Tilton

We (the PDX crew) weren't the only ones out there on 12/8, with crews from Olympia and Seattle meeting every half hour or so all morning.  We had all been watching, waiting for the gauge to bump, and when it went over 1,100cfs those in the know showed up.   This run is truly a favorite with enough challenge to keep out the riffraff, magnificent scenery, and plenty of fun moves and play.  We enjoyed being out there on rising water.

There were two WOOD HAZARDS of note on 12/8/24.  The first was in the small rapid below the rock island that was the site of a previous log jam.  The new logjam is substantial and quite visible from above.  It is an easy portage on the left.  I got out on river right below the jam and climbed back upstream on the rock wall to determine that the narrow slot on far river right would have been runnable past the root ball.  This slot could of course close off at any time, and being the first one through would be a gut check.

The second wood hazard was a riverwide log at river level at the top of a class 2 section about halfway down the run.  It was hard to see until we were right on top of it.  We all hopped over the top in kayaks, but at lower flows or in different craft this could cause trouble.

Leap of Faith and Scary Gary were clean.  The surf wave above Leap of Faith was very fine.

The Olympia folks were launching at the Tree Farm, which is private property that gets you in the water just upstream from the gauge.  They have cultivated a friendly relationship with the owner and had dropped off a gift basket on their way to launch.  Launching there requires that you park in the correct spot (within sight of the owner's house) and avoid driving down the ungravelled section of road down to the water.

We will continue to launch at the bridge and float the 1.75 miles of easy water through the valley above the gorge, because it's lovely, and coming from PDX we only have time for one lap anyway.