Don't kayak in Leavenworth!!

The weather is amazing all the time.


There are attractive people everywhere.


There are more sausages and beers than an army of kayakers could drink.


...and last but not least; the kayaking is just too good to be true.


So, don't bother. It's definitly not worth the drive...



Kayaking in Leavenworth from daniel patrinellis on Vimeo.


Music: Wu Tang - Slow Blues

Clear Fork of the Cowlitz

Is the sh*tz!

Brock was so stoked about getting back into the Cowlitz that he had to sing to us about it.

I had heard that there was this awesome run, close to the Cispus river that, was a rowdier, bigger version of Ernie's Canyon. I asked around, talked to the fellas and I was informed that while The Clear Fork of the Cowlitz was indeed super sick, it was off the table for the time being.

There had been a large rain event in Washington a couple years back and the entire river was full of wood. Not unlike the demise that befell it's southern neighbor Canyon Creek.

Then, last year, I heard a rumor that some of the Portland crew had gotten back in there. Then I heard about these two crazy brothers that showed themselves down at high water. I was interested.

Then Rob invited me on a trip and that made the bells go off: "maybe you shouldn't be doing this run Dan"

So, water levels came down and I forgot the fear. The 4th of July weekend presented a glorious 3 day weekend and Joe Howard was willing to throw his gear in the truck and go on an adventure. We decided to meet up with Brock, a Clear Fork veteran and see what we could do. Brad Xanthopoulos decided to do a last minute rally and meet us at the take out.

The Bennett book will give you a decent idea of where to start your journey. There is a turnout a little bit past the La Wis Wis campground. This leads to a dirt trail that leads you into the woods. Somewhere in these woods is the put-in to the CF Cowlitz.

The nature of this run is a little different from the Snoqualmie, Skykomish and Tumwater drainages. There is no shortage of sharp rocks, but the run is essentially bedrock. Not so much lava like the White Salmon or Little White. Maybe more like the Cooper. You're gonna lose some plastic. And, when logs pile up, they create some really nasty strainers so be on your toes. Depending on water levels you could have close to half a dozen wood portages.

Brock finds the goods. You will be rewarded for all your effort.

Lessons learned: Wear a drysuit you hate, because it's gonna get punished. Wear good shoes as even the chargers are gonna have several involved portages. They are not super technical, but they were a bit sketchy for us and we had bright sun and no ice or dew. Be prepared for a long day! Take snacks and extra fluids. This thing only comes in when it is "hot" in Washington, so you're gonna need the extra energy humping that boat of yours over all those logs and sieve piles.

So, long story short: CF Cowlitz is another great creek to add to your hit list. Make sure your skills, equipment and nerves are on par and up for the challenge. The description of this run being tougher than Ernie's is debatable. Then again I did not see this creek with a lot of water in it. So the nature of the rapids might change drastically.


Here is a video I put together showing most of the major rapids. I had the big camera with me and for some reason didn't pull it out until it was time for booty beers. I think I was just too gripped all day!





Get in there and have fun!

Joe and I woke up early and got a quick lap on the Ohane before we jetted up to Leavenworth to meet the crew.

There is no better place to be than Leavenworth Washington on a nice summer day.

Here is a video from the whole weekend. Joe and I did the tour-de-stouts in Washington. We started with CF Cowlitz, then a lap on the Ohanepecosh. Drove straight through to Icicle Creek for a couple Ricochet rounds and then into Tumwater Canyon and some decent flows. A solid weekend in the books for sure.





Another solid weekend in the books.

Stay Safe.

Video Guidebook - Upper Icicle Creek

Here is my first stab at a video guide. Let me know if it helps!







Cheers!

Video - 4Th of July Gnarfest

Over the 4th of July weekend, Joe Howard and I did a little bit of roadtripping. We drove down to the South side of Mt. Rainier for the Clear Fork of the Cowlitz. It was a bit low, but super fun. Then we grabbed a quick lap on the Ohanapecosh. From there it was a 3.5 hours of driving but North to Icicle Creek for probably the last laps of the season. Then we topped the weekend off with a handful of Tumwater laps. A great weekend was had.

Last Weekend - Clear Fork Cowlitz & The Ohane

Clear Fork of the Cowlitz.

For as long as I've been interested in hiking through Devil's Club and carrying my kayak immense distances on my shoulder, I've heard about the Clear Fork of the Cowlitz.

I was able to get a lot of footage out if this mission so I will do an entire post on the CF Cowlitz later.

There was a lot of portaging on this trip...

... and a lot of getting sick.

The next morning we were able to bang out a quick Ohane lap on our way up to Icicle and Tumwater Canyon.

Caught up with the Portland crew as they were putting on for their first lap of the day.

I didn't get any photos of Icicle or Tumwater this weekend, but I was able to shoot a bunch of video so I'll try to get that online soon.

Another solid weekend in the books.

Last Weekend - Middle Icicle

This was going to be my first weekend away from the water as my big sister was in town, but after a quick drive through Chelan and a glimpse of that gorge I had to get in the water. Just driving down the road that parallels the Chelan Gorge gets my palms sweaty...

I rolled into town late Sunday afternoon but I was able to catch up with a couple locals as they scraped down middle Icicle.

I missed Sam's line while we were running shuttle, but I was able to get a buddy of his from out of town on his first run down The Plunge.

Sam, patiently waiting.

Boofington Heights looks good even with these low water levels.

I don't know your name, sir, but you had a great line!

I think The Plunge is pretty difficult at these levels (all levels for that matter), because the hazards are so much more prevalent. The hole gets very shallow and there are some funky guard rocks in the lead-in.

Sam leads the way down to the takeout.

200mm is great, but there is a little bit of shake with no IS.

I think this little, unnamed drop needs to be called the Leap of Faith. You have no idea what you are boofing into. There has been wood in there before, so it's always a roll of the dice...

Stay Stoked, Stay Safe!

Video: Icicle Creek Laps

NOT safe for work version:


SAFE for work version:

Icicle in April - Ricochet Rounds

For days and days...














    


    
     Adrian was in town and we were able to get multiple laps on the middle five miles of Icicle Creek. This portion of the run is known as the Ricochet section of Icicle Creek.

Levels were as follows:

Friday 4/20: 3060 cfs and rising 20cfs/hr Wenatchee at Peshastin.
Saturday 4/21: 3100 cfs and rising 60cfs/hr Wenatchee at Peshastin.
Sunday 4/22: 4200 cfs and rising 40cfs/hr Wenatchee at Peshastin.

Many friends were seen and even more good lines were had.

Brief photo dump of the 3 day weekend adventure:

The view from secret camp, way above Leavenworth is worth the drive.

Looking West from Secret Camp towards the source of Icicle Creek and therefore the source of all things good in this world.

One of the best drops on the run: The Plunge. The normal line is starting center river right and staying right until the slide. Then you want to be a couple of boat widths off the right wall with right or no angle. BOOF!

With more water you actually run over the river left side of the ledge.

This rapid is, in my opinion, the best rapid on the river, by far. It has no name, other than "the one above the plunge". Multiple boofs and tight line abound. Get in and get some.

Some Greenery with your Scenery?

More fun below Horseshoe

On Sunday we scouted with a little more water in the Creekbed.

Here, Adrian weighs his options on Horseshoe's outflow.

Horseshoe at a healthy level

Gorgeous weather all weekend

Stopped on the way up to The Wall for a look at Last Exit.

Stay safe.

Video From the Weekends Fun: