This weekend was also Willow Fest. A local mushing and kayaking shop in Willow organized and sponsored it along with another business that teaches white water skills. We had a little too much going on at home to make it out of town early so we missed the two races on Saturday, one through Guard Rail and one through Red Gate. We also missed the slalom races on Sunday because we were expected at a gathering on the Matanuska River so we headed over there after running Willow and hanging out the festival for a little while. We both felt really bad about missing the festival events because the organizer made a special effort to include canoes in the events. We promised him we would be there next year for sure!
Our runs down Willow were good. My better half found a group of kayakers to run Guard Rail with since I wasn't feeling up to it. Good thing too because we had already dragged the boat down the trail to the put in! Just as we got back to the road after leaving the boat at the put-in, a shuttle from the festival dropped off four kayakers who said they didn't mind adding a canoe to the their group. So they all headed back down the trail to the Guard Rail put in and I took the van down to Red Gate.
The festival had made arrangements with the owner of the Red Gate property to shuttle people too and from the put-in thereby not creating a giant parking lot on his property. We always try to be very unobtrusive when we use the Red Gate put-in. Parking on the very edge, trying to keep out of view of the cabin, keeping the noise down, picking up trash, etc. I love the Red Gate run and would hate to have the property owners refuse us the use of their driveway because boaters were a pain and they were tired of us! Which would totally be within their rights.
Anyway, I parked along the road, got my stuff together and carried my boat down to the put-in. I have to admit that I didn't carry it ALL the way to the put-in which has to be close to a quarter of a mile. The driveway is unpaved and every time the middle section flattened out and was grassy I put the canoe down and dragged it through the grass until it became rocky again. I finally made it to the put-in and the last 7 or 8 boats in the downriver race were getting ready to start. They started the boats in one minute intervals so I got to watch the beginning of the race for a little bit. I saw and got to talk to several people that I know before they headed downriver, it was nice. After everyone had left I was still waiting for the group that I had left at Guard Rail so I got busy clipping all of my gear into place in the boat. As I looked for my spare paddle to slip under the airbag cage I suddenly realized that I had left both of my paddles in the van! I quick took off my helmet and tossed it in the boat, took off my life vest and tossed it in the boat so I wouldn't overheat running up to the road. I climbed up out of the river corridor and just as I got the the main driveway I heard a four wheeler start up! I ran to the main area and saw a couple who had been watching the races were just getting ready to head up to the road. They very kindly allowed me to sit on the back and catch a ride. Awesome luck for me! That luck didn't last long though because my car keys were in the pocket of my life vest. The life vest that I tossed in the boat with my helmet so that I wouldn't get too hot. Ahhhhhhhhhhh! There is supposed to be an extra key hidden on my van but it must have bounced or gotten knocked off because after digging through the accumulated dirt I didn't find it. So I ran back down to the put-in and prayed that the other canoe still had a spare paddle.
Just a few minutes after I made it back to the put-in the Guard Rail group came around the corner and I got the spare paddle from the other canoe. Whew, saved me another trip to the road and back!
The very first drop on the Red Gate section is one of, if not the hardest part of this whole section of river. There are a few rocks that are just under the surface to avoid then there is a big rock that the water piles up on and just flows over. I went right over the top of the big rock. The move is to go around the rock and I just didn't make it, I'm blaming it on being flustered about the paddle stuff and using a unfamiliar paddle. I did however do a nice brace and I stayed upright. The rest of the run was just fun, fun, fun! Lots of splashy water, some nice wave trains, some rock dodging, and some really nice eddies.
A nice day on the water.
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