Tag: kayaking

East Lake in the Newberry Caldera

I was really excited about finally getting to Waldo Lake this year but it wasn’t to be. Mo and I were there in 2004 and the lake has called to me since then. Oregon was catching up with California this weekend and lightning strikes caused fires in the Cascades that closed almost every highway crossing the mountains last weekend, including our route to Waldo Lake.

When Mo and I left Rocky Point on Thursday morning, we already knew that HWY 58 was closed so we decided to go up to the Newberry Caldera just east of LaPine.
The area is a fascinating view into recent geologic events on the east side of the Cascades with two lovely lakes and some nice campgrounds. Here is the link to the Cascades Volcano Observatory USGS website for the Newberry Caldera.
http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/Volcanoes/Newberry/Locale/framework.html

This change in plans worked just fine for Mo’s brother Roger and his wife Nancy, who planned to visit us for some kayaking and campfire time, since they live on the east side of the mountains anyway. Didn’t work so well for my daughter Deb from Portland who had planned to meet us Saturday night at Waldo. Ah well, maybe next time.

When we first left Rocky Point, the smoke was visible over the mountains, covering what we knew to be the Crater Lake caldera rim and billowing high and white like big cumulus clouds very much too close to home for comfort. By the time we reached East Lake, however, the skies were clear and lovely. The campground is first come first serve, and there are about 7 sites right on the water. Lucky for us, number 14 at the end of the front row had been recently vacated so we managed to get on the water even though the other sites were full. Site 14 is what they call a “premium” site and with our Golden Age Pass was only $7 per night, (half the regular 14. fee).

This particular site was actually used as a full hookup site for the camp host during the season, and we still had fresh water piped right to the site, although the power connections were locked up. We also actually had a solid asphalt pad. Not bad for a forest service campground in the mountains! Once camp was ready, I took off for a twilight glide across the lake. The water was reflective, glassy, and totally still except for the jumping trout. I have never experienced this kind of jumping fish all around me. I actually thought that I would eventually get some fish in my boat, and had more than a few jump into the air within arm’s distance. Amazing. Later we learned that the fishermen were having good luck that night with 16 inch trout jumping onto hooks using super bait. The next day wasn’t quite so good for the fishermen, but we still watched nice sized eating trout being caught both from boats and from chairs along the shore.

Friday morning I went for another paddle while Mo waited for her brother to show up and when they arrived, we sent them off with the kayaks while we watched the dogs. It was Nancy’s first time in a kayak, and like most people, she discovered that it wasn’t the least bit intimidating. Our boats are really stable and have a nice wide cockpit, which still doesn’t let anyone look particularly graceful trying to get in and out, but once you are in, it’s a piece of cake!

The weather cooperated, and after a nice ride, we all settled in for some hiking along the beach collecting pumice cobbles, and then a campfire and a planked salmon supper cooked on the grill. yum! It was nice spending some camping time with family, and nice that they only had less than an hour to get back home. It was also encouraging to hear that they had driven through thick smoke almost the entire trip up the hill and we were just out of it. I had an entire weekend with no smoke and no heat. A good thing!!

Saturday was cool, foggy and rainy most of the day, so after a good bacon and potato breakfast we spent most of the day relaxing and reading in the MoHo. I say “bacon and potato” because neither of us remembered to bring the eggs! I also created some entertainment for the two of us by trying to wind a large skein of ribbon yarn that kept us occupied for more than an hour at least. Good thing Mo is more patient than I am at that kind of thing. Finally, later in the afternoon, the weather cooperated a bit and we had time to hike the trail to the hot springs. Of course, at the time, I didn’t know the springs were there, and kept wondering where the strange poopy smell was coming from! When we did finally find them, they were a bit of a anti-climax, since the actual spring was only a few feet across and less than a foot deep of somewhat murky, barely lukewarm water. I was cold from the windy hike, and had been having visions of dropping my feet into a hot pool. Not this one. We even skipped our fancy supper, opting instead for some warm chicken soup and a half tuna sandwich by the damp fire. I had planned to relax on this trip, but maybe not quite this much.

Sunday morning opened to a cold foggy morning, but we decided to go out on the lake anyway since it looked so still and lovely, and the previous day the winds had come up before noon. It was a good plan, since by Saturday afternoon the rains started. We circled the entire lake, checking out the springs from the water side, and enjoying the views during the few moments when the clouds cleared a bit and we could see Paulina Peak above the caldera. I made potato salad and Mo grilled burgers for us for a great evening supper watching the rain come on the lake and being very grateful for our warm MoHo.

