BY BOATERS FOR BOATERS November/December 2002
FutureWater ’02 Hydro Relicensing Roundup
FPO Cover Boating with Full Page Bleed Bears in Alaska
$4.95 US A Trip Down the NF Blackwater with Jimmy Blakeney
www.americanwhitewater.org Conservation ≈ Access ≈ Events ≈ Adventure ≈ Safety FPO Dagger (AJ is Forwarding via Mail) Full Page Bleed A VOLUNTEER PUBLICATION PROMOTING RIVER CONSERVATION, ACCESS AND SAFETY
American Whitewater Journal Forum ...... 4 Volume XLIII, No.6 Corner Charc ...... 8 FEATURES Letters...... 10 Conservation Conservation Elements of a Flow Study ...... 31 Tribal Water Protection - Penobscot, ME ...... 31 Program Makes
Access a Difference 28 Permit Please!...... 12 Leave No Trace ...... 12 Boating with Western Rivers with Tights Permit Limits ...... 15 Bears, Alaska 57 15 Ways to Leap on a Permit ...... 15
Events North Fork Membership rough Events ...... 6 End of an Era ...... 50 Blackwater 61
River Voices 2003 Permit Restoring the Bear, ID - Ricahrd Hoffman...... 30 Gauley Fest 2002 - Clay Wright...... 48 Schedule 13 Safety Search and Rescue ...... 17 Gauley River RiverShare™ Guidelines ...... 52 Festival™ 45
Cover photo by Jed Weingarten of Johnny Kern high in the Stanislaus Drainage, California Annual Board
CFC UNITED WAY #2302 Elections 53 Support American Whitewater through CFC or United Way! All the federal campaigns, and a few of the local United Way campaigns will allow you to donate through them to American Whitewa- Publication Title: American Whitewater ter. Check to see if yours is one of them. Issue Date: September/October 2002 Statement of Frequency: Published bimonthly Also, check to see if your employer will match Authorized Organization’s Name and Address: American Whitewater your charitable contribution - double your 1424 Fenwick Lane money, double your fun! Silver Spring, MD 20910 Printed on Recycled Paper RIVER ACCESS: To assure public access to rivers (the International Scale of Whitewater American Whitewater whitewater rivers pursuant to the guidelines Difficulty) and publishes and disseminates the Our mission is to conserve and restore published in its official Access Policy, AW internationally recognized AW Whitewater America’s whitewater resources and to arranges for river access through private lands Safety Code. enhance opportunities to enjoy them by negotiation or purchase, seeks to protect the safely. right of public passage on all rivers and streams EVENTS: AW organizes sporting events, contests and festivals to raise funds for river The American Whitewater (AW) is a national navigable by kayak or canoe, resists unjustified restrictions on government managed whitewater conservation, including the Ocoee Whitewater organization with a membership consisting Rodeo in Tennessee, the Gauley River Festival in of thousands of individual whitewater rivers and works with government agencies and other river users to achieve these goals. West Virginia (the largest gathering of whitewater boating enthusiasts, and more than 100 boaters in the nation), and the Deerfield Festival local paddling club affiliates. EDUCATION: Through publication of the in Massachusetts. bimonthly magazine, and by other means, CONSERVATION: AW maintains a complete American Whitewater, ( AW) provides information AW was incorporated under Missouri nonprofit national inventory of whitewater rivers, monitors and education about whitewater rivers, boating corporation laws in 1961 and maintains its threats to those rivers, publishes information on safety, technique and equipment. principal mailing address at 1424 Fenwick Lane, river conservation, provides technical advice to Silver Spring, MD 20910 (301) 589-9453. AW is local groups, works with government agencies and SAFETY: AW promotes paddling safely, publishes tax exempt under Section 501(c) (3) of the Internal other river users, and-- when necessary-- takes reports on whitewater accidents, maintains a Revenue Code. legal action to prevent river abuse. uniform national ranking system for whitewater
American Whitewater Board of Directors & Staff Journal Staff Lee Belknap TOLL FREE NUMBER AW STAFF Editor [email protected] 866-BOAT4AW Risa Shimoda Risa Shimoda Hendersonville, NC Executive Director Co-Editor Jeff Leighton 1424 Fenwick Lane Ambrose Tuscano Dave Cernicek [email protected] Silver Spring, MD 20910 [email protected] LaFayette, CA Art Direction/Graphic Design/Production Jackson, WY Michael Phelan Scott Collins Kevin Lewis Events Director Contributing Writers Tom Christopher [email protected] 20 Battery Park Ave., suite 302 Dunbar Hardy, Sam Drevo, Lee Belknap, Bobby [email protected] Anderson, CA Asheville, NC 28801 Miller, W. Scott Morris, Joe Greiner, Barry Lancaster, MA Grimes, Charlie Walbridge, Andrew Zimet, Bill Hay, Donnie Hudsputh, Whit Deschner,Tim Aaron Pruzan Kevin Colburn Kelley, Rip Harwood, Dale-Marie Herring, Adam Eichberg jacksonholekayak@wyoming. Eastern Conservation and Access Ambrose Tuscano, Barry Tuscano, Jimmy [email protected] com Associate Blakeny, David J. Regela, Clay Wright, Carolyn Denver, CO Jackson Hole, WY 20 Battery Park Ave., suite 302 Nichols Asheville, NC 28801 Photo Contributors Chuck Estes Norwood Scott Jed Weingarten, Tanya Shuman, Kevin Lewis, [email protected] [email protected] John Gangemi Barry Grimes, Mark Moore Oak Ridge, TN San Francisco, CA Conservation Director Advertising Director 482 Electric Avenue A.J. McIntyre Pam Fitz Dave Steindorf Bigfork, MT 59911 1424 Fenwick Lane, Silver Spring, MD 20910 [email protected] [email protected] phone 301-589-9453 e-mail: Denver, CO Paradise, CA Jason Robertson [email protected] Access Director Safety Editor Jennie Goldberg Sarah Stephenson 1424 Fenwick Lane Charlie Walbridge, Route 1, Box 329F, [email protected] [email protected] Silver Spring, MD 20910 Bruceton Mills, WV 26525, e-mail: Seattle, WA Asheville, NC [email protected] Scott Collins Conservation and Access Editors Joe Greiner Barry Tuscano Technology Director Jason Robertson, John Gangemi [email protected] [email protected] 1300 NE 49th Avenue [email protected]; Raleigh, NC Bolivar, PA Portland, OR 97213 [email protected] American Whitewater Magazine Task Force Barry Grimes Charlie Walbridge A.J. McIntyre Jeff Espy, Dunbar Hardy, Dale-Marie Herring, [email protected] [email protected] Corporate Relations Director John Mason, Tanya Shuman, Ambrose Tuscano Richmond, KY Bruceton Mills, WV 1424 Fenwick Lane Missing Copies and Address Changes Silver Spring, MD 20910 [email protected] Dunbar Hardy Kara Weld [email protected] [email protected] Jessie Rice American Whitewater is printed by Durango, CO Confluence, PA Membership Coordinator Spencer-Walker Press, Inc., Newark OH. 1424 Fenwick Lane All rights reserved. Chris Kelly BOARD OFFICERS Silver Spring, MD 20910 [email protected] President: Barry Tuscano EDITORIAL DISCLAIMER Columbia, MO Bob Taylor Vice President: Kevin Lewis Events Coordinator The opinions expressed in the features and editorials Tim Kelley Secretary: Jay P. K. Kenney 20 Battery Park Ave., suite 302 of American Whitewater are those of the individual [email protected] Treasurer: Jeff Leighton authors. They do not necessarily represent those of the Asheville, NC 28801 Directors of American Whitewater or the editors of this Potsdam, NY publication. Nick Lipkowski On occasion American Whitewater publishes Jay P. K. Kenney Office Manager official organizational policy statements drafted and [email protected] 1424 Fenwick Lane approved by the Board of Directors. These policy Denver, CO Silver Spring, MD 20910 statements will be clearly identified.
2 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 3 November December 2002 November/December 2002 2 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 3 November December 2002 November/December 2002 here’s something diff erent about this issue of American Whitewater. For the fi rst time in ten years Bob Gedekoh is not listed as editor. Bob is one of my closest friends, and IT hope that, as a member of this organization, you will make a point of thanking him for the great job he has done all these years. Our Journal is a volunteer publication that un- der Bob’s leadership has come very close to professional standards. While we are trying to adjust to his absence, you may fi nd little reminders of his devotion and skill sprinkled through these pages. His are going to be very big shoes to fi ll.
I’ve been hanging out with Bob for more than fi een years. He led me down many of my fi rst runs. He led me to American Whitewater. He led me to a deep appreciation for the rivers that make our passion possible. And in his position as editor of this magazine, Bob has led this organization. His leadership has been subtle, but incredibly powerful. He has used the Journal to ask the important questions and to force the board and staff to come up with answers. It’s like following his line through a big drop. A er a thorough trashing, he pulls me to shore and I wonder, “How did he do that. He made it look so easy.”
Although getting fresh young blood involved should be good for any organization, there aren’t too many people on this earth, young or old, that can keep up with Bob Gedekoh. My son, Ambrose, has agreed to be an interim editor until we can fi nd another super- volunteer to do the job. If you, or someone you know, is inter- ested let us know. And let Bob know that we all appreciate the incredible work he has given us for the last ten years.
ank-you Bob.
Barry Tuscano
A Tribute to AW Editor, Bob Gedekoh
By Ambrose Tuscano
In case you haven’t been paying attention for the past ten years or so . . .
e person editing the publication you hold in your hands has been doing a heck of a good job. So good in fact, that you may have never even realized it. Most people who pick up the American Whitewater Journal probably fi gure that the organization is just blessed with well-educated members—people who know better than to write in run-on sentences, and include boring details in their stories, like why they were too hung over to run Ankle Annihilator Falls.
In reality, Bob Gedekoh has kept the magazine a well-oiled machine for the past sixty is- sues—and that’s saying a whole lot. Magazines of this sort are never assembled without a certain amount of blood, sweat and tears. Just when it begins to look like an issue is going smoothly, something will come up last-minute. Sometimes just a day before deadline Bob will get a phone call like this: “Uhhh . . . we’ve got a couple of problems here.”
“Go ahead.”
“First, we’re missing a couple of our feature stories.”
4 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 5 November December 2002 November/December 2002 “ere’s more?” crones who took their fortunes with them has, I’ve felt that at times (especially around to the grave, nostalgic farewells to faithful deadline) the Journal was taking over my “Yeah, one of those knucklehead shuttle vehicles, and reasons to get your life. But aer the deadline has passed, and assistants of yours sent us a disk kids into whitewater. What most readers I have time to get back out on the water, I with nothing on it.” don’t realize is that Bob also wrote under realize why it was all worth it, and why Bob a variety of pen names, including Lee Rob- has always been willing to donate so much “Oh, that must be Tuscano—does erts and the infamous Carla Garrison. If of his time and energy to the Journal. It this about once a year.” you’re looking for a laugh—or maybe just is just one more way for him to support a good story—rifle through that stack of American Whitewater—the organization e next day, at his real job, everyone won- past AW Journal issues out in the garage, that keeps our rivers wild, clean and open ders why Bob looks so exhausted. and treat yourself to the work of a master to us. storyteller. Bob has spent hundreds of hours slaving In all my time working with him, Bob has away over the stories you’ve read in this Recently, I have asked a handful of Bob’s consistently finished each e-mail with the magazine for the past decade. But you may friends and acquaintances if they had phrase “See You On e River.” Coming not know that he has also spent well over a anything they wanted me to write about from a man who spends between one and thousand days on the river in that same pe- him—and everyone did. Probably the two hundred days a year on the water, this riod. His love of whitewater and his wealth greatest testament I heard to Bob’s work as statement is, at one level, just a very safe of experience on rivers all over the country an editor and writer came from Bill Sedivy, prediction. But I’ve always felt like it was have helped him keep up the enthusiasm to a former executive editor of an Ohio news- more—like it was Bob’s own blessing. I feel edit the Journal. paper. He told me that if he were starting a that it’s his way of saying: “ere’s no better commercial whitewater magazine today, he place to run into a friend.” And so, Bob, I’d And somewhere between the hours he would want Bob Gedekoh editing for him. like to close by offering it back to you. On spends editing, working (as a MD), and behalf of the entire organization: anks, kayaking he finds time to write some of Since I have been working on the Journal and SYOTR. the best and funniest stuff in this magazine. alongside Bob, I’ve come to appreciate just Many of you are familiar with Bob’s com- how much energy goes into each issue. ments that have appeared in the Forum Even though I’ve only ever had to deal section. ese covered topics like miserly with a fraction of the material that Bob
FPO Aire (Usual) 1/2pg
4 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 5 November December 2002 November/December 2002 MEMBERSHIP THROUGH EVENTS
By Bob Taylor American Whitewater has recently expe- of what AW does and how AW’s mission became involved with the organization at rienced a large decline in the number of directly relates to them. the 1988 Gauley Fest. In 1992, he became people becoming new members or renew- a board member of AW and up to present ing old memberships. An organization is At the events, some members donate their day continually volunteers his time at the only as strong as its foundation, which is time at a booth assembled with tents and Fest. rough the events, he learned how made up through membership. As a result, tables and supplied with literature and much AW was accomplishing and how im- the staff has had to reevaluate its method information and sponsored by American portant the work was. for attracting the public to join. Whitewater which is. ese volunteers, and some of the AW staff, present the As members of American Whitewater One of the methods is through the Events opportunity for the public to interact di- we should each realize the importance of Program, which is comprised of two indi- rectly with the organization. is, in turn, volunteer work and the continued sup- viduals, Mike Phelan (Director) and myself makes one more apt to join when they are port of the organization by getting others (Coordinator). Our sole responsibilities personally informed about the effect their involved. are the planning and the physical labor membership has on the organization and needed to bring a successful festival to its goals. eir contributions are used to fruition. Hosting events in local commu- secure flows in rivers that have been previ- nities where different boat manufacturers ously dewatered and to gain access to rivers Bob Taylor, American Whitewater’s Events and gear vendors are present and offering that were illegal to run. Coordinator, provides the nuts and bolts, food, music and entertainment plus various ‘get it done’ energy in our events program. competitions, creates a venue that attracts a Some examples of festivals held in the Just as he makes events happen ‘on time large number of boaters and in addition to past by AW are the Deerfield Fest in and as planned,’ Bob is upfront about the the general public. is generates a posi- Charlemont, MA and the Gauley Fest in AW Mission and programs, managing to tive atmosphere for American Whitewater Summersville, WV. Aer being asked to charm most boaters he meets into becoming to showcase its conservation/access issues, bring and set up lights, Barry Tuscano, the members! and so allowing people to become aware current president of American Whitewater,
6 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 7 November December 2002 November/December 2002 CONFESSION
I must shamefully admit this is the first time I have been a member of your fine organization. I was enlightened by Bob Taylor, your newest, and I might add best-looking employee...
During a meeting at the Outdoor Retailer As he left the room he as- Show Bob talked to me about the new face of AW and the goals during the com- sured me it would be my ing year. I was very impressed and look membership or my ass. forward to working with Mike, Bob and the rest of the crew in any capacity I can. I made it home from Salt Lake as soon as When the conversation focused on Bob’s I could to fulfill my obligation. ere is goal of increasing membership, I was nothing like a little Yankee work ethic to forced to hang my head and admit I was a bring a company to new levels. I can assure non-member. Bob was outraged, and im- you I will now be a member for life. Good mediately began to read the riot act. Scared luck, and I will see you guys at Gauley Fest. for my safety, I took this application and Bob Taylor wants you to become a member of promised I would join up as soon as pos- Sincerely, American Whitewater sible. Standing at once, Bob looked down Opposite: Volunteers working the Used Boat Sale at me and assured me he would not forget Daniel P. Mongno at the 2002 Deerfield Riverfest this conversation. Rockhedz General Manager
6 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 7 November December 2002 November/December 2002 is year closes with a great deal of transition reason and pragmatic challenge. Ambrose – and as we change, we are continuing to learn Tuscano will be stepping up to help with the Risa Shimoda how to be more resilient, focused and able to editing of the magazine for an interim period, Executive Director - American Whitewater avoid taking ourselves too seriously. as we look for someone to step up and fill Bob’s large shoes. Note: ‘Charc’ is a term coined by Economic impacts of the year are pervasive: so, Jim Snyder, short for ‘charging arc.’ what else is new. We’ve had to face the reality If you have loved reading the Journal cover- Having a good charc combines correct of the vulnerability of foundation giving (i.e., to-cover, thank Bob and your fellow AW boat attitude, angle, speed and intent when foundation portfolio investments head members. If you’ve regretted seeing too few when heading into or out of an eddy, south, grantees can become very disappointed, stories about a specific topic or about a par- onto a wave, etc. It alludes to the very quickly). You’ve read in our pages and on ticular region of your state or the country, you dynamic complexity of an approach, the website about organizational challenges can help the situation by seeking out authors and a reference when addressing the of growing membership and individual gis. and photographers who will offer their own complexity of protecting our rivers for We’re working on these, so they remain vis- enthusiasm with the written word! recreation. ible but don’t choke our conservation message, yet reinforce and thank those members who donate truly significant volumes of time and funds.
Change that involves people in the organiza- tion: this is a different story. Departures set up voids, which can be turned into windows of opportunity. is year, we end an era of the organization that has been shepherded by Phyllis Horowitz, our Administrative Director, and Bob Gedekoh, our Journal editor. eir awesome dedication and unrelenting work ethic has provided benefits to thousands of boaters around the country. In addition, we will miss the expertise of our layout meister of nine years, John Victor. Our loss, however, is the gain of the families and friends of these incredible professionals.
Phyllis worked for American Whitewater for FPO sixteen years, so she has been an integral part our lives, as we have been in hers. Moving our administrative function to Maryland has cre- Navarro (Usual) ated periodic heartburn for us all and has been critically important for our growing organiza- 1/3pg H tion to centralize our processes.
Dr. Bob has been volunteering as Journal con- tributor for as long, and editing our Journal for ten years- a diehard whose efforts simply cannot be matched. He has been our beacon, our champion and also our internal voice of
8 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 9 November December 2002 November/December 2002 Volunteer Salute to Laura Scott and Tom Windham
Laura Scott and Tom Windham, two extraor- dinary designers, each put huge amounts of effort into the design of the new AW logo. Last summer, Laura (whose husband Norwood is member of our Board of Directors) eeked out time from her incredibly busy schedule designing corporate identities to work on a logo that would suit our audience(s) for years. Aer several dras and reviews we developed a logo that seemed to work really well and … it did not pass muster with the board. Aaugh! Laura, we so appreciate the time and care you took for the project and…we think the work FPO was not wasted!
Round Two: Tom Windham of the Windham Surf Dog (Same as May) Design Group (Lousville, KY) took a crack at the challenge of designing a new logo for us 1/3pg H and … again aer several dras and discus- sions (with the cool design sensibilities of Kara Weld, AW Board Member and owner of Im- mersion Research with husband John)…a final meeting on New Year’s Day landed a logo that the staff, board and members agreed would meet the design criteria. We know the process is tough and we appreciate the work of both these great professionals. May the logo be with us … for a good, long while!
8 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 9 November December 2002 November/December 2002 Letters to the Editor
find repulsive are some of the BEST A Pro Perspective ambassadors for our sport, helping uncounted numbers of paddlers and In American Whitewater’s July/August non-paddlers alike have more fun and 2002 ‘forum’ section titled “A Tough become more aware of how incredible and Act to Follow”, Bob does a good job of valuable our river resources are. making Dave Hammond seem like a nice guy and great paddler. Unfortunately, It amazes me that being in the posi- this doesn’t seem to be the real focus tion he’s in Bob chooses to divide the of his article. Instead, he uses Dave paddling community instead of bring- as a platform from which to attack ing it together. He stoops to the level professional kayakers and others who of those few uneducated paddlers who make a living through the sport they talk shit about ‘old school;’ only he love. chooses to talk shit about ‘new school.’ I think I speak for the majority is is the first time I’ve respond- of paddlers when I say this, “I don’t ed to an AW article, though my give a shit what you paddle, what you wife and I have both written for the wear, what type of water you choose to magazine. e reason is, this type paddle, what the temperature is when of language is not only offensive to you choose to paddle, or what style me personally but is also divisive to of boating makes you happy, from us as a paddling community. As some- freestyle to slalom to wildwater, I one who recently spent six weeks on the still consider you a paddler and a World Outside Festival tour ‘doing positive part of something special Tricky Wuus in a parking lot’, I find it and good.” Lastly, I’d like to applaud interesting that Bob refers to this the paddlers out there who choose to as ‘no way to make a living.’ Well, I stay ‘underground’ like Dave Hammond. guess Bob failed to realize the He’s off doing his thing, and that’s fact that aer doing freestyle great. I’d also like to applaud those demonstrations in the artificial hole, paddlers out there who love kayak- we would spend the rest of our day ing so much that they have decided to putting people in kayaks for their first pursue it as a profession, despite time: putting smiles on their faces, the fact that they could probably be introducing them to what may become making better money and be much a lifelong pursuit of kayaking, thus more secure doing something else, or, if increasing the number of paddlers we’re using Bob’s perspective, could out there so we have a bigger, stronger be much bigger ‘stars’ and ‘pose’ in voice to help save our rivers. Pad- much bigger magazines than those in the dling in an artificial hole for six weeks paddling world. wasn’t my idea of the perfect kayak trip, but the money I made doing so will We’re all out kayaking for the same help me pursue ‘real’ kayaking full time for reasons, whether it’s those who only months to come. pursue it for a short time, a few days a month, or year round. As for Instead of seeing this side, Bob chooses to whether or not I’d be kayaking if all the focus on the negative. He makes ‘going on ‘HOOPLA and LA DE DA were stripped tour’ and being a ‘star’ in a kayak away from the sport’, of course I would, video seem like the lowest and foulest though I might not be able to do it for a thing you could possibly do. He fails living. Kayak for the love of it, to realize that these people ENJOY and don’t fall into the unfortunate what they do just as much as Dave mindset where you look at those who Hammond enjoys what he does, not to are different from you as inferior, mention that the professional kayak- unworthy, or incapable of being ‘real’ pad- ers are able to paddle MORE as a result dlers. of it! On top of this, the high profile professional paddlers Bob seems to Jimmy Blakeney
10 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 11 November December 2002 November/December 2002 No “Gucci” Here!
I greatly appreciate the recognition of Hey Jason, Patagonia’s Tools Conference for Activist in the most recent issue of AW (Corner I take responsibility for the reference. I saw Charc, AW July/Aug 2002). I attended this Patagonia’s Environmental Grants Director, conference as a representative of Patagonia John Sterling, last week and know it is a and had a wonderful three days working sore topic. I hope your sentiment does with Risa and other environmental activ- not trivialize the intent of the entire page ists from around the country. e descrip- or diminish the respect and appreciation tion of Patagonia’s deep commitment to that both AW and I personally have for American Whitewater, outdoor pursuits the company, its employees or the brand. and our environment helped remind me As you know, I have worked for Patagonia how proud I am to be a part of Patagonia and from a marketing perspective, am and American Whitewater. fully aware of the implications of using the offensive term; it is the reason I added However, just aer the paragraph celebrat- the parenthetical disclaimer to indicate ing Yvon Chouinard’s “simplicity and prag- to Patagonia readership, specifically, matism in design and message”, Patagonia that I understand the syntax that has is referred to as “Patagucci”. is is very accumulated around it. contradictory. I am well aware that this is a somewhat common nickname for our I hope you’ll share this with those who may company that has been thrown around feel I was being oandedly disrespectful. for years, but I must take exception to I was borrowing some imagery to this trite and somewhat derogatory term’s engage those who may not otherwise use in the Executive Director’s article fully appreciate the power I saw, and the celebrating Patagonia’s commitment to terrific education I received at the Tools grassroots environmental activism. Conference.
I, along with every other employee in Pata- Sincerely, gonia, take an immense amount of pride in our environmental work at Patagonia, and Risa the use of the term “Patagucci” by a group we have supported throughout the years tends to cheapen that pride by implying that we are just chasing fads and money. Madawaska Kanu Centre ank you for your time.
Jason Barringer S u m m e r Patagonia Atlanta 613.756.3620 AW Acres and Elkhorn Creek W i n t e r
I just recently got out to the Elkhorn aer many years of paddling. I live in Louisville, 613.594.5268 but I work in West Virginia on the weekends for ACE whitewater, so my paddling around KY is very limited. Well, I missed out on the weekend warrior deal this past weekend at ACE, and I decided to try the Elkhorn for a nice scenic paddle. Unfortunately, I missed out on the section that is stated in AW’s web page due to low water levels, but I did get to paddle another section of just class I’s. I put in at the AW Acres and took out at KY Canoe’s facility.
is was my first chance to see the AW acres and just reading the story of events that lead www.owl-mkc.ca up to the purchase of the property, made me grin in satisfaction knowing that AW and most boaters alike grouped together for a common cause.
I will be joining the AWA here in the next week or so, and change my charitable donations to this just cause for the next upcoming year. I know this is late in coming, but just wanted to thank everyone involved in obtaining this property.
Don Simmon
10 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 11 November December 2002 November/December 2002 Permit Please! By Jason Robertson & Dale-Marie Herring Once the capacity decision has been reached, then the river manager has a va- “Permit please,” says the park ranger before riety of tools to select from in managing you can put on Utah’s Green River. “Two- visitor use to either stay below the capacity fiy,” says the park attendant on Pennsylva- threshold or otherwise meet the manage- nia’s lower Youghiogheny River. ment objectives.
Restrictive private boater permit systems In American Whitewater’s experience, well are used on about 30 rivers nationwide. meaning river managers and politicians ese systems are managed by many dif- oen view visitor use permits as a panacea ferent state and federal agencies, and serve for addressing social crowding, riparian a multitude of purposes. e permits are impacts, landowner concerns, river safety, typically designed to accomplish economic, funding, or other river management objec- ecologic, or social objectives. tives. However, like so many get-well-quick fixes, they are generally no more effective River managers oen cite an economic ar- than the remedies sold by snake oil sales- gument for permits. eir premise is that men in the 1800’s. is realization explains while demands for recreational resources the proliferation of new permits in the are increasing, administrative budgets 1970’s, the pause in the 1980’s, and the re- FPO are diminishing. us river managers are treat in the 1990’s from river permits. Now, placed in a position of managing increased the new Millennium and the post-9/11 re- visitor service demands, while striving to strictions on river access are bringing forth Campmor minimize visitor impacts through policies a second wave of permits from America’s such as “Leave No Trace”. e purported river management agencies as new river success of Fee Demo is directly tied to the managers are experimenting with old ways effectiveness of permits at generating rev- to manage visitors for their purposes. (Usual) enue on public lands. e hidden problem 1/6pg V with this permit objective is that the permit American Whitewater generally opposes management requires increased staffing, the implementation of river permits as a enforcement, and administrative process- first step in river management. In nearly ing costs, which oen exceed the amount 50 years of observation, review, and experi- of revenue generated. ence we have learned that most manage- ment objectives related to visitor use can “Visitor Capacity: A prescribed num- be achieved through either passive or more ber and type of visitors that will be active means, both of which tend to be accommodated in and area.” more effective, cheaper, and less personnel - Interagency Task Force on Visitor intensive than permit management. Capacity American Whitewater believes that the Both the ecologic and social accomplish- primary utility of recreational permits is to Leave No Trace ments of visitor permits are driven by plac- ensure the integrity of the natural resource Your actions on and off the river ing limits on the number of people infil- and to maintain quality outdoor recreation affect how much impact you have trating remote wilderness locations. ese experiences. Permits should not unreason- on the ecosystem. Practicing these limits preserve “opportunities for solitude” ably restrict access. However, they should simple actions will protect the first and the riparian or riverside ecology be designed to protect a world class niche resource and experience for the next second. ese protections are secured un- that is unique to the river, and they should group of paddlers on the river, and der a “visitor carrying capacity.” be designed to accomplish that objective as may even prevent river managers easily and unobtrusively as possible. from initiating new permits on rivers e carrying capacity is a number that the in the future. river manager has decided is the maximum American Whitewater addresses permit- number of people that the river can handle ting issues by advocating for fair allocation, Dispose of waste properly before certain impacts are observed. Ac- counting of people rather than boats, and (trash and human cording to a 2002 dra report of the reallocation of unused slots. We also work waste) Federal Interagency Task Force on Visitor toward alternatives to permits altogether Use existing trails Capacity on Public Lands, “the decision unless justified by credible studies. e best Remain on bedrock when is made within the context of a rationale way to get on a regulated river is to sup- portaging or scouting public planning process and sound pro- port American Whitewater. en, call the Use firepans to prevent fessional judgment, and is framed by the permit party together—here are the facts ground scars desired future conditions for an area’s you need. Park in designated areas resources, visitor experiences, and manage- Protect natural quiet ment program”. Pack it in – pack it out
12 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 13 November December 2002 November/December 2002 2003 Permit Schedule RIVER SECTION STATE PEAK PERMIT PERMIT PERMIT DUE MAX GROUP SIZE SEASON REQUIRE- REQUIRE- DATE MENTS MENTS BEGIN END STATEWIDE REGISTRATIONS Illinois, Statewide All IL N/A Ohio, Statewide All OH Pennsylvania, State- State Parks PA None wide SIMPLE REGISTRATION Nisqually La Grande Canyon WA Nov - Dec 15-Nov 15-Dec Wednes- minimum 2 day people before releases Colorado Cataract Canyon UT May - June 15-Apr 15-Oct 31-Dec 16 people Tuolumne Cherry Creek - Meral’s Pool CA May - Sep 1-Oct 30-Apr N/A 26 people (6 rafts) Tuolumne Meral’s Pool- Ward’s Ferry CA May - Sep 1-Jan 31-Dec N/A 26 people (6 rafts) HIGH WATER PERMIT FOR FLOOD CONDITIONS James Richmond VA Flood 1-Jan 31-Dec Prior to minimum 3 launch people or boats ON-SITE REGISTRATION Rio Grande Taos Box NM May -Jun 1-May 30-Jun 31-Dec 30 p / day; 20 in W & S Kennebec Harris Gorge ME May - Oct 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec None LOTTERY PERMITS Alsek/Tatshenshini All AK Jul - Aug 8-Jun 18-Sep 10-Nov 15 people Boundary Waters All MN Jun - Oct 1-May 30-Sep 15-Jan 9 people / 4 boats Colorado Westwater Canyon UT Apr - Oct 1-Jan 31-Dec 1-Apr 25 Flathead Main (North) ID Jun - Sep 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Jan 30 people Green Desolation Canyon - Gray Canyon UT Apr - Oct 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Jan 25 people Green Gates of Lodore CO May - Sep 8-May 8-Sep 1-Feb 25 Kern Forks CA Apr - May 15-May 15-Sep 15-Mar 15 Rio Chama El Vado Ranch - Big Eddy NM May - Aug 1-May 30-Aug 31-Jan 16 private Rogue Grave Creek OR Jun - Sep 15-May 15-Oct 31-Jan 20 people Salmon Main ID Jun - Sep 20-Jun 7-Sep 31-Jan 30 Salmon Middle Fork ID Jun - Sep 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Jan 24 San Juan Bluff - Clay UT Apr - Oct 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Jan 25 people Selway Paradise Launch ID June 15-May 31-Jul 31-Jan 16 people Smith Camp Baker MT May - Jul 1-Apr 31-Oct 15-Feb 15 people Snake Hells Canyon ID Jun - Aug 22-May 10-Sep 31-Jan 24 people / 8 -OR boats Yampa Dinosaur National Monument CO May - Jun 8-May 14-Jul 1-Feb 25 Tallulah Tallulah Gorge GA Apr & Nov
12 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 13 November December 2002 November/December 2002 RIVER SECTION STATE PEAK PERMIT PERMIT PERMIT DUE MAX GROUP SIZE SEASON REQUIRE- REQUIRE- DATE MENTS MENTS BEGIN END ON-SITE REGISTRATION, UNLIMITED LAUNCHES DAILY American, South Fork Chili Bar CA May - Oct 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec Bruneau Indian Hot Springs ID Apr - Jun 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec 12 people Carson, East Fork Wilderness Run NV Spring 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec 30 people Chattooga Section III (Earls Ford - Highway 64) SC Sping - 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec None Summer Chattooga Section IV (Hwy 64- Lake Tugaloo) SC Sping - 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec None Summer Deschutes, Lower Warm Springs- Sherar’s Falls OR Spring 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec 16 -24 people - Fall Flathead Main Stem MT Spring 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec 20 people/site - Summer for overnight camping Illinois River Miami Bar - Lower Oak Flat OR Mar - May 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec 12 people John Day Service Creek-Cottonwood Bridge OR May - Jul 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec 16 people John Day, North Fork Dale - Monument OR May -Jun 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec 16 people Merced Lower Canyon CA Mar - Jun 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec None Missouri Fort Benton MT All year 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec None Moose Bottom NY Apr - Oct N\A N/A 31-Dec None Owyhee Lower OR Mar - Apr 15-Mar 15-Jun 31-Dec 20 people Owyhee, Middle Fork Three Forks- Rome OR Mar - Apr 15-Mar 15-Jun 31-Dec 20 people Potomac Great Falls MD All year 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec Rio Grande Big Bend TX Spring, 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec Fall Salmon Lower ID Summer 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec 30 people Snake Grand Teton National Park WY Jun - Jul 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec Tygart Valley Falls WV Spring 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec None Wolf Within the Menominee reservation WI All year 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec PRE-REGISTRATION REQUIRED Everglades National All sections FL Dec - Apr 1-Jan 31-Dec Up to 24 30 Park hrs before trip Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge GA Mar - Apr 1-Jan 31-Dec 2 months 20 people before 1st day of trip Salt Fort Apache AZ Mar - May 1-Mar 15-May 31-Jan 15 Salt Upper AZ Mar - May 1-Mar 15-May 31-Jan 15 people Yough, Lower Ohiopyle PA Apr - Oct 1-Jan 31-Dec Prior to None launch Dolores Gateway-Dewey UT Mar - May 1-Mar 31-Oct 31-Dec 25 Genesee Lees Landing- St. Helena NY Apr - Nov 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec None Genesee St. Helena - Mt. Morris Dam NY Apr - Nov 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec None Jarbridge Jarbridge Forks- Hot Creek ID Apr -Jun 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec 12 people Owyhee, Upper East Fork ID Apr -Jun 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec 15 people Owyhee, Upper North Fork ID Apr -Jun 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec Owyhee, Upper South Fork ID Apr -Jun 1-Jan 31-Dec 31-Dec 15 people Colorado Grand Canyon AZ May - Oct 1-Feb 28-Feb 28-Feb 16 private
14 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 15 November December 2002 November/December 2002 Western Rivers with Tight Permit Limits
By Jason Robertson When most boaters talk about obtaining launch permits on rivers, they’re referring to one of the great Western rivers; rivers like the Colorado through Grand Canyon. ese rivers are oen managed for a different type of experience with refined opportunities for solitude as a result of strict visitor limits. ough you may not get on your favorite river as frequently as you desire, when you do, the argument goes, that it will be an experience to remember for a lifetime.
