Showing posts with label Grand Ronde River. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Grand Ronde River. Show all posts

Thursday, June 9, 2022

Grand Ronde River still worth visiting post-fire ... plus Idaho Free Fishing Day and Boise Mountain Bike Festival!

Wendy is happy to be on the Grand Ronde River! 

Hi all, 

Boy, rivers all over the Pacific Northwest have been bursting with life - more like peaking! - in the last week or so. The Salmon River was running higher than 55,000 cubic feet per second, and the Boise and Payette were roaring with big spring runoff, all precipitated by bursts of warm weather and plenty of rain. 

The Salmon seemed too high for our taste, so we checked on the Grand Ronde River in Eastern Oregon. It was rising to more than 11,000 cfs last week. And I thought, Dynamite! I'm going! I've run it at that level before, and it pretty much remains a Class 2-3 FAST whitewater experience in a solid raft. 

We put together a quick 5-person two-boat trip and set off for La Grande, OR, last Thursday afternoon. We stayed with our friends Russ and Mary West at their ranch in Imbler the night before launch, and that worked out great since it stormed all night.   

We awoke to sunshine and partly cloudy skies Friday morning, and launched on the river by 11:30 a.m. We had four days of wild river bliss to look forward to, floating from Minam to Powatka Bridge, a distance of about 35 miles. 

Our main concern was dodging rain storms in the forecast. Nearly every day had a good chance of rain. But with the river ripping at more than 10 mph, we covered the miles with ease. (My friend's Strava feed recorded our max speed at 13 mph! Ha!; raft speed at summertime flow = 3-5 mph) Our strategy was to make camp early, get the tarp set up, and be prepared for the inevitable rain storms. 

My tarp covers the whole kitchen area plus room for lawn chairs 

I've got a Cascade Outfitters deluxe 16' x 20' foot rain tarp, and that kept us dry all weekend.  

I love the expression on Wendy's face ... 

With the weather drying out somewhat here on June 9, the Grand Ronde should be a fabulous destination for multi-day river trips in the next month and beyond ... it is so verdant and gorgeous in the canyon right now! 

We saw a lot of yellow lupine on the river banks ... a rare treat! 

One thing to keep in mind is that the Bureau of Land Management is restricting camping on the Grand Ronde from Bear Creek 13 miles downstream due to a 23,000-acre wildfire that burned last July. That takes a lot of primo campsites out of play during your trip. So plan accordingly. 

We like staying high in the canyon and laying over at nice camps in the forest. You can still do that. 

Fire perimeter map

After floating through the burn zone, we thought it must have been a pretty fast-moving burn. The land seems to be recovering quickly judging from all of the regrowth we saw everywhere! 

Typical views of the fire from last year. Seemed like a positive mosaic burn. 

We saw quite a few green ponderosa pines that survived the fire. 

To learn more about floating the Grand Ronde River, go here. It's a National Wild and Scenic River, and deservedly so. 

Also going on this weekend ... it's Free Fishing Day in Idaho! You can go fishing on a pond, lake, stream close to home, use free fishing gear in selected locations and teach your kids how to fish! 
Here's a post from Recreate Responsibly Idaho about Free Fishing Day in Idaho! 

At Bogus Basin Mountain Recreation Area, the Boise Mountain Bike Festival will be happening on Saturday, starting at 9 a.m. The main trails that are open right now are accessible from the Morning Star quad. Bogus has a detailed listing of what trails are open on Saturday. 

Weather looks good this weekend through Saturday to do just about anything outdoors. And then the temperature drops over 20 degrees Sunday, and a chance of showers is forecast ... so you might try to get out on Saturday for sure! 

Have fun! 
- SS 

Thursday, April 22, 2021

The Grand Ronde River rocks as a springtime alternative to the Owyhee River

Steve Schneider, left, and Jim Giuffre soak up the scenery of the Grand Ronde River canyon.

Hi all, 

I watched the weather and the Owyhee River flows like a hawk in March and early April, and dang, the Owyhee was amazingly elusive this year! The flows rose a bit when it started to warm up, and then it'd crash with major cool-downs, rise again a bit, and then suddenly, it was gone, well below 1,000 cubic feet per second, a minimum level for rafting. 

On the heels of the ski season, I had a major itch to get out on a spring river and go camping for at least a couple of nights. I normally head over to run the Grand Ronde River in May, but last week, I saw the flow was running over 5,000 cubic feet per second. Bingo! I made a few calls, pulled together a great little group of friends -- friends who also have their own boats and gear -- and we made plans on launch on Sunday, April 18 and takeout on Wednesday, April 21. 

Our layover camp

A 4-day trip would allow enough time for a layover day at one of my favorite campsites that often features bighorn sheep and an excellent ridge hike to a spectacular viewpoint on top of the 1,000-foot-deep canyon. 

Plus, the river rose to 6,500 cfs while we were on the trip, making it super easy to make miles when needed. At some points, we were averaging 7-8 mph floating downriver on Day 4. Yee-haw! 

Overall, the Grand Ronde River trip is a 38-mile scenic jewel. Put-in is at Minam State Park east of Elgin and La Grande, and the takeout is at Powatka Bridge. The Minam Store by the river-launch site will run your shuttle for $125/vehicle. A self-issue BLM permit can be filled out before you launch. 

Paved roads to the put-in. I like how you can drive the freeway and paved highways from Boise to the Minam launch in about 3.5-4 hours via La Grande. 

Looking down at rock cliffs on a hike above camp.

Floating the Grand Ronde is kind of like going home for me, as I lived in La Grande in my first newspaper job out of college for three years to start my journalism career. I loved living in La Grande. It was also the first river where I learned to row a raft. It's a good beginner river, with mainly Class 2 rapids. The Grand Ronde River draws from the snow in the mountains above La Grande as well as the Wallowa Mountain range and Eagle Cap Wilderness. 

My friends thought the river was similar to the Middle Fork in the section, say, below Indian Creek, without as many rapids. And I agree. It's an official National Wild and Scenic River. The top portion of the Grand Ronde canyon is designated as a Wild river, and the bottom, below Powatka Bridge, is Recreational. The upper canyon has dozens of beautiful forested campsites, where you can spend more than one night, if you wish. 

Steep hike to the ridge out of camp

If you go, be sure to practice the same pack-it-in/pack-it-out camping practices that you observe on Idaho's permitted rivers -- things like burn your fire in a firepan, pack a toilet for human waste, and leave nothing behind when you leave camp. 

On this particular trip, I enjoyed having my good ski and biking buddies Steve Schneider and Jim Giuffre in the bow of my raft. We have been having a blast shredding powder in McCall all winter long. Now the calendar is turning to mountain biking and rafting! 

We also had Dan Popkey on the trip, a former Statesman political columnist and reporter with whom I used to float lots of rivers back in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It was fun to do a trip with Dan again, and it was also special to have Rocky Barker with us, too, on Dan's raft. Rocky and I have done a lot of trips together and worked together as journalists on projