California Dreaming.

Adrian Healy, Frazer Pearce, Andy Roo, Mat Upton, Rich Carson, JTLC, Jem Masters, Martin Lamb. CJ joined us for a few days.

This is an account of our trip to California, May 8th-25th 1997. Between us we were reasonably experienced, having paddled in Nepal, Costa Rica, Chile, Alaska, Idaho, Norway, Zimbabwe, Tennessee and extensively in the Alps. Most of us had previously multi-dayed on IV+ water and our least experienced paddler had Norway and the alps behind him. We flew the majority of our equipment, generally choosing shorter boats. We brought 2 topos, 2 hurricanes, an RPM and a diablo and hired a couple of dagger outbursts. This time of year is usually very early season but this year the melt was early and so we saw excellent levels.

All in all we had an excellent time. California really does have some of the best and most intense pushy white water we've ever seen. Our major mistake was going in cold. On reflection we could all have done with several days warm up before trying this. If you want to boat with the big boys, better get fit and have sat in a boat within the last 6 months. No amount of dry creek boating in Scotland is going to prepare you for continuous 100+ cumec torrents.

We began slowly by warming up on Chilli Bar, which seemed to be at a good level. By the end of the trip it had dropped a lot and was at 1700cfs (55 cumecs) according to the board at the shop. I'd guess it was closer to 100 cumecs the first time. Lots of fun surf waves and a couple of nice play holes, particularly the one right at the get on.

Next we met up with some friends and tagged on behind Evans and several locals to run Sierra City on the North Fork of the Yuba. This was a very pushy run cold, with several river wide trees, lots of volume and a steep gradient. We succeeded in making a complete pigs ear of it, with a couple of swims, boats dropped in the water, lack of co-ordination and poor teamwork. About the only thing we did get right was not missing eddies on the front. As a group we had never boated together before and although we all knew at least a couple of the others very well we hadn't yet gelled. Thouroughly chastened we went along to Evan's `start of the season' boating party and got thoroughly smashed. A truly outrageous night.

Waking up with hangovers we decided to stick to something closer to our strengths and headed out to run Pauley Creek. A great `little' river running around 30 cumecs, maybe more, with a couple of 20 ish feet drops and a larger (unrunnable, but has gone) 30 foot drop. This stretch looks really hairy upstream of where we got on, if you can put up with the 2 mile walk in. Mistakenly we did it in both directions, which did the hangovers no end of good. Major tree hazard, particularly upstream.

Convincing our friends that they wanted to stay another day we ran the Downieville (Rosasco Canyon) and Goodyears Bar sections of the Yuba, Rosasco turned out not to be as bad as it looked from the road. Maytag (apparently a make of washing machine, not an original rapid name) went, but not by any of us on the day. Again, big water but not as difficult as Sierra City and with fewer trees.

Deciding to slow the pace a little in preparation for a big day on Giant Gap we ran Edwards to Purdens on the South Fork of the Yuba, an excellent float with great scenery. Seeming incapable of avoiding epics on the trip we helped carry out a kid with a broken shin near the finish.

To get some idea of what Giant Gap had in store for us we spent the next day running Chamberlain Falls, the section imediately below Giant Gap on the North Fork of the American. The levels seemed excellent and we all had a good day. Again, a deep gorge and lots of isolation. In the evening we walked the boats down to the put-in for Giant Gap. The trail drops 2000 feet from the road in around 1.5 miles through a series of switchbacks. Like getting the train to the top of Snowdon and then carrying your boat down again. Followed by a brisk stroll back to the top. Beautiful views from the dusty doss-site at the roadhead. This section is 14 miles long, the first 7 at IV+ with a few V's thrown in. After this it eases to IV and then III+. A full days paddle when you include the walk down the cliff to start. At the hardest point, the Gap itself, the river cuts though 2000 foot high walls, with the river the only access. Not a good place to walk out from. A very good day and well worth the carry in.

