Team Alder Creek

Playboating at Bob's Hole on the Clackamas!

2010-02-08T22:30:00.000-08:00

Here is some video from our little trip to Bob's Hole on the Clackasmas River. Its an ever changing play spot that seems to come in every now and then thanks to shifting rocks in the riverbed. The flow that we had was around 2000 CFS on the Clackamas and the play feature was pretty good. All of this was shot with my GoPro Headcam from a few different angles. Check back soon to see my Posted photos from the day too.

One Rapid of the Wind River! Woohoo!

2010-01-25T20:58:00.001-08:00

So yeah, got out on the Wind River yesterday with some good flows and plenty of rain/snow. Christina, Cory, and myself were all set with the Headcam to have a great run down! Unforturnatly right after the first Class 4 rapid the headcam batteries decided to die on me. But the important part is that we still had a great day paddling! Check out all of one rapid I caught on the Wind River with my headcam :D

Here are a few pictures too... Not much but a few!

From Upper Wind River

Rainy!

From Upper Wind River

The Put-In!~

From Upper Wind River

Looking up some of the fun Class 4

From Upper Wind River

Christina all Smiles as usual :D

The Rivers are FROZEN!

2009-12-14T12:47:00.001-08:00

Out of school and ready to play, a small group of us went up to run the "Truss" section of the White Salmon here in Hood River, only to be denied access because... DUN DUN DUN.. it was FROZEN OVER!

BRRRR!

Desperate to get some exercise, we ran the Orletta, a lower run on the White Salmon. And then my camera died because it was so cold.

Til' Next time! I've got my camera charging! Hope you're out enjoying the river!

Pray for Rain!

Kim Russell

Pepper Salt Russell 1994-2009

2009-12-11T23:33:00.001-08:00

Pepper Russell passed away on December 10th. She was very sick and we had to make the decision to let her be at peace. She was a river dog and loved going on kayaking trips. She traveled everywhere with my family. Many people treated her like their very own dog and for that reason, I feel the need to post this. We will all miss her smiling face at the put-in's and take-outs. We will miss her disgusting tennis ball in our laps, and we will most of all miss her unconditional love. Please remember all the good times we had with Pepper. She is at peace now.

-Christina Russell

How To: The Spin

2009-11-30T12:46:00.000-08:00

Spinning is a relative simple move that teaches good edge control.

Step by Step Instructions:

Spinning to the Right: (If spinning to the left, just reverse sides)

1. Facing upstream in the hole, keeping your eyes on the hole, let your boat begin to turn to the right and enter a sidesurf as you left your left edge. Before you lose your momentum, take a reverse sweep stroke on your right side, turning your boat downstream.

2. Just as you begin facing downstream, look back upstream at the hole over your right shoulder and switch your edges so your right edge is now lifted slightly.

3. By simply changing your head position in the previous step, your body will automatically follow, and so will your boat. To aid in completing the spin, take a forward sweep stroke on the left side of your boat to bring the bow back around into a front surf.

4. CONGRATULATIONS!! You have just completed your first spin!

Tips:

When edging, keep your body in a neutral position and LIFT the edge with your thigh rather than LEANING your body to accomplish edging.

Keep your eyes upstream on the hole! Wherever you look, your torso and boat will follow!

Alterations to the Spin:

Clean Spin: Once you've mastered the spin using your paddle and have a good understanding of your edges, you can to spin without putting a blade in the water. Try to only use your edges!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Turkey Day!

Kim Russell

Boat Repair and One Curious Kitty

2009-11-23T21:10:00.000-08:00

This weekend, we got out for some good paddling on Dillon/Lava. However, before we were able to get out, we had to patch Josh's boat. The patch was temporary but we sure were hoping it would last longer than it did. It came off just below Dillon Falls (atleast we think) but the plastic did melt in to the crack enough to prevent lots of water coming in. Josh's boat now has a partially repaired crack that needs more work before we can jump on the river again. Here are some photos of the process: Above- Miss Nala was very curious during this whole process. What the heck were we doing? She sat under the Christmas tree watching our every move. She is too funny....

Benham Falls

2009-11-16T15:25:00.000-08:00

Hello from snowy and cold Bend, Oregon! The down jackets are out and so are the pogies....nooo! Darn those pogies but hey, they're are brilliant. It's now officially that time of the year when you haven't quite adjusted to the cold and you choose to blast the heat in your car and get geared up in the front seat. Did I mention it's also time for the hot chocolate mug to become a permanent fixture in the creek boat? YES! You can't possibly go creeking without having a hot cup of cocoa in your boat. Let's see what else is new? Oh! I dyed my hair purple he he he! You should see my helmet liner! Anyways, back to the actual kayaking portion of the post....

Recently, a crew of us from Bend headed upstream to our "locally famous" drop known as Benham Falls. It is a solid class five drop riddled with lava tubes. It's technically not a falls but it sure is huge. Rumor has it that a TV crew filmed a rubber dummy gettting dropped out of a helicopter above the rapid and its arms and legs came up miles downstream at the end of the lava tubes. From top to bottom, 30% of the water is lost in these tubes. Definitely not reassuring if you happen to go for a swim.

The put-in was snowed in and the all wheel drive barely got us there. The water temp was sitting around 42 degrees and the sun was out. We geared up and checked out the drop. There was a little wood but nothing in the way... special thanks to Irina of Bend for taking the photos!

Here's a photo from a year ago when we ran it. The flow was substantially higher when we recently did it but you can get an idea of the scenery and the drop. Just add 300 more CFS and understand that the ledge drop in the middle of the river is a 12 foot drop. Perspective is the craziest thing.

(Below) Look at those beautiful Jefe's!

(Below) Me in the lead-in rapids

(Below) Just above the crux...

(Below) Cold but very happy!

(Below) All I'm thinking about here is how much I'm looking forward to eating a veggie burger at the local burger joint....not sure what those other folks are thinking though....

Special thanks to everyone at AlderCreek Kayak and Canoe for your continued support and enthusiasm for offering the best paddling gear in Oregon. Stay warm out there and remember your mug of hot chocolate!

PS Here's a picture of me and my partner in crime. Her name is Pepper and she is 15 years old. Please send good thoughts her way as she has gotten very sick and can't hear me or see me anymore. :( I'm sure she would wag her tailess bum if she knew you were thinking of her! Thank you!

The Astral LE Lifejacket

2009-11-11T16:43:00.000-08:00

Check out this sweet new Astral PFD!

It's the LE (Limited Edition) out for only a short while. Show your support for Astral and order up. With Rasta colors and their patented design, you will be safe and look cool on the river. Contact Aldercreek of Bend if you wish you place an order with Astral: 541-317-9407

Halloween Truss Paddle!

2009-10-31T12:44:00.000-07:00

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

2009-10-07T16:08:00.001-07:00

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

Road Trippin'

2009-09-25T15:13:00.001-07:00

I just got off the road from one of the best road trips yet... a little bit of work, and a little bit of play over 5,500 miles in two weeks! One week in Washington, one week in California, with my better half, Jesse Becker, and our butts are definitely FLAT.

The trip started off with us figuring out a roof rack for our spiffy rental car. We figured our car was shiny so our rack should be too...Twenty six dollars later we had a rack of PVC and hose clamps. Bling Bling!

El Escape in Leavenworth, Washington (Photo by: Kim Russell)

After the traditional stop for energy drinks, we were on the road to Yakima, where we we made a slight detour to the Tieton River to catch the annual release and the super epic, super awesome... BRIDGE WAVE. Turns out it wasn't really in, but we made it in! It's amazing how much fun you can have at a not so in feature with good company!

Jesse rockin' the plaid on the Bridge Wave, Tieton River Washington (Photo by: Kim Russell)

The rest of the Tieton is a beautiful continuous class III river with some sweet play features. After attempting to wavewheel every wave on the river (not really), we made it to the takeout just in time to catch a shuttle from a not so sober construction worker. At least the roads weren't too curvy...

Now off to Spokane and Leavenworth!

We decided Leavenworth was pretty badass... not only is it a mountain biking, skiing, and kayaking mecca, it has a full on "putt putt" golf course downtown with two goats for lawnmowers. Oh and the entire town is like a little Germany (think Bavarian theme). I've never seen a gas station look so cool.

While we were in the area we hit up a super sweet mountain bike trail of a 4 mile climb to the top of the valley, followed by two miles or so of DH to the car. SICK! Afterward, we made a quick stop to check out Icicle Creek and Tumwater Canyon... even at low water, things looked gnarly.

Icicle Creek (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Jesse at "Exit Rapid" of Tumwater Canyon (Photo by: Kim Russell)

The next morning we set out for a quick loop to Seattle cursing our phone of a GPS as it proceeded to cut out everytime we reached a major city. Thanks Sprint. We made it home from Seattle just in time to see this...

Hood River Sunset (Photo by: Jesse Becker)

The next morning, we loaded the creek boats on the car with the playboats, stuffed the bikes in the back, and took off down I5 to Cali. After 14 hours of driving and 500 songs later, we made it to Southern Cali! Yea!

Sunset in Santa Barbara (Photo by: Jesse Becker)

After a couple days of cruising around the coast, we were ready to get out of suburbia and back to the hills. Even though we hit rush hour traffic right on time in Sacramento, we managed to make it to the River Store in Coloma just in time for their Friday night pre-dinner for the American River Festival. Thanks for all your hard work Robin and crew! You all are awesome!

