Kayaking and Hiking Adventures

S5 Kayak #4 - Santiam River from I5 to Buena Vista Starting Location:  I5 Rest Area at the Santiam River (accessible from either side.) Point of Interest :  Beautiful River scenery Distance : Just over 8 River Miles Time on float: about 3 hours Bathrooms:  Plenty at the Rest Area! Parking : Lots of parking. Trailers may need to drive back over to the rest area EV Chargers :  no Rentals:  no This was our first time on the Santiam. We've heard about this float, and finally decided to try it. The hardest part? It was just the 2 of us, and taking 2 cars would mean an extra hour of driving between the put in and take out area. Luckily, we talked our son into coming with us to drive the truck back to Buena Vista! So off we went. The boat ramp is concrete, and gently sloped. There is some parking nearby, on gravel, but with a trailer it would be hard. However, there is a rest area nearby with plenty of trailer parking. It's a short walk to the boat ramp. I could ...

  S5 Kayak #3 Beaver Creek Starting Location:   Boat Ramp at Brian Booth Day Use Area, just off HWY 101 on the East side, across from Ona Beach Point of Interest :  Estuary wildlife and fauna Distance : Just under 4 river miles, 2 in and back Time on float: about 3 hours Bathrooms:  1 vault toilet at Day Use Area, another at Kayak launch upriver Parking : EV Chargers :  no Rentals:  no This is actually where we went for our first kayak trip with our new kayaks, 4 years ago. We remembered liking the abundant nature, and easy paddle. We put in at the Brian Booth Day use area just off Hwy 101, right across from the Ona Beach State Park. If you park at Ona Beach, you can drag your kayak to Beaver Creek, but there's not an official boat ramp. There is also a kayak launch farther down Beaver Creek road. We ended up paddling upstream to that launch, and then back. We had timed the tide so that we got there at slack tide, as high tide was ending, so we would ...

S5 - Kayak #2 Big Creek Reservoir, Newport Starting Location: Boat Ramp at start of Big Creek Reservoir #2 Point of Interest : flatwater, waterfowl, fishing Distance : Decent sized lake, narrow, just under a mile long. Time on float : up to you. Bathrooms : 1 port a potty Parking : Minimal, gravel EV Chargers : No  Rentals : No Big Creek road is just to the right as you are heading out of Newport to the North. If you follow it, you come to a dead end sign, and then a gravel road that heads off to the left along the reservoir. Yes, this is the right way to go. The road is gravel, but in good repair, but it gets narrow in places, where 2 cars going opposite directions would have issues. Eventually, after about a mile, you get to this small gravel boat launch area. We were here on a Monday afternoon, so not many people were here, no boaters, just a few fishermen. The lake is quiet (no motors), with lots of nature to enjoy. There are quite a few spots you could pull up to if you want...

  Buena Vista Starting Location:   Boat Ramp at Buena Vista Park Point of Interest :  Willamette River, just downstream from the confluence of Santiam and Luckiamute Rivers Distance : about 11 river miles. Time on float: Just over 3 hours Bathrooms:  Yes, brand new vault toilets Parking : just paved, with plenty of parking for trailers EV Chargers : No Rentals: No Our First float of the year, so we went somewhere relatively close, and had a friend shuttle our truck down to Independence for us. That was nice. The weather was great, although a bit windy. We were waiting for the ferry to head across, and then go behind, but the driver actually reversed back to shore, and waved us through. I'm assuming this is due to the kayaker who died under the ferry last year. No big surprises on this float, having done it several times before. We did stop to pee on one of the unnamed islands, but did not swim today. We only saw 2 other boats, both pulled up on shore, and on...

  Olalla Reservoir Starting Location:  Boat Ramp at Olalla Lake Point of Interest :  lake with wildlife, trail around lake (partial) Bathrooms:  Yes (porta potty) Parking : gravel lot, good size.  EV Chargers : No Rentals: No This was our second time at Olalla Reservoir. Our first time was during the 4th of July weekend, and it had been packed. Today, we were meeting friends, and bringing someone new to kayaking. We had planned to meet after 10am, but learned that the gate to the reservoir was locked, and that a ranger was supposed to unlock it by 11. I was expecting a long line of people waiting, but when we finally got to the gate, there were only 6 cars waiting, and the ranger showed up 10 minutes later, so we didn't wait long. The water level was much lower than in July, and I've heard that it usually gets closed in the fall at some point when the water level is low. However, we were able to get on the lake quickly.  We had borrowed a kayak for our...

  Elk Lake Starting Location:   Little Fawn CG Point of Interest :  Elk Lake Bathrooms:  Yes Parking : gravel, lots of room EV Chargers : No Even though we were camping at Elk Lake Resort, we decided to go to Little Fawn campground across the lake to put our boats in. We walked through Little Fawn on the Elk Creek Trail earlier in the day, and it seemed a nice, quieter place to put in, since the resort was hosting a music concert, which would have made their boat ramp very congested. Little Fawn has a small inlet, or bay, so the water is calm, and the wind is minimal. Once we got onto the lake proper, the wind picked up and the waves got a bit choppy, but not bad. There was some haze from fires, but we could still see Mt. Bachelor and the 3 Sisters. The lake is nice and big, with forest coming up to the edge in places, and lots of places you can put ashore to rest or swim. I got out and took a nice swim. The water was clear and the temperature very comfortable....

Scott Lake  Campground Starting Location:   Makeshift boat ramp about 1/4 mile from entrance to campground. Point of Interest :  Scott Lake, 3 Sisters Mountains Bathrooms:  Yes, several throughout campground Parking : Some along road, gravel parking lot at end of road. EV Chargers : No Scott Lake is just off the Old McKenzie Hwy 242. There is a restriction on vehicles and trailers over 35 feet about 10 miles from where it starts on Hwy 126, right where Camp White Branch is. We were in our truck, pulling our small Malone kayak trailer, which is (I measured after we got home) just about 35 feet long. Our trailer is very narrow, so we went anyway. We did okay, but that road is so narrow and winding, that bigger trailers or vehicles would not do well. The boat ramp starts out gravel, then grass, then mud. There was a small drop to the water, about a foot. Not difficult, but squishy. That said, the thing about Scott Lake is the view. The water is very shallow, or was whe...

  Buena Vista 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 Something that I don't think I've mentioned yet about kayaking is the interesting places and views you get on the way to the boat ramp. Buena Vista is pretty close to where we live, but I don't go this way unless we are going to kayak. The back roads and variety of crops we pass are always a fun part of the journey, especially if we are able to take different routes coming back. This park and boat ramp was just redone, with newly paved parking lot, improved dock and boat ramp, and bathrooms. The boat ramp is wide enough for 2 vehicles if they are good at backing up. The boat ramp area is easy to get in and out of. There is more space to the North side to pull your kay...

Olalla Reservoir Starting Location:  Boat Ramp at Olalla Lake Point of Interest :  lake with wildlife, trail around lake (partial) Bathrooms:  Yes (porta potty) Parking : gravel lot, good size.  EV Chargers : No Rentals: No We decided to try Olalla Reservoir for the first time on the 4th of July. Needless to say, it was packed. We had a trailer for the kayaks, but were able to find a place to park. We didn't use the boat ramp to put in since it was so crowded. I was worried that our float would be loud due to noise on the beach and swim area.  But then, as we headed for the far side of the lake, we found that it extended much farther, and as we headed around the corner, all of the people noise went away, and we were able to enjoy the beauty and sounds of nature. There was just enough wind to make the temperature perfect, and much of the lake is protected from the wind There are also a lot of little nooks and bays to wander into. Even with the large crown at...