Alsek-Tatshenshini Rivers, British Columbia/ Alaska Colorado River (Grand Canyon), Arizona Colorado River (Westwater), Utah Forks of the Kern, California Green River (Desolation/Gray Canyons), Utah Green River (Lodore Canyon), Colorado Rio Chama, New Mexico Rogue River, Oregon Salmon River (Main), Idaho Salmon River (Middle Fork), Idaho FPO Salt River (Upper), Arizona San Juan River, Utah Selway River, Idaho Airtight Inflatables Smith River, Montana Snake River (Hells Canyon), Idaho/Oregon 1/6pg H Tatshenshini River, British Columbia/Alaska Tuolumne River, California Yampa River, Colorado
15 Ways to Leap on a Permit 2. Promote your culinary skills. Develop 9. Become an expert. Learn all about a reputation for cooking 5 star meals the lore of a river or the history of a By Jason Robertson on the river and invitations will seek place. Learn how to run each rapid. you out. Even if you’re not a great Keep notes on where the great and Tom gets a Grand Canyon permit every cook, offer to plan and pack the meals. not-so-great camping spots are, and year. Jo’s invited down the Selway at least 3. Promote your gearheadedness. how to find them. Also learn where once a summer. Ricardo spends a week Gather all the gear that a group will the hot springs are. raing on a Western river for every week need for a successful multi-day trip. 10. Promote your willingness for team he spends at home. Kevin ran the Middle Offer to share your gear for a spot on play. Offer to run shuttle in advance, Fork three times this spring on back-to- a trip. Fireboxes, toilet systems, hot especially really long shuttles. back trips. ey follow the rules. ey shower setups, fast and efficient water 11. Hang out. Make your wonderful won’t take your money. ey just want to filters, and standing kitchens make personality and interest in a trip be on your trip. What are their secrets to good investments. known at the put-in or take-out, getting on permitted rivers? Here are my 4. Offer to safety boat a ra trip, or ra introduce yourself to groups that are observations: support a kayak trip. going out and ask to go with. 5. Join the local river club and become 12. Promote your being a cute and/or 1. Apply en masse. row a permit an active member. super fun-to-travel with paddler. party. Invite your boating 6. Call the local outfitters or paddling 13. Get yourself around. Spend lots buddies over to the house, bring stores and ask for the inside scoop on of time with lots of people in the your calendars, print the permit how to get around the permit system. boating community. applications, pick a launch day (or 7. Be flexible. Go before or aer the 14. Work for a raing company on the period) and start practicing your permit season. river. penmanship. 8. Learn how to get a launch permit 15. Obtain Wilderness EMT training. cancellation.
14 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 15 November December 2002 November/December 2002 FPO Necky (New) Full Page
16 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 17 November December 2002 November/December 2002 Search and Rescue: Privilege for the Saved, or Burden for Society?
“Stretch forth thy hand from above; By 1995 rescues of boaters on the Haw Rescue me, and deliver me out of great had become so common that the Cha- waters” tham County Manager reported to the -Book of Psalms County Commissioners “there was recently another incident where a canoeist used the By Jason Robertson for American White- Haw River for recreational purposes when water. Artwork used with permission and the river was above its normal elevation.” is available via williamneally.com e Commissioners listened to concerns that rescue and emergency response teams Based in part on a letter from Lloyd At- might themselves be placed in danger when hearn at the American Alpine Club to Mike stranded boaters needed assistance in the Gauthier, Denali National Park 3.9.2001 river, which quickly led to a discussion of whether there should be a prohibition on entering the river at certain flood stages or Introduction a penalty for people whose actions were par- ticularly irresponsible. Federal, State, and other government agen- cies have a moral and legal responsibility Tony Tucker, Emergency Operations to conduct and bear the cost of search and Director, then described how each river rescue efforts for everyone in need of their rescue on the Haw cost approximately assistance. is is both a privilege and a $3,500. Most of that expense was for the right, and is protected by international Army’s helicopter at Fort Bragg, but a lot of treaties, which effectively ensure your res- the remainder was in salaries. His position cue regardless of your ability to pay for the was that if a fine was imposed, it would be service. unlikely to help recoup costs but “to make FPO a person think twice about entering the e issues surrounding equity, legal li- river.” Ultimately, the Commissioners voted ability, and financial responsibility must be to have the Chatham County Attorney DeReimer explored so that policy makers appreciate investigate an ordinance, though no regula- what actions are likely to help and harm tions were changed in Chatham. the public’s interests. Our examination begins with a story from the Haw River, One county upstream, and six years later (New) from which we move into an analysis of the in February 2001, Charlie Frago, a staff 1/3pg V 1999 National Search and Rescue Plan, and writer for Burlington’s News & Record, re- a discussion of the suitability of recovering ported that three canoers were pulled off costs for rescues as well as the propriety of a beaver lodge on the Haw River in North requiring boaters to provide proof of res- Carolina. e three chose to canoe the cue insurance prior to receiving a launch flooded river without lifejackets in rainy, permit. wintry conditions. One reportedly said, “We just thought, the water’s real high, it’s A Story from North going to be fun.” However, Frago clarified that Alamance County taxpayers would not Carolina’s Haw River bear the burden of the rescue costs since the volunteer squad was funded largely “When they were yelling at us to hurry through private donations and added that up and rescue them, I was thinking, the three canoers were not billed. While the ‘Well, ding-dong, I wasn’t the one who circumstances leading to this rescue were put you out in the river.’” particularly grievous, the event ultimately - Amy Isley, Burlington police officer served as one more opportunity for the and volunteer rescue squad member regulators and media mavens to discuss whether the river should be closed during I grew up near the Haw River in North Car- high water and who should bear the cost olina and was witness to the near annual of rescues. media circus surrounding the dramatic he- licopter rescues of canoers. Inevitably, the e tales of woe on the Haw are not unique stories demonstrated an individual exercis- to North Carolina, and the issue of who ing poor judgment, which was exacerbated should bear search and rescue costs has by high waters. been debated in every state in the Union. Whenever dramatic rescue images appear
16 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 17 November December 2002 November/December 2002 on the nightly news of boaters being lied from a flooded river by helicopter or challenged by law enforcement, we find ourselves and our ac- tions under the spotlight. is is true whether the victim is an inexperienced yahoo or even an Olympian like Davey Hearne. The 1999 National Search and Rescue Plan
“e Participants agree that SAR services that they provide to persons in danger or distress will be without subsequent cost- recovery from the person(s) assisted.” – 1999 NSAR
In 1999 the United States Coast Guard issued the United States National Search and Rescue Plan (NSAR). e NSAR Plan, which was amended in 2000, establishes the national pro- tocol “for coordinating civil search and rescue (SAR) services to meet domestic needs and international commitments.”
e Plan affirms that the United States has met SAR responsibilities agreed to by international treaty including the Convention on Interna- tional Civil Aviation, the International Con- vention on Maritime Search and Rescue, and other appropriate international instruments to which the U.S. is a Party.
Civil search and rescue operations on white- water and flatwater are explicitly covered under the “maritime” and “land” operations directives. Maritime operations are defined as rescue from a water environment; and land operations are defined as rescue operations as- sociated with environments such as wilderness areas, swi water, caves, and mountains.
e signing federal agencies include the Interior and Coast Guard, as well as the De- partments of Defense, Transportation, and Commerce, and Federal Communications Commission and National Air and Space Asso- ciation. Each agency assumes varying degrees of responsibility for preventative measures to protect the visiting public. Ultimately though, NSAR promises “the effective use of all avail- able facilities in all types of SAR missions”, and affirms that the rescued person(s) shall not be responsible for payment associated with their rescue. is component applies equally on land and water to all federal signatories includ- ing the Department of the Interior (DOI) and adjacent jurisdictions, including the National Parks and Forest Services.
18 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 19 November December 2002 November/December 2002 Determine the suitability Lo, would you add despair unto de- can Whitewater agrees with the Mountain and feasibility of recovering spair? Rescue Association, an organization rep- -Ridgely Torrence, e Lesser Children resenting 80 volunteer rescue teams from the costs of river rescues. throughout the United States, Canada, and Fees can create delays that can increase the United Kingdom, which is on record He did not create the fall, but rather the risks. From a practical level, charging for opposing charges for rescues because “no capacity for the fall… And in creating rescues oen delays the initial request for one should ever be made to feel they must the capacity to fall, He created the pos- help, which increases the risks for rescuers delay in notifying the proper authorities of sibility to both stand and to be picked and subjects alike. a search or rescue incident out of fear of up. And that is very good. -Anon. possible charges.” NSAR recognizes this and affirms that the agencies “will not allow Despite its recognition of international a matter of reimbursement of cost among treaties, NSAR does not compel state or themselves to delay response to any person local agencies to conform or participate. in danger or distress.” Instead, it encourages cooperative agree- ments that allow these entities to direct and Fees proposals tend to be discriminatory: control their own responses within their Charging one highly visible and readily boundaries. It is this loophole that some identifiable user group – in this case, boat- politicians and agency personnel, particu- ers – for rescue services that are provided larly at the state level, point to as they revive free of charge to all other National Park arguments to seek cost recovery payments visitors is blatantly discriminatory. from rescued victims. According to 2000 NPS data, 35.3 percent American Whitewater is opposed to charg- By the time a lost, capsized, or injured boat- of all National Park search and rescue ing boaters for these rescues and recover- er (or good Samaritan or witness) calls for missions were for “other” causes, which ies. It is our long established policy position a rescue, that boater may be in worse con- generally are not recreation related and that charging for river rescues, whether dition or in a less accessible location, and cannot easily be categorized. Hikers, boat- aer the fact or beforehand in the form of the weather or daylight may have deterio- ers, swimmers, and climbers accounted for a rescue fee or rescue bond, is bad public rated. All of these factors can increase the 24.4%, 10.3%, 9.8%, and 3.6% of rescues policy. We offer this as a truth for several complexity and cost of performing rescue respectively; 9% of rescues were for “mu- reasons. services. Because of these concerns, Ameri- tual aid” in which NPS officials responded
FPO Performance Video (Same as July) 1/4pg
18 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 19 November December 2002 November/December 2002 to outside organizations on adjacent lands, that are free to other Park visitors simply Rescues are an inherent management such as a state park or Forest Service prop- because they are highly visible, participants duty: Search and rescue is one of many erty. are few in number, or their recreational public safety functions performed by land pursuit is perceived as dangerous by some. managers nationwide, as are attending to No correlation to cost: ere is no direct fires, motor vehicle accidents, and respond- correlation between the type of visitor ac- ing to criminal acts. All park visitors may tivity and the cost of a rescue. Searches for at some point get lost or hurt while in our lost hikers and downed aircra can be ex- National Parks, whether it be a climber ponentially more expensive than locating involved in a mountaineering accident, a and transporting an injured boater from a raer who is stranded in a rapid, or a tour- known location in a river valley. ist who succumbs to a heart attack while strolling on a paved nature trail. Similarly, Cumulative rescue costs are relatively all visitors may at some point be the victim low: In 1999, the total cost per visitor of of a crime or be involved in an automobile performing all search and rescue activities accident, and would customarily expect was a mere 1.2 cents – a small fraction of to have rescue services provided free of the total cost of $6.90 per visitor for all NPS charge. functions. Fees increase liability risks: While charg- ough most of the search and rescue ing for rescues may solve an immediate money in Alaska is spent on looking budgetary problem, it may create a bigger for missing planes, lost hikers and fiscal headache by reducing or removing hunters, and disabled boats, that’s not the discretionary shield (see below) that what stirs the debate. It’s the rescues protects the National Park Service from – oen highly publicized rescues – of liability regarding if, when, and how the climbers on Mount McKinley. agency performs rescue services. - Anchorage Daily News, August 1998 In 1991 the American Alpine Club (AAC) Debate driven by prejudice of risk rather A rescue! A rescue! helped the NPS prevail in Johnson vs. than reality: Neither boaters nor climbers Good people, bring a rescue or two! Department of the Interior before the U.S. should be singled out to pay for services -Shakespeare, King Henry the IV, pt II Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
FPO Hooked on Outdoors (Usual) 1/2pg
20 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 21 November December 2002 November/December 2002 [949 F.2d 332; 1991 U.S. App. LEXIS 26805]. is case established rescues as a discretionary function:
…the rangers’ decision if, when or how to rescue inherently involves the balancing of safety objectives against such practical considerations as staffing, funding and minimizing government intrusion. As such, these decisions are grounded in social and economic policy, and thus are shielded from liability under the FTCA discretion- ary function exception.
e Park Service retains the ability to re- cover costs from individuals if they believe an individual’s actions rose to the level of creating a hazard. However, charging for all rescues limits the agency’s flexibility and may open the agency to multi-million dollar lawsuits based on a person’s injury and ability to pay.
Fees increase “standard of care” expecta- tions: Beyond removing the discretionary shield regarding when a rescue is launched, charging for rescues may force rescue agencies to provide a certain standard of care. One large legal settlement would wipe out many years of revenue brought in from charging boaters for FPO rescues on a remote river such as the Grand Canyon in Arizona or even a more accessible river such as the Nantahala in North Carolina. Endless River Adventures Fees violate the legally binding 1999 US Na- tional Search and Rescue Plan: As described earlier, charging for rescues is inconsistent (Usual) with the National Search and Rescue Plan, 2/3pg a document that establishes policies and re- sponsibilities for all U.S. government agencies providing rescue services to fulfill domestic and international obligations, which then-Sec- retary Bruce Babbitt signed on May 3, 1999 on behalf of the Department of the Interior. Based on NSAR, charging climbers or boaters for mountaineering or swiwater rescues would violate national policies the Department of the Interior has pledged to uphold.
If fees are charged, fees should be limited: Rather than look only to recoup existing res- cue costs, the agencies must evaluate more fully what costs legitimately should and should not be assigned to mountaineering and boat- ing rescues.
As in the earlier case described on the Haw River, given costs oen include the hourly rate for rescue or military personnel and helicop- ter flight hours, which can be substantial. For example, in 1992, the year with the highest mountaineering rescue costs on Denali, all search and rescue expenses totaled $431,245. Of this total, the military incurred $225,345,
20 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 21 November December 2002 November/December 2002 while the NPS incurred $206,000. However, have died without it. However, elimination recall that military rescue units must train of the Lama helicopter contract would be constantly for various rescue scenarios the most significant action the NPS could – including mountain environments – so take to contain the costs associated with that they are prepared when called on to mountain rescues in the Alaska Range. rescue downed military aircra, damaged ships, etc. ese training costs are billed to Rescue costs can be driven by new infra- their training budget regardless of whether structure and use of trained volunteers: time is spent on training exercises or real- Trained volunteer rescue groups perform life rescues. It would be totally inappropri- most search and rescue activities on public ate to ask mountaineers to pay for military lands nationwide. e agencies should se- training exercises that are otherwise ac- riously consider scaling back their rescue counted for in military training budgets. service infrastructure and explore how volunteer rescue groups could be better If actions must be taken to pay for search utilized to reduce rescue costs on both and rescue costs, we recommend that the whitewater and flatwater rivers. National Park Service establish a national search and rescue fund. A small surcharge e last that dare to struggle with the on all Park visitors would be the most eq- Foe. uitable and defensible solution given that ‘Tis well! from this day forward we climbers and boaters account for such a shall know small proportion of search and rescue at in ourselves our safety must be operations system wide, and the potential sought; need for search and rescue services exists at by our own right hands it must for all Park visitors regardless of activity. be wrought; As described later in this article, a mere at we must stand unpropped, or be two-cent surcharge on all NPS visitors for laid low. a national search and rescue fund would -Wordsworth, November 1806 FPO cover search and rescue activities system wide and would not discriminate against Returning the backcountry to a more any specific user group natural condition typical of American Snapdragon wilderness, will emphasize greater self- Rescue costs can be driven by new reliance: Beyond saving money, reducing technologies: American Whitewater has the rescue infrastructure in the National learned anecdotally from the Park Service Parks sends a powerful message to boaters (Usual) of an increase in the search and rescue costs and other visitors, that rescue services are 1/3pg V along the Potomac River outside Washing- no longer near at hand. ton, DC where the Park’s low-rotor-noise Eagle helicopter is being used increasingly American Whitewater is somewhat con- to rescue swimmers, hikers, climbers, and cerned that the advent of new rescue the occasional whitewater boater. technologies leads to new psychological crutches, which can in some ways have Likewise, according to an American Alpine the opposite effect of improving safety. Club analysis of NPS data, the largest single We caution the whitewater community to factor in escalating search and rescue costs be wary of the purchase of excessive safety in Denali National Park between 1980 and equipment by rangers for use on the rivers 2000 was the introduction of the Lama he- they paddle. licopter, a specialized high-altitude rescue tool. In the 12 years prior to introduction e mountaineers’ experience in Denali of the Lama helicopter, rescue costs for serves as a warning to us. In Denali the Denali National Park averaged $56,807 rangers point out in their educational ma- per year, the most expensive season cost terials that: $114,770, and only one of the 12 years saw rescue costs above $100,000. In the nine Rescue of injured or ill climbers, if years from 1992 to 2000 with the Lama he- possible at all, may be exceedingly slow licopter in use, average annual rescue costs and uncertain if weather conditions doubled to $112,045, the most expensive are not ideal. You should be prepared year cost $206,000, and five of nine years and equipped to perform self-rescue. had rescue costs above $100,000. e Club Each party must rely on its own re- contends that the Lama has allowed some sources and cannot count on the aid of rescues to be conducted that otherwise other climbers or rescue personnel. would not have been possible, and recog- nizes that some people who survived may Nevertheless, the highly visible ranger pres-
22 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 23 November December 2002 November/December 2002 ence on Mount McKinley at the 14,000-foot tors. Identification and removal of many camp and through the contracted Lama he- psychological crutches, including cell licopter seems to have given many climb- phones, would encourage people to take ers a misleading sense of security that the greater responsibility for their actions, and NPS will launch a rescue if anything goes to avoid pushing on when they should turn wrong. According to the American Alpine back. e removal of psychological crutch- Club (AAC), there exists a belief among es could lead to a decrease in emergency many climbers that rescues can and will responses for frivolous purposes. be launched when needed by hurt or tired climbers. e AAC points to an accident INSURANCE COVERAGE report sent by Denali rangers for inclusion FPO in the 2001 edition of Accidents in North REQUIREMENTS American Mountaineering as illustrating the problem: Some river managers have suggested requiring boaters provide proof of insur- PS e D2K party was adamant that Lev ance before receiving a launch permit. e Sarkisov be flown off from the 17,200- climbing community has addressed this foot high camp without delay, regard- issue in recent years, and American White- Composites less of the weather conditions. ey water holds that their arguments also hold learned very quickly that the Park true for the boating community. Service doesn’t provide a European- (Usual) style helicopter rescue service and that is issue came to a head in 1999 when Sen. Denali’s weather dictates everything. Murkowski suggested that injured climbers 1/6pg V were causing financial problems for local Reducing the rescue infrastructure in back- medical care providers by not paying bills country areas of our national parks is con- following treatment. When he introduced a troversial; but it would send a clear message bill authorizing a study into this field, Sen. that the government intends to return these Murkowski said, lands to a more natural condition typical of American wilderness, and that this change I want the Secretary to evaluate requir- will require greater self-reliance by all visi- ing climbers to show proof of medical
FPO Wilderness Med (Same as May) 1/4pg
22 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 23 November December 2002 November/December 2002 insurance so that hospitals in Alaska Significantly, the Department of the Inte- and elsewhere are not le holding the rior is on record opposing requirements bag as they sometimes are under pres- that climbers show proof of medical insur- ent circumstances. It is a good neigh- ance before being issued a climbing permit. bor policy that should be put into On May 13, 1999, when S. 698 was being effect at the earliest opportunity. heard before the Senate Subcommittee on National Parks, Historic Preservation, Substitute the word “boaters” for “climbers” and Recreation, Department of the Inte- and the threat is apparent to our commu- rior Deputy Assistant Secretary Stephen C. nity. While the lack of health insurance Saunders testified against this aspect of the is a widespread, serious, and longstand- bill saying it would not be in the public in- ing problem facing many Americans, we terest. Again, substituting the word “boater” question whether there is any information for “climber” makes the relevance of Saun- available showing boaters or climbers to be der’s statement to American Whitewater’s less insured than the population as a whole. members apparent: We also assert that having health insurance coverage has no bearing upon whether With regard to considering the ques- a person should be allowed to visit our tion of whether to require climbers public lands and that a requirement that to have medical insurance, we do not recreationists demonstrate proof of health believe a study is warranted. We be- insurance coverage before being issued a lieve the issue of payment for medical visitor permit would be discriminatory. treatment at a hospital or other medi- Absent any compelling information from cal facility should remain beyond the the Park Service or hospitals, this is an is- authority of the National Park Service sue based more upon groundless specula- or Department of the Interior. is is tion than fact. an issue between the private citizen, FPO his family and his doctors. e Nation- More fundamental is the question of al Park Service is responsible for the whether it is relevant or appropriate for the care of patients during a rescue and Park Service to ask any Park visitor about for their transportation to an appro- Brooks health insurance coverage. We think not priate medical facility, but should not and the Park Service appears to agree. e be involved in assessing the adequacy National Park Service’s Organic Act estab- of medical insurance for care that can Wetsuits lished National Parks: extend for years beyond a person’s ini- tial injury. …to conserve the scenery and the (July) natural and historic objects and the is is a fundamental question of fair- wild life therein and to provide for the ness regarding access to public lands and 1/3pg V enjoyment of the same in such man- discrimination of one highly visible user ner and by such means as will leave group. Unless all visitors are required to them unimpaired for the enjoyment of show proof of medical insurance (and by future generations. logical extension force all motorists enter- ing the Parks to show proof of automobile e Act makes no mention of limiting ac- insurance), we believe this is a blatantly cess due to lack of health insurance, ability discriminatory and unlawful requirement. to pay, or any other factor. Given that the Requiring proof of rescue insurance cover- agencies incurs little to no expense for age (and billing policies aer rescues have direct health care of injured visitors, we been completed) involves many of the believe there is no legitimate reason for same legal and practical pitfalls as charging the government to force anyone to divulge subjects for rescues. whether they have health insurance cover- age. Another factor that must be addressed when considering the requirement of car- e working poor of this country, such as rying rescue insurance is the impact claims many ra guides, are the most likely seg- will have on current rescue insurance ment of our society to lack health insur- policies. Former South District Ranger J.D. ance, yet they pay taxes that support our Swed, quoted in a Boulder Daily Camera public lands. ey already face significant news story, highlighted a major problem. obstacles in paying entrance fees to enjoy their public lands without forcing them to When someone pays for a service in show proof of medical insurance, which advance, they expect to get it. If some- most simply cannot afford. one pays for an insurance policy and they get to the 14,000-foot mark and
24 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 25 November December 2002 November/December 2002 decide they need to come down, who above $500, both of which require divert- is to say they don’t have to be taken ing money from existing projects since down. there is no dedicated rescue fund. Consider the case of a boater on day 12 of CONCLUSION a Grand Canyon trip instead of a climber at 14,000 feet, and again the relevance of this Boaters want to be responsible, largely problem is apparent. self-reliant visitors to America’s public lands. Our community does not desire to Up until the mid-nineties, Europeans create a financial burden on the system as a could readily get rescue insurance for whole. e issue of how the Park and For- climbing and other activities; however, the est Services pay for and execute search and abuse of this system led to the collapse of rescue services is a thorny one that cannot the underwriter’s market in this field and be addressed with simplistic responses. the insurance has become much more dif- American Whitewater believes there are ficult to obtain. e experience in Europe significant legal and discrimination issues shows conclusively that when people have surrounding charging boaters for rescue rescue insurance they can and will call for services, requiring medical and/or rescue rescues in situations the NPS today would insurance before being granted a boating not view as worthy of launching a rescue. permit, and determining how much visi- If boaters can call for a rescue whenever tors should pay directly for management they feel like it, the increased utilization services through user fees. of rescue services could have a disastrous impact on the number and cost of river res- e misunderstandings that separate boat- cues and evacuations, as well as drying up ers from the rest of society are wide but not what market there is for rescue insurance insurmountable; through education and underwriters. political action we can bridge the gap. Write an opinion article for your local newspaper about a boating-related topic in your area. Write to local, state, or national elected of- ficials about local boating access or policy issues. Organize a clean up effort at a local river. en publicize your actions, share them with American Whitewater and your local governments.
e more you do at an individual or group level to show that boat- ers are a positive force in your community, the harder it will be for policy-makers to treat us as
American Whitewater is opposed to sin- jokers. gling out boaters to provide rescue insur- ance coverage when other Park visitors are not asked to be financially responsible for Jason Robertson is Access Director for their rescues. If rescue insurance proves American Whitewater. He has been work- to be a viable concept, it should be applied ing with individuals in the National Park broadly among all visitors. Alternately, Service and Congress over the past 5 years to a mere two-cent surcharge on all Park clarify the roles and responsibilities of rescu- Service visitors for a national search and ers and victims alike. e work has included rescue fund would cover search and rescue the development of new standards for com- activities system wide and would not dis- munication with helicopter rescue pilots and criminate against any specific user group. establishment of the privilege of free rescue Such a fund would rectify the current for people in need. For more information, situation in which individual Park units contact [email protected]. must pay for rescue costs under $500 and regional NPS offices must pay for rescues
24 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 25 November December 2002 November/December 2002 FPO Prijon (Usual) Full Page Bleed FPO Stohlquist (Same as May) Full Page Bleed American Whitewater’s Conservation Program Makes a Difference in 2002
2002 has been a banner year for American “Hydro relicensing provides a tremendous Whitewater’s Conservation Program. opportunity for American Whitewater Twelve whitewater flow studies have been to provide direct benefits to paddlers conducted in hydropower proceedings and the paddle sports industry,” notes across the country. Whitewater flow John Gangemi, American Whitewater studies are a critical step towards restoring Conservation Director. “Paddlers are able whitewater recreation to rivers dewatered to once again enjoy challenging whitewater by hydro dams. American Whitewater runs on rivers that were taken away by staff reviews the more than 1600 private dams.” hydro projects across the country to identify those dams that impact whitewater In California this year we’ve witnessed recreation opportunities. For those projects hundreds of boaters flocking to the with whitewater resources, American whitewater releases on the North Fork Whitewater staff pushes for whitewater Feather River. is formerly dry riverbed flow studies. e studies are designed was brought back to life by the hard work to identify minimum acceptable and of American Whitewater staff fighting optimum flows for whitewater recreation. against significant resistance to put Upon completion of the flow study, whitewater flows back into this stellar American Whitewater staff negotiates Class III-V fourteen-mile run. e Feather country including the Pacific Northwest, with the hydro operators and resource whitewater releases are scheduled June Rockies, Midwest, Southeast, mid-Atlantic agencies to develop an annual schedule of through October annually mimicking and Northeast. e list below provides whitewater releases. e volume and timing natural flows present in the river prior to a sampling of the river restoration work of the whitewater releases are designed in a dam construction. completed by American Whitewater in fashion that will enhance aquatic habitat 2002. For information about American and ecological processes in addition to In California alone American Whitewater Whitewater’s conservation efforts on a river providing recreational opportunities. is working on 14 hydropower proceedings in your area, contact John Gangemi, email Without American Whitewater staff at the currently with multiple river reaches and [email protected] or Kevin Colburn relicense table none of these flow studies whitewater difficulty equating to well [email protected] would take place let alone establishment of over 100 miles of new river miles. is an annual schedule of whitewater releases flow restoration effort reaches far beyond Whitewater Flow Studies for 30 years. California to rivers throughout the
South and West Branch Penobscot River, Maine: In May, American Whitewater staff organized a whitewater flow study for the three-mile Class IV Canada Falls section on the South Branch of the Penobscot and the two-mile Class III Seboomook section on the West Branch Penobscot. Flows in these two reaches are regulated by Great Northern Paper’s reservoir storage projects. Despite the snow and rain a team of boaters paddled seven different flows collectively on the two reaches. American Whitewater staff is currently negotiating an annual whitewater flow schedule based on the participants flow preferences balanced with natural resource needs in the upper basin.
Middle Fork Stanislaus River, Califor- nia: In June a team of boaters volunteered to participate in a series of whitewater flow studies on the Middle Fork of the Stanislaus River. One of the sections, Hell’s Half Acre, proved to be a spectacular Class V first de-
28 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 29 November December 2002 November/December 2002 scent on polished Sierra granite. Further Another team of nine kayakers and six downstream another team paddled the raers returned to study whitewater op- six-mile Class V Sand Bar Flat run again portunities on the Pit 5 reach (August 23, on polished Sierra granite. is group 24 & 25). e Pit 5 bypass reach contains was joined at mile six by another group of a six-mile Class IV+ run and a four-mile paddlers to complete the remaining eight- Class III run. Over the three day period, mile Class V Mt. Knight run. American the team paddled 800, 1300 and 1800 cfs. Whitewater is currently negotiating an e raers preferred flows between 1500 annual schedule of releases for the respec- to 1800 while the kayakers identified a tive reaches based on the flow preferences broader range from 1000 to 1800 with the identified in the studies. latter being the optimum.
Pit River, California: In August, Why go? e Pit 4 reach contains nine American Whitewater conducted distinct Class IV rapids and several Class whitewater flow studies on two reaches III drops. e Class IV rapids present big of the Pit River dewatered by Pacific horizon lines leading into long boulder Gas & Electric powerhouses. e Pit 4 gardens (up to 0.5 miles long) with slalom Paddle raft crew chuckling about their shuttle rig Pit 4 flow study, California hydropower facilities dewater a seven-mile lines to dissect the rapid. One rapid in Class IV reach of the Pit. During a 3-day particular, named “Heart of the Pit” really Opposite, lower left: Jared Noceti running one of the many slots on Hell’s Half-Acre study period (August 9,10 & 11) American brings your Class IV skills forward. Middle Fork Stanislaus, California Whitewater members in kayaks and ras Opposite, upper right: Forrest Hubler launching off paddled flows of 800, 1400 and 1800 e Pit 5 reach contains two distinct superboof during a July 2000 flow study cfs. e 800 cfs flow was unacceptable whitewater runs: e upper Pit 5 reach is a Chelan Gorge, Washington for both kayaks and ras. e 1400 cfs six-mile Class IV+ run with ten solid Class Below: Flow study participants running Bridge flow provided a combination of technical IV+ drops and a great riverwide play spot. Rapid boating and powerful hydraulics. e labeled “Spin City”. e lower Pit 5 reach Pit 5, California 1800 cfs flow increased the power of the is a four-mile Class III reach with several hydraulics making it even more appealing play features. to raers and kayakers. Continued
28 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 29 November December 2002 November/December 2002 e Pit River offers excellent dispersed storage reservoirs, multiple powerhouses camping, mountain biking and fishing. e and too many tributary diversions to count. river reaches are removed from the road for is complex system of water diversions the most part. and powerhouses has greatly altered the Next steps: Whitewater releases on the natural flow of water on Mono Creek, a Pit River are extremely controversial due headwater tributary of the San Joaquin in part to angling recreation and natural River. On August 26, 2002, John Gangemi resource issues. American Whitewater is and Paul Martzen, American Whitewater working closely with other stakeholders Regional Coordinator, participated in a and resource agencies in this hydro Single Flow Whitewater Feasibility Study relicense proceeding to develop an annual on Mono Creek to determine a) if Mono flow regime that balances resource uses Creek was a viable whitewater resource and restores ecological processes to the in the basin and b) if further study was Pit River. Achieving this objective will necessary to identify whitewater flows for require considerable effort by American this reach. Whitewater staff. e Pit River flow studies were extremely successful due in part to Mono Creek proved to be a four-mile PG&E’s assistance with logistics, lodging continuous Class III creek run with one and food, as well as the expertise of PG&E’s Class V rapid directly below the dam. consultants and focus by the boaters. Mono Creek below the Class V rapid offers solid Class III paddlers the opportunity to Mono Creek Whitewater Feasibility improve their creeking skills. e camping Study, California: Southern California is superb with tremendous opportunities Edison operates a series of power plants to also hike, mountain bike, climb, fish and on the San Joaquin starting high up in soak in hot springs in the area. e drive Study Participant below giant penstocks delivering the headwaters and culminating nearly at from Fresno to Mono Creek is an adventure water to JC Boyle powerhouse downstream Klamath River, Oregon the floor of the central valley some 8000’ in itself as the single lane paved road lower in elevation. SCE has successfully winds it’s way through granite outcrops. Opposite: Chuck Lees, flow study participant engineered a water transport system that In addition to Mono Creek, American Pit 4, California diverts flows from the Upper San Joaquin Whitewater will be conducting whitewater and the majority of its tributaries into six flow studies on six additional de-watered
FPO Helicona Press (Same as July) 1/2pg
30 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 31 November December 2002 November/December 2002 Elements of a Recreation Controlled Flow Study reaches in the San Joaquin drainage next What is a Recreation Controlled Flow Who Develops/Organizes the Whitewa- year. If you would like to assist with one Study? Recreation Controlled Flow Stud- ter Flow Study? American Whitewater or more of these studies, contact John ies are designed to identify minimum ac- works closely with the utility and/or their Gangemi [email protected]. ceptable and optimum water volumes for consultant responsible for carrying out flow dependent recreation. e dam op- the study. American Whitewater staff’s Clackamas River, Oregon: In June, erator releases a pre-determined range of expertise is relied upon heavily in the American Whitewater carried out a flow flows selected by whitewater experts with development of the study plan and survey study on the two-mile Cazadero section site-specific knowledge. A team of boat- questions. American Whitewater staff of the Clackamas River below Faraday ers paddles each flow in a variety of water- organizes the team of boaters and selects reservoir. is Class III-IV section is cra, to represent the breadth of potential the range of flows based on local boater downstream of Bob’s Hole past the dam. users. e test paddle group is limited in knowledge, site visits and dam outlet Few boaters know it exists because it size for logistical and safety reasons. constraints. is typically dewatered and out of sight from the road. A team of volunteers Aer each test flow, participants respond Why Does a Utility Conduct a Whitewa- paddled four flows over a two-day period. to a series of survey questions designed ter Flow Study? In 1986 Congress passed American Whitewater will work with to record the quality of the experience the Electric Consumers Protection Act Portland General Electric, the hydropower at that flow. Upon completion of all the (ECPA). ECPA requires the Federal En- operator, to develop an annual schedule for flow releases, participants complete a ergy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to whitewater opportunities. comparative survey form that measures balance power and non-power uses of a the whitewater attributes of one flow waterway when issuing new hydro licens- Klamath, Oregon: American Whitewater against another. e data generated from es. American Whitewater participates in staff is conducting two flow studies on the participant responses helps develop a these proceedings advocating for white- Klamath River; J C Boyle bypass reach and ‘flow preference curve’ that identifies a water flows, a non-power use. Without the Hell’s Corner reach. ese flow studies minimum acceptable and optimum flow American Whitewater’s presence at the are scheduled for September 13-17, 2002. for each watercra type. table, there would be no whitewater flow Hells’ Corner is a sixteen-mile Class IV studies or annual schedules for whitewa- reach. J.C. Boyle is a five-mile Class IV+ to Why are Controlled Flow Studies ter releases. V- reach. We’ll let you know the outcome Needed? e Controlled Flow Study is a in early 2003. critical component in a hydropower reli- Who Participates? American Whitewater cense proceeding for boaters. is study selects participants from the local and re- Hoosic, New York: Just north of Albany, sets the stage for future whitewater flows gional area representative of the paddling NY sits a little whitewater gem that few by enabling the paddling community community. is includes river runners, boaters know about in the area because to identify specific volumes needed for play paddlers, rodeo boaters, weekend hydropower dams dewater the reach. whitewater recreation. Scheduled white- warriors, males, females, raers, kayakers, American Whitewater has already reached water releases typically require a utility to C1, OC1, etc. We filter the list for folks a settlement agreement with Reliant release water into the natural river chan- that are American Whitewater members, Power, the new owner/operator, for five nel foregoing power generation, thereby have a previous history working on con- whitewater releases annually scheduled incurring financial losses to the utility. servation and access issues and lastly, will between April 15-June 15. e flow Consequently, where whitewater releases work hard as a team player during the volume will be determined in a whitewater are inevitable, the utility will favor low- flow study. flow study to be conducted later this fall. water volumes to reduce lost revenue. is is a four-mile Class IV+ to V- reach. I Flow studies eliminate the hydro op- How Can I Participate? Join American suspect the local boaters will be doing laps erators bias by clearly defining the water Whitewater. Get active in river issues in on release days. levels necessary for optimal whitewater your local area. Contact John Gangemi recreation using scientific methodology [email protected] or Kevin Colburn to obtain the supporting preference data. [email protected] Continued on Page 31 Furthermore, pinpointing the optimum flows helps maximize potential whitewa- ter use, thus helping justify a whitewater release schedule while simultaneously foregoing power generation.
When do Whitewater Flow Studies Occur in the Hydro License Process? Whitewa- ter flow studies typically occur between years one and three in the five-year reli- cense process. is time period, referred to as the second stage in relicensing, is the field study phase for a variety of resource disciplines. Study results are used in the third and final stage when the new license is draed.
30 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 31 November December 2002 November/December 2002 FPO Werner (Same as May) Full Page Bleed FPO LL I Full Page Bleed FPO LL II Full Page Bleed FPO LL III Full Page Bleed FPO LL IV Full Page Bleed
www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 37 November/December 2002 Bear River Settlement, Idaho: On August 28, 2002, Rob Lesser representing American Whitewater marched down to the Governor’s office at the Idaho State Capital building to sign the Settlement Agreement for the Bear River hydropower relicense proceeding. Rob’s signature on that document brought to a close one of the toughest relicense battles yet faced by American Whitewater staff.
e Bear River, located in southeast Idaho contains several whitewater reaches the most notable of which is the six-mile Class IV+ Black Canyon of the Bear. e relicense process for the Bear started in the mid-nineties. e battle lines were quickly drawn pitting anglers and state resource agencies against restoration of whitewater flows. PacifiCorp, the utility operating the projects, in a battle of its own with just about every stakeholder, opted to work project. PacifiCorp will provide access Noah Hughes on the Mt. Knight section Middle Fork Stanislaus, California on a settlement agreement in late 2001. to the south side of the Swan River below e Settlement Agreement option allowed the dam including relocation of chain Jim Michaud making it look easy in an OC-1 PacifiCorp to maintain some control over link fencing, parking and a pedestrian Canada Falls, Maine the allocation of water resources rather than bridge across the project canal. Existing letting FERC determine those distributions fencing and project structures obstructed back in Washington, DC. American public access to the river. In addition, the Whitewater expended considerable staff Settlement Agreement calls for Wednesday time at negotiations in Pocatello, Idaho and evening whitewater releases July 1 to legal expense before reaching an acceptable August 31 annually. PacifiCorp will place settlement. e Settlement Agreement a conservation easement on non-project calls for 16 whitewater releases annually lands allowing public access to the river and between April 1 and July 15. PacifiCorp reservoir as well as giving the community will provide real-time flow information of Bigfork the option to purchase 400 acres accessible by the internet and phone as to preserve open space. well as improve public access. In addition, PacifiCorp has committed $16 million for San Joaquin River, California: restoration of Bonnieville cut-throat trout American Whitewater reached agreement in the Bear River. with Southern California Edison (SCE) and the U. S. Forest Service (USFS) for Swan River, Montana: American whitewater releases at the Big Creek No. Whitewater reached agreement in the 4 powerhouse. e annual whitewater summer of 2002 with PacifiCorp for schedule in the agreement calls for six recreational improvements to the Swan FPO River at their Bigfork Hydroelectric Continued kayakstore .com (May) FPO 1/6pg V Surfins (Sept) 1/12pg
www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 37 November/December 2002 Restoring Whitewater days in wet water years, three days in above to the Bear River normal water years and nine days for below normal water years. In addition, SCE will By Richard Hoffman shape spill flows over the dam during run-off events to provide whitewater Bryan Seeholzer was instrumental in the opportunities. SCE’s Big Creek No. 4 discovery of the Black Canyon of the Bear, hydropower project dewaters a six-mile probably because he grew up in Logan, Class IV reach of the San Joaquin below Utah, which is not far away. He also grew Redinger dam. up on skis; his family owned the local ski resort, and he went on to race for the Uni- Kern River, California: American versity of Utah Ski Team. Most paddlers Whitewater reached agreement on an that I know live here because of the Wa- annual schedule for whitewater flows with satch Mountains and the high quality of Southern California Edison (SCE) for the snow that falls on them. Why else would Kern River No. 3 hydropower project. you be a paddler in the second driest state Water spilling from Grace Dam American Whitewater and Friends of the in the nation? Bear River, Idaho River submitted a successful legal challenge in 1997 opposing the U. S. Forest Services In the late winter of 1983, Bryan and his knew him and has kept me going through proposed whitewater flow schedule. e wife, Mary Dern, were returning from the countless years of the relicensing pro- U. S. Forest Service flow schedule violated a cross-country ski race in Yellowstone cess to return boating flows to the Black the Forests’ own legal requirements for when he decided to check out the run. I Canyon of the Bear. protection of stream flows. Previous don't think he saw much from the farm attempts to reach settlement met in failure. fields overlooking the basalt canyon, for it I would like to personally thank the mem- is successful settlement will provide an wasn't until September of that same year bers of American Whitewater for support- average of 38 days of whitewater annually when he and some friends made the first ing the fine work John Gangemi has been from April 1st through August 15th. is known descent of the run. ey found doing for restoring boating flows, not only settlement affects a 17-mile reach of the a fantastic Class IV run with interesting on the Bear, but also on all the rivers going Kern River below Fairview Dam containing rapids, and great play water. is time through relicensing. is is something Class III-V whitewater opportunities. in history was absolutely phenomenal worth working for, and just the sight and Hydropower operations divert water around here for the successive huge water sound of moving water in these reaches from this 17-mile reach upstream from years we had. Salt Lake City had water that have been dry for so long brings pure Kernville. flowing down its streets and the Great Salt joy to every paddler's experience. Lake was flooding, requiring installation Hoosic River, New York: is summer of huge pumps to pump water out to the Editors note: Fighting to restore water to of 2002 American Whitewater wrapped up west desert. e Bear River is so dammed a dry riverbed in a hydropower relicensing negotiations with Reliant Energy (formerly and diverted that flows through this reach process can be a long and less than glamor- Niagara Mohawk) for a new license for the are normally 10 cfs, but in 1983 it was ous process. ere are lots of reasons to Hoosic River hydroelectric project just running in excess of 2500 cfs! walk away from the bureaucratic process north of Albany, New York. e Settlement that moves at a snail’s pace. For some Agreement calls for five whitewater releases Bryan was a true boating addict, paddling paddlers that hang in there, putting in the between April 15th and June 15th annually. all over the west. He traveled east to ex- countless hours of meetings and adversarial Releases will be triggered by inflow. e perience the boating there as well, and on exchanges with other stakeholders is moti- flow volume will be determined in a to Chile, Central America, and even to the vated by a vision for a restored river. Still whitewater flow study n the fall of 2002. former Soviet Union. As a carpenter and other paddlers, like Rick Hoffmann in Salt is is a four-mile Class IV+ to V- reach. log home builder, to support himself he Lake City, are motivated by deeper emo- also became a professional photographer. tions. . .fighting to maintain the memory Some of his work can be found in," Idaho and legacy of a close paddling friend. Rick Little River, Vermont: American Whitewater" by Greg Moore & Don Mc- took up the challenge to restore whitewater Whitewater reached an Agreement in Claren. It’s fitting that he took the photo flows below the PacifiCorp Dams on the Principle with Green Mountain Power on of Bear Falls and helped record the his- Bear River as a way to create a legacy for flows and release dates for the three-mile tory of paddling at that time. his fellow paddler, Bryan Seeholzer. Rick’s Class II (III) section of the Little River commitment to restore whitewater flows on below Waterbury reservoir. is agreement Bryan was the nicest person you could the Bear never faltered. anks to Rick’s in principle awaits further negotiations ever meet, always a smile and a true love tireless efforts over a six-year battle, there with the Vermont Agency of Natural for life. He had this peculiar jaw move- are now 16 annual whitewater releases in Resources. ment when he would get excited on the this six-mile Class IV run. So when you get river. You could always tell when he was a chance to run Grace Falls consider Rick’s John Gangemi works to restore rivers as the bending the needle on the fun meter. Life efforts and then also think about Bryan nation’s expert in hydropower relicensing. is not always fair however, and he lost his Seeholzer doing the first descent 20 years His background as a conservation biologist battle with a brain tumor nearly ten years ago in a 13-foot boat at 2500 cfs. If you insures that AW stands tall for the health of ago now. Some of his ashes are in Idaho notice your jaw twitching at the lip, that’s rivers in its campaign for recreational water next to the moving water he loved most. probably Bryan possessing your body for releases. His memory lives on with those of us who one more jaunt over Grace Falls.
38 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 39 November December 2002 November/December 2002 FLOW STUDY SOUTH BRANCH AND WEST BRANCH PENOBSCOT RIVER AT CANADA FALLS AND SEBOOMOOK: THE MARCH FOR TRIBAL SOVEREIGNTY AND WATER PROTECTION Some folks view the world as random disconnected
events, but I adopt a different view, one of complex inter- Penobscot tribal Elders in spiritual preparation for actions where every action has a distinct reaction both in march on State Capital, Maine Bottom Left: Study participants below Canada Falls the natural world, spiritual world and, yes, the bureau- cratic world full of regulations and politics.
Take the Penobscot River as a case in point. nobscot must in fact be licensed. GNP is e Penobscot reservation sits on an island e seemingly random events and dates ordered to amend previous license applica- in the middle of the main branch of the scribbled below may appear completely tion for downstream projects and include Penobscot River near Old Town. Turtles unrelated at first glance. But on closer ex- the six storage reservoirs. there are polluted with dioxin, a chemical amination, a thread appears weaving these used in papermaking. proceedings, dates and people into one July 12, 2001: FERC meets with stake- issue. at thread is the Penobscot River. holders including American Whitewater, April 25, 2002: American Whitewater is mighty River, known as “place of the the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Penobscot asks me to compile a team of 10+ paddlers descending rocks” by the Penobscot tribe, Nation, the Passamaquoddy Tribe, Great that can commit to 3 full days of volunteer flows from the flanks of Katahdin eastward Northern Energy and others to resolve data collection to develop recommenda- bringing forward cold clean water that is agency differences concerning recommen- tions for whitewater release schedules at the very essence of the people and land it dations for the renewal of dam licenses up- Seboomook and Canada Falls. American passes through. is clean water is a public stream from the Ripogenous Project on the Whitewater and FLOW bring another 10 trust resource belonging to you and the West Branch, Penobscot River, Maine. e volunteers for geographic representation people of the First Nations. stakeholder group eventually agrees that a around the New England region. Orienta- Controlled Flow Study is necessary to iden- tion meetings start at Pittston Farm on the January 23, 1998: FERC rules that eight tify whitewater flows for the Seboomook South Branch, just below Canada Falls at 7 storage reservoirs in W. Branch Penobscot and Canada Falls reaches regulated by AM, May 19th. owned and operated by Great Northern project dams. Power do not need FERC licenses. May 11, 2002: An agreement drawn up September 1, 2001: e Penobscot Na- by the Governor of Maine to end the dis- March 11, 1998: American Whitewater, tion and Passamaquoddy Tribe officially pute between the state and the Indians falls Appalachian Mountain Club, New England announce their resistance to a new ruling apart. Fueling the fire further, paper com- Flow and American Rivers legally challenge that the state of Maine is to take over water panies ask for Internal Tribal documents FERC’s decision not to license. quality regulations from the Federal EPA. that pertain to water quality research and communication. A Maine Supreme Court July 6, 1999: FERC upon reviewing com- The Tribes argue that EPA judge sentences three tribal governors to ments submitted by American Whitewater jail for withholding these documents. To et al, reverses their January 28, 1998 order has stricter environmental avoid going to jail, the Indians agree that determining instead that six of the eight standards than the state by May 24, they will deliver the documents storage reservoirs in the West Branch Pe- as requested, but they will do so under because large corporations protest. (like paper companies) May 15, 2002: Barry Dana, Chief of the tend to dominate a state’s Penobscots asks me to help organize a civil political and environmen- rights march of 33 miles, to protest the de- livery of the Internal Tribal documents and tal landscape in such a way to protest the continued pollution of our state’s rivers. I agree to help Indians and that water quality is often non-Indians join together in this historic compromised. event. e bottom line goal of the march is to highlight the connection between envi- State regulation facilitates “pollution dilu- ronmental protection and social justice. tion” so paper companies can bring their products to market for less cost. e Indi- May 17, 2002: Aer work, aer dark, a ans point out that paper products come at Perception rep crashes the Flow study at the cost of clean water for all Maine people. the very last minute. He hears what we’re
38 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 39 November December 2002 November/December 2002 up to from bros at the Bangor Ski Rack. forms and more discussion. e GNE guys A few years ago this guy worked with go home. ey’ve had enough. Gangemi on another Flow Study, so hell, he’s in. We head out with the usual Maine May 20, 2002: We do two runs at Se- convoy of trucks and vans only to find boomook at 1000 and 500 cfs, fill out more that the frost is just leaving the dirt roads forms and have more discussion over deer up north. e Perception trailer gets le and moose steak cooked in a fire pit by the behind. Crash, bang, tires throwin’ mud, river (a Maine thang). e sun came out for we arrive well aer dark. We sit up half the the first time during the entire study, just in night tellin’ war stories in my van before time for everyone to go home (also a Maine passing out. We can hear the river flowing, thang). e river keeps flowing close by. that constant flow of water that excites your Tom Lajoie nailing a boof on the Canada Falls spirit. I can only hope that all of American May 24, 2002: At 5 AM a group of 50 reach, Maine Whitewater’s Flow Studies start with this Penobscot and Passamaquoddy Indians Bottom Left: Demonstration banner for tribal sovereignty and water protection kind of excellence. and supporters thank their creator for life, family, health, animals, insects, trees and es- May 18, 2002: Over an awesome break- pecially for rivers, streams and waterways. mer months (preferably July and August), fast put together by the fine staff at Pittston 3) a high challenge flow of over 1000 cfs Farms, we meet the other members of our An ominous mist hangs should be offered at least once a year, 4) team along with Great Northern Energy the optimal flows at Seboomook, for a (GNE) officials and an independent hydro- over the river a few yards variety of boaters, is between 1000 and logical engineer. [Note: Shortly aer our 1500 cfs and, 5) a high challenge flow over Flow Study, GNE changes its name to Great away as if warning us of 2500 cfs should be offered at least once a Lakes Hydro America. Regardless, these are the deadly poisons it has year. 6) at least two weekends of 1750 cfs the very same folks who are putting pres- should be offered on Seboomook for rodeo sure on the Indians to turn over Internal picked up since I paddled competition at Double Hydraulic. ese Tribal documents.] Aer breakfast, we get that same water 50 miles recommendations will be included when briefed on how a Flow Study is supposed American Whitewater negotiates terms for to be conducted. Outside, a cold drizzle upstream only days earlier. the next 30-year license, deters our enthusiasm to replace fleece with rubber, but the show must go on. e e documents will be marched 33 miles The incredible, pristine first release at Canada Falls is set for 600. to Augusta, the state capital. Above all else, We have a blast at 600 cfs. e next release Maine’s First People want the river to be beauty of Canada Falls and is scheduled for 900 cfs, which is also very clean. fun. We find waves, holes and challenging Seboomook struck all the rapids. We immerse ourselves in the water; May 25, 2002: 120 people, some Indian, Flow Study participants. drinking its cold clean power. some non-Indian, gather 3 miles from the state capital building. Supporters hold The air there is pure and Because of the cold and wet conditions, we signs reading “It’s About Clean Water” and the water is clean. Why isn’t only get two runs today. Dinner is served; “Water=Life”. Five of the Canada Falls/ we fill out forms and discuss advantages Seboomook Flow Study volunteers are in- it clean down river on the and disadvantages of today’s flows. Some- strumental in this march. e documents main branch of the Penob- one overhears a GNE guy say something are delivered, jail sentences are narrowly about the damn Indians making such a escaped, and Chief Dana’s speech includes scot, a place that Indians fuss…we call it a day and go to bed. But, this statement: and non-Indians call home? the river keeps flowing. ”We were the first people in May 19, 2002: Our team decides to try If you’re not a member of American Canada Falls at 450 cfs to pinpoint the Maine and now industry on Whitewater, please join. Your money minimum acceptable flow for whitewater. goes to great causes like those of this Flow It’s on the low end of fun, barely acceptable our rivers is suing us. They Study and to a conservation program that by closed boat standards, but okay for open attack us at the core of who supports clean river water. If you care boats. Aerwards we travel to Seboomook about Native American sovereignty and/ for a run at 1500 and 2000 cfs. We drive we are.” or a clean Penobscot River from Canada back to Pittston Farms for more food, more Falls to Old Town, please join the Maine July 2002: e results of our Flow Study Coalition for Tribal Sovereignty (call or are published by Great Lakes Hydro Amer- write John Frachella, 79 old County Rd., ica. In all there were 21 boater volunteers Hudson, ME 04449, 207-884-7407). who donated 553 hours of work. e col- lation of data shows that 1) optimal flows at Canada Falls, for a variety of boaters, is between 600 and 900 cfs, 2) controlled releases should be provided during sum-
40 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 41 November December 2002 November/December 2002 FPO NRS (Same as July) Full Page
40 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 41 November December 2002 November/December 2002 FPO RIOT (Same as May) Full Page Bleed
www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 43 November/December 2002 FPO Liquid Skills (Same as July) Full Page
www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 43 November/December 2002 Same Ol’ Place and Time but Not Standing Still
2002 American Whitewater Gauley River Festival™
44 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 45 November December 2002 November/December 2002 On September 21, the skies gently threatened the Nicho- las County Veterans Memorial Park in Summersville, WV. Feeling guilty about hoping the rain would hold, we ut- tered not-so-silent prayers. They were answered with a deluge that waited patiently until Sunday afternoon: the seventeenth AW Gauley River Festival curtain went up and went off, resoundingly.