Saturday morning dawned and we rallied to the put-in with our amigo, Paul Gamache, breakfast burritos in hand! Minutes later we were on the river headed toward the site of the rodeo: First Threat. First Threat is a good-sized wave/hole with a pretty deep trough. It's sticky enough to throw most tricks, but you have to be on it to stick them. I managed a second place in women's, while fellow WS member Taylor Calvin got 3rd in mens. YEA!

The next day, a Taylor Calvin, Justin Patt, Jesse Becker and I decided to rally to the South Fork of the Feather for a little creeking adventure. On the way there we had an adventure of our own as we stopped for Taylor to show us his dance moves and had a run in with some cows.

Taylor Calvin still in the Coloma Club groove (Photo by: Kim Russell)

We had to stop... (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Justin had to touch the cow. (Photo by: Kim Russell)

South Fork Feather (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Just looking at the river made us excited...

(Photo by: Jesse Becker)

so we went paddling.

(Photo by: Taylor Calvin)

Weeee!

Unfortunately I left my camera in the car, but we did get these sweet post-paddling pictures.

(Photo by: Taylor Calvin)

We make blurry look good... (Photo by: El Escape)

After the SF Feather we drove to Arcata, Ca to paddle Burnt Ranch Gorge, get some surfing in and see some friends. BRG was a super fun run, super fun boofs interspersed throughout, and good company on the river. Once at the coast, the waves weren't breaking very consistently, so we decided to stay dry, watch Paul and take pictures.

Camel Rock, Arcata (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Paul bluntin' in Arcata (Photo by: Jesse Becker)

I'm crushing you're head... (Photo by: Jesse Becker)

The next day we drove back to Bend, Oregon via Grants Pass, taking a break from driving to paddle the Natural Bridge and Takilma Gorge section of the NF Rogue River.

The typical put-in (Photo by: Jesse Becker)

Our put-in (Photo by: Kim Russell)

The lead in to drop 3 of the gorge (Photo by: Kim Russell)

If you paddle this section, once you enter the gorge, take your time and watch our for sieves/lava tubes/undercuts, etc, particularly in the middle of the second drop of the five. Make sure you have a your pin kin available...

The next day we made home to Hood River just in time to drop off the rental car and get some delicious tacos for dinna. What a crazy two weeks!

Hope everyone's summer is wrapping up nicely! I'm off to start my Senior year of college in four days! Wohoo!

(Photo by: Jesse Becker)

Kim Russell

Which kayak is Right for me?

2009-09-01T12:39:00.001-07:00

A Paddler's Guide to Brightly Colored Tupperware:

Basic Design Concepts:

The longer the kayak, the faster it will be. The wider the kayak, the more stability it will have.

What kind of kayak should I get?

Think about what your goals are in kayaking, and what you feel you are interested in doing with the kayak.

There are three kinds of whitewater kayaks:

1. Creek boat:

Wave Sport Habitat 80

Creek boats are highly-rockered, displacement hull kayaks with round, blunt ends and soft edges. They tend to be voluminous for their length. Creek Boats take their name from the steep creeks they are designed to descend. They are designed be maneuverable, forgiving, and stable even in the most gnarly of whitewater. Their bulbous design is a feature intended to maximize safety, storage, and buoyancy as well as to deflect impacts with river features.

2. River-Runner:

Diesel 80

Fuse 48

River running kayaks are designed for general whitewater use. They are a combination of creek and freestyle kayaks as they share design elements with both. River running designs vary: some designs are larger and faster, more like creek boats (Diesel) and other are shorter, lower volume desings that have more in common with playboats (Fuse).

3. Freestyle:

Project 52

Freestyle kayaks, also known as playboats, are short, low volume, kayaks with planning hulls designed to surf waves and hydraulics. They are usually designed with hard edges and a good amount of kick rocker. They are highly maneuverable but lack downriver speed and stability necessary for navigating technical whitewater.

What size kayak should I get?

Once you know what kind of kayak you want, you will want to look at sizing.

Each kayak has a specified weight range in which the kayak will perform best. Depending on where you are in that weight range, the boat will perform differently. For instance, if you are at the lower end of the weight range for a playboat, it may be hard to throw around, but will be great for river running (more volume available). On the other hand if you are at the higher end of the weight range for a playboat, it will be easy to throw around, but not so great for river running (read: squirly and unstable). If you are on the lower end of the weight range in a creekboat, the boat will be very forgiving and go through anything, but it will probably be somewhat difficult to manuever. If youe on the higher end of the weight range in a creekboat, the boat will be easy to maneuver, but it might be a recipe for disaster in terms of getting stuck in holes. Without the extra volume, the boat won't resurface as quickly and might be "hole-bait." Be careful getting too small a creekboat.

How should the kayak fit?

Once you have the weight range thing figured out, sit in the boat. When in the boat, you want the boat to fit somewhat tightly, but not so tight you cramp up. In general, you want your thigh braces wrapping your thighs completely, but not exerting any downward pressure (this can lead to your legs falling asleep quickly). You want your feet touching the foot brace with your heels together and toes pointed outward. Hip pads should be snug enough so you aren't moving around excessively while your paddling (Hint: If you have plenty of hip pads but the boat still feels "off," try switching the left and right hip pads...its a little different fit, and works well for some people).
Some people choose to use the stock hip pads and foot foam, however if it doesn't work for you, try carving your own from foam.

What's the deal with sizing and colors?

Each manufacturer is different, however the general trend is something like this:

Yellow is the largest (coolest slowest out of the mold), and red is the smallest (it cools quickest from the mold). Blue, Orange and Green tend to be somewhere in the middle and are somewhat hit or miss for size difference. This means if you are borderline to fitting in a boat, go for the color theory. The size difference is not guaranteed but it sometimes it works out.

Finally...

Once you've got the fit thing figured out, sit in the boat and try it out. Outfit it to your specs and see what you think. Each boat is designed a little differently, from deck height to cockpit width, to boat length, etc, and each person has a personal preference of how they like their boat to feel. Go with your gut, and try the boat out on some easy water to see if it's right for you.

Stay tuned for more tips!

Kim Russell

BC in Review..

2009-08-31T11:33:00.001-07:00

Last summer, Bryan Kirk, Todd Baker, and I took a ride in the Wave Sport van up to British Columbia for some paddling action.

First stop was Skookumchuck, BC where we met up with Kelsey Thompson and the Lussin sisters.

Kelsey Thompson (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Kim Russell (Photo by: Bryan Kirk)

Bryan Kirk cleanin' it up in a rainbow (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Todd Baker with a helix in the Fuse 48 (Photo by: Kim Russell)

After five or six days at Skook with perfect levels, we made our way to Squamish where we hit up the Cheakamus, Callaghan and a few other local rivers.

The crew on the Callaghan (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Bryan Kirk on the put-in falls on the Cheakamus (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Good luck to everyone at Worlds! Kick some arse!

See you on the river!

Kim Russell

Redsides

2009-08-31T11:28:00.002-07:00

For years, river levels on the Mckenzie River have stayed medium-high throughout summer and various features haven't come in to their full potential. This year, however, water is dropping fast and some new play features are in.

Dave Porter and Todd Baker (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Home of the notorious "Redsides Rodeo" from years ago, Redsides is back!

It's a medium sized, wave - hole located on the McKenzie River in Oregon. Fast and dynamic, you can do both wave and hole moves.

A couple weeks ago a group of us from Eugene, Oregon made the half hour drive to one of the best summer playspots in Oregon. Check out the photos.

The crew in the eddy (Photo by: Todd Baker)

Kim cartwheeling at Redsides in her Project 45 (Photo by: Todd Baker)

Quinn Connell looping the Fuse 48 (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Todd Baker playin' around (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Althea Sullivan and I chillin in the eddy (Photo by: Todd Baker)

This weekend from August 28-30, 2009 is the Redsides Rodeo. Registration begins at 10:00 am on Saturday, with the competition beginning at 11:00 am. The event is being coordinated by Dave Villalobos of the University of Oregon Outdoor Program in conjunction with Worldkayak and the City of Eugene.

Below is a summary of the event from their site:

"Gone missing for many years, we are bringing back the Redsides Rodeo. Located at the Redsides Hole on the McKenzie River (2 miles east of the town of Blue River) the Redsides Rodeo will be an open and friendly kayaking competition. Camping will be available Friday evening through Sunday afternoon (at Bittersweet Campground) $20/car.

Registration will begin at 10:00 am Saturday (The competition begins by 11:00 am)

Afterward there will be a spaghetti dinner with a prize give away (everyone who participates...judges, timekeepers as well as participants could win!!)

For more information, contact Dave Villalobos (dvillalo@uoregon.edu) "

Website: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/event.php?eid=132688688400&ref=mf

Hope to see you out there this weekend! Let's bring back the Redsides Rodeo!

Kim Russell

How To: The Blunt

2009-08-31T11:28:00.001-07:00

The Blunt:

It's a simple move, but one that requires some good knowledge of your edges.

Here's how its done:

1. Find yourself a steep wave (the steeper the better), preferably one with a little bit of a pile on it to keep it sticky.

2. Surf out onto the wave and give yourself some time to get comfortable on the wave.

3. Once your comfortable, surf your way to the top of the pile (spinning to the top works well), and you're ready to begin the move.