Having made the choice to head north for the remainder of the holiday (you can't cover all of California in a mere 2 weeks, there is masses to do), we drove up to look at the Upper Sacramento. This was dry, being dam released, so we continued up into Oregon to run the Upper Klamath. A great section which was bankfull when we ran it, around 100 cumecs. Great fun was had by all through the 4-5 miles of just about continuous IV water. Very like the good old Dora Baltea or the Lower Oetz in the evening. Big, bouncy with the occasional monster hole. Best place to be, right in the middle, trusting your eye to miss them.

After the Klamath we looked at the Scott, but the lack of water found no-one enthusiastic so we continued down to the Salmon. Great things had been said about this river and it lived up to its reputation. Hitting the water at Bloomer Falls at 3pm we paddled all the major rapids before taking out at Wooley Creek around 7pm. A really cracking paddle with Freight Train providing perhaps the biggest rapid of the trip.

Enthused by the previous day we went upstream to try our hands at the South Fork of the Salmon. Running the section between mile posts 15 and 10 we had the trips major epic, with Jem getting pinned in one of the drops. Less than half the river managed to crush his boat and left the bank support extremely worried. Two throwlines and a lot of wriggling freed him and brought him to the side, badly shaken but not stirred.

The holiday was drawing to a close, so after finding Burnt Ranch on the Trinity running at 7 feet (3000 cfs) we talked ourselves out of getting on and headed south for Yosemite. The floods have changed the course of the Merced, so after being convoyed down the road we scouted the section above the gas station in El Portal. Again, big volume, continuous and very sharp rocks because the Merced has cut a new channel for itself around 100 feet from the old one. Half a mile from the road block the river gets really silly but below that it all went. We got out at the guidebook get in, the washed away Red Bud campsite. That night we camped high above Yosemite valley at Old Inspiration Point. Yosemite is truly awesome at this time of year.

To wind down, we visited some big trees and ran Chilli Bar again, quite an anticlimax after the furious water of the past fortnight. Boy, did Chilli Bar look flat.

So, in summary, if you want good boating, go to California. Get fit and expect big, powerful water with trees hazards and large holes. If you get fazed you can always tag along with the locals who will enjoy getting you trashed and pulling you out. Local skill levels are very high.

Rivers:
(standard disclaimer applies to all river information, grades are ours on the day and are, like those in the guidebook, real) 

South Fork American: Chilli Bar                 III
North Fork Yuba    : Sierra City                V
Pauley Creek                                    IV  (VI)
North Fork Yuba    : Rosasco Canyon             IV+ (V+)
North Fork Yuba    : Goodyears Bar              IV
South Fork Yuba    : Edwards - Purdens          III+
North Fork American: Chamberlain Falls          IV
North Fork American: Giant Gap                  V
Upper Klamath                                   IV
Salmon                                          V
South Fork Salmon                               V
Merced             : El Portal - Red Bud        V
South Fork American: Chilli Bar                 III

Logistics:
We flew with British Airways from London Heathrow to San Francisco. They were very good and took our boats free of charge. Vehicle wise we had 2 pathfinders with 4 wheel drive capability. There was quite a lot of back/off road driving and although we could have got away with 2 wheel drive the 4 wheel option was very reassuring. Ferries are sometimes long and very hilly so the 2 vehicles allowed us to be self-contained. Local boaters were very friendly so there would have been some opportunity to run joint ferries although this may have reduced the ``feel'', as the locals are extremely good and have run most sections before and so quickly gravitate to the front. It only rained for half a day in the 2+ weeks we were there. We never bothered to put up tents and spent most of our time in backwoods campsites. Water temperature varies but is generally quite chilly. Air temperature was warm so we all tended to paddle in shorts, a single helly and dry-tops.

Guidebook:
The one to get is Lars Holbek's guide. We had Cassady and Calhoun's guidebook which is heavily raft orientated and misses out on several sections that are generally only kayaked. It also tends to describe sections from a raft viewpoint, and rafts tend to go through holes a little more easily than kayaks, even if they are less manoeverable. This can make raft and kayak grades very different. The maps don't cover a large enough surrounding area so it is often difficult to orient yourself getting to the river and there is far too much moaning about dams but still, it worked for us.

Frazer Pearce, F.R.Pearce@durham.ac.uk 10-Jun-97