Trip Highlights

March 28-April 2, 2010.  Beau, Julie, Ben, Ruth, Nels, Blue, Flora, and Nathan floated the Lower Owyhee River in 2 rafts, 1 inflatable kayak, and 3 open solo canoes.  What a trip!


Weather and streamflows made the trip exciting and unpredictable.  We launched at low water, but enjoyed big water conditions by the time we entered Green Dragon Canyon.  We had conditions from mid 20's and driving snow to 65 degrees, sunny, and calm.  The Lower O never disappoints!




The USGS streamflows for the trip are posted to the right, as is an excerpt of Ruthy's writing.  Please enjoy the slideshows and trip info. 

• Day 1
• Put in at 11:40 pacific time
• windless conditions with many birds
• Camped at no name mile 9.  Past hike-out camp on the left.  Big gravel bar.  Fast eddy.
• Day 2--great action!
• big tail wind
• Julie, Beau swimmers
• Huge winds up top blowing tumbleweeds over the canyon rim--they settled in great drifts on the volcanic talus below.  Swirling in wind eddies on the way down, the weeds came to a splashy rest in the river or bombed our boats
• camped upriver from virgin bar, river left.  On the high ledge with thick sage
• Day 3--battling the weather
• on the water at noon--heavy snows and cold temperatures combined with emergency boat patching to lengthen the morning
• weather broke--fun in rapids, then to camp at Ryegrass with hot springs and hikes to canyon rim.  Sweeping vista; fence line visible to horizon as tumbleweeds piled high against it
• Day 4--Carnage in the Canyon
• We needed to make up for lost time.  Early push off and 14 mile day.
• Water level up to 4000 cfs.  Rushes and weeds in huge rafts on the river and in eddies
• Whistling Bird covered and pretty safe.  
• Green Dragon Canyon--continuous rapids, choppy water, and pushy eddies.  Ben swam in Squeeze--rescued just above Montgomery!
• Julie took a hard swim in Montgomery
• Beau swam in an unexpected hole below Montgomery--Carnage in the canyon!!
• Beautiful conditions to camp--little wind, nice big class II and III wave trains
• Camped at the old airstrip up from Jackson Creek
• Day 5--huge miles
• Hung prayer flags as we left camp
• big class II wave trains.  Nuisance and Morcum covered--read and run at 3000!
• Nels as a C-1 boater!
• Amazing afternoon--reservior low, lots of current, warm sun, and no wind.  23 miles to Echo Rock hot springs.  This was a huge disappointment until we found the real springs way up the hill!  Thanks to the Keepers since ancient times...
• Reservior a waste of burdock and some other weed.  But we saw a beaver.
• Day 6--mistake soak in the morning
• left at noon with only 4 miles to go.  50mph winds, driving sleet, low visibility.  Cold.  Arrived at Leslie with no energy left.  
• Take-out, drove out of Leslie through 10 inch drifts of snow.  Very muddy.  Happy to arrive at the Old Basque Inn (map) for food and lodging.  

Bird List

1. Great Blue Heron
2. Northern Harrier--esp. male breeding plumage
3. Kestrel
4. White-Tailed Kite
5. Canada Goose--esp eggs on bank
6. Red Wind Blackbird
7. Dark Eyed Junco
8. Violet Green Swallow
9. Barn Swallow
10. Bank Swallow
11. Say's Phoebe
12. Turkey Vulture
13. Ring-Necked Pheasant
14. Marsh Wren
15. Killdeer
16. Spotted Sandpiper
17. Black-Necked Stilt
18. Goldeneye
19. Mallard
20. Common Merganser
21. Brewer's Blackbird
22. Raven
23. European Starling
24. Northern Flicker
25. Magpie
26. Canyon Wren
27. Western Meadowlark
28. Red-Tailed Hawk
29. Golden Eagle
30. Rufous-Sided Towhee

The shuttle

I've posted a new map at the top of the blog:  it is the shuttle route.  Click on "terrain" to get an idea of the shape of the country we will be driving through on Saturday and at the end of the trip.  I also included a side trip to the Jordan Craters Wilderness--I would suggest that we visit this, either on the way in or out.  Out would be easier, as we will have all the cars.  

Anyway, just so you have some idea what to expect.  Fill up gas in Jordan Valley for sure, whatever we do!!

5 days out!