4. To throw a right blunt you will want to take a nice vertical stroke on your left side while taking one big bounce on your left edge (think about kicking your feet down on the left edge) with your boat facing about 10 o' clock (if 12 is straight upstream).

5. Mid bounce, switch edges and throw in a back stroke on your right side while maintaining head position upstream. The faster you switch your edges, the bigger your blunt will be.

6. Once your stern lifts from the water, and comes around, you will end up facing downstream (with head position maintained upstream).

Put in a backstroke on the left side of your boat to set the boat down and stay on the wave.

It's that simple! The harder you kick your feet and the faster your switch your edges, the bigger you will go!

Hope to see you on the river!

Kim Russell

(All photos Copyright Seth Swallen)

Need a Mental Boost?

2009-08-31T11:24:00.001-07:00

Whitewater kayaking is a mind sport. As a paddler you must be confident in your abilities and able to focus your mind, letting everything else fade away but the drop.

Here's a few tips for those who need a little mental boost:

1. When your on the river, know your abilities. No matter how gnarly a rapid looks, if it is in your ability range and the line is good to go, remind yourself that. Remind yourself you CAN run this rapid, it just looks gnarly. Don't let your head get the best of you.

2. Any kind of negative self-talk, anxiety and emotions hurt your focus. If you have low confidence, you can't help but focus on all of the negative things rather than on things that will enable you to paddle well. Taking a 180, Positive talk gets you relaxed and energized before a drop or rapid. Don't say "There is no way I am going to run this rapid today." Say, "I'm going to try my hardest today and paddle the best I know how." If you run the drop, Sweet. If not, you didn't beat yourself up for portaging. Sometimes the better part of valor is taking the dry line (just make sure to keep a positive outlook).

3. When scouting a rapid, once you see the line, visualize yourself in the rapid. Visualize where you are, the strokes you will be taking, and finally, you greasing the line. Visualize both the process as well as the the outcome. Try not to worry about things you have no control over, and stick to those you do. The more different rapids you experience, the more you realize how similar they are. Use past experience to predict what will happen in a rapid.

4. Remember: You shouldn't focus on the past because its out of your control and you can't do anything to change it. Sometimes a bad experience is one that is hard to come back from. Just remember the past is the past and anything and everything can change.

5. Finally, while kayaking is a mental sport there are some days where you may just say "Screw it" and give it a try. Follow the above steps, make sure you have safety set and give er'!

If anyone has any other tips or hints to break through the mental block that sometimes occurs in kayaking, feel free to post back! It's always great to hear new ideas!

See you on the river!

Kim Russell

Lava Island Falls 2160cfs Headcam

2009-07-30T22:09:00.000-07:00

So Christina and I did a good old Lava Island Falls the other day and got some headcam footage at 2160cfs. Check out the Video below to see some good fun Class 5 big water in the Bend Oregon Area! Enjoy!

Rogue River Trip- Day 2 and 3

2009-06-22T23:23:00.000-07:00

Day 2 and 3 of our Rogue River Trip

Leinman/Grandma's and our first day on the Rogue---------------------------------

The next morning we woke up early and headed into Medford for a bit of a search. We needed some sponges and duct tape. A quick visit to Lowes solved that issue and we headed back to Leinman for a few hours of playtime.

Pretty awesome spot

The always graceful...getting in

Josh playing around...

Me establishing that my body is out of shape...darn that sick month I had.

After thoroughly wearing ourselves out on the water, we drove to Eagle Point where Josh's grandmother lives. She is such a sweet person and we wasted no time in getting caught up. She has a nice chunk of property with a GREAT pool...he he he this meant lots of cannonballing off the diving board later on. While Josh explained how the kayaking has been for us, I set out our gear to dry and smelled all the roses. Talk about bringing back memories of Texas! We used to have about 30 rose bushes next to our old house too. Anyways between the paddling, the diving board, the visiting, and pizza; we had an awesome afternoon in Eagle Point.

The rest of the family arrived at 9 ish in the evening after a full day's work in Bend. They were pooped from the long drive. Some discussion later, we headed off to bed and tried to catch some zzz's. This wasn't tough and I settled in to my bed snug as a bug in a rug.

_________________________________________________________________

Our trip leader, Josh, requested that everyone be up around 7:30 to get the day going early. A few coffee pots later, we were on the road with a 1.5 hour drive to get to the put-in. We arrived around ten at the Galice Ranger station where we picked up permits and organized our shuttle service.

We unloaded all of our gear from our truck and Tyler's and proceeded to pack our paraphanalia. Steve used an inflatable kayak while Josh and I paddled in our spud boats. Our gear boat was captained by Josh's mom, Debbie. She was actually one of the first women to row rafts on the grand canyon. She's a pretty impressive river rat! :) Tyler and Kellie captained what I would like to call the "Green Bean Machine". As Tyler would say, "It's cute in a masculine sort of way". Ha ha ha!!!

(Below) Our multiday crew... L to R: Tyler, Kellie, Steve, Josh, Debbie

Our trusty gear boat captain- Debbie Mckeown

Josh and I in awe of Josh's personal "table"... AKA Overthruster

The famous Rainee Falls-twas a fine line at this flow...no thank you

Behold! Our first campsite!

We all arrived at our first available campsite around 3 ish and we took it! There are a few primo sites on day 1 and we got one. It had a nice open beach area with flat camping available. This site just happened to be just across the river from Whiskey Creek cabin so that night Josh and I took a quick hike up to see it. Pretty cool! Those first settlers of the area were nuts. Talk about in the middle of no-where. wow.

Back on track, Josh and I were on cook duty for the night and boy did we cook up one mean meal! Spaghetti with marinara sauce and basil....WITH garlic bread! It pretty much kicked butt. Our only mistake was that we cooked TOO MUCH. Can you believe that? I think I ate the most out of everyone. How wrong is that?! Sun set around nine but I didnt go to sleep until I had spent a sufficient amount of time enjoying the stars. Beautiful! If only I had my telescope...

Check back soon for more pictures of the camp and our second day on the river....

This is Christina, over and out....

Rogue River Trip- Day 1

2009-06-21T10:08:00.000-07:00

Rogue River Trip- Day 1

Leinman Playspot---------------------------------------------------------------------

This year, instead of our annual Wenatchee trip, we decided to take a multiday raft trip down the wild and scenic Rogue River. Everything just came together perfectly: good group, good weather, and available permits! wow. Josh was declared trip leader and he promptly organized everything. Having finished the trip, I can say that he impressively didn't forget anything!

Here are pics from the first day of our mini vacation :D. We drove to Leinman playspot near Gold Hill- Where Josh went whitewater kayaking for the first time as a kid. Pretty cool to go back there with him. It's about an hour from Galice where we would put on the river for our multi-day. Anyways, enjoy the pics and stay tuned for pics from our grand adventure on the Rogue River!

Below- Me likey the Biscuit :D

Below- Trying to stay in the hole...twas very flushy

Below- Holy poo!

Below- out humble abode...it's a bit cozy but it's home

I think Josh is happy!

Josh enjoying Leinman and not being a gaper like me

Did I mention that Annies Mac n' Cheese tastes amazing while camping? U should try it!

Hope everyone is getting on the rivers and remembering why they paddle- because it's FUN!!! :) Don't let that fact get away! Stay humble and paddle for yourself!

Hasta Pasta,

Christina Russell
Bend,OR

Team Alder Creek Headcam Learning to Kayak

2009-06-09T23:09:00.001-07:00

Here is some headcam Footage of Dan Jones learning to roll a whitewater kayak. We did this just outside of Bend Alder Creek Kayak and Canoe. Dan got his roll in just a matter of 30 mins which is unlike most paddlers. Hopefully we will get out on some class 2-3 whitewater soon! Enjoy the video!

Learning to Roll from Josh Mckeown on Vimeo.

Learning to Kayak...

2009-06-09T17:03:00.001-07:00

I remember what it was like when I was learning to kayak.

Both my sister and I had just moved to Oregon from Texas and were psyched to see a river in our backyard (rather than millions of tons of concrete). We weighed 90 pounds and started off in matching Wave Sport Evo's, (which proved faithful to us for the next few years, as we successfully avoided getting majorly worked). After a summer or two at Otter Bar, we were on the river by ourselves practicing our ferrying and eddy turns. Little did I know my life would revolve around kayaking seven years later. Thanks Christina for being the most awesome kayaker buddy I know! You're the best sister anyone could ask for!

Back to the story... When there's no rain in Eugene, Todd and I find ourselves making lazy trips down the Mckenzie River, every once and a while taking a friend down with us. Not too long ago, we took Todd's friend, Ross, who managed to flip once twice the entire time (and it was his first time in a kayak)!!

Anywhoo... Check out the pictures. It's always fun remembering what it was like learning to kayak:

Getting the boat's outfitted (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Ross (L) and Todd (R) taking a break from eddy turns (Photo by: Kim Russell)

The eddy at Neil's Wave (Photo by: Todd Baker)

Kim blunting at Neil's (Photo by: Todd Baker)

After a long day on the river, Ross was psyched! Here's to getting more people involved in this awesome sport!
Remember that friend who always wanted to go kayaking? Take them out and post your own experience!

The crew (Ross, Todd, Kim and Alex)

Cheers!