Sunday night was cold, with the temperature dropping to just a hair above the freezing level. We were also grateful for propane and a furnace that night, and slept all warm and cozy. Our optimism regarding the dawning of a sunny day wasn’t rewarded, though, and after a quick breakfast, and a look at the very low propane levels, we though we might as well head home. Four days without hookups is easy, except the propane hadn’t been completely filled for a few trips, and with the temperatures in the high 30’s we really didn’t want to hang around. Geez, you couldn’t even warm a cup of tea if the propane ran out!

By the time we got back down the hill to LaPine, the clouds were clearing and by the time we reached the HWY 138 intersection with HWY 97 the skies were completely clear and off came the heavy sweatshirts. Heavy smoke from the Lonesome Complex fire filled the upper ends of the Wood River Valley, and was especially thick along HWY 97 north of Chiloquin. Even though the fire is very close to the Wood River Valley on the crest of the Cascades, the smoke stayed north and wasn’t too bad right around Rocky Point, even though you could see it all across the valley down to Klamath. A very smoky summer indeed, first California and then Oregon. As I drove back home, through more leftover smoke from the months long fires in the Klamath Forest of northern California, I sighed and wished for winter rains to come here as well. By the time I got back to Jamestown, the car temperature reading was in the low 90’s. Still. But I had a break, a cool, damp, fresh, clear break from it all and am ready now to “dig in” (yeah, it’s soils stuff) for another couple of weeks before the next camping trip into some clear cold mountains on the east side of the Sierras.
Here is a link to the rest of the photos.
http://picasaweb.google.com/kyotesue/CampingAtEastLake#

Floating the Little Spokane

Here’s the photo link for today:
http://picasaweb.google.com/kyotesue/LittleSpokaneRiverAndBBQle.com/kyotesue/LittleSpokaneRiverAndBBQ

We hauled our kayaks along on this trip just for this day. The kayaks ride on top the baby car, and usually Mo and I get them loaded and unloaded fairly easily, but with Mo’s owies its good that brother Dan is around to help get them unloaded. Brother Don lives here in Spokane, and kayaking is his major hobby so he is familiar with most all the good recreational runs around here. In addition, nephew Lanson is a whitewater kayaker and does that amazing thing in what looks exactly like a shoe to me. I still can’t figure out how those things stay on top of the water the way they do, and even more I can’t imagine stuffing my body into one.
Here’s a link to information about the river.

http://www.wildernesstrip.com/Trips/default.asp?id=410&category=4&offset=3

So the family flotilla consisted of Mo and I in our lake kayaks, Lanson and Mandi in their “shoes” with an additional little whitewater kayak for Don, a sweet canvas kayak that Don has rebuilt that Mo used in the Sierra’s 3 decades ago, and a flotsam and jetsam of floatable rafts for the rest of the family. It was a feat of cooperation getting everyone loaded with something that floats, with the required lifejackets, and food and drink onto the river, all at the same time. That was about the last time we were there all at the same time, because the kayaks floated much faster than the rafts and with Mo’s injuries, we just had to let the water take us at the speed of the current, which was a nice 5 mph or so.

I actually mapped this area as well, back in the early 2000’s, but had never actually had a boat on the Little Spokane. What a lovely little river, on the way to the big river, it winds and curves through overhanging trees and between tree covered hills and pastures, with just a few of the huge houses along the bluffs visible above the trees. It took us about 3 hours to do the complete run, but it would have been quite a bit faster if we hadn’t been trying to slow down and wait in the sandbars for the rest of the group. Check out the website and don’t miss this lovely little river if you are anywhere near Spokane with a boat. I lived in the area for 3 decades and never discovered it before this day.

After the float trip we all gathered at Don’s place for another family bbq, with great food provided by Wynn and others, and all was wonderful except for the yellow jackets. To add insult to injury, Mo was standing innocently on the deck when an angry bee hit her hand and it swelled up twice its normal size. Not fair at all! We enjoyed the evening, but also enjoyed leaving and going home to cozy camp and settled Mo into her sofa pillow again while we slept through a lovely cool evening and night.

