Trip Report: Narrows of the Wilson

[liveonearth]

Twas a lovely day, dry and even some blue sky and sunbeams from time to time. The Wilson flows out to the Pacific from the Coastal Range. Today it was running just over 1000 and falling while we were on it. I think optimal flows are probably 200-1000 cfs more than that. I was with the LCCC, a group sized 11. Two were the men that I said back in November that I didn't want to boat with again. They were too slow and I had the notion that one of them was a wee bit sexist. On the shuttle to the put-in a couple other paddlers and and I were talking and it came out that we'd all had the same experience with those guys and we weren't interested in having it again. I went and told the TL, M, of our discussion while we were at the putin. I don't know if the guys in question overheard that conversation but I do know that this trip went a helluva lot better.

The river, oh, it was nice. Lots of surf waves, and the bigger they were, the fewer people would clog up the eddies waiting a turn to get on them. The canoeists all pretty much bowed out when the waves are breaking much, but in kayaks we can surf the shit out of them. There were also lots of great 360 holes too, sorf of a shelfy riverbottom the whole way made for good play that will probably be better with more water up to a point....which I have no idea what that point might be. The LCCC gang is unlikely to attempt this run over 2000, but it would go much higher. In kayaks, with a good roll.

Clear water, not perfectly clear but enough that you could see the bottom. Pale course basalt, sculpted by the river, mossy where the river doesn't scour it. Pine trees. Road on river left most of the way, lots of fishermen who were not unfriendly. Lots of fishermen. No snow like in the picture above. Warm weather, in the 50's, but I was the only person on the whole trip not wearing a drysuit. Used my new yellow glass Werner paddle, it's practical but not inspiring.