Kim Russell

Sweet Creek, Oregon

2009-06-09T16:39:00.001-07:00

Kim dropping the bottom drop (Photo by: Seth Swallen)

Over the course of the past week, Oregon has seen pouring rain everyday. River levels spiked and we rallied after classes to huck ze gnar in the new Diesel 80. Check out the photos! Todd is in the Habitat 80, and I am in the Diesel 80.

Hiking to the top (Photo by: Seth Swallen)

Kim Russell off the second drop (Photo by: Seth Swallen)

Todd Baker off the flake drop (Photo by: Seth Swallen)

Kim off the flake drop (yellow), and Glenn at the bottom of the gorge (orange)

Todd off the flake drop (Photo by: Seth Swallen)

Kim off the middle drop (Photo by: Seth Swallen)

Todd Baker (Photo by: Seth Swallen)

Hope everyone has a wonderful Memorial Day weekend!

Kim Russell

2009 Miracle Mile Race!

2009-06-09T16:38:00.001-07:00

Racers coming down to the start (Photo by: Kim Russell)

A couple weeks ago, we held a boatercross down the NFMF of the Willamette near Oakridge, Oregon, a mile-long class IV boulder garden. We had about 7 racers in total in what was a double-elimination tournament. Round one saw two people race each other, the winner moving on to the winner's bracket, and the loser moving onto the loser's bracket. The losers then raced each other, of which the winner would be included in the winner's bracket. In the final round, all those of the winner's bracket would race.

Round 1:
Conor Ross
Seth Swallen

Alex Dalgleish
Ryan Scott

Glenn Dalgleish
Kim Russell
Todd Baker

After Round 1, Conor Ross, Ryan Scott and Todd Baker moved onto the winner's bracket, while Seth Swallen, Alex Dalgleish, Glenn Dalgleish and Kim Russell moved on to the loser's bracket.

At the start (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Rounding the corner below that start (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Alex Dalgleish on his way to the finish (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Round 2:

Alex Dalgleish
Seth Swallen
Kim Russell

After Round 2, Kim Russell moved onto the winner's bracket.

Final Round:

Ryan Scott
Todd Baker
Kim Russell
Conor Ross

Ryan Scott on his winning run (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Spectators at the finish line (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Shuttle back to the top (Photo by: Kim Russell)

The final round was pretty heated, with Ryan Scott and Todd Baker neck and neck for the entire mile. Kim Russell and Conor Ross weren't too far behind. Ryan Scott ended up pulling ahead at the very end for a strong finish, followed by Todd Baker, Kim Russell and Conor Ross.

Results:

1. Ryan Scott
2. Todd Baker
3. Kim Russell
4. Conor Ross

We're hoping to make this race a monthly event next year, in addition to a Eugene series of races featuring a boaterx down Sweet Creek, a freestyle at Fern Ridge Reservoir and a downriver race at the NFMF.

Stay Tuned!

www.nfmfboaterx.toddbake.com

Kim Russell

2009 Clackamas River Festival

2009-06-09T16:36:00.001-07:00

(Photo by: Kim Russell)

Earlier this month, Todd and I made it out to the Clackamas River Festival near Portland, Oregon for some fun and games. It was a two day festival put on by Next Adventure, packed full of both rafting and kayaking events.

The coolest event of the weekend was the big air ramp where people hucked themselves off a huge ramp, flailing arms and all.

Ansy Maser cracking a beer (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Andy Maser pulled off an airscrew while cracking a beer while going down the ramp, and Willi almost did a front-flip.

Willi working on the front flip (Photo by: Kim Russell)

At the end of the day, first place went to Todd Baker with a double-air screw. YEA! Bloody knuckles and all!

Todd on his way to a double airscrew (Photos: by Kim Russell)

(Photo by: Kim Russell)

See you on the water!

Kim Russell

Full Immersion Photo Collage

2009-06-02T22:58:00.000-07:00

I took some photos of a Bend Alder Creek Kayak and Canoe Full Immersion class and put them together in a collage. This class is designed as an introduction to whitewater kayaking; starting off with basic rolling practice and progressing into entry level class two or three rapids. If you would like more infomation, visit www.aldercreek.com or call 541/317/9407

Meadow Camp Headcam 2126 CFS

2009-05-24T09:02:00.000-07:00

Got out kayaking today with some bright sunny weather and 75% temp. It is time for summer and I could not be happier! As most people know Bend, OR is awesome for summers due to nothing but sunshine and good kayaking soooo close. Here is our local class 4+ run known as Meadow Camp at 2126 CFS on the headcam. Enjoy!

Meadow Camp Headcam from Josh Mckeown on Vimeo.

Meet the Team-

2009-05-14T18:03:00.001-07:00

Meet Josh Mckeown. 24 yrs. old, and paddling since he was 13, he lives to kayak and travel the world. This summer, he earns his degree in Tourism and Outdoor Leadership at OSU and seeks to work abroad in the outdoor industry. He is currently a sponsored whitewater kayaker and certified in CPR, First Aid, and Swiftwater Rescue. You can find him on any of the local runs, or as far South as Patagonia in Chile. Ask for Josh to help show you the ropes of whitewater kayaking...he loves introducing the sport to others!

(Below) Josh on a local steep creek- Tumalo Creek

(Below) Playing on Granny's Wave, WA

(below) Hitting the center line on Dillon Falls

(Below) The 5 Ledges on Copper Creek

Riverhouse Helmet-Cam

2009-04-11T13:13:00.002-07:00

Hello everyone! Josh and I just got a helmet camera and have been taking it out for "test drives" on the local runs. check out our winter run here in Bend...Riverhouse! It's class 3+/4 with some fun playspots if the flow is high enough...

See you on the river,

Team Aldercreek

New Helmet Cam Footage

2009-04-11T13:13:00.001-07:00

Dillon/Lava Falls Head Cam from Josh Mckeown on Vimeo.

Riverhouse Rendevous Race 2009

2009-03-30T09:30:00.000-07:00

Riverhouse Rendevous Race (AKA West Cost Junior Olympics Qualifier for Slalom) Went to the race yesterday to take some shots of the dedicated racers. It wasn't over 30 degrees and the winds were kickin' up at about 25 miles per hour! BRR! We had icicles dangling from the gates which were looking like whirlwinds of death. scary. Needless to say, we had a great turn out! 25 racers!

The course had roughly 6 upstream gates and 12 downstream. I have to say, this course looked tough. Some difficult gates in there for sure. Props to everyone for braving the cold and racing!

(Below) Alta enjoying the breeze

(Below) Mariah enjoying the course :)

(Below) Mariah stylin the gates

(Below) previous US Slalom Team member

(below) Mike Stahley charging the lower gates

(Below) Joyce Stahley making it look easy

(Below) Geoff Frank of Aldercreek

(Below) Rick Wright looking ahead...

Wintertime Dillon

2009-01-31T21:03:00.001-08:00

Here are a few shots of when Christina and I went out last week to do a little boating in good old Wintertime. Tyler Roemer brought out his camera to capture the moments. If you want to see more of Tyler Roemers work you can visit his site at http://tylerroemer.blogspot.com

Me Boofing the right side of Dillon 750cfs

Pondering the left side line at 750cfs

Decided to go for it... And the line went pretty well (You only have a 4 foot wide landing zone at this flow: 750cfs

Landing in the spot I wanted on the left side line...

Christina running right side of Dillon

Christina right side again different angel

Christina happy to be boating!

Me again on the right side of Dillon at a different angel

Driving for my Line

Christina making her way through Dill Hole

Benham Falls Short Video

2009-01-31T21:02:00.001-08:00

Come meet up with Team Wave Sport/Team Alder Creek on the road!

2008-09-10T12:12:00.001-07:00

The End of Summer...

For the past month and a half, I have been working 45 hour weeks at the local kayak shop, Alder Creek Kayak and Canoe in Bend, Oregon. Teaching both whitewater and flat-water classes, the work is very rewarding and I learn a lot myself.

Over the next two weeks, Todd Baker and I will be traveling around the state, getting in as much paddling as we can before school starts September 29, 2008.

Starting September 16th or so, we'll be in Hood River, Oregon for about a week, week and a half, paddling the Cispus, the Little White, Truss and a few others.

We will then will make our way south back to Eugene either through Bend, Oregon or Portland, with a possible stop at the coast.

We are hoping to do some clinics along the way, as well as meet some more paddlers, so if you want to join us on the river or grab some grub, give a shout!

The best way to get in contact with me on the road is by cell phone:

(541) 693-4377

Kim Russell

wwpaddler03@yahoo.com

Employee of the Week: Nick Fehringer

2008-09-10T10:43:00.001-07:00

Nick Fehringer:

Role: Sales Associate

Location: Bend, Oregon

About “Little Saint Nick” :

Nick Fehringer comes to Alder Creek from Nebraska. He has lived in Bend, OR for the last 5 years working as a specialist in Yakima and Thule roof rack components.

If you have a question about how to carry your boats and gear there’s no one more dedicated to make sure you and your family stay safe. His background in outdoor sports (Kayaking, Bicycling, Camping, Fly Fishing, Hunting, and Golfing) make him an interesting fellow to talk too… and his passion and enthusiasm to help others makes him a great member of the Alder Creek Team.

Thanks Nick!