Time to start thinking about travel plans.  I included two maps on the blog--one from Northern California to Rome, the other from Missoula to Rome.  We need to all meet up at Rome on Saturday.  From Missoula, it is about a 12 hour trip with stops, etc.  We will leave Friday night and get whatever miles behind us that we can.

I don't see us all arriving at Rome until late in the afternoon on Saturday.  Then we have to run the shuttle--this is 70 miles each way over ranch roads.  I would guess 4 hours to run the shuttle, especially if we stop to check out the Jordan Craters Wilderness.  We'll be eating late on Saturday night.

Looks like we will have enough rigs to easily do the shuttle, so that is good.  We will sort out shuttle logistics on Saturday.  Please check/update the gear list if you need to.  

More later!

Current weather, streamflows, and planning

Hi folks,

We have the roster almost ready to go--waiting for one more person to confirm this week.  I've started a google docs page with a table for getting our gear together--make sure you visit the page and fill out the table with what you will bring.  Also indicate how many meals you will cover and what they will be so we can have a good variety!

Here's what NOAA says about the current conditions in Rome (the put-in).  This is about what we had last year, maybe a little warmer.  The winds in the forecast are light--this is really different from last year!  The forecast was from March 13th, 2010

The river is currently running a measly 484 cfs.  We need a 1000 minimum.  The Owyhee fluctuates widely.  Here's the graph from the USGS, also on March 13:

Check out the Google Doc (I emailed the invite to this page) and fill out the table!  Excited?  I AM!!!

March 1st: roster and planning

Check out the posts below for information on the river trip.  Lower Owyhee, launch date March 28.  Take out April 3, 2010.  Drive times around that to be discussed.  


Order a map and check out the BLM website for the Lower Owyhee.  Cheers!

BLM Regulations for the Lower Owyhee

This link takes you to the BLM management site for the river.  You can order a map for $10.  There is a .pdf of the map here.

Planning

Ok, so the trip is from Rome to Leslie Gulch.  This is about 65 miles, with several hot springs and fun rapids along the way.  Green Dragon Canyon is a trip highlight (image to left), as are shorebirds, decrepit homesteads, and a remote moonscape.

We need to know who can drive, how many canoes their rigs can carry, what safety gear they have.  We will eventually have to plan food and camp gear.  For the moment, know that if you are in a canoe, you need a wetsuit.  You will be unhappy without one.  Rafters, you should be just fine.

It looks like we will have a couple of rafts and then a bunch of canoes.  Awesome!  Talk to me, folks, let's get this planned!

I will be calling this week--have your excuses ready if you aren't coming on this trip!

BLM river ranger--new regs

Today I talked with Dave Steele, the Owyhee river ranger for the Vale BLM district in Oregon.  He's a canoeist and driftboat runner.  He told me about a new reg this year on the lower O.--no burning the wood that is there.  This really isn't a big deal, as there is not any wood there to burn anyway.  We should bring some duraflames, charcoal, and whatever else we want if we intend to have fires.  Lanterns would work as fire replacements, too.

The river is low now, as usual.  Dave thinks our planned launch date is spot-on, as he expects an early runoff this year.  There's precip in the forecast, and the snowpack in the Owyhee watershed is about 84% of average right now.

Dave also suggested that we plan on takeout at Leslie gulch rather than Birch Creek.  I agree--the Birch Creek road is heinous--only for 4WD and even like that with high clearance.  If it rains, a tank would have trouble getting out.  Leslie means that we have an extra day, but this is a river trip, right?  Takeout shouldn't be the most dangerous part of the trip.

Finalizing the roster

Folks, we need to figure out at this point who is going so we can plan for gear and so forth.  Please respond to the gmail invite, or email to this link to tell me that you will be joining us on this awesome trip!

Discussion points--trip needs

We will have a mix of boating experience on this trip.  This is a great opportunity!  I've tried to be really detailed about gear needs, especially considering safety.  


1)  Roster
please email me asap if you are coming.  Comment below or in an email with questions.

2)  Travel dates

A 5-day trip on the river is great--that's 13 miles a day.  The shuttle and driving from Missoula takes 2 days.  Takeout and drive back is about the same.  I hope to leave Friday, March 26, and camp on the way.  Drive and shuttle on Saturday, the 27th, and put on the river sunday, the 28th.  If all goes well, we will hit Birch Creek on Thursday, leaving lots of time to travel home.  If we need an extra day, that still leaves the weekend to get back home safely.  Comments? 

