Kayaking and Hiking Adventures

    We were thinking this might be our last float of the season, and we didn't plan ahead, so we went to a place we knew we liked. We put in at Buena Vista, and pedaled upriver. I was hoping to get past the Luckamiute, and see where the Santiam joins the Willamette. This is very close, literally around the corner.  Right before we got to the confluence of the Luckamiute, Leanna pulled over to the bank to take off her long sleeves. There, she found a yellow croc (on front of kayak) that must have floated downriver. It was in decent shape, so we decided to post a picture later on Facebook Flatwater Paddling group to see if anyone recognized it. The paddle upstream was not very difficult. It seems much easier along the sides near the bank. We did attempt to get past the Santiam current over to the Willamette. I was hoping to see where the campground was on the bend near this confluence. However, the current was swift enough to discourage us, so we ended up just turning aroun...

  Labor Day Afternoon was gorgeous, and our last day before returning to school called for a late kayak trip. The Social Security Hole put in is a small park at the end of Halls Ferry Road in Independence, so a short drive for us. The river view is beautiful, but there is no boat ramp here. The water has been low, and is far below the stairs that are there. We used a small cut in the bank to take in and out. It was doable, even with our heavy pedal kayaks. There is a bathroom as well. We headed upriver since we didn't have a shuttle, hoping to get to the Riverfront park in Independence. The current was pretty strong, and it was slow going. Not many others on the river at this time or place. We just started pedaling to make some distance. It wasn't too bad against the current, although we did get a good workout. There were some other obstacles, though. In order to escape the main current, we tried to take a shortcut, and had some rocks to deal with. We did find a nice swimming ...

  We chose this park because our daughter, Melia, wanted to join us, but since she was on her way south, needed something close to I5. Bowman Park is close to I5, has plenty of parking, bathrooms, picnic area, and a nice boat ramp and dock. We got there before Melia, and when we put in, it was obvious that the current here is stronger that we were expecting, and Melia has a paddle board. We had not planned to shuttle, and our kayaks were already in the river. So, partially due to smoky conditions, Melia continued on her way south, and we headed upstream. The river here is pretty. Lots of foliage on both banks. Luckly, we had our pedal kayaks, so we just started powering upstream, very slowly, against the current. The water looked low, but there were few places that we had to avoid.  After a time of continuous pedaling, we stopped to rest and cool down. While we didn't exactly swim, we did get in far enough to dip all the way in. We enjoyed the view and a small duck that came ...

   We've been wanting to visit Waldo Lake for some time, and this weekend we were going to be in Oakridge anyway. So, we decided to make a day of it. We got to bring along our daughter and Leanna's sister with us. There were some fires near Oakridge, so you will see some smoke over the lake, but it was clear when we put in.  We chose the Shadow Bay day use boat ramp  mostly because it was the first one we came to. It has plenty of parking, easy shallow incline ramp, and bathroom. Melia had her paddleboard, and Dody had her small purple kayak. The lake was calm and clear, and a bit cold. No mosquitoes in late August! Yay! As you can see in the background, the smoke is beginning to creep over the mountains. Waldo is a pretty big lake. We decided to go straight out from the boat ramp. The water is very clear, and we could seen the bottom, until it got very deep and blue. We stopped about halfway across to swim, because I was feeling warm, and the water looked so invitin...

  We found ourselves in the Eugene area, and decided to take the kayaks for a spin. Because we had another kayaker coming with us, we decided to float downriver and shuttle back, unlike our other trips where we put in and take out at the same place. We put in at Whitely Landing County Park  near Santa Clara, and take out at Marshall Island Access near Junction City, about a 6 mile trip. Both parks have restrooms (although Whitely's is a bit sketchy), lots of parking and usable ramps (Marhall Island's is better). The river is beautiful here, away from most traffic noise. We didn't see any other kayakers, only a few fishermen on the entire float. The water was a bit low, and there were a few other obstacles along the way, but nothing we couldn't get past. My kayak did scrape rocks a few times, and I didn't put my pedals in for most of the trip because of how shallow it was. We came across a few rope swings, including one for river surfing, but again, the water is low...

 We put in near the beginning of the T ualatin River Water Trail , at the Farmington Paddle Launch (top left of map). The park has good parking, restroom, and a small gravel path to the river which is longer than I thought. The actual boat launch ramp was not there. Not sure what happened to it, but there is not a great place to take in and out. Manageable, but not ideal. The river here is not very wide, and it stays about the same width most of the way upriver, which is the way we went (easier when coming back). It is beautiful, with lots of trees, flowers, and shrubs on the bank. The water was slow and calm, easy to paddle. There are also a lot of trees and branches to look out for. Nothing impassable, but there were several times I hit a snag underwater I didn't see until I hit it. I didn't have to take the pedals out to navigate, although I did a few times just to be safe. We had the pleasure of our older daughter meeting us here with her paddle board. There was only one pl...

We spent 2 nights at Siltcoos Lake, at the Siltcoos River Resort.  They have a small motel, and also rent kayaks, but we were able to stay at the Yurt, which is right on the river, and came with 2 kayak rentals.  You can also put in at the  Westlake Park Boat Ramp  nearby. Lots of parking, restroom, and some picnic tables right on the lake. There is also a small campground nearby, Tyee Campground . We put in the first evening, and went just a short way downriver, passing the campground, and turning back at the Hwy 101 bridge. Very quiet, not many others on the water. We did see a beaver who slapped his tail at us a few times. Someone said they saw an otter, but we missed them.  In the morning, we went to the lake, which was very calm, and very foggy. We hugged the shore for a bit, but we were going to go kayaking with friends later, so we didn't go too far. After lunch with our 2 friends, we headed toward the ocean. There are a few trees down across the river, b...