Russian river from 2/10/08 late report.

Well, some of you may remember, I asked on this board about the feasibility of safely running the Russian River to Jenner last month. Here is the link for those that didn't see it. http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php/topic,11634.0.html


Well, after reading the advice I got from here, and having no experience on whitewater, I decided not to go. I had talked to my friends, they were on the fence, but probably going to go anyhow. I tried to warn them quoting excerpts from the sagely advice given to me by others on the board here. They were a bit frightened, but pretty set on going. Perhaps my arguments riled them up enough to say they would bring helmets, but they would probably go anyhow. Well, I couldn't very well let them risk their lives while I skunked around the Petaluma river (our usual haunts). So I convinced one of them to check with the Clavey guys in Petaluma. They sold us our boats, and would know, and if they said it was cool, I would join them.

  So, my buddy, Jeff, calls the guys at Clavey. The guy there said he wasn't too sure and to talk to some woman named 'Wally' in Healdsburg or something, and gave him her number to call. So Jeff calls her and tells me she said we should go for it. I have been lead astray by his bravery in the past, not that I am cowardly, but this guy is a bit more willing to take risks than me, so I peppered him with questions to make sure that this "Wally" chick knew that we were in SOT's, not experienced in whitewater, unfamiliar with the Russian river and unsure about the rains. He said he told her all that and she said we should go, that all we would need to do is stay inside on turns to stay out of the brush.

 I go over to his house the night before to help load up his truck with four boats. I talk to him more about my concerns, he assures me that Wally knew what she was talking about, and he would bring helmets. Jeff is a former pro skateboarder, so he has a few extra helmets for us to use. The other reason I bring up the fact that he is a skateboarder is it was one of the things I was thinking about, do I want to take advice on risk taking from a guy that jumps 15 feet in the air on a two foot piece of plywood with four rubber wheels on it? As I fall asleep the night before, all the horror stories from my water rescue classes are going through my head.

We leave Novato at 0630, the weather is supposed to be sunny and clear. On the way up I ask about the helmets. Jeff said he forgot them. I think to myself, what kind of name is Wally for a girl anyhow?


So we reach Steelhead beach around 730, unload the boats and start setting them up, while Jeff and another buddy shuttle Jeff's truck to Jenner. Me and the other person on our Journey set-up the boats, and fish from the shore with no bites while we wait for our friends to return. They return, we suit up, toast the trip and start.




Water is moving fast, but smooth.




We pass some wildlife.



The water is perfect.



We find a ball. Catch!



Nice skills.


The water is absolutely perfect. So is the weather. Occasionally we need to paddle with some effort to avoid boils and stay outta the outside of turns, where we risk being held against the trees on the shore. The rudders help with this.

Stopped for picnic lunch on an island.

Tossed a castmaster around a bit. One solid bite with a solid run, but with a barbless hook and my marginal fishing skills, whatever it was spit the hook after running and switching directions a couple times.



Wind came up for a bit in places, but only a little.



Sun is starting to get lower, but the wind is gone.



Getting close to Jenner, about 6 hours and 20 or so miles after we left.


The truck is loaded.



I think I owe Wally a beer. It seems 10-11 feet at the Hacienda Bridge meter makes for PERFECT water for this run.

Sweet run!!!  20 miles?!!  Why not just tack on a few more and make a marathon out of it!  Thanks for posting.

Great report! Thanks.

Sounds like a cool trip.  Way to do your homework.   

Now that's a frickin Russian river trip if I ever read one. Twenty miles . That water looks more choclatey than the Eel. Any rapids, portages, or river features you come across?

thanks for the all the pics chetbango!  Wally was right....you owe her

WOW!!!!
    The conditions look absolutely great.  Did you have to portage at Johnson's Beach, or was it clear?  No strainers etc??

   

Saweet day on the water. 

Thanks for sharing and great pics

-FF

No portages, one close one when we took the wrong way around an island. No real strainers, other than maybe the trees on the outside of some tuns. The only 'features' were some bridge pilings where the roadways were removed. There were two or three sets of these. All very easy to spot and avoid by shooting the area between them.

I just retraced our route on Google earth, Total of 22.4 miles.

For future trips we learned a few things.
1) Do not plan on being home in time for Dinner with the In-laws by 6PM. You will be late. Even if you leave the house at 0530.

2)The last 6 miles or so, the river widens out, do not count on keeping the speed you carried in the first 2/3rds of the trip. See #1 for possible outcomes of this scenario.

3)Do not count on cell phone coverage. This complicated the matters talked about in #1.

4)Time the tides for the last few miles, it is tidal. Luckily we hit this fine, but it was only by chance.

5)The beach at Jenner would be an awesome place for a BBQ if you allow time.

6) If you don't follow this advice, your back my be sore the next day, as the house built for a Golden Retriever is much too small for a grown man to sleep comfortably in.