Smoky weekend at Medicine Lake

California was incredibly smoky this weekend. When I left home in Jamestown it was reasonably clear, but by the time I reached the interstate the smoke was thick and only got thicker as I drove north. Here is a photo of what I-5 looked like north of Corning. But I had a goal, and drove through all that smoke for 380 miles to reach this perfect little gem of a lake in northern California, where Mo was already camped with the MoHo.
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1216/is_n3_v181/ai_6607000

Even Mt Shasta was invisible to me as I drove the usually magnificent McCloud HWY 89 to Harris Spring Road and the final 33 miles to the lake. Once I was there, and settled in, it was worth it. Mo arrived earlier in the week on Wednesday afternoon, and managed to get a perfect spot right on the lake. Number 45. Each time we have camped here, we have been in the Hogue Campground, along the northern side of the lake, and each time we have managed a lake front site. It gets a bit more challenging with the bigger MoHo, but still at only 25.5 feet, she managed to slide in to this lovely site, and with a bit of additional leveling we had a perfect lake view, room for the awning between the trees, and amazing privacy, even though the campground was more than half full over the weekend. For bigger rigs, there are nice roomy level private sites farther uphill, but the lake view is well worth the juggling. We saw some fairly big rigs in these sites, easy and comfortable.
The best part about Medicine Lake is how uncrowded it is, even on sunny Saturday afternoons. The water is clear, and the lake rules allow speedboats between the hours of 10 and 5, so there are quiet times for kayaks and canoes and everyone is happy. We saw people doing lots of fishing, and one happy person said the fish were fairly easy to catch, they just jump on the hook when you put it out there. It is one of the few places that Mo and I really enjoy returning to when there are so many new places to visit. It’s clean and open and the camp spaces are far enough apart that most of the time it feels private and spacious. We take the boats down to the beach and leave them there for the entire visit, kayaking in the late evenings or early mornings when the winds are quiet. On this trip, there was more wind than usual, even early in the day, so our paddles were a bit restricted, and the air wasn’t as perfectly clear as it usually is, but even so, it was relaxing and a great way to spend a week, or a weekend. We hiked along the lake to the tiny little Medicine Lake and Abby thought the entire trip was just so that she could swim every day and often. Mo brought along plenty of firewood from home as well so we had some truly lovely roaring fires night and morning . Back to Jamestown Sunday evening, and just another week of work and a weekend to get ready for the Spokane trip. I can hardly wait, but in the meantime, the Medicine Lake trip was a wonderful respite from the daily dig.

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Sunset Beach and the Elkhorn Slough

We planned this trip to the Elkhorn Slough some time ago, after reading about the restoration efforts there. http://www.elkhornslough.org/paddling.htm

Our first estuary experience in South Carolina last December whetted our appetite for more of the same and we wanted to experience the Pacific version of this delightful way to be on the water. What I didn’t know before visiting is that the agency I work for, USDA-NRCS, has been working the Slough for several years, contributing the the restoration in many ways.

Choosing to travel the weekend after Memorial Day, we hoped that some of the crowds may have thinned a bit. What we didn’t plan for was cold winds and highs in the 50’s! Of course, Mo used to live near the coast, so she was more accepting of the cold weather than I was. Finding a place to camp near the beach is hard, and finding anyplace to camp actually ON the beach with a view of the water is even harder. We settled on Sunset Beach State Park, just west of Watsonville. It was about 10 miles north on HWY 1 from where we planned to do our boating beginning at Moss Landing.

