Just moved from NC
Printed From: ProfessorPaddle.com
Category: General
Forum Name: Whitewater Forum
Forum Discription: Open Discussion Forum. Whitewater related subjects only
URL: http://www.professorpaddle.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=15050
Printed Date: 15 Jun 2025 at 9:27pm
Topic: Just moved from NC
Posted By: ckoontz
Subject: Just moved from NC
Date Posted: 01 Sep 2015 at 9:50am
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As the subject says, I just moved to Seattle from North Carolina and am looking to get out on some creeks in the area as I see that things are running again with the recent rain.
I would also be interested if anyone has any links to online resources or books to buy that have watershed, weather, flow, precip information, etc. Being from the Southeast I'm used to rain fed paddling, but not used to the combinations of rain, snow, glacier melt, etc and would love some good sources on what to look for during what seasons. I'm used to knowing exactly what is going to run with any amounts of rain in any locations and now I know nothing, and don't like it! I am also currently not employed, hopefully that changes soon but if anyone needs a paddling partner on a weekday and wouldn't mind showing me some goods I would greatly appreciate it! Class IV-V creeks are great, class III stuff also just fine. I bring good microbrew and share. Clinton |
Replies:
Posted By: JoesKayak
Date Posted: 01 Sep 2015 at 2:13pm
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Welcome to the area... The river pages on this website are one of the best resources around for river info. They are community driven, so anyone who is a member of this board can contribute beta to the river pages and we strive to have them updated often. The American Whitewater river pages (which I'd assume your're familiar with) are really good. Besides that, although its nearly 2 decades old, Jeff Bennet's Guide To Whitewater Rivers of Washington is a book every paddler should have. It's been out of print for some time but used copies can be found online. Hopefully Jeff will think about updating it again one of these days. I can give you a few general guides for rainy season boating: • West side boating. It's mainly the rivers on the west side of the Cascades that run during the rainy season, which basically starts in October ususally and goes until snowmelt starts. The east side rivers just don't get enough rain in the fall/winter and have most of their precip locked up as snow. • Fall boating is great, but FLASHY. From Sept to November, when it rains the water runs down the mountains fast. Its ususally falling all as rain (not snow) and the ground is often hard still from summer and water just runs off fast. So when it rains look for rivers to rise fast and drop fast. Oddly enough paddlers come down with a lot of 1 day flus this time of year.  • Winter boating is a bit more reliable. By late November, ususally the ground is more saturated and water leeches out more slowly. Also, more of the precip is falling as snow and just having a snowpack slows down the rise and fall. • Also, dig deeper into the info available on rivers you're interested in. Lots of info and clues are out there for those who look. Also, be aware that although this website has current flows for rivers, some of the gauges, depending on what agency the data is pulled from do not always update on the main pages here. It pays to click on the links to the actual pages for the gauges to see what's really happening there. |
Posted By: Nick
Date Posted: 01 Sep 2015 at 2:22pm
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Books:
- A Guide to Whitewater Rivers of Washington (second edition) by Jeff Bennett - The River Gypsies' Guide by Leland & Andria Davis (My favorite for Canada) Skykomish: Split Rock tends to be the best way to meet the locals. If you see a meet time... May want to link up. Hope this helps and welcome to the area!😜🚣🍻 ------------- Guy in Boat |
Posted By: jalmquist
Date Posted: 01 Sep 2015 at 4:31pm
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And don't forget the OP (Olympic Peninsula). Lots of great fall / winter boating on the OP. The guidebook (A Paddler's Guide to the Olympic Peninsula by Gary Korb) is out of print, but you can sometimes find a copy in used book stores. The more popular OP runs have info in the rivers section of this site, as well as on the AW site. But it's nice to have a battered hard-copy on hand that can live in your boating vehicle. |
Posted By: megspk
Date Posted: 01 Sep 2015 at 5:03pm
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There are also several Facebook groups to get hooked up with for kayaking. There's a Seattle group, an OP group and a Portland (aka PDX) group. PM me your name and I could add you to those groups if you want! The PNW is a wonderful place to paddle! ------------- “A strong person and a waterfall always channel their own path.” -Unknown |