While in some respects it was ‘just another paddlers who supported AW years ago, and Gauley Fest,’ this icon of an event is evolv- those who are entering the sport today. ing, as is every other aspect paddling. So: what has changed? So: what hasn’t changed? Event attendance hit a new record: 4,604 e Point. We are there to celebrate pad- through the gate during festival hours! dling the Gauley each autumn during the is does not include the vendors (in- Army Corps of Engineers drawdown of creased slightly over 2001) and the 200+ Summersville Reservoir, with the coopera- volunteers who were on site and worked tion of the West Virginia River Outfitters under the superb leadership of Joe Greiner and New and Gauley Rivers’ National Rec- (board member) and Nancy Gilbert. reation Area managers. e Upper Gauley, FPO from the Summersville Dam to Pillow Rock …Speaking of volunteers: aside from field- was saved from being flooded (to feed a hy- ing more volunteers offers than ever, we droelectric dam project) by ‘Citizens for the saw new folks joining the true blue to help Gauley River;’ the raing community and us pound posts, hang cable, park cars and Small World AW drove the National Recreation Area sell raffle tickets. According to Michael designation for the New and Gauley in Phelan, AW Events Director, at one point the mid-eighties; and conservation/access on Friday, EVERY volunteer on the field Adventures issues have surfaced and been addressed was under the age of thirty - maybe twenty- since. We are psyched to be able to meet, five! ank you all, whether your first boat re-greet and offer a hug of thanks to both was a Dancer, Demon, or Disco! (Usual) Continued 1/3pg V
Junior Volunteer Clean-up Crew - Steve Zekany, Bob Smith, Adam Pikulski and Bob Geier Venture Scouts from Troop 8 - Ann Arbor, Michigan
44 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 45 November December 2002 November/December 2002 ing feet until the wee hours; the DJ efforts ‘tween Strut sets were solid. e debut of the Big Gun Show drew a crowd of mul- tiple thousands. On the fringe: Spam was being eaten and otherwise abused at both the Dagger and Extrasport booths, and Per- ception was employing a somewhat shy 40 lb. greased pig to promote their brand…
…Speaking of alternative entertainment: For the first time, AW sought sponsorship for the portable potties around the festival site. A skilled team of judges presented painstakingly craed trophies to those best decorated in terms of 1) visual impact, 2) entertainment from a seated position and 3) successful support of AW’s conservation, access or safety programs. e First Place winner was Teva: Second and ird Place prizes were awarded to Liquid Logic! Next year, get your club (or non-club!) to spon- sor a port-a-potty! NPFF at Pillow Rock: e National Pad- members, thanks to the terrific effort of dling Film Festival crew had cameras roll- our Membership Coordinator Jessie Rice, Gis: A huge round of thanks goes to P.S. ing at Pillow Rock, and video to view at the board members and additional volunteers. Composites and Rock Hedz for donating festival a few hours later. Paddlers who part or all sales of selected helmets to AW, joined AW at the festival were eligible to Full on Entertainment Agenda – Serious to Wave Sport for passing on the proceeds receive a CD of the day’s action, too! music arrived: anks to the talent and from their Dunk Tank, and to Teva for the enthusiasm of Bumper Crop on Friday and sale of 2002 Teva Tour t-shirts. anks also …Speaking of membership: AW signed ‘Strut’ from Asheville Saturday, we got the to those who presented special gis to AW up over one hundred new and renewing full on sound that played to happily danc- at the festival: the organizers of the French
46 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 47 November December 2002 November/December 2002 Broad River Festival ($2,000), and Spencer- Walker Press ($1,383). We could not do our jobs saving rivers without you!
anks to our guests, vendors and volun- teers, all. We look forward to seeing you again, next September!
Above: One of the many new members that signed-up at the festival Left: Teva’s winning port-a-potty decoration Opposite: Paddlers watching their runs at Pillow Rock at the NPFF booth
FPO Sundance (Usual) 1/4pg
46 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 47 November December 2002 November/December 2002 viable party to itself as groups reacquaint and the big-rigs in the shadows draw Gauley Fest 2002 crowds into their holds. But hey – the drone of generators and Wake to the patter of rain on tarps and a view of strung muffled video soundtracks have given way to real music – a band started up earlier, lines and soggy gear dripping onto a gravel parking lot but now the groove is going and the booth- working revelers are unleashed. e lights packed full of steamed up Tacomas and soggy tents: drop a notch sometime around midnight and people are actually watching and danc- Gauley Fest is finally upon us! ing to live music performed at a Gauley Fest! Amazing. Having a progressive e ‘early bird’ shuffle brings the rest of us dunk pro-kayakers, bob for Spam™, dodge band playing aer the video screens have into a long morning of French-press coffee stilted-clowns and unicyclists, and even gone blue and the bulk of the crowd gone and ‘meet and greet’ with all our buddies hear yourself talk. home shis the campground-core into gear from near and far who’ve gathered to pay to start the ‘aer-hours’ party. homage to American Whitewater’s crown About halfway through my first round of jewel access success: the Gauley River. the circle, a commotion towards the center What kind of party actually makes money is year’s edition was an impressive up- is broken up when beamingly-proud new on this sort of thing? e kind American grade – the water warm, the rain stopped, gear-owners swing the fresh booty high as Whitewater throws fall aer fall in the and the party atmosphere bumped up for they strut out to the parking lot. Checks mountains of Southern West Virginia. late-night revelers. are flying, and silent auction winners stash their loot. Soon, the parking lot becomes a Clay Wright OK – the river is still totally playboat in- fested, and some of the world’s best boaters are endurance training in the hole while we wait. Boats of all sorts are ei- ther peeling out in front or dropping in behind you at every eddy.
Just when you think it is your turn, a line of ras appears above, the guides considering whether or not the splash they get as they pass through this hole may affect the qual- ity of their tip. en there’s Panther Creek trail . . .
I don’t know how or when the Festival starts each year, cause I’m in the pack that lost the flow around Sweets and missed the The American Whitewater hospitality tent keg-beer at the top of the hill while hitting big-boat mysteries above the takeout. So Opposite: Spectators enjoying the awesome ir Big Gun Show around dark the Fest is in full swing – a massive circle of boats, gear, tents, and people swirling amongst the whole thing. FPO
e newest toys in the industry are on Canyons (Usual) display and last year’s are on sale a couple booths down. Beverages provide much- 1/6pg H needed relief from the throb of sore ab, hip, and shoulder muscles while the stories of the day’s events swap and swell. You can
48 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 49 November December 2002 November/December 2002 FPO FPO Wilderness Tours ZOAR (Usual) (Usual) 1/4pg 1/4pg
48 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 49 November December 2002 November/December 2002 Events onship. e Championship took place on the Ocoee River in Ducktown, Tennessee End of an Era at what was the 1996 Olympic Whitewater Center. It was no accident that the Ocoee By Michael Phelan, Events Director River was selected as the site for Nationals. Besides the Whitewater Center being the e conclusion of the 2002 Teva Tour only whitewater venue in the United States brings to mind fond memories of some designed for large competitive events, the very dedicated volunteers working very Ocoee River was one of AW’s top conser- hard to host some of the best events in the vation issue in the United States in 2002. United States and Canada. rough the Despite ever increasing pressure from AW hard work of these memorable volunteers and the paddling community, at press time, and the professionalism of the American TVA still refuses to release the public’s wa- Whitewater team, many events sparkled. ter into the Ocoee River from its elaborate e 2002 Teva Tour will be remembered as stranglehold of flumes and dams. one of the most influential competitive se- ries in the history of whitewater paddling. e Tour was designed by American But, what many people do not understand, Whitewater in an effort to do two things. unless they visited or participated in the First off, the Tour was created so that AW Tour, was that the Teva Tour was more than could provide opportunities to promote a series of competitions, it was series of its conservation and access successes in a events selected to raise the paddling com- way that would heighten paddlers’ aware- munities’ awareness of the incredible far- ness of what AW does in their backyard. reaching work of American Whitewater. It was hoped that through that awareness more paddlers would become members of ensure that the Tour would provide both For those of you not familiar with the Teva AW. Well over 200 paddlers have joined incentives and encouragement for amateur Tour, the Tour was a series of fourteen AW at one of the fourteen events on the and professional athletes. Amateurs were events taking place in four geographic Teva Tour. e second goal was to cre- given bonus incentives to compete near regions, spread out across the United ate a competitive framework encouraging home, and ‘pro’ athletes were encouraged States. Each region included three events athletes to participate in kayaking as an to participate by making qualification for all building toward the National Champi- organized sport. Attention was paid to Nationals a requirement to maintain ‘pro’
FPO ACE (Same as Sept) 1/4pg
50 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 51 November December 2002 November/December 2002 status. I am very happy that at virtually all of the events on the Tour both the Sport and Expert classes experienced significant surges in participation. At most events the Expert class represented close to half of the overall competitive field.
e completion of the 2002 Teva Tour rep- resented both the culmination and conclu- sion of AW’s fieen years of shepherding the sport of freestyle kayaking in the United States. Starting in 2003, AW will continue to be intimately involved with events and competitions, but only when and where a significant conservation or access issue burns. Aer fieen years, AW holds to the belief that events are an incredible resource restore the country’s whitewater resources TEVA Black River Rodeo for communicating with the public in a fun for the betterment of the environment and Watertown, New York Opposite: TEVA Wausau Double-Up Challenge and engaging atmosphere. In 2003, AW responsible use. I hope that you will choose Wausau, Wisconsin will host four events. One event will take to support this refocusing of AW’s energies place in each of the four geographic re- through attendance at one or all of the gions established in 2002. Each event will American Whitewater Riverfest™ Events include live music, paddling films, vendors, planned for next year. and competitions. Competitions will in- clude events for both kayaking and raing, ank you, to all of the sponsors, volun- for amateurs and pros, for freestyle and ex- teers, spectators, and athletes who sup- treme racing. e focus of next year’s event ported AW through out the 2002 season. schedule will be on gathering the entire Best wishes and safe travels. paddling community to celebrate white- water rivers, the diversity of the whitewater community, and the need to protect and
FPO Hyside (Same as July) 1/4pg
50 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 51 November December 2002 November/December 2002 America Outdoors and American Whitewater recommend this set of guidelines to those who paddle our nation’s whitewater rivers - common sense river etiquette tips that seem to make plain sense. We hope our members and friends will embrace them and that their reference will help all as river traffic increases, to keep atti- tudes remaining ‘flatwater’ calm and collected.
• Always provide assistance to others who are in trouble or RiverShare™ who are injured. Provide whatever assistance you are qualified to give or help them in obtaining assistance. Guidelines • When traveling on rivers and camping overnight, consult with other groups on the water about their stopping and camping intentions, and strive to cooperate by spreading out Positive, cooperative relationships between river users are important to the future of paddlesports among desirable locations. Do not invade another party’s and to the future of rivers themselves. Please fol- campsite: If darkness, emergency or other factors require you low the guidelines below in an effort to establish or to set a camp close to others, always explain the situation and maintain positive relationships with other river us- attempt to gain their understanding while respecting their ers. Unnecessary conflicts may result in unwanted privacy. regulations and enforcement actions that may limit opportunities and enjoyment of the river.
Rules of the Road • At put-ins and take-outs behave in a friendly, positive manner toward others and be helpful to those who might need assistance. Be mindful of the time that you are spending occupying the launch or take-out area so that you do not unfairly restrict opportunities for others. • Allow for spacing up and downstream of others, particularly in a rapid, and seek to avoid collisions. Colliding boaters should not leave the scene without checking with the other paddlers and making sure that FPO they are unhurt. Do not take any action that escalates conflict. Star Inflatables • When entering a rapid, the upstream craft has the right of way. Those entering the current should yield to those already in it. Never cut in front of an oncoming (Usual) boat. 1/4pg • When exiting the current, avoid eddies that are full, if possible, and take care when entering occupied eddies. Exit an eddy when you see approaching boats, to facilitate your safe exit and entry, respectively. • When playing, avoid blocking navigation by yielding to oncoming, upstream craft. Exit a play spot after a reasonable time to allow someone else to use it.
52 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 53 November December 2002 November/December 2002 Vote for the American Whitewater Board of Directors
Sutton Bacon am currently the Tallulah release coordina- Atlanta, Georgia tor. In addition to my work at the Tallulah, I am heavily involved in the ongoing con- Greetings all! My name is Sutton Ba- servation efforts on the Upper Ocoee and con, and I am sincerely honored to be serve as an active StreamKeeper. I have a candidate for the American White- also had the great fortune of running the water Board of Directors. I greatly look famed Cheoah River at release levels and forward to this opportunity, one where higher, and I am oen heard reciting tales I can take a hands-on approach in from what will become the South’s best helping American Whitewater fully maxi- whitewater run. mize its potential and continue to move itself into the great arena of possibility. When not on the water, I am an entre- preneur, recently leaving my position I learned how to paddle at Camp Caro- as head of a successful Internet con- lina in Brevard, North Carolina, where sulting firm to lead another company as a 10 year-old, I began exploring the developing a chain of retail-based per- whitewater rivers and creeks of the sonal web design studios. I bring to Southeast. Since those days in a Dancer American Whitewater executive business a portfolio of advertising placements in re- XS, I have kayaked in 17 states, and experience in both the bricks-and-mor- gional and national publications. thanks to American Whitewater, my tar and the digital realms, with a strong choices increase every year. My core area competency in intelligent and compelling I live in Atlanta and am a graduate of of volunteerism for AW is on Southeastern marketing solutions. I also have over eight Emory University. Conservation and Access issues, where I years of experience in graphic design with Annual American Whitewater Board Elections e following individuals have been nominated for three-year terms to the Board of Directors of American Whitewater. American Whitewater members may vote to approve as many of these candidates as they choose. Mail the completed ballot to Elections/American Whitewater, 1424 Fenwick Lane, Silver Spring, MD 20910 and we will forward them to our vote tally- ing agency in Pensacola, Florida.