We left Jamestown by 10 or so, and got to the beach by 3 in the afternoon. The drive to the coast is becoming familiar, but we do like to skip around some of the major roads and check out the side roads. This time we traveled down 101 from Gilroy, which smelled fabulously like it’s famous garlic, and crossed the coast range via historic HWY 129. I didn’t find any historic sites to speak of, so will have to ferret out the history at another time. What did become apparent as we got closer to Watsonville, however, was the incredible bounty of fruit that dominates this area in the spring. Cherries everywhere, and as we got closer to the coast, the cherry orchards gave way to vast fields of strawberries, brilliant red in their ripeness against the green leaves. They are grown on raised beds covered with plastic, and in some cases those beds look more than 2 feet high above the center rows. Farm workers were everywhere, harvesting, bent over picking, and the surprising thing was that there were so many cars all lined up near the fields, fairly nice cars actually. We only saw a couple of places that had the white farm labor buses for the workers transport. As we crawled though Watsonville, the traffic was slowed by long lines of semi’s waiting to be loaded, and small farm trucks piled high with empty strawberry crates heading back to the fields. I bought a flat of berries for making jam that were the size of small apples, and soft, ripe, and sweet as anything I have grown in my own garden.
The web site for the park discusses the fact that it is surrounded by agricultural land, and that our campground was in the dunes. I think somewhere in the fine print, it actually said there was no view of the ocean. Not only could you not see the ocean, you couldn’t hear it either, and when we were relaxing by the fire, there was nothing to remind us we were at the ocean except the sand. The campground itself was nice, except I neglected to remember that there were no hookups. I am sure I must have known this when I made the reservation, but somehow I forgot, and as we looked around our space and realized we were drycamping, it was a silly moment. We had enough propane but our water tank was only 1/3 full, so Mo patiently carried gallon jugs of water and filled the tank with a funnel, while I put put away the DVD’s we brought for some light evening entertainment. No generator after 10 pm was the rule, and neither one of us is up to that kind of late hour for a movie! The other thing I hadn’t remembered is that Sunset Beach isn’t a dog friendly beach. We did read about the other state park just north allowing dogs and stopped to verify that with the park ranger when we decided to go for an early evening beach walk with Abby. He was great, and told us that we could take her down the stairs to the beach that say “no dogs” if when we got to the actual beach we only walked north and not south where the snowy plover is nesting. That made our beach time a little bit easier, we only had to drive a 1/4 mile or so to get to the stairs. There was another set of stairs near our campsite, but they were high and steep, and the distance down to the beach on the ocean side was a bit daunting. Ever climb sand dunes??
Whew! Another trail to an observation platform overlooking the ocean was closed for restoration of the fragile dune vegetation. We were grateful for the one beach where Abby could go, however, and managed long beach walks every day at one time or another.
The other surprise was the number of people in the campground, especially the number of children. I have never seen so many tents in my life in one place, and only after the weekend drew to a close did we discover that there was some kind of gathering going on, and when Sunday night rolled around everything got quiet and peaceful again, actually what we had originally expected. I still don’t know if that campground is always that full, but it was definitely full to bursting on Friday and Saturday. I was glad we had planned to be away during the day! We cooked steaks on the bbq for our first evening supper and it was great. Mo brought plenty of wood from Klamath so we had great fires morning and evening every day. The campfire pit was a big metal barrel, and at first we thought it wouldn’t be as good because we couldn’t see the fire, but later discovered how much heat that barrel puts out. With the previously mentioned cold and wind, that heat was very welcome! After walking around when the campground thinned out, we discovered a perfect campsite in the southernmost section, site number 25, on a hill with a view of the ocean. I would imagine that site would have to be reserved far in advance, because I think it is the only one with that view.
Reading the tide tables indicated that high tide would peak at 8:30 am. This meant that for our trip up the slough, we would have to be on the water 2 hours prior to that, and then we could come down with the outgoing tide. Of course, on the coast, at the 530am wake up time, it is cold and damp and foggy. Not exactly the best weather to get out in a boat, but of course fishermen do it all the time. We drank warmed up coffee and headed for our put in site at the wharf in Moss Landing. It was really quiet there, with just a couple other people around, and no kayaks on the water at all. The put-in there was easy, though, with smooth level sand just a few feet from the road where we unloaded the kayaks. Into the water, and around past the dock and under the bridge and the adventure began. The animals were amazing. The dock was covered with sea lions, the harbor was filled with harbor seals, swimming all around us, and sea otters were everywhere, watching us with curiosity before they would roll over in the water and continue their feasting on whatever they were eating. I took this all for granted on this first trip out. I had read about Elkhorn Slough and the animals there, and expected to see otters and seals and lots of birdlife, so didn’t think this was at all unusual. All the way up the slough the otters were surrounding us, and there were water birds of all kinds. The brown pelicans we expected, but were especially delighted to see three of our old white pelican friends coming down the water. There were snowy egrets and great egrets, white herons and blue herons, many kinds of ducks and lots of cormorants. It was an amazing paddle. We went about 4.5 miles to Kirby Park, which we found out later is the only place boaters are allowed to get out anyway. Decided to save the rest of the slough for Sunday morning, and after a little rest on the beach, we headed back down. The tide was going out and it was a really easy paddle, with little wind. Still cloudy and foggy, but a bit of sun broke through eventually. The most surprising thing, however, was the much lower number of mammals on and in the water. Most of the seals were gone and we didn’t see any otters at all. We realized then that we had been especially lucky with all the viewings, and also were glad that the tide forced us to go so early. As we arrived back at the put-in, it seemed that the kayaker gates flooded open. There were large groups from the Montery Bay Kayak Co putting in, a dozen at a time, and the harbor was covered with lots of brightly colored boats and people learning how to paddle. Boy, we got out just in time!
We spent the rest of the day enjoying our camp site, going for some walks, and exploring some of the roads around Watsonville, and visiting the Elkhorn Slough Headquarters. We even drove up to Santa Cruz to find gas that wasn’t 4.39 a gallon and were rewarded with 4.29 pg. Hmmm. How many miles was that??? We filled up the baby car so that if we needed to run the generator on the MoHo we could siphon some gas! ha!! might have been a good idea to remember we were dry-camping and have the gas tank full! Sunday morning we were both tired, and said, let’s wait till the afternoon tide, but then around 7 there was a break in the sky, and we decided to go for it. We drove the back road to Kirby Park, and this time continued up the slough to it’s end at the railroad bridge. We saw more pelicans, egrets, herons, and cormorants, but only one lonely harbor seal and no otters on this day. Another reason to be grateful for Saturday’s amazing experience.
We had originally planned to go home and make a big breakfast, but decided instead to explore Moss Landing. Both of us were fairly hungry by this time so we thought, OK, change of plans, let’s find food! Phil’s Fish Market was the perfect choice, where we had wine and fish and chips and went for another lovely walk on the beach, this one much cleaner actually, with surfers and very few people still because of the cold strong winds.
Home to a tremendously relaxing afternoon, even a real nap! Something I actually didn’t think I could do and instead I slept for a couple of hours. Amazing. We cooked our bacon and eggs and hash brown breakfast for a great dinner and then went for a walk up the dunes to watch the sunset. Another great night sleeping in the cool ocean air, a slow easy morning wake up, and we left for home around 10. Perfect timing to get back to the warm sunny Mother Lode hills by early afternoon. I’m not sure we will ever return to this place, since our list of to-do’s is pretty long, but it was a great experience.