Employee of the Week: James Fredericks

2008-09-10T10:38:00.000-07:00

Employee of the Week: James Fredericks

Role: Sales Associate
Location: Bend, Oregon

About James Fredericks:

James got his intro to whitewater kayaking in 1984 as a senior in high school. He started seriously whitewater kayaking in 1993. In August of 1995 James first set foot in the Portland Alder Creek. Within one minute he saw the boat he needed to buy (without prior consideration). James has entered many whitewater events and won several, including the 1998 Nike World Masters freestyle event. He has a few first and second descents of various rivers and waterfalls, including Oregon's 68 foot Koosah Falls.

In the past James has seriously engaged in or competed in cross country skiing, road and mountain bike racing, rock climbing and multi-sport events.

James has been working at the Bend Alder Creek since 2003 and currently one of the two managers there.

Thanks for reading,

Kim Russell

Three Creeks in a day and back!

2008-08-26T21:40:00.000-07:00

The morning view (Photo by: Todd Baker)

After paddling the Callaghan River late in the evening, we all made a quick dinner stop in Whistler Village, then headed to camp at the Cheakamus River nearby. We were unsure were to camp, so Kirk and Trevor pulled the vans up into the trailhead parking lot, while we pitched our tent in between for bear protection (Crazy, eh?) Ya... we were a little nervous about the whole bear thing.

Good Morning! (Photo by: Todd Baker)

Anywhoo... the next morning, we learned we should not camp in the trailhead parking lot, but rather on the opposite side of the river somewhere. Cool. Thanks BC Parks!

After we woke up, we did a quick lap on the Cheakamus River, an easy class III run in the beautiful hills just outside Whistler.

Bryan Kirk Lap 1 of the put-in Falls (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Bryan Kirk lap 2 of the put-in falls (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Cheakamus take-out (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Trevor playin' fetch with Babs (Photo by: Kim Russell)

By 1:00 pm, we were off to the Callaghan River again for a second lap. (I decided to run shuttle this time and save up energy for the last river of the day, the Soo, as I was still getting over being sick).

Callaghan put-in (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Once the boys made it off Callaghan, we headed to the Soo River, but not before heading for a quick scout on 21 mile creek, a sweet little nearby creek with a series of 3 or 4 15-20 foot waterfalls. Picture perfect shots, and beautiful scenery. Sweet.

Hiking around (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Boulder-mess (Photo by: Kim Russell)

The first falls of the series (Photo by: Kim Russell)

After checking out the flow, and debating whether to actually hike our boats up the steep trail, and down the even steeper slopes to the river, we decided to bail on the mission and move onto the Soo River, about 20 minutes north of Whistler.

Unfortunately, we managed to pick the most awesome week ever to be traveling around Whistler! The same weekend as the Pemberton Music Festival! All along the highway from Whistler to Pemberton, BC, there were police checks, and as a result mile-upon-mile long lines. I think we went about a mile in half an hour. Sweet. So much for 3 rivers in a day....

The LINE (Photo by: Kim Russell)

The line kept on moving, and eventually we made it to the Soo River, putting in at a super random road that doesn't even look like a road. Awesome. Being late, no one took cameras on the river, but I will say the Soo is a must-run if you are ever in the Whistler area! It's a boulder gardeney, semi-pool drop, continuous class IV run with great potential. With milky turquoise blue water, and amazing rapids, it's a must do!

The next day, we were on the road driving back to the states, crossing our fingers we wouldn't get pulled over again at the border.

Two hours later, we were safe back in the states remembering the most amazing two weeks any of us had had in a long time.

Sunset crossing the bridge in Vancouver, BC (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Cheers!

Kim Russell

PS- Don't camp at the Cheakamus take-out or else you might end up with a warning ticket zip-tyed to your tent that looks something like this..... Cheers to our friends from England!

Up to Whistler!

2008-08-18T08:30:00.000-07:00

Wednesday morning rolled around, and we all decided to call it good at Skook and head to Whistler. After a week at Skook we were all pretty worn out, but completly relaxed in such a beautiful place. If you have never been to Egmont, BC you have got to check it out! Lush forests all around you, an epic wave, sealife, amazing food, and no cell phone service! YES! Skook is definetly a place where you can actually relax and not be bothered by the norms of society. Anywhoo, back to the story....

We began loading the van at 10:00, but Bryan, Todd and I are really ADD and get easily distracted. Somewhere in there, I think we ended up tinting a van window, browsing super cool stuff online, reading a book, and running around.

The line-up (Photo by: Kim Russell)

We ended up rolling out around 3 pm, we made it to the ferry terminal
to catch the 5:30 ferry, thanks to Bryan's superior van-driving skills!

Trevor posing as a superhero in the line-up (Photo by: Kim Russell)

An hour later, we were off to Whistler, about an hour and a half north of Vancouver, BC.

On the way there, we saw a lumberjack!

Lumberjack (Photo by: Kim Russell)

AND... a 40-footer near Quest University!

Scouting the lip (Photo by: Kim Russell)

The wreckage below (Photo by: Kim Russell)

The falls (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Unfortunately, the falls was too low, and each log we tossed over managed to either break in half, get lost under the river left wall, or end up in the mess of logs just downstream.

"The Cheif" in Squamish (Photo by: Kim Russell)

After arriving in Squamish after dark, we decided to call it quits and camp out in the Walmart parking lot to save ourselves the trouble of finding a campsite late at night in the middle of bear country. Good idea.

The next morning, we woke up, did some walmart shopping, where we determined the Walmart's in Canada are SOOO much cooler then in the states. They have Passion Flakies and shoes for $5.00! And they weren't just shoes... they were waterproof ked's things for chicks! Yee-haw! (Needless to say, no one got any...BUMMER)

After a breakfast of eggs and english muffins in the parking lot, we went to check out Mamquam Falls, a 70-footer just out of town whose flows are controlled by a local water-bottling company! (go figure)

Todd, Trevor and Bryan at Mamquam Falls(Photo by: Kim Russell)

Mamquam.... the big one (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Once again, it was a tad bit too low, so we shot some sweet pics, and headed up to Whistler just in time to run the Callaghan River nearby.

Bryan and the boys hikin' to the river (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Todd Baker, Bryan Kirk, Andrew and the rest of the boys on the Callaghan River, BC

(Photo by: Kim Russell)

Unfortunately, I did not take my camera on the Callaghan this day, as I didn't want to deal with a pelicase in my lap at the time, so you'll have to do a little research and find some pics online.

Callaghan Creek is amazing! The water is milky blue-white, and not too cold. The run starts off with a little bit of class II, quickly changing to class IV. The run overall is Class IV boulder gardens and drops with two bigger drops toward the beginning (a 15 ftr with a log on river right, and a clean 25 ftr downstream). Sweet. Def. a creek to check out if you're ever in the area.

Stay Tuned for the next post! Three Rivers in a day: Cheakamus, Callaghan and the Soo!

Hope you're staying cool in the warm weather!

Kim Russell
Team Wave Sport

Last days at Skookumchuck!

2008-08-14T10:10:00.000-07:00

Purple Starfish at Skook (Photo by: Kim Russell)

For the next five days or so, we spent our mornings at the BackEddy Pub and Marina, and our evenings at the wave.

Like clockwork, at 7:30 am, Todd and I would wake up, sneak into
the van, grab some breakfast food, and shut the door as quickly as
possible before waking Bryan. Needless to say, we never did get our
food out without waking him up... Sorry!

Bryan and Todd making breakfast (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Todd and I would make breakfast, toast some bagels (more of a burn
than a toast), make some oatmeal and chat with Trevor for a few hours.

Mmmmm... eggs! (Photo by: Kim Russell)

By 10:00 am, Bryan would be up, we would all do a quick internet
session, then either log footage from the day before or look at photos.

By noon, we would wander down to the BackEddy Pub for some quick,
delicious grub, then make our way down the road to the trailhead for
Skook.

Float Plane at Skookumchuck (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Towards the end of our stay at Skook, we made it out to the wave early enough for it to still be slack tide (no moving water). We were able to wander around the tide-pools and check out all the cool sea-life.

(Photo by: Kim Russell)

Not to mention, watching the wave grow from nothing... it's pretty cool.

Kelsey Thompson, Trevor Clark and Todd Baker (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Check out the photos below of the remainder of our stay at Skookumchuck!

Kelsey Thompson givin' er with a flashback (Photo by: Todd Baker)

Kim Russell with a sweet righty (Photo by: Todd Baker)

Todd Baker mid Pan-am (Photo by: Bryan Kirk)

Bryan Kirk going clean in his Kaenon sunglasses (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Kelsey mid-air screw (Photo by: Bryan Kirk)

Kim paddling hard to stay on the green wave (Photo by: Todd Baker)

Bryan Kirk (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Todd Baker in the Fuse 48 (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Backsurfin' (Photo by: Todd Baker)

BK (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Kelsey Thompson going clean (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Kim goin' right again (Photo by: Todd Baker)

Todd mid-flashback (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Stay Tuned for some creeking at Whistler!

Smile,

Kim Russell

Team ACKC goes to Canada!

2008-08-14T10:05:00.000-07:00

Todd Baker, Kelsey Thompson and Natalie Lussin (Photo by: Kim Russell)

After looking at pictures of Skook for years, we are finally here! Bryan Kirk, Todd and I made it up late Thursday evening just in time to meet up with our friend and photographer Trevor Clark as well as catch the wave before sunset.