Sutton Bacon Rich Bowers Chris Kelly Don Kinser Charlie Walbridge
Member’s Name ______
Signature ______
52 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 53 November December 2002 November/December 2002 Vote for the American Whitewater Board of Directors
Rich Bowers Since moving to the Pacific Northwest, Bellingham, Washington and between extended paddling and skiing trips, I have been a consultant in non-profit My passion for rivers began 20 years ago, fundraising and management -- includ- and throughout that time I’ve immersed ing developing fundraising strategies for myself fully in whitewater, oen by en- American Whitewater. thusiastically swimming some of the best rapids in the nation! roughout my time with American Whitewater, I always believed that the For many of these years, I found myself highest honor would be to serve as a in even deeper water through the efforts volunteer board member for this organi- and activities of American Whitewater, zation. American Whitewater is a great first as Conservation Director, and then as organization, and I understand that this is Executive Director. I bring to the board of due in great part to the quality of its staff, directors more than twelve years of experi- volunteers, and members. I am pleased to ence and leadership in river conservation, be a candidate for American Whitewater’s public access, human-powered outdoor Board of Directors, but I am even more recreation, non-profit management, fund- honored by the opportunity to continue my raising, and membership. I am a co-author relationship with paddlers and the fantastic of American Whitewater’s Access Policy, work they have done – and will do – for and a principle author of two AW Strategic whitewater rivers. Rich and his daughter Dana Plans (1995, 2000).
FPO Liquid Skills (Same as July) 1/2pg
54 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 55 November December 2002 November/December 2002 Chris Kelly Don Kinser Columbia, Missouri Atlanta, Georgia
Prior to my service on the AW board I had My interest in whitewater boating started no idea how important the organization is in the early 1970’s as a teenager growing to our sport. AW’s contributions in the ar- up in the Washington, DC area. However eas of safety, access, and conservation over it was not until my wife, Nanci, gave me a the past forty-eight years are immense. whitewater canoe for Christmas in 1991 (I figured this was a green light to spend more We are currently in the midst of a vital time on the river) that my whitewater ad- transition from an organization that has diction became serious. Since early 1994, I been primarily volunteer in nature to one, have spent an average of almost 60 days a which must employ professional skills year canoeing the rivers and streams in the while continuing to make effective use of southeastern US. Nanci, Kelsey (age 12), our large and dedicated volunteer mem- Alison (age 10), Max (age 8) and I spend a bers. For example, volunteer Don Kinser is great deal of time at our second home near effectively leading the campaign for access the Chattooga River. We all enjoy spending to the Chattooga headwaters, while staffer time on the river. John Gangemi’s technical expertise was crucial to the re-opening of the Feather During a trip to West Virginia Joe River to paddling. Greiner convinced me to joined American Whitewater in 1995, and I have been an active AW supporter ever since. My volunteer efforts with AW began during the first Tallulah Gorge re- leases in 1997, and I have been working on ties over the last 10 years with the Ameri- Chattooga River management issues since can Council of Engineering Companies of 1999. In early 2001, Risa asked me to serve Georgia. I was president of the organization as a regional coordinator focused on the from 1998 – 2000, and I currently serve as Chattooga watershed. Since then, I have ACEC’s national director, representing worked closely with AW staff members Georgia at the national level. In these dif- Jason Robertson and Kevin Colburn on ferent roles with ACEC I have spent a lot the issues surrounding the Chattooga river of time in legislative advocacy work at both management. I believe we will gain boat- the state and federal level. I have a mechan- ing access to the Chattooga headwaters as a ical engineering degree from Georgia Tech result of AW’s efforts. and a MBA from Georgia State University.
I am the president of EDI, Ltd. Consulting I am committed to AW’s mission. I would Engineers, a firm I founded in 1986. EDI be honored to have the opportunity to is a technology, security and audio-visual serve AW as a director, and I promise to consulting and engineering firm located in be an active and energetic director should e key to continuing a vibrant volunteer Atlanta. I have a great deal of association I get the chance to serve. pool as well as maintaining a competent experience, having served in many capaci- technical staff is membership. AW must increase its member base. If you are kind enough to allow me to serve a second term Charlie Walbridge on the Board of Directors, I will continue Bruceton Mills, West Virginia my work as access chair and seek ways to increase our membership. I first started paddling rivers over thirty years ago and joined American AW also faces a massive cultural challenge. Whitewater very early in my career. I Being the token flat-lander and open boater find the ongoing changes in the sport on the Board, I am oen, and unfairly, the fascinating and believe that adapting target of base kayak humor. If reelected, I to them is AW’s greatest challenge. I plan to rectify this crass discrimination by bring a background in river safety, some making clear that open boating is the very knowledge of the business end of our pinnacle of our sport. sport, and a continued active participation and love of whitewater rivers. It has been an honor to meet, paddle and work with so many of AW’s dedicated members. See you on the river.
54 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 55 November December 2002 November/December 2002 OF BOATERS AND BEARS
By David J. Regela Tatshenshini, Alsek and Chilkoot Rivers
Entering the food chain, voluntarily, puts a humbling perspective on the next 11 days. Rafting the Tatsh- enshini and Alsek Rivers and hiking along part of the lower Chilkoot during a late run of sockeye and pink salmon, delivers us into the heart of some of the best remaining brown bear habitat on earth.
56 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 57 November December 2002 November/December 2002 Hanging glaciers, calving icebergs, and the Aurora Borealis are all components of a wilderness experience where the natural rhythms remain essentially undisturbed.
irteen of us embark on a river trip through the largest protected area (World Heritage Site) in North America. Four national parks, in the Canadian Yukon, British Columbia, and Alaska, comprise the core of the only river system to breach the jagged Saint Elias Range. And despite the outsized grandeur, the freedom, thoughts return inevitably, to Lord Griz.
Stan Boor is a pioneering, globe-trotting river guide who has founded Alaska River Outfi tters in Haines, Alaska. His company has rented us all the relevant equipment, bought and packed the food for our jour- ney and provided transport to our launch site. Almost too easy.
Moments before we kick into the snappy glacial melt, one of our number poses the pregnant question. “What about bears?” bourbon, burn a mountain of fi rewood, but Stan smiles slowly. He’s a low-key kind of on our charter fl ight out of Dry Bay as a the lights don’t show. A low mournful dia- fellow. result of a collision with a goose (or geese). logue between two wolves is the eloquent e girl’s put in some quality time on this. validation of our noble eff ort. “If you hit a particular beach I empathize. Sort of. Fresh bear scat, really fresh, punctuates and fi nd a half-eaten, half- the next day’s hike above timberline. Only Amid the surging white- buried moose carcass,” he four of us press higher. To the ridge crest water chaos that follows, I and distant herds of mountain goats. e says with arched eyebrow, elevation miniaturizes everything below us. miss the riverbank sighting “look for another camp.” Our tent city, even the river. But the view of a lone wolf. In the inter- comes at a price. Dense alder thickets that anks, Stan. Damned good advice. extend for miles must be renegotiated to est of preservation, I direct complete the return leg. Nervous, goosey Actually, I’ve noted an unusual mindset my focus to the living puz- work. Barb talks more than I thought was within our group. ese folks are river vet- humanly possible. e banal details of each erans of expeditionary-style jaunts to South zle that fl ashes quicksilver of our lives are exposed and marveled at, America, Costa Rica, Mexico and Montana. in the waning light. in excruciating detail. Her interest knows And most places in between. Yet I sense an no bounds. We feel like rock stars beset by underlying ‘bearanoia.’ Ken has packed a We camp at the mouth of a crystal side a groupie. e gambit does succeed, how- .12 gauge shotgun at the request of several creek. Bear tracks on the bar. Both brown- ever, as all of us return unmolested to camp participants. We’ve got bear spray. Every- ies and blacks. Our tents form a tight, cir- where Barb’s smug satisfaction is intention- one has camped in bear country before… cumspect little line. ally transparent. Still, something’s askew. is river is growing faster than a coastal As the river continues to Perhaps it began at the Juneau airport bear at a free seafood buff et. Each drain- – with more stuff ed bears than a toy fac- age from the looming, jumbled crags yields swell, it begins to braid tory. Or maybe on one of our warm-up another freshet of silty water. Despite the hikes in the Haines hinterlands. Each hiker, relatively low gradient, the Tatshenshini into intricate, convoluted every fi sherman that we met, was armed to has a raw, liquid power. Eagles become too channels. Moose and wolf the teeth. Do they know something about numerous to merit individual notice. Alaska bears that we don’t? Brenda’s not tracks scroll the sandbars, taking any chances. She’s had a can of bear A long, brisk, overcast day advances us looping and twining like er- spray surgically attached to her right hand. as far as Sediment Creek, a huge outwash plain garnished with wildfl owers. It’s a lay- rant strands of DNA. Cindy has numbered and prioritized over camp, and the sky clears by sundown, Of course, the tracks betray bear as well. her concerns: 1 – eaten by a grizzly; 2 so a few of us mount a vigil to herald the Invisible it would seem. – crushed by a calving iceberg; 3 – crashed northern lights. We drink a fair amount of Continued
56 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 57 November December 2002 November/December 2002 Towagh Creek camp at last. e place is lousy with bear sign. Mike and elma fi nd the most outrageous, deepest prints yet – just outside their tent. “Bigger than my head,” elma insists. No sense moving, I tell her, and point out the long, coarse griz- zly hair rubbed into the bark of the alder that shelters my own tent.
Since we’ve brought the beast, I suggest that Ken address the proper handling of the shotgun with all hands. Shortly a er dinner, he does his demo. Ken explains the mechanics while Cindy handles the weap- on. I watch everyone else watch Ken and Cindy. Ken’s voice is even, reassuring, be- guiling. And Cindy has all the right moves. Just like Hugo the huckster magician and Ramona his smiling, beautiful and mute assistant. For me, the scene plays more sur- real than bizarre. But the others are pay- ing rapt attention. Probably a good thing. Except I think I’d rather face Old Ephraim with a can of pepper spray – unless it was a nighttime tent visit. else asleep, and without a fl ashlight, I take My toes are bruised, my image is shattered, a really lonely, spooky walk. I know that it’s cold out here. Head down, I slink like a No moon. I remember just before bed that bears are attracted to strong smells. ey limping, beaten weasel back to my tent. e I haven’t shut down our toilet system for might balk at venturing into camp, but Great Bear has a longer reach than I would the night. e facility is set up especially what about this place, out on the extreme have believed. And to think that I ridiculed far from camp this time. With everyone perimeter? For the fi rst time in decades I Cindy’s list of fears. How humiliating. recall how it felt as a small child to be afraid of the dark. e confl uence of the Tatshenshini and Alsek Rivers is a place of timeless power. I swim; I fl ail up out of a deep sleep. Some- Indigenous peoples thought it to be the one’s shouting, panicked. “Go away, bear! center of the universe. Everything else has Go away, bear!” Grabbing my bear spray, been prelude. Even the black bear just be- I’m out of the tent in a heartbeat, sprinting low Towagh Creek. It is our fi rst bear, but naked toward the distress call. “Where is not ‘real’ bear. it?” I yell. “Where’s the problem?” Fresh snow on the mountains, stark, vir- “No problem, David,” comes big John’s ginal in bright sunlight. e valley has disembodied voice. Strangely calm. “Look widened. Our views of spires, pinnacles, up,” he suggests. glaciers, extends to 360 degrees. A grizzly, a big one, is fi shing a side channel. I realize, I’m stunned. The Aurora with the aid of binoculars, that this is the biggest bear I have ever seen. Borealis has fi lled the night sky. From every quadrant, A formidable hulk, toklat the pulsing, shifting, lumi- colored, the bear splashes nous energy is invoking its after salmon, moving with magic. Most of the camp is absolute authority. In this already awake, spellbound context, in this place, this at the heavenly benedic- animal is indeed Lord Griz. tion. Top of the food chain. It just doesn’t get any better I am….still naked, still clutching a can of bear spray. How in the world did I process than this, for the bear, or “northern lights,” into “go away bear”? I’m for me. ingesting too much caff eine. Or something.
58 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 59 November December 2002 November/December 2002 We watch the monarch for a long time. Getting our wind, fi nally, it eases away, eclipsed by the broken treeline and by sheer distance. Camp is but a mile beyond.
e northern lights visit early at the confl u- ence. More color, more electric movement than the night before. Shooting stars com- pete with the undulating green ghost fi re, with the rock solid outline of Ursus Major – the Big Dipper, sky bear.
Walker Glacier rewards our pilgrimage with more rousing opportunities to see ur- sus arctos. A grizzly sow with a large, dark cub haunts the riverbank above our camp. e youngster has more energy than that bunny of civilized, mechanized fame. Two huge solitary grizzlies sequentially cross the glacier itself, while another griz inves- tigates the melt-lake and moraine debris at the glacier’s foot.
Nobody hikes alone, here, at Bear Central. Our trip photographer suff ers an honor of the size of yesterdays bears results in zon, and icebergs abound at Alsek Lake. guard whenever he trundles out to con- general disbelief. Recovering our compo- In the channels into and out of the lake sider the changing tapestry of light and sure, a small bit of the glacier disappears itself, we river runners learn a sober new shadow. It is not until the next day, when into various cocktail cups. game. Berg dodging in a gusting, gale force we mob the glacier surface on foot, that we windstorm. Several glaciers regularly birth can really appreciate the awesome scale of Fi een thousand three hundred foot these sapphire navigational obstructions. the big blue ice cube. A quick recalculation Mount Fairweather dominants the hori- Combined with a freight-train current of 8
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58 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 59 November December 2002 November/December 2002 to 10 mph, it’s better sport than any video erratic. She intimidates, forcing their pas- game ever invented. e bergs can break sage through the human gauntlet. up, roll, or snag on the river’s bottom. We do the fi rst scouting of the trip and emerge Near the outfl ow of the lake, a man-made intact. weir has been constructed to count the number of returning salmon. A clever bear e only nighttime camp intrusion victim- has learned to cull the fi sh that become izes my wife, Karen. A bug insinuates itself trapped against the obstacle. e Chilkoot into her ear, prompting the hasty prepara- River has a substantial gradient at this tion of a hot water ear-enema. Mike shines point, and if the bear loses its purchase it a fl ashlight into Karen’s ear canal before will surely drown against the barrier. e we can load the syringe with water, and potential makes me tense, uncomfortable. the bug heeds that universal summons to ‘go toward the light.’ Good job, Mike. e An ebony bear puts in a cameo appearance pepper spray was next. on the far side of the river, prompting all of the other bears to remember prior com- An impending storm persuades the Dry mitments. During the lull in the action, we Bay ranger to radio our air charter 12 hours speak to a couple of shotgun-toting fi sher- Subadult bears are o en referred to as ‘hoo- earlier than planned. A quick vote deter- men who tell us about being chased back to ligans’ because of their variable disposi- mines that Pablo is the most expendable, so their vehicle, hours earlier, by a pugnacious tions. Still young, still learning, a hooligan he gets to baby-sit the gear at the take-out, grizzly. may push into situations where a mature while the rest of us escape to Haines. bear would not. is might well be the griz Dave, our photographer, and I content that chased the two local lads. Being ‘one During a group dinner, a local informant ourselves with distant camera shots of a with the bear’ is this context would not be relates that the sockeye are still spawning chunky, subadult bear that has begun pros- a good thing. on the nearby Chilkoot River, and the bears pecting a small channel on the opposite are not uninformed. Since the storm is shore. e bear elects to swim. In less than “And me with Halibut breath,” I croak to lagging off the coast – Pablo made it back 30 seconds we are much too close. Dave, referring to our recent repast. If he – we repair to the mountain environs of hears me, he off ers no response. So much Chilkoot State Park. “Too close,” Dave echoes. for diff using tension with humor. e bear pauses at about 40 feet. A dying or de- A female grizzly with a beautiful golden We both realize we need to ceased salmon proves to be our temporary cub is meandering near the river’s mouth, salvation. monitored by a trio of harbor seals. Almost hold our position. Too late immediately, a group of hikers, jousting for to leave. And the bear is e buff er continues to hold. Another photo ops, blocks the pair from the secu- salmon. A last, lingering, baleful look of rity of the trees. e sow displays acute pressing forward. distain, and the young outlaw stalks down- distress. Her movements quicken, become river. Dismisses us without a backward glance.
Despite the excitement that our little drama generates, the behavior of these habitu- ated bears distresses me. e uncontrolled proximity of people at the Chilkoot dis- turbs me as well. If the confused balance is disrupted, the consequences are obvious. A 300-pound subadult bear can do a lot of damage. Very quickly. Retribution would be swi and ugly.
is Chilkoot fl ing seems in rude contrast to the pure, elemental order of the Tatsh- enshini watershed. To live with the bear, to immerse oneself totally in the wild, re- mains the ultimate privilege. Perhaps the wisdom of the Old Ones, the native people, is literal – that the confl uence of the Alsek and Tatshenshini is the center of the uni- verse. It is certainly the spiritual core in the domain of the great bear.
