Halloween Truss Paddle!

Every year on October 31, there is a Halloween Paddle that takes place on the Truss section of the White Salmon River. This year, we had about twelve paddlers on the river in all sorts of costumes: Powerpuff Girl, Butterfly, Grimm Reaper, Wonder Woman, Elvis, the Devil, and many more.

Friday night, heavy rains hit the Gorge, and we woke to spring time levels on the Truss for our little get together.

Check out the video and pictures from one of the greatest days on the river yet!

Halloween Huckfest 2009 from Sheer Madness Productions on Vimeo.

Video by Sheer Madness Productions

Eric Boomer as a Powerpuff Girl dropping Big Brother (Photo by: Seth Swallen)

Jason Schroeder of Outdoorplay as the Grimm Reaper dropping Little Brother in style (Photo by: Seth Swallen)

Kim Russell as Wonderwoman (Photo by: Jesse Becker)

Christie Glissmeyer with matching wings and poagies (Photo by: Ethan Smith)

Heather Herbeck as the Devil (Photo by: Nate Herbeck)

ELVIS! (Photo by: Ethan Smith)

Christie Glissmeyer and Todd Wells make an entrance (Photo by: Ethan Smith)

Erik Boomer and Ryan Scott (Photo by: Ethan Smith)

Despite the wigs, masks, and capes, there was no real carnage on the run and all costumes stayed intact.

Pumpkin cupcakes and prizes! (Photo by: Heather Herbeck)

After the paddle we had a little Halloween celebration in the parking lot at BZ. Event coordinator, Heather Herbeck passed around her homemade delicious cupcakes, while announcing the winners of the costume contest.

Happy Halloween from Hood River!! (Photo by: Heather Herbeck)

And winners of the costume goes ELVIS and WONDERWOMAN! haha. How often is it that you can say those two words in the same sentence? YEA!

Hope everyone had a great Halloween!

Kim Russell

Safety First: Creeking

When kayaking, it's very important to carry the necessary safety items in your boat, in the event someone swims and gets hurt, a boat gets pinned, or you get stuck overnight on the river.

Below is a list of what I recommend keeping in your creek boat no matter whether you are paddling Class II or Class V. Some people carry more, some people carry less, but in general, most people carry the same basic items (*).

1. Throw bag *
2. Break Down Paddle * (held in place by an airbag)
3. Pin kin (2 pulleys, 3 locking carabiners, 3 small diameter prussiks and 8 feet of tubular webbing) *
4. First Aid Kit (including duct tape)
5. Fleece hat and gloves
6. Emergency Blanket
7. Headlamp/small waterproof flashlight/glowstick
8. Waterproof Matches/lighter
9. Energy bar (s)

I like to keep items 3-9 in a drybag inside my boat, leaving the throw bag, breakdown paddle, and pin kit out for immediate use.

Yes, these items do make your boat substantially heavier, but are well worth carrying for that one time you use them. In addition, not only will they help you in a bad situation, they will help your friends.

In addition to those safety items in your kayak, consider those on your person.

1. Rescue Vest with a tow leash (most rescue vests have more flotation than the standard pfd. In addition, they have a tow leash, which allows you to clip yourself to a boat for a boat rescue, hook yourself to a rope for a live bait session, etc. They come in handy).
1. Whistle (1 whistle: pay attention, 3 whistle blasts: Help/Emergency)
2. Knife (anytime you are carrying a rope, you should also carry a knife)

Hopefully you'll never have to break out any of these items, let alone all at once, but if you do you will be grateful you packed your boat full of such goodies.

Stay safe out there, and if anyone has any safety suggestions of their own, feel free to add to the list! It's always great to pass around ideas!

Pray for Rain!

Kim Russell