Skookumchuck Tidal Rapids are located just outside of Egmont, BC along the Sechelt Inlet. During ebbtide, as the tide flows out the inlet towards the ocean, the wave doesn't even exist. Once the water in the inlet gets low enough, the tide switches, and water rushes back in to fill the inlet. As this happens, the wave begins to build, and usually peaks about two hours after slack tide. You can surf the wave as it begins to build all the way to the peak and back down to slack tide.

During the end of July, the tides are set so the wave is coming in later and later each day. Thursday the wave peaked at 6:00pm (we could start surfing at 4:00), and tonight (Tuesday), it is peaking at 8:30 pm, meaning we can start surfing at 6:30pm. To get to the wave you can go either by boat or by land, hiking about 4km to the wave on a sweet trail through the BC forest.

Kim Russell dropping in (Photo by: Todd Baker)

We are heading out to the wave to meet up with Kelsey Thompson in a few minutes, so I'll have to keep this short, but check out the photos, and stay tuned for more!

Bryan Kirk and Todd Baker waiting for the pile (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Kelsey Thompson (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Bryan Kirk logging some air miles (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Todd Baker mid-helix (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Kim Russell with a sweet righty (Photo by: Bryan Kirk)

Kelsey Thompson with a kickass airscrew (Photo by: Bryan Kirk)

Bryan Kirk mid-helix (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Kim Russell workin' the flashback (Photo by: Bryan Kirk)

Todd Baker going huge with a clean pan-am (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Bryan Kirk clean it up makin' a rainbow (Photo by: Kim Russell)

Cheers!

Kim Russell

First Descent of the Upper North Fork Tumalo

2008-07-06T23:33:00.001-07:00

Scott Baker, Brian Lee, and I went up searching for the first descent of the Upper North Fork Tumalo. Scott Baker and I were the only ones to run this small gorged up section. This sweet little run ended up being named "Happy Valley Gorge." This gorge consisted of 5 different drops which were a 12 footer, into a 10 footer, into a 30 footer, into a 8 footer, into a 5 footer.

The 12 footer was super shallow at the top with a nice little slide feel to it. It was an ok drop that really could use a little more water to help the lead in become more fun. After the 12 footer it led directly into the 10 foot ledge. The ledge was an easy move at the top but proved hard to boof due to the low volume. After two runs Scott and I concluded that it should be run center right, which was the deepest part of the landing (Scott Hit bottom running Center Left). After the 10 footer there is about 50 feet before the 30 footer. There is a micro eddy on the left below the 10 footer backed up by a log. The 30 footer is slanting left that requires you to make a line to the right side to avoid the shallow pool at the bottom on the left. This basiclly ment a good right angle with your boat and a strong left stroke for us to run this one clean. After this you run into a little 2 foot ledge that leads into the final two drops. The 6 footer was an easy boof lip that lands on soft water and helps launch you into the 5 footer. The 5 footer was a little difficult in the fact that it ran into a wall/underwater cave. Overall it was a sweet park and huck gorge to hit up around the Central Oregon area....

Here are some shots from the day... In random order...

Scott on the entrance 12 Footer
Photo: Author

Scott on the 10 Footer
Photo: Author

Scott Scouting the 30 Footer
Photo: Author

Scott Running the 30 footer
Photo: Author

Author on the Entrance 12 Footer
Photo: Brian Lee

Author Running the 10 Footer
Photo: Brian Lee

Author Running the 30 Footer
Photo: Brian Lee

Author Running the 30 Footer
Photo: Brian Lee

Author Running 30 footer... Different run different angle...
Photo: Brian Lee

Author on the 6 footer
Photo: Brian Lee

Author on 5 Footer
Photo: Brian Lee

Scott Baker running the 30 Footer Agian
Photo: Brian Lee

Scott on the 6 Footer
Photo: Brian Lee

Scott on the last 5 foot ledge
Photo: Brian Lee

Paddle Fest in Bend, Oregon

2008-05-10T07:48:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, Aldercreek hosted the annual Paddle Fest at Mckay Park. Aldercreek provided the opportunity to demo boats and paddles at no cost to the public... a free paddle day! There were hundreds of boats available to try from Liquidlogic to Wilderness Systems. Safety boaters were also on hand to help any visitor in trouble...we understand that canoes are tippy!

Sign up began at 8 am and around noon, we peaked with roughly 300 visitors present. Total, we had around 400 visitors- a big success for Aldercreek and the paddling community!

(above) the park getting busy

(above) Josh- the official safety boater, getting ready

Come out next year for the annual Paddle Fest at McKay park, you wont want to miss it!

Happy Paddling,
Christina Russell

Copper Creek Action

2008-04-18T10:21:00.000-07:00

After our Canyon Creek adventure on Saturday, Christina and I joined forces with a few others to do a run down Copper Creek on Sunday morning. The place we camped the night before put us a quick 15 minute dive to the put in. So why wouldn’t we try and hit another great creek? When 9am rolled around the group all rallied up to the put in for a quick run down.

Christina Getting ready at the Put In
Photo: Josh McKeown

The first rapid that you come to on Copper Creek is known as Certain Death. Usually there are one or two people out of the group that will fire up this drop. Today Todd Baker was our lucky number one. Like usual, he made the drop look easy.

Looking Down the Main part of Certain Death
Photo: Christina Russell

Christina Scouting Certain Death... And taking Pictures
Photo: Josh McKeown

Todd Baker in the middle of Certain Death
Photo: Josh McKeown

Ryan Scott Putting in Below Certain Death
Photo: Christina Russell

After Certain Death the water is pretty calm for the next mile with class 2/3 rapids. This section of the creek is beautiful and is worth seeing even if you don’t run the main drops. After the mile is over you come to the next section of rapids/falls known as “The Big Falls.” This consists of a small slide into an 8 footer, then into a 18 footer. Everyone in the group fired off this drop perfectly.

Me scouting the drop with a fellow boater
Photo: Christina Russell

Christina Scouting/Filming People Running The Big Falls
Photo: Josh McKeown

Ryan Scott Boofing the 8 Footer
Photo: Josh McKeown

Christina about to Boof off the 8 footer on The Big Falls
Photo: Josh McKeown

Christina boofing off the 18 footer
Photo: Josh McKeown

The Crew Looking back upstream at The Big Falls
Photo: Conner

Once The Big Falls are done with, the next mile or so consists of some more class 2/3 rapids. All of this is fun read and run rapids that is continuous over the whole mile. This leads into the final rapids for Copper Creek known as The Final 5. It sounds exactly how it plays out with 5 different drops stacked on top of each other. The first drop is a small ledge boof that can be run in a number of different spots (Just make sure to boof, one of our crew got a nice beat down in this first drop). The second drop is a sloping hole that requires a nice delayed boof stroke to skim over the recirculation. After this you drop directly into number three which has a steep gradient into a hole backed up by a wall that turns left. Finally you get 50 feet of flat water before the last two drops. These two are pretty much one drop that has a sloping 6 footer into a 8-10 footer with a hole on the right side. Overall the drops or pretty straight forward and it is easy to scout or portage if needed. Just fyi, if portage or scout, be quiet because the side you do this on is private land. Anyway, everyone that decided to run these drops had great lines and concluded the run gracefully.

Ryan Scott on the First Drop of The Final 5
Photo: Christina Russell

Todd Baker and Ryan Scott Below Number two and in Number 3
Photo: Christina Russell

Me Dropping into Number 3
Photo: Keel Brightman

Some of the Crew below Number 4 and 5
Photo: Christina Russell

Christina and I below Number 4 and 5
Photo: Christina Russell

The Take Out for Copper Creek
Photo: Christina Russell

The Take Out!
Photo: Christina Russell

From The Final 5 you have a few hundred yards to the take out. Copper Creek runs into the East Fork of the Lewis and many people like to continue down that section to run Horseshoe Falls. On this particular day we took out at the bottom of Copper Creek due to some people wanting to get back for the Huck Fest at Sunset Falls. Christina and I decided to hit up the full run on the East Fork of the Lewis with a few other people.

So Stay tuned for the next post on the East Fork of the Lewis!

Races and Carnage

2008-04-16T10:21:00.000-07:00

So Christina Russell and I got the chance to head over to the Canyon Creek race this past weekend. The race had about 85+ people to show up and compete in R2, IK, and K1 events. We had some gorgeous weather that made the day that much better along with some good flows on Canyon Creek. Christina and I left Friday night after classes and drove up to the take out of Canyon Creek to camp for the night. Arriving at the take out we found around 35 other boaters doing the same thing. Both of us called it a night due to having an early start the next morning. Waking up at around 7am we got some breakfast and headed up stream for a quick warm up run down. This was only the second time Christina had seen Canyon Creek and my first. So it was in the best interest for both of us to get a quick lap on it before we decided to race down it. With a few other people, we got on the water at about 10am and started to bomb down the run.

Arriving on the first real rapids for the day, everyone made there way through with good lines. At this point we came to the rapid known as Prelude Thrasher. Unfortunately someone put the beta out there that it was Thrasher instead of Prelude. Todd and Conner went first followed by me. In my mind I was visualizing thrasher and the move that I needed to make for the rapid that I had seen in pictures.