60 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 61 November December 2002 November/December 2002 At the Creek Without a Skirt The Best of West Virginia: North Fork of the Blackwater
By Jimmy Blakeney. Photos contributed Our first stop was the Cathedral Café in by Mike Moore from a separate trip on the downtown Fayetteville. Great breakfast, North Fork of the Blackwater. coffee, and free internet access onfast com- puters. Now that the rain had subsided, it is past spring my good friend, Steve was time to check levels. Wow! ey were Fisher, was in town for the Liquid Lifestyles very high all across the state. e Gauley Aerated Tour, which went from town to above the dam was 8,000cfs, the New reg- town showing Scott Lindgren’s latest kayak istered six feet in the Gorge with tons of flick, Aerated. As many of you already water upstream, the Tygart was running Mike Moore at Glutial Mash know, Steve is an amazing kayaker, best 5,600cfs, and the Blackwater was at 1,500 Photo by Gary Berti known for his exploits on the heavy waters cfs. And every graph indicated that the riv- of the Zambezi river in Africa and as part ers were still going up! “I’m not going up there, I’ll just paddle of the historic first descent team through something around here,” Todd replied. the Tsang Po gorge. Luckily for Steve, he Aer a quick breakfast we went to check “Why drive three hours when everything was visiting Fayetteville, West Virginia in a few local creeks and found things to be will be running in Fayetteville?!” He had a the spring, the best time of year to sample what we call ‘blown’. Yep, locally we had too point, the very point that kept many a local the incredible whitewater West Virginia has much rain; everything was way too high to Fayetteville paddler from venturing very to offer. Again, luckily for Steve, there had run! far from home on rainy days. But aer see- been a lot of rain, and it was still coming ing the set-up for a total stall in Fayetteville, down. This is exactly the kind of and knowing how much rain had fallen up scenario that can lead to in northern West Virginia, I decided to take Aer the premier of Aerated at the Class the chance. At least I’d go down in flames VI raing company, we returned to my wavering, delaying and instead of sittin’ around waiting. house in Fayetteville, and along with my second guessing… until wife, rodeo boater Erica Mitchell, began Steve was supportive of my decision, and scouring the internet to determine exactly everyone has lost their mo- with good reason…he’s never paddled how much rain had fallen and where. e around here. Erica on the other hand was best resource for paddlers aer a big rain is tivation, or it is just too late doubtful, “Jimmy, we’re going to drive three a detailed radar loop and a Gazetteer topo to launch. hours and don’t even know if it’s running map. With these tools you can determine or flooded out?! Why not just wait here for exactly where the rain has fallen, county But I was determined this wouldn’t hap- something to come in?” by county, watershed by watershed. Our pen, and I had just the plan to ensure that it research indicated that everything in West wouldn’t, or so I thought. “NO! I will not become another victim of Virginia would be going off the next day! the ‘wait and see’ policy! I’m taking pro- e preceding night I had talked to my active measures to see that Steve gets to Good and bad news. Good because of all friend, Todd Richendollar, about the North paddle something with good water and big the options, and bad because, well, there Fork of the Blackwater, a run I had done drops.” ere was no stopping me at this were so many options. ere have been once before at a great level. I really wanted point. I knew what must be done, and so times when too many options have resulted to go back. Could this be the opportunity? we headed north. in wavering, delaying and second guess- ing… to the point where all the options Todd was doubtful, “No way The North Fork of the are suddenly gone. Not this time. I was man, I lived in Morgantown Blackwater is a one-mile determined to show Steve how good the paddling in West Virginia was and this was (an hour from the creek) for run dropping around 400 surely an ideal time. four years and never caught feet. After paddling it twice The next morning I woke to that run at the level you did, in one day at a level of 1.8 rain falling on the stack of much less higher!” feet, considered an ‘opti- I pleaded for some glimmer of encourage- mal’ level, I knew I wanted boats just outside my bed- ment, prying at him for even a maybe. room window. There is no to go back with substan- “But Todd, were getting slammed! is is a tially more water. sound as sweet as rain fall- lot of rain,” I said. ing on plastic. Continued
60 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 61 November December 2002 November/December 2002 I wanted to film that run as well. So I hoped the level would be very high, but not too high. Erica and I drove our Chevy Avalanche while Steve was in his Land Rover Freelander, both vehicles provided by our sponsors. e three-hour drive went quickly, and we arrived with high hopes because all the indicator creeks were swollen. Indicators, as you know, are an im- portant part of the kayak experience when traveling to a river. I don’t know a single paddler who can cross even the smallest rivulet without craning his or her neck to see if there is any water, rocks or gradient, and each time secretly hoping to discover some new, uncharted first descent.
What happened next was a terrible mo- ment that most of us have experienced at one time or another. As you all know kayaking is a gear intensive sport where you must keep track of lots of pieces that are constantly being moved back and forth between vehicles. “Remember how I lent Clay (Wright) my Dave Bruton at Boof Left, Piton Right Photo by Mike Moore “Oh, shit!” Erica said with a glazed look on skirt for your trip to New Hampshire? her face. Well, he never gave it back.”
“What?!” I demanded, knowing the answer “Ohhhh, sh*#”, I added, to complete the would somehow bear negatively on our emotional anguish engulfing our minds. ability to paddle.
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62 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 63 November December 2002 November/December 2002 So there we were, fieen minutes from the was nice enough to call around, but still put-in, and Erica with no skirt. had no luck. It seemed all the boaters he knew were open boaters…. Lots of good “Dammit, dammit!” I cursed over and over, that does us! en he remembered some- “it’s always something”. one who actually paddled a decked boat. “Yeah, Dr. Rader paddles a kayak, and so Here we were, right at the river, the level does his wife. His office is just down the was perfect, but about to drop out (ev- street.” Now this sounded promising. I ran ery kayaker’s nightmare) and now, of all down the street checking my watch…still things, we have to deal with missing gear! early, but the river could be dropping. is Knowing time was of the essence, I quickly frightened me more than the thought of switched from my whining mode to my not finding a skirt. firm course of action mode. I entered a small office building with Dr. Davis is a small town ten minutes from the Rader’s name on it. Inside was a waiting put-in of the North Fork. It’s known in the room with several patients and a reception- paddling community mostly for a really ist. “May I help you?” asked the reception- good pizza joint, but I knew there had to ist, smiling politely. be boaters around. Davis is the kinda’ town located near lots of good rivers where you “Hi! How are you? I was wondering if Dr. know lots of boaters must live, but you just Rader was in?” I asked, trying my best to never seem to see them around. It’s almost get the lady on my good side. like they know the tourist boaters are com- ing and do their best to hide until they’re “Yes he is”, she replied. gone. Well, I was determined to find one of those boaters if it was the last thing I “Would he have a second to speak with did. e only other option was to drive 45 me?” as nicely as I could muster without minutes to Deep Creek Lake in Maryland, being presumptuous. where the closest whitewater shop was located. No way, we could find a stupid “What is your name?”, she asked. I could sprayskirt here! tell she was beginning to wonder who the hell I was, and I was trying to sell. We started at the pizza place, no luck. Next, we drove past a small apartment complex “I’m Jimmy Blakeney, a kay- and saw a boat in the back of a truck. aker”. There, the trap had Knocking on every door in the place yield- ed not a single answer. If there had been a been laid. Now we would sprayskirt in the truck, I would have been see if Doctor Rader was tempted to leave a note and take it, but if that paddler ended up at the put-in to some really a paddler or not. A river later that day and discovered a note in place of his or her skirt, I would surely have few moments later the re- had some serious negative karma coming ceptionist came back, “He’ll my way. Desperation began to set in, but we persevered. be out to see you in a mo- ment.” Next stop was a bike shop. e clerk/owner Continued
62 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 63 November December 2002 November/December 2002 I waited anxiously, wondering if this was one that will fit Erica perfectly.” Jeez, this Finally, on with our intended mission! I going to end up wasting precious time or was incredible! hate nothing more than backtracking, actually accomplishing our goal. e door sidetracking or otherwise being forced to to the back offices opened, “Hi, are you We drove out of town past Erica and Steve, sidestep away from a river trip. But when Jimmy?” who were waiting in their vehicles. I waved it does happen, there’s nothing like the feel- and tried to signal that things would soon ing of getting back on task. So, back to the “Yes. Dr Rader, I’m sorry to bother you, but be OK, but they didn’t seem to notice me in anxiety that goes along with approaching I’m kinda’ in a tight spot.” I proceeded to the foreign vehicle. Oh well, they can wait, a river gauge when you’ve driven a long explain our predicament and told him who we’re about to have our problem solved. distance, and you still don’t know for sure we were. I did my best to drop the names if the level will be right. As we approached of local paddlers that I knew, hoping we’d Dr. Rader lives about five minutes out of the put-in gauge, it was apparent that we find some common friend, so he would feel town in a nice secluded house. “I think all had plenty of water. At the NF Blackwa- comfortable in loaning me gear. Hearing of our gear is in the basement,” he said, as ter, boaters park on top of the first drop, that I paddled with Mike Moore, a well-re- we walked down a flight of stairs. “Here’s a 38-foot waterfall. e take-out is at the spected ‘local’ paddler, seemed to give him my skirt, a medium tunnel, large keyhole confluence of the main fork of the Black- some reassurance. Mountain Surf”. Erica’s exact skirt, except water. From there boaters must hike 400 a medium instead of small. feet straight up to an old railroad bed that Aer listening to my vain attempt to ex- runs back to the put-in. plain our situation while not sounding like “is will be perfect”, I said. a moron, Dr. Rader thought for a second The gauge is located just and said, “I think I can help. Let me finish “OK, but here, take this one too just in case. with this patient, and I’ll be back.” Holy It’s my wife’s, an old skirt, but much small- upstream of the first wa- crap, this guy was going to interrupt his day er.” I think with these two skirts we’d have it to help us out! covered and even have a backup in case we terfall, but I was unable to lost one! e doc dropped me off by Erica locate it. It seemed logical, A few minutes later, Dr. Rader came out and Steve, who upon seeing me step out of wearing a jacket and carrying car keys. a strange car with two skirts, immediately therefore, to assume we “Why don’t you just ride with me, we’ll began laughing. “If nothing else Jimmy had plenty of water. go to my house. I know I’ve got a skirt for Blakeney, you’ve got perseverance”. Erica to use, and my wife might even have
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64 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 65 November December 2002 November/December 2002 Aer scouting the first few drops the picked up speed as it approached the lip of adrenaline began to pump. Water was NOT the drop. I checked and re-checked the going to be an issue. e North Fork of the currents to make sure the approach line Blackwater could drop 200cfs and still not I chose would put me on the lip where I be scrapy. And more so, at this level even wanted to be. is is a crucial step in run- the first waterfall looked runnable, and fun ning any drop where precision is required. (a key factor when determining whether or It doesn’t matter how clean a drop looks if not a difficult rapid is going to be run or you can’t get to the spot where you must be not…but then again I guess fun is relative). to make the crux move. Reading the lead- in to a rapid is analogous to reading the e three of us geared up excitedly while green on a golf course. But in whitewater our dog Hailey, happy to be out of the car the green is flowing, and you are the golf at last, scampered up and down the road ball. And of course you don’t want to end and along the creek. Aer suiting up, it up in the hole! was determined that I would run the falls first, with Steve setting safety and filming I got a thumbs-up from one of the paddlers, from river le below the falls. Erica would who showed up at just the right moment be positioned on river right. We felt it was for some whitewater entertainment. He important to set safety on both sides of the looked at me curiously, probably wonder- river, even though this meant that Steve ing if I was some yahoo or if I actually knew would have to carry down to the base of what I was doing. the falls and make a difficult ferry across the river. Spectating while someone runs a big “iffy” rapid is a e whole waterfall landed directly in front of a bus-sized rock that protruded from the unique experience; a blend le bank and was badly undercut. At this of displaced adrenaline level, water was feeding swily into and under it. Obviously, we couldn’t run the peppered with the knowl- falls anywhere but right, but there was a edge that you are not the catch to that, too. A long triangle shaped guard rock, coming up from the back of one taking the risk. the pool, meant that I would have only a Mike Moore at the first drop just below the tiny window in which to land if I wanted Focus set in as I peeled out of the eddy and impressive Douglas Falls Photo by Carolyn Dick to flush right and not le into the under- onto the thread of water that lead to the cut. To make matters even more complex, exact point on the lip I wanted to be. e the rock angled into the landing zone… sense of focus required to paddle difficult ity, air, water and time. ose who paddle where it was only four or five feet under whitewater is one of the more enjoyable best understand them, but we also know water. Hence, penciling in would result in feelings I get from kayaking. Slow motion that it’s not something with a precise for- an unpleasantly abrupt impact. My idea sets in, boat and being merge with the cur- mula that will guarantee the desired result. was to boof the lip angled right at about rents, flowing towards the result that I have 45 degrees and to drop the nose around 30 envisioned, and I am confident is predeter- Lioff. Time rushed into fast forward as degrees or so, avoiding a totally flat landing mined. is is how you should feel above freefall sets in. Plans for this moment are (flat off a 30+ footer is not advisable). Just a class V+ drop. A feeling of confidence, usually made in a slow motion mind dance, as I was putting on, a car pulled up with two tempered by the knowledge that it’s impos- but once the moment comes, reflex reac- boaters. Seeing that I was about to run the sible to fully meld with the river exactly as tion is all that’s le. Boof stroke, not too falls, they asked if they could film. “Sure, planned every time. e river holds secrets hard, just enough to keep the nose from and would you mind signaling to the two hidden in the complicated physics of grav- falling off. Body levered forward to drop paddlers downstream when I’m about to go?”
I got in my boat and warmed up, waiting ...while visions of for the signal that Steve and Erica were Paco Pads danced ready. e water and rocks were an orange brown color, due to the high water and the through their heads... fact that this stream is laced with acid mine runoff. Not too many years ago, very few people would paddle this stream because of Happy Holidays from the pollution, but the quality of the water Paco Pads Jack’s Plastic Welding, Inc. has improved due to a government funded Dry Bags mine reclamation project. I ferried back Inflatable Boats 115 S. Main Ave. • Aztec, NM 87410 and forth in the eddy just above the slightly (505) 334-8748 sloping ledge that led to the falls. e water www.jpwinc.com
64 American Whitewater www.americanwhitewater.org www.americanwhitewater.org American Whitewater 65 November December 2002 November/December 2002 the bow at just the right angle. Hips tilted e next drop was a 25-foot tall slide. I ran Finally we thanked Dr. Rader for the slightly to compensate for the fact that the it first while Steve filmed. Once at the bot- skirt(s) and headed out the door. It was rock in the base of the drop is also angled. tom, I set up and filmed Erica, then Steve. I sleeting now aer an overcast day in the If I hit it I wanted to take it directly under filmed the next drop from the top as Steve 40s, a typical West Virginia spring weather. the seat of the boat, not on my side. leapfrogs downstream to shoot Erica and I from below. And so it continued for the Steve’s original plan was to head north aer The future rushed towards next mile, filming and paddling what I con- paddling, but aer our epic North Fork sider the best mile of whitewater in West Blackwater run and listening to me hype me and caught my momen- Virginia. Not the longest run or the hard- other runs near Fayetteville that would tum in the shallow aerated est run, but a run that offers it all: a 38 foot surely be running the next day, he caved waterfall (run four times now), difficult but in and decided to head back south with us. landing zone. clean boulder rapids, a 25 foot slide, a 30 e three-hour drive went by quickly as I I continued to fall into the water as my foot waterfall, a slide into a 15 foot water- reminisced on the day we’d just had. But hull compressed the liquid and loaded the fall, seasoned with numerous enjoyable this wasn’t to be the last epic day associated volume of the boat in the temporary crater boofs and slides. with this rainstorm. Tomorrow would be I’d created. As if in reverse, the boat leapt just as exciting…. up and out of the water, my body weight We would have liked to hike back to the centered directly over it so that no brac- put in for a second run, but thanks to the e Best of West Virginia continues in ing was required. Immediately, I was on a missing skirt episode and our extensive the next issue: the New River Dries at right stroke and heading towards the rapid filming, we ran out of light. So we loaded 16 feet,‘e un-shuttle.’ just below the falls. I heard several excited, up and headed straight for the pizza place almost amazed exclamations. Everything in Davis. Jimmy Blakeney and Erica Mitchell are married and was clear now; the crux had been made. live in Fayetteville, West Virginia when not traveling the e rest felt like a dream, as every relaxed Back in town, I called Dr. Rader and asked world kayaking. Erica is the current World Champion of freestyle kayaking. Jimmy is one of the world’s finest stroke was placed in just the right spot at him to join us for pizza and beer. We sat freestyle and creek boaters. You can see footage of the just the right moment. and talked of common friends, rivers, gear, North Fork Blackwater and other runs at Jimmy and food, how we got into boating…all the Erica’s website, www.prokayaker.tv. Prokayaker.tv I caught the first eddy available, two drops other things that make hanging out with documents their travels through writing, photos and below the falls. Reality rushed back as I paddlers feel like you’re part of a big ex- video. You can also visit Steve Fisher’s personal website looked up at Erica, Steve and the two other tended family. at www.stevefisher.net for more of his exploits, including onlookers who smiled along with me. For photos of his trip to West Virginia. me, running a big drop successfully is noth- ing more than the confirmation of my un- derstanding, at least a little bit, of what the hell is going on.
I got out and exchanged hand signals with Erica and Steve, telling them the run went well and that I was not injured. From my perspective, the falls was a go. Steve sig- naled he was going back up to put in. I carried back to the base of the falls, took the safety kit that Steve le for me and ferried across the river to set safety by the undercut. Steve ran the drop successfully, though with a bit of a hard landing… due to a slightly overzealous boof stroke. Erica FPO decided to put in just below the falls, and we continued downstream. Riversport One of our goals with this trip was to film the entire North Fork, top to bottom, with- 1/3pg H out any gaps. We wanted to create a virtual tour down the North Fork, so the viewer would be able to see every rapid from the top and bottom as it leads into the next drop. I hate it when videos don’t put rapids into context. My attempt was to do so in the most thorough way I could. e North Fork is the perfect foil for this type of mis- sion, since each drop leads directly into the next with very little down time in pools or boogie water.
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