Season 6 - Kayak #1 - Willamette River at Buena Vista to Luckiamute River

 Buena Vista to Lucki

Starting Location: Boat Ramp at Buena Vista Park

Point of Interest : Willamette River, just downstream from the confluence of Santiam and Luckiamute Rivers

Bathrooms: Yes, brand new vault toilets

Parking: just paved, with plenty of parking for trailers

EV Chargers: No

Rentals: No


This was our first outing of the season, so we decided to stay close to home, and that means up and back on the Willamette. I wish there were some nice lakes closer, but this works.

We had considered putting in at Luckiamute Landing, but weren't sure what the levels were, so we went with the familiar.

As usual, we put in at Buena Vista, and headed upstream. The water level was okay, a bit lower than usual, and we were able to make our way upriver just fine, until we hit the confluence of the Luckiamute.


I was able to get past it with some quick pedaling, but for some reason, Leanna's boat kept turning away from the current when it got too strong. She tried several times, but could not keep the kayak straight.


Eventually, she managed to get farther into the Willamette's current, and made it to the Luckiamute. 



From there, it was smooth as glass, and we were able to get pretty far upriver before we got to a fallen tree. This was a far as we've gotten up the Luckiamute, and it's really pretty. Very secluded. We did come across 2 other kayakers fishing, but that was it.

The weather was perfect, and we simply enjoyed a beautiful summer day on the water. And we got to swim a bit too


We are planning to kayak Clear Lake later this week, and to try getting our dog on the kayak as well. We'll see how that turns out.








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