Let me say real quick to I brought a new boat for the race, a Liquidlogic Remix 69, to get a little more length and speed for the race. This proved to be a bad idea due to the boat handling much different than my Liquidlogic Jefe that I have been paddling for the past two years.

The Picture Above is Prelude. I was stuck in the hole on the right side of the Picture. Thanks to oregonkayaking.net for the picture

Anyway, I dropped into Prelude Center Left/Left with a right angle which ended up putting me perfectly sideways into the worst part. Note that this rapid is supposed to be run center Right/far right! The left side of Prelude consists of a nasty ledge hole that is backed up by a rock wall creating a pocket hole that is nearly impossible to get out of without help. I ended up in a side surfing position with my head down stream against the rock wall. I could mange to hold my head above water with a solid brace and tried this for about 30 seconds or more. I tried to throw my bow/stern into the ledge hole to work myself free. Every time that I tried this, it pretty much did nothing to help my situation anymore due to the angle of the hole and rock wall. During this side surfing action Todd Baker was paddling up stream to try and give me his bow to pull me out. I saw him coming up and decided that it might be the best time to swim and try to grab onto his boat to get out. In my mind that process that would take place when I swam was that I would fall/push myself out down stream towards Todd’s boat and be able to grab onto it and escape the hole. The actual event was MUCH different than I expected!

When I pulled my skirt and pushed myself out of my boat I instantly got sucked underwater and lost all direction. I was caught extremely off guard and began to get recycled in the hole. The ledge hole began to push me down deep and let me up every 8 seconds or so to get a very very small breath of air before I would go under water again. After about 30 seconds of being recirculated I realized that I was not coming out of this hole by myself. I tried to go deep to escape the recirculating water but only hit the wall. The pillows of water coming off the wall push me back into the hole again. Getting another small breath of air I went deep again and I tried grabbing the wall to pull myself out, but only found smooth slippery rock. At this point I began to lose my energy due to not getting enough air. I kept trying different positions to get myself flushed out of the hole but nothing proved to work. A minute passed by and I came to the realization that this might be the place where I was going to die. Everything started to become a little more peaceful and I began to accept my fate. I lost almost all strength and things started go become black.

During my time in the hole Todd Baker was paddling like crazy below trying to get his boat in the position for me to grab when I was both in and out of my boat. He literally paddled back into the hole more than once to try and get me. The last time that I resurfaced, after the long struggle in the hole, he managed to be in the right place when I came up. His boat bumped me in the head (I don’t remember this) and I somehow got the strength to grab his boat. Todd paddled like hell backwards and pulled me free from the hole.

I know when dramatic things happen to you it is much different when your watching it vs. experiencing it. But I know for a fact that I was one recirculation away from drowning and Todd Baker truly did save my life.

After getting myself on shore I took awhile to recuperate before figuring out where all my gear had gone. Conner had managed to rescue my paddle but lost the boat down stream. Hiking down the side for a little while, I decided that I should head up and out of the canyon. Kim and Christina were both shaken up by the event and offered to hike out with me. We all started the bush whacking process up the hill until we came to a old 4 wheel drive road. We hiked along this road for an hour or so and managed to reach the main highway. Sitting along the highway a little while, we got a ride from a fellow boater down to the take out. Once we reached the take out it was already 12:30 and the race had begun. Unfortunately we were unable to compete for the day, but there is always next year!.

The next few hours Christina and I spent recuperating and talking with fellow boaters. I got some beta from people at the take out that my boat had been pulled out by Nate and Heather Herbeck and was sitting on shore above Champaign. We all sat around for the next few hours trying to find a ride back upstream with one of the motor boats taking spectators to the finish line.

With no luck, I decided to take my playboat and paddle the hour flat water to the finish line to try and rescue my boat. An hour or so later I reached the finish line of Canyon Creek which consists of a rapid called Toby’s. When I was paddling up, all the racers were coming down for the day. I got different beta about the hike up from Toby’s to Champaign, from one person saying it wasn’t to bad of a hike, and many others saying it would be an adventure trying to get up stream along the bank. The majority of the people were right, for when I got myself up there, it proved to be a lot more than I was expecting. Stashing my playboat at the bottom of Toby’s rapid, I started my hike up along the cliffs of Canyon Creek. Of course with the luck of the day, I ended up being by myself with no support if something went wrong.

Above is Champaign and Hammering Spot. I hiked up the left side of the picture along the cliffs. Thanks to oregonkayaking.net for the picture

Above is Toby's Rapid: Thanks to oregonkayaking.net for the picture

All I can say is that the hike back up stream is possible but has some scary parts that require rock climbing above a class 5 rapid. Climbing on vertical walls and bouldering my way through small cracks, I finally reach my boat above Champaign. All in all the hike back up stream took me 30-45 minutes. My boat was in good shape and I knew the only way to get it out was to paddle the last three rapids on Canyon Creek. Luckily I thought of this before my hike up and ended up wearing all my gear. So I jumped into my boat and paddled down to the lip of Champaign. I had talked with a few people about the lines you needed to take on all the rapids earlier that day, and remembered I wanted to go center left at Champaign, Right at Hammering Spot, and a center right boof at Toby’s. Feeling really nervous about being solo and just escaping death earlier that morning, I managed to fire off all the drops perfectly. I grabbed my playboat below Toby’s and towed it behind me for the 45 minute paddle across the lake water to the take out.

I reached the take out for the day thankful to be alive and exhausted from the events of the day. Everyone was in a good mood and ready to go party at Oly’s house. Christina and I jumped into my Tacoma and did the 25 minute drive to the party. The night was filled with live music, good food, and plenty of beer. That night both Christina and I slept like rocks from an adventurous day.

Vancouver Island BC: Part 3

2008-04-04T10:46:00.000-07:00

Thursday in Vancouver:

By: Christina Russell

A snowy Thursday morning
(Above) Photo: Christina Russell

We woke up Thursday morning to some hard facts: 1) we were down two vehicles 2) there were three inches of snow on the ground 3) the creeks were dropping out on us. Yes. It was sad. After a short discussion of our options, we decided to head to Victoria and take the ferry back to WAshington. Our reasoning: the Robe was coming in....er it was supposed to be in. Josh and I had a very difficult time leaving because we still had a perfectly functional vehicle and knew there were some great park and hucks outside of Victoria...nevermind the three hour drive, we wanted to paddle! BUT this is when it is important to understand the needs of the group and do what is best for everyone. We will be returning for a couple weeks in August/September so Im ok with the decision to head home.

Back to the story....

Ryan Scott drove Austin Rathman and Christie G up at their FJ cruiser that was so delicately pushed off the side of the road. (If you dont remember from our last post, the FJ's clutch went out on Kim, Christina, and Laura. ) Christie and Austin were to wait for the tow truck to come in from the nearest town. Unfortunately, we later learned that the tow truck never arrived and Austin and Christie had to hike back to town...bruttle. Team Aldercreek split after Austin and Christie left and headed to the port at Victoria. We took the 7pm ferry that night after a short stop in downtown Victoria. If you are ever in Victoria, make sure you stop by the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory....amazing fudge!

(Above) Photo: Christina Russell

Cooking mac 'n cheese at the loading dock in Victoria

Because of time constraints and the fact that we were going broke buying our return ferry tickets, we decided on cooking dinner with my Jet Boil stove before we boarded. This worked out perfectly and two boxes of cheesy goodness was just right. Pretty sure we made the truckers jealous.

Once we got on the ferry, we realized how bummed we were to be going back to the states. We REALLY wanted to paddle. The expressions in the shot below perfectly describe how everyone was feeling.

(Above) Photo: Josh Mckeown

Kim and Christina in the cargo hold...the expressions speak for everyone

(Above) Photo: Josh Mckeown

Checkin' out the ferry....

Photo : Josh Mckeown

On the ferry back to Washington

Photo: Josh Mckeown

We arrived at our port around 8:30 and promptly crossed the border. Our group was to meet up again at a fellow paddler's home just outside of Bellingham, WA. The four of us rolled in to the driveway around 10pm and discussed the plan for the next morning. We would get up early and check the flows to make sure the Robe was still in...

Early the next morning...

Ah how life can be cruel- we woke up to MORE snow. NOT a good sign. The Robe had dropped out over night due to low freezing levels and was not runnable. At this point everyone was exhausted from the entire trip and as a group, we decided itwas best to end the mission and head home.

Photo: Christina Russell
another snowy morning

Josh and I are feeling ok about the whole trip. We did well in staying positive and have decided we will return in the fall again. If you head North to BC, make sure to put the right tires on your vehicle! Dont forget an air compressor!

Happy Paddling,
Christina

Vancouver Island BC: Part 2

2008-04-02T21:01:00.000-07:00

Point Renfrew Cabins
Photo: Christina Russell

So the next day we all woke up to a lot of snow... Then it started to rain and we all felt a little better that flows would go up. At this point we found out that Austin had a total flat tire and Ryans car also had an almost flat. This became our priority over any creeking and took up most of the morning. By the time we got the tires fixed it was getting late to put onto other creeks, so we all decided to hit up the Middle Gordon agian.

Christina and Laura
Photo: Kim Russell

Austin Fixing his Flat
Photo: Kim Russell

When we reached the put in it was snowing really really hard and made a few people drop out for running the middle section. It was like boating back in Oregon agian and all the wonderful snow we get here during the winter months. Thankfully we had seen all the drops the day before which made the scouting and portaging a lot easier in the snow.