3)  Gear
We need to make sure everyone has suitable gear.  This .pdf has a gear list, but it seems to be geared toward warm-weather trips.  Last year, the days were 50-60 degrees, the water was about the same.  Wetsuits and splash jackets or drysuits are mandatory, as are helmets, flotation for hard boats, and good drybags.  Each boat should have a throwbag, canoes should have bow/stern lines for lining rapids.  Camping/cooking stuff should be pretty light.  Please comment below or email me if you have gear needs or questions.  I can rent gear from the University outdoor programs.

I have a wrap kit, it would be great to have one more.  Please comment if you intend to bring safety gear so we know what we can count on.

I will bring one first aid kit, we should have more.  I am wilderness first aid, Julie is an RN.  I know we have some EMT's and ambulance people out there--what are your wilderness first aid skills?


Anyone have a satellite phone?  I don't think this is mandatory (maybe you do), but if we have one out there, why not? 

4)  Food
at some point, we need to decide who's bringing what.  Once we know how many are coming, we can plan this.  Should groups plan whole dinners?  All potluck?  Please comment or email.  

5)  Camp gear
It's a long trip, and especially with canoes, we will need to make sure we don't duplicate stuff.  How many stoves do we need?  How many coolers?  How many water containers?  Let's discuss--comment or email.

6)  Water
If we have enough rafts, we can bring lots of water.  We can filter or treat out of the river if we have too, but there are cows and it is a muddy great basin river.  There are numerous springs--we filtered from them last year.  Good water!  Dromedary bags are awesome for canoe tripping!!  Get one if you can; they really help.  We can cook with river water for sure.

7)  Fires
Are fine, and we will love them!  Some sites have lots of wood, others little.  We will do the best we can.  Let's leave no trace as much as possible, but have fires!  Firepans are not required!

8)  Waste
Must be packed out.  If rafters have partner toilets, you rock!!!  But wag-bags are the way to go otherwise.  I will bring a rocket box for human waste, we should also plan space for camp garbage.  Everyone should bring a supply of wag bags and something to store them in for themselves!!!


9)  Canoes
Julie and I will be C-1 boaters, so will others on the trip.  Most of the rapids are class II to III-.  Some are technical and rocky, but most are short drops with pretty big waves.  You will get lots of water in your boat.  Last year, we all had cut off milk jugs to bail.  This is fine, but over the course of the day, it takes lots of  time.  Consider a bailer; here are some examples from NRS.  If you find a better one for canoes, please comment!

10)  Miscellaneous
Did I leave anything out?  Or is this blog thing a pain in the ass?  Please comment.  I'm trying this out as an organizational tool, maybe it works, maybe it doesn't.  

The River: links to regulations and resources

BLM Regulations for the Lower Owyhee

This link takes you to the BLM management site for the river.  You can order a map for $10.  There is a .pdf of the map here.

Oregon Rivers commercial guide

This link takes you to a .pdf that has lots of details about the river, including necessary gear, shuttles, etc.

USGS flow gauge for the Lower Owyhee

Other links and resources?  Please comment or email.

Trip Overview

                      Nuisance rapid on the Lower Owyhee, 2009


Please join us on the Lower Owyhee for a spring break river trip (March 27-April 3, 2010)!  The 65-mile trip will take us through a open grassland valley full of shorebirds, then into a rugged badlands where Ouzels sing, and then into Green Dargon Canyon--a sheer sided feature that rivals the lower canyon on the Middle Fork of the Salmon River.

Canoes (single and tandem), kayaks, duckys, and rafts are all welcome.  One of the challenges of this river is its remoteness--shuttle drives are long and once you are in, the takeout is where you need to get to.  Because of the remote nature of this trip, we don't want to take chances.  We will scout rapids, and it is totally acceptable to line rapids if you want--I will probably do some lining!!  Please visit the other posts so we can arrange all the details and plan for a well-organized trip!

Organizational goals:


1)  We need a trip roster soon, especially concerning those folks that will be shuttling.  I suggest that we have the roster by March 1.
2)  We should also have firm trip dates by this time.  Travel and shuttle will take 2 days for those of us in western Montana.
3)  Shuttle planning and vehicles--also by March 1.  Depending on how many people come and how many canoes we need to schlep around, this could take some work.  We need 4WD trucks for the takeout, especially if we take out at birch creek!  This takeout is great as it allows us to miss the windy lake, but the road is steep and tough.

Please visit the other posts so's we can get the ball rolling!  Hope to see you on the river!