As the weather warms up around here and you prepare for some summer/late summer Pacific Northwest adventures, don't count out the Skagit River. The river snakes some 150 miles from Canada into Washington, through the North Cascades and empties into the Puget Sound. We catch up with it downriver from Lake Diablo and Ross Lake, around the towns of Marblemount and Rockport. These towns are located on highway 20, just before a popular entrance to the North Cascades National Park. We've paddled it before (post here & the river mouth here) and this time we wanted to paddle a little more upriver from our usual launch site at Marblemount (map to usual launch site…the parking lot just over the bridge). After leaving one car at Rockport (free parking but pay a minimal launch fee when you land), we (4 of us this trip) loaded up all of our gear and drove up highway 20 looking for a safe place to park and a decent place to launch on the river. Luckily we were all paddling inflatable Innova kayaks or we and our gear wouldn't have fit into the one compact car! There were a lot of places to leave the car and we settled on a not too scary place to launch (7.4 miles past the bridge at Marblemount…After mile-marker 113). Amber and I are not whitewater kayakers by any means and although it was late summer and the water looks refreshing in these pictures, it's cold…really cold and moving fast. We trusted ourselves and our experience, packed everything in our boats and set off. We hit some pretty good whitewater right at the beginning but we made it - staying dry! And then it started pouring rain. Yikes. So much for dry. It quickly passed and we had great weather the rest of the paddle! There are quite a few places to stop for a rest and bite to eat. The lighting was perfect for a wifey-hat photo-shoot. The river was slightly more challenging than the last time, Amber and I almost tipped! It wasn't from splashy whitewater but from high-centering our boat on some shallow rocks and being pushed by the fast current. Instincts kicked in - she turned one way and I counteracted by shifting by bodyweight to the other… we ended up safe and dry! We ended up paddling over 15 miles! It took around 5-6 hours with a lunch break and lots of picture time. Afterward we got both of the cars together and stopped midway at the Cascadian Home Farm for some flowers, ice cream, berries, and espresso. A gorgeous Northwest adventure!
Some tips if you go: 1. Dress warm, even in the summer. I always carry an emergency blanket just in case someone gets dunked and can't quite warm up. 2. Make sure whatever boat/kayak you are using is rated for this type of river. 3. A leash connecting you to your boat/paddle is a pretty good idea. 4. Wear your PFD at all times! 5. If you are paddling a narrow kayak like ours, a rudder or skeg helps greatly with tracking (steering). 6. Call and ask either the Ranger Station at Newhalem or possibly an outfitting company nearby about the condition of the river before you paddle. We paddled this time in early October. Some years it's fast, slow, shallow, crazy. Shallow wouldn't be fun. 7. Make sure you can fit all of your gear and folks in one car (or you'll have to take two cars to the drop off, drop off the gear, then take two cars downriver, leave one, and come back in the other…I've gone cross-eyed. 8. Don't leave your keys to the downriver car in the upriver one;) 9. As with all adventuring - better to take more snacks & water than you think you'll need. 10. Don't want to drive back to the city? Look for lodging in both Rockport or Marblemount. 11. Don't let this trip be your first time kayaking…it's a touch tricky for beginners! ~Paul, Amber, Mandy, Karl
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Summer = more frequent and longer trips for the club. In an effort to explore as much as the Puget Sound as possible, I've been trying out each leg of a northward paddle from Shilshole/Seattle. It starts with a short-ish paddle from West Point in Discovery Park, heading north to Shilshole. I've paddled from Shilshole to Carkeek, Carkeek to Richmond Beach, from there to Edmonds. The next logical step is Edmonds north to Mukilteo. The thing about Seattle/north-central Puget Sound in the summer is that usually the winds blow from the north. The only exception seems to be when new weather is arriving or when I'm trying to plan a big trip! So, instead of Edmonds to Mukilteo, I reversed it - Mukilteo to Edmonds - for the extra wind push in the right direction (in theory). That crazy thing on the front of my kayak is a downwind sail. I was counting on the north wind to give me a little extra push on this trip because it is a longer one - a little over 9 miles. Well, it went from north wind (yippee!), to no wind, to south wind (not yippee) to no wind. It wasn't too bad, but there wasn't enough for the sail - oh well. Note that in the Northwest winter the wind on this trip usually blows from the south. It's a pretty straightforward paddle. You've got Edmonds in sight as your destination in the distance. This sometimes breaks down newer kayakers - you basically paddle at the same spot for the entire trip. In my Innova Helios II, with two paddlers, this trip took about 3 hours from Lighthouse Park in Mukilteo to the Edmonds Marina. Sights along the way? You've got Whidbey Island on your right, mainland on your left, a cool earthen beached ship along the way, and Meadowdale Beach Park about halfway for break-time if you need it. Despite many signs about not diving near the Edmonds ferry terminal, there aren't any about what kayakers should do when approaching. Paddle around the giant ferry that could leave at any moment or sneak quickly under the docks? We went with the dock option with no problem except the ferry attendant reminding us not to do it again... After the Edmonds ferry terminal and fishing pier you'll arrive at the marina. It's a very congested marina, especially the entrance/breakwater, so be careful coming in. After you enter, head south and you'll see the fuel and guest docks. We pulled right up to an empty guest slip and got out and packed up our gear without hassle. If you keep going past the marina there is a nice beach to land. There's even a beach before the ferry if you don't want to go around. There's restaurants here - a nice place to break if you were heading farther south.