Put In for Middle Gordon Creek
Photo: Kim Russell

Put In for Middle Gordon Creek
Photo: Kim Russell

Crew Paddling down a Tributary into Gordon Creek
Photo: Kim Russell

Here are a few more Pictures from the first Drop of Middle Gordon. I really didnt get any pictures this day due to the crew trying to keep a good pace and it being so cold.

Me on Drop 1 Middle Gordon
Photo: Kim Russell

Me on Drop 1 Middle Gordon
Photo: Kim Russell

Me on Drop 1 Middle Gordon
Photo: Kim Russell

When we all reached the take out the worst news of the entire trip came to pass. Austins clutch had burnt out on the shuttle and was completely immobile. The girls (Kim, Christina, and Laura) doing the shuttle pushed the car a couple hundred yards up the hill to get it out of the way and safly parked! Yeah, they are bomber!

The FJ with no more Clutch
Photo: Kim Russell

At this point some of the group went up to the FJ and figured out a solution and everyone else finished the planned run for the day. My truck was still at the take out for the Lower Gordon. The game plan ended up being that half of us would ride in my truck back to the cabins and the other half would deal with the FJ problem. Overall it worked out well and we all were back at the Cabins by 6pm. The FJ was still up on the logging road and proved later to become a big problem in getting a tow truck to get it out. That evening some of us decided to go on a drive to find some surfing spots on the coast to hopefully do some playboating. Kim, Christina, Todd, and myself jumped into Todds subu and headed down the road. About 20 minutes into the drive Todds rear left tire got a nasty flat. This became flat number 3 for the trip.... Thanks to Kim and Christina, the spare tire was put on in a matter of minutes and with an excited attiude.

Pumping up the Spare Tire
Photo: Kim Russell

Still Pumping up the Spare Tire
Photo: Kim Russell

After the flat number 3 was fixed we headed back to he cabins for he night to get some food and relax. We had to figure out a game plan for the next day, and it was not looking to be a good one. 2 cars were working off of flat tires with basic repairs and 1 car was completely immobile. With much discussion we all decided that fixing the cars was the number 1 task for the next day.

Team Alder Creek!
Photo: Christina Russell

Marinating at Juniper Pool

2008-04-01T09:49:00.000-07:00

By: Christina Russell

Last night, Josh and I headed to Juniper pool to cure our itch to paddle. We just returned from a spring break paddling trip to Vancouver Island....unfortunately flat tires got the best of us and we only made it on the Gordan River. Back in Bend, and paddling deprived, went went to Juniper pool for an evening of marinating in chlorine.

(above) I have scary feet...josh agrees
Photo By: Christina Russell

It's been well established that my feet are, how should I say this, messed up. I got bunions and bone growths where there shouldnt be...but then again, what paddler has pretty feet?!

(above) Josh showing the group how it's done
Photo by: Christina Russell

Josh took the time to help me work on my (non-existent) flatwater loops. By the end of the session, I had attempted two loops- one of which sort of worked out! :) Now I just have to practice, practice, practice. To anyone who wants to learn how to flatwater loop, check out the Bend Aldercreek for private lessons.

(Above) Me deciding that the new boat bow stalls like a champ
Photo by: Josh mckeown

(Above) and it also stern stalls well
Photo by: Josh Mckeown

Next Sunday evening, Team Aldercreek will return to the pool . Come join us!

Happy Paddling,
Christina Russell

Vancouver Island BC: Part 1

2008-03-30T13:09:00.000-07:00

Ferry Ride to BC Island: 7AM
Photo: Christina Russell

Team Alder Creek got a chance to head up to Vancouver Island BC to hit up some creeks for our Spring Break. Christina Russell and Josh McKeown met up with a strong crew from Hood River, and Eugene Oregon, we all rallied to the Island last Sunday. The forecast called for plenty of rain and made it clear for some good flows on most of the creeks we all wanted to run. Here are some pictures of the ride up to the Island.

Photo: Christina Russell

The Crew Getting Gas in Canada
Photo: Christina Russell

Driving to Point Renfrew, BC
Photo: Christina Russell

The first day on the river consisted of Lower Gordon Creek which was Class 3-4. The entire crew was functioning on little sleep and hours of driving so no class five was in store for the day. On top of the Gordon we originally planned to also run the Bugaboo park and huck falls, which consisted of a 30 footer, then a 25 footer. This was all changed when we found a nice HUGE old growth tree in the 25 foot falls. The Bugaboo falls is a tributary into the Gordon right above the Lower section.

30 Footer, Bugaboo Falls
Photo: Josh McKeown

25 Footer, Bugaboo Falls: With the Log in it
Photo: Christina Russell

Put In rapid for Lower Gorden Creek
Photo: Christina Russell

Put in Cliff for Lower Gorden and Take Out for Middle Gorden Creek
Photo: Christina Russell

Me enjoying one of many small creeks coming out of the walls of the canyon of Lower Gorden
Photo: Christina Russell

After the run down Lower Gorden Creek we all headed back into Point Renfrew and checked into the cabins that Austin had reserved. These cabins were truly luxery for us kayakers and made the trip up to BC 10x better. On top of the cabins, they had hot tubs which we all took advatage of every night!

Point Renfrew Cabins
Photo: Josh McKeown

Point Renfrew Cabins
Photo: Josh McKeown

The next day we were all ready to hit up some BC Class five and concluded the night before that the Upper and Middle section of Gordon Creek was the way to go. We all put on Upper Gordon Creek which consisted of Class 3 and 4 through a 2-3 mile stretch of river. After some good warm up rapids we ran into the Middle Gordon which is the classic class 5 section which has about 6 total big rapids on it. Here are the some pictures from the day.

The Crew Scouting Drop 1 on Middle Gordon Creek
Photo: Josh McKeown

Austin Rathmann on Drop 1
Photo: Josh McKeown

Todd Baker on Drop 1
Photo: Josh McKeown

Me in the entrance of Drop 1
Photo: Christina Russell

Me on Drop 1
Photo: Christina Russell

Todd Baker below Drop 1; Looking down Middle Gordon Canyon
Photo: Josh McKeown

Ryan Scott in Terminator
Photo: Josh McKeown

Todd Baker in the Entrance hole of Terminator
Photo: Josh McKeown

Austin Rathmann making the Must Make move on Austin City Limits
Photo: Josh McKeown

Todd Baker styling Austin City Limits
Photo: Josh McKeown

After this run down the Middle Gordoen, we all headed back into town for some nice hot tubin and much needed food. The next Day would prove that not everything is always smooth in BC....

Local Paddling on the Deschutes

2008-03-08T22:19:00.000-08:00

Today Team Alder Creek was able to get out and paddle Dillon/Lava Island Falls. The crew consisted of John Cramp, David Kinker, Christina Russell, and Josh McKeown (Author). With 60+ degree weather none of us could ask for anything better! We all meet at the traditional Meadow Camp parking lot below Lava Island Falls and packed into my 2 person Tacoma truck. Reaching the turn off for Dillon Falls a few minutes later we all discover a truck stuck in the snow at the bottom of the hill. This problem was nothing new for John Cramp and I because only a few weeks earlier we got 3 people unstuck, while trying to run the shuttle for Lava. With Johns trusty pin kit we were able to get the truck unstuck with in a matter of minutes. At this point we decided to hike in the last mile instead of getting my truck stuck in the snow to. Here are some pictures of the crew hiking in.

Photo: Josh McKeown

Once reaching the put in we were all hot and happy to finally be paddling. I jumped out at Dillon Falls and took a few pictures of the crew running the drop. Both Christina and myself thought it would be a fun day to try surfing Dill Hole. It was fun…

Dillon Falls (663 CFS)
Photo: Josh McKeown

Christina Russell: Dillon Falls
Photo: Josh McKeown

John Cramp(Hand Paddling): Dillon Falls
Photo: Josh McKeown

Christina Russell Surfing Right Side of Dill Hole
Photo: Josh McKeown

From here we paddled the 3+ miles of flat water to Lava Island Falls. Christina jumped out and took some sweet pictures of Lava 1 and I grabbed a few on Lava 2.

Hanging out in an eddy in Lava Island Falls
Photo: Christina Russell

Josh McKeown: Airplane Turn, Lava Island Falls
Photo: Christina Russell

Josh McKeown: Lava 1
Photo: Christina Russell

David Kinker: Lava 1
Photo: Christina Russell

John Cramp: Lava 2
Photo: Josh McKeown

Christina Russell: Middle of Lava 2
Photo: Josh McKeown

From here we concluded yet another enjoyable run down the Deschutes River. And all I know is that Spring is here and the water is coming. Finally! Hope to see you out on the water.

Christina Russell: End of Lava Island Falls
Photo: Josh McKeown

Team Alder Creek

2008-03-04T20:59:00.000-08:00

Alder Creek Kayak & Canoe of Bend, OR has recreated its paddling team thanks to Geoff Frank (owner and operator of ACKC). Currently being rebuilt, the team consists of Josh McKeown and Christina Russell, and will be expanded to encompass a number of people in the Central Oregon area. This blog will be dedicated to providing up to date information about the different paddling adventures of Team Alder Creek. Below are some pictures of Christina and Josh in action!

Christina Russell

Josh McKeown