WHITE-KNUCKLE FUN
A heavy snowpack in the West bodes well for area rivers and folks who love to ride ’em
River rafters, get out those oars! A bountiful snowpack in western U.S. mountains will fill the region’s network of waterways, which means enthusiasts can look forward to splashy whitewaters this spring and summer. Where are the gnarliest rapids? Take a look, then set your sights on some fierce fun.
One hundred fifty years ago, one-armed explorer and Civil War veteran John Wesley Powell led his team of nine men in four wooden boats down the Green and Colorado rivers into the Grand Canyon on one of this country’s most famous whitewater adventures.
It took another century, more or less, before commercial outfitters began guiding clients in inflatable rafts, offering them thrills and watery spills in often deep river canyons.
Powell is long gone, of course, but I think he would smile at the sizable — in some areas downright huge — snowpacks this year in the West, which means this year’s whitewater rafting season should be epic.
Mountains in the Golden State had a snowpack of well over 150% in late March, according to the California Department of Water Resources.
Mammoth Mountain, Squaw Valley and other ski resorts in the Sierra Nevada recorded historic snowfalls in February,
Matt Volpert of Wofford Heights, Calif.-based Kern River Outfitters said the drainage that feeds the three moderate-to-challenging runs his company boats on the Kern River has a snowpack of more than 180%.
The American River drainage east of Sacramento also has nearly twice the normal amount of snow. One survey, at Phillips Station near Lake Tahoe, in early April showed 106.5 inches of snow, the equivalent of 51 inches of water.
“It’s going to be a great season,” said Volpert, noting that the Kern is the closest whitewater river to Los Angeles.
“It’s quite a rebound compared with 2018, when we only had about 50% of normal. … But we’ve kinda been getting whipsawed the past few years. On April 1 of 2016, we only had a snowpack of 5%. The next year, 2017, was a monster for snowfall. Last year so-so and this year is huge again. Weird.”
More good news
Farther north, the Kaweah River, which has its headwaters in Sequoia National Park east of Visalia, is rocking, said Scott Armstrong.
His Walnut Creek, Calif.-based All-Outdoors rafting company operates on an un-dammed Class III and IV nine-mile section of the Kaweah, which he said he hopes to run into July.
“This should be an awesome season for the average rafter, almost a mirror of 2017,” said Armstrong, whose company runs nine other California streams, including wild and woolly Cherry Creek, a tributary of the Tuolumne River outside Yosemite National Park.
“But if anyone is apprehensive because of the high flows early on, I’d suggest waiting until perhaps mid-summer arrives and water levels drop a bit,” he said.
The Upper Kings River, which has an abundant snow pack, is another southern Sierra river popular with Angelenos, said Justin Butchert, who operates Kings River Expeditions in Clovis, Calif. His company will be running a moderate 10-mile section of the river through the summer, he said.
Steve Markle of Angels Camp, Calif.-based OARS, which runs numerous rivers in the West, said this will be a “banner year” for rafting in California, Idaho and Arizona.
He said early-season high water will bring higher levels of risk, “which means we’ll be stepping up our training and screening clients even more carefully.”
OARS, which was started 50 years ago by George Wendt, is the only outfitter that has permits for every leg of Powell’s legendary 1869 expedition down the Green River through Flaming Gorge, the Gates of Lodore, Desolation Canyon and onto the Colorado River, which will have plenty of water this year.
Outfitters on the popular South Fork of the American River will be enforcing increased minimum ages because of higher, colder flows that may last through June, said Jessica Wallstrom, who heads OARS American River operations. More moderate familyfriendly flows are expected through September. OARS’ age limit will be raised to 12 from 8 years old until high water subsides.
Looking north
Rafters 13 and older who are looking for something more exciting can combine the upper Chili Bar and Lower Gorge stretches of the South Fork for a one-day, 21mile river adventure, said Wallstrom, who has been guiding for 18 years. The Middle and North Forks of the American are also exciting options for older, more experienced rafters.
Meanwhile, on the Oregon border, the difficult California Salmon River (age 15 and older) should have challenging flows through June. The mellower Klamath River will have good flows and be raftable into the fall.
The family-friendly Rogue River, as well as the Illinois, Clackamas and Deschutes rivers in Oregon all will have plenty of water this season, said Zach Collier, who runs Hood River, Ore.-based Northwest Rafting Co.
“Things were lookin’ a little thin in January, but we got a real shot in the arm up here in February, especially on the Owyhee Canyonlands of eastern Oregon, which now have a snowpack that is 125% of average,” he said.
“The Owyhee was only runnable last year for a couple weeks, and this year we’re expecting good water through the end of May and possibly early June.”
Candy Benning of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho-based ROW Adventures said the Middle Fork and Main Fork of the Salmon River will have good flows, as should St. Joe, Lochsa, Snake and other rivers that the company runs in the Gem State.
The same is true for whitewater streams in Colorado such as the Arkansas, Animas and Roaring Fork rivers.