Like I mentioned before, this trip took about 3 hours (in our inflatable) and is best paddled downwind (aren't all trips better downwind?!). The next step in my northward travels? Probably Mukilteo to Camano Island! Or maybe in reverse if the wind actually blew the way it was forecast! ~Paul & John (& Captain Wifey in the support car:) ETC Just a short drive from Gig Harbor exists Kopachuck State Park - a forested park on Henderson Bay with plenty of water access and some pretty cool nearby bays & islands to explore. There's lots of parking (Discover Pass required) but it's not that close to the water. If you've got hardshell kayaks, you'll have a little hike down the hill to the beach (I'd look at a map before you go). Luckily for us, our inflatable packs up nice and we made the short trip down the trail to the water. While hiking down to the beach we stumbled upon a marine trail campsite. It was cool to see in person since we recently joined the Washington Water Trails Association. It's a pretty sweet deal - a minimal annual membership for discounted, members only aquatic campsites up and down the Puget Sound allowing paddlers a place to camp (that way you could complete some super long paddling trips). We eventually made it down to the water and started paddling south towards Horsehead Bay. It's popular to go the other way towards nearby Cutts Island State Park (some of the locals call it Deadman's Island!) or Raft Island, but we've been there done that. Also, it was a busy summer weekend day and several power boats were WAHHHH-ING!!! around the islands (we only like power boats WAHHHH-ING when we're actually in them:). Paddling into Horsehead takes you past a tempting sand spit…tempting because it seems to be private property…otherwise it would be a great place to stop for a snack. We paddled in and out, pretend shopping for our favorite beach house, and eventually drifted back to our launch site at the park. Kopachuck is a nice day trip and it was cool to finally see a WWTA campsite. If you haven't paddled around here before it's definitely worth a visit. A circumnavigation of Raft Island (private/residential) is totally doable and exploring Cutts Island (beach and hike around) is fun too. You could do it all in one day pretty easily. If that day is a warm summer one you may not be alone!
There's lots of parking but not a whole lot of beach space - I'd choose a different beach if you planned to spend the day tanning (or, as tanning as Northwestern-ly possible:). However, word on the street is that at low tide a sandy beach appears…maybe there's tanning to do after all! ~Paul & Amber ETC I've been meaning to stop by Gig Harbor for awhile now to check out the Harbor History Museum (and see T-bird #1!). A small protected harbor in Washington's South Sound, Gig Harbor is located on the Kitsap Peninsula (we call it Kitsap Island…dude, make it an island already!). It has a quaint, historic district with shops, restaurants, & cafes, places to launch & rent kayaks and SUPs (check out Lee's), & several marinas. We walked around town a little, snapped a few pictures, and grabbed lunch. The Harbor History Museum is around the bend, a little far to walk from the main part of town so we drove. We thought it is reasonably priced, has a nice layout, and has just the right amount of artifacts. As I mentioned before, I was super excited to see the first Thunderbird sailboat, a Northwest classic originally designed in 1958 using primarily plywood. Its designer, Ben Seaborn, drew up the plans by request of the Douglas Fir Plywood Association out of Tacoma Washington. Their attempt to make a small Northwest cruiser/racer that sleeps 4-ish & could be built by amateurs was a success. Can you think of anything else made from plywood that is this pretty? The museum was hosting a special exhibit on prehistoric underwater sea creatures. A little gimmicky for the museum - come see our savage sea monsters!…I'm pretty sure we stopped calling dinosaur-like creatures monsters in the 60s - but hey, it's effective and great for kids. I love dinosaur exhibits. OK, these aren't technically dinosaurs. Whatever. Look, a giant turtle! Be sure to wander outside and check out the one room school house. All & all, a great place to spend the day. Little shops and cafes, kayaking and sailing opportunities, museum. Spend time here and live the Northwest dream!
~Paul & Amber ETC |
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