Trip Report: Clackamas River Riverside to Clackamette
--Trip Details--
Location: Clackamas River Riverside to Clackamette
Duration: 2 hours
Difficulty: Class II water and V4-5 bouldering
Staffer Adam's take on the trip:
Every now and then the staff at next gets together and recreates. A mid week rompus was in order and a few of us headed out to the Clackamas for an afternoon of fun. The Riverside to Clackamette section is the stretch we teach our Whitewater Kayak 1 course on and we used the day to share knowledge and teaching tips among our instructors. Schlepping along a canoe, a variety of stand up paddle boards, and a few kayaks, we practiced and pushed each feature and just had an awesome day. Everyone tried each craft and we even got some fun deep water soloing in. A few cliff jumps, falls, and double front face plants later, we reached the cars after a wonderful day on the rio. Rain or shine we're here.
Getting ready for some cliff jumping.
Staffer Dan's take on the trip:
I went to Riverside Park with some of the employees from the shop to try out a white water boat in manageable conditions. I had never done more than float down a river in an inner tube, so this was a great experience. I am definitely a water person, but rivers are a whole different ball game than the ocean when it comes to reading and navigating.
With lots of great tips from Adam and Patrick as well as the rest of the people who came along, I didn't have trouble on this mellow Class 2 (tops) paddle that ended at Clackamette Park. The scenery on the way down the river was nice and it wound under bridges and through areas that felt miles from anything, right in our backyard. Switching between SUP and kayak was also fun... if you have the right gear like a dry suit, helmet, booties, etc, making mistakes is tolerable (when you swim). I really appreciate getting brought along, these guys have it down.
If you're looking to get started kayaking, our kayak school has an abundance of classes for all levels of experience and all types of paddling.
See you on the river!