coffee, with me being the first boat on the waters of Browns Canyon, our popular Class III day run.  I'll kayak in at least one camera, laptop, and other essentials.  I'll then set up my office at the Zoom Flume rapid and take pictures of all the private and commercial river runners.  Then in the evening I'm often the last boat off the water. 

On my days "off" I'll often play the part of the safety kayaker for one of the local rafting companies on our local Class IV stretch.

All the while my goal in life is to then travel and kayak as many new runs, rivers, and creeks as I am able.  I'm often heading south to New Mexico and the Rio Grande and the Rio Embudo when she runs.

I have been running rivers since around 1996, I think.  My start was on the rivers around Austin, TX, but I got to the mountains as quickly as I could and in the intervening years I've been through many kayaks and canoes and have been fortunate to be a part of the fantastic expansion and maturing of the river running lifestyle.  Gear has advanced considerably and these days are particularly exciting as designs continue to get ever more refined.  

Currently, the topics you'll see me write about will be mostly my new Pyranha Shiva, Molan, and Fluid Spice as well as the trips and logistics that get them on new creeks.

Why am I doing this?  The sort answer is that I obsess.  I obsess about gear and runs and spend so much time talking and thinking about them that I reasoned I should make my thoughts available to a wider audience in the hope that they will stimulate further discussion.

I hope these upcoming musings will be helpful to someone, or at least interesting.  This blog will (I hope) be entertaining for me... why else do anything...  and if it happens to cross the line to being entertaining to you the reader, please don't blame the author.  That may well be a conversation that needs to happen privately between yourself, your psyche, and a psychologist.  

Enjoy!  Maybe we'll meet on the River!