Recreation Creek

This is one of those “other traveling tales” that isn’t about traveling in the MoHo, but for travelers, this is a place worth talking about. I drove to Klamath this past weekend, where Mo lives just a short distance up the road from the most wonderful kayak/canoe trail that we have found yet. The MoHo is waiting patiently in Jamestown for our coming beach trip, and then she will return to Klamath with Mo for the summer. In the mean time, until I retire to this place next year, I drive more than 400 miles each way to have the chance to kayak on these pristine waters as often as I can.

When the temperatures are hovering around 100 degrees in Central California, the cool nights of the mountains of Oregon are a respite worth the drive. Recreation Creek and Crystal Creek are on the western side of the Upper Klamath Wildlife Refuge. One of the highlights of my soils career was the opportunity to map the marsh soils in the 11,000 acre bird wonderland. The canoe trail is one of the best I know of, and the water is crystal clear from the input from meltwaters of the Cascade snow packs that feed the underground springs that feed the creeks and the wetlands.

We kayak this creek often, at different times of the year, and each time has surprises. The wetlands support tall bullrushes “tules“, that in summer make navigating without a GPS a daunting task, especially if you travel out into the marsh at all. But this year the spring came later, and the wocus flowers were just emerging and the tules were still brown and low so that nothing interrupted the views. We heard blue herons and sandhill cranes, saw lots of geese and ducks, willits, and red wing and yellow headed blackbirds. One of the best treats was watching a huge flock of white pelicans flying high over the marsh as they were arriving. I have never seen a flock this big before, and they were very high in the sky, circling and circling for a very long time. I thought maybe they were just arriving and trying to decide where to hang out for the springtime.

The beavers were especially active this year as well, and when we put our boats into the water later in the evening on Sunday we were boating with beavers. Fun. Somewhat like our kayaking with dolphins in the lo country of South Carolina. There were at least 6 we think, all swimming along, very busy of course. The whap of their tails on the water is loud. I tried making my paddle do the same and watched the instant diving of the beaver that had been swimming along beside us nonchalantly.
If you love to kayak on quiet fresh water, don’t miss this experience. The channel of the creek is deep and dark, bounded on the east by the fresh water wetlands of the marsh and on the west by the high ridge of the eastern Cascades. Mt McLaughlin, Harriman Peak, Pelican Butte all are visible rising above the steep front beside the stream. In the north are the peaks that surround Crater Lake, the Watchman and Mt Scott, covered with snow. Two wilderness areas are visible as well, the Sky Lakes Wilderness and the Mountain Lakes Wilderness. It’s a place that rivals any I have ever experienced. I have added the link for the canoe trail and another one for the birding trail that is here as well. If you are anywhere near Klamath and if you love to kayak or canoe, it’s a treat not to be missed.
Malone Springs is just off the West Side Road a few miles north of Rocky Point. It’s free boondocking, with a narrow gravel road that could still accomodate a motorhome and a large turn around area with a couple of camp sites right at the springs. Be ready for mosquitos, however, but it’s a beautiful spot. Of course, there is always the Rocky Point Resort for good food and camping as well, with space for RV’s, We launch either here at Rocky Point or at Malone Springs for the trip north to Crystal Springs, another deep velvet green wonderland spring. ahh, Oregon, how I love you.
All these places are listed as part of the itinerary for the volcanic scenic byway that includes Crater Lake. http://www.byways.org/explore/byways/2587/itinerary/4034

If the photos have inspired you to look further, check out the Recreation Creek album on my Picassa website. The link is at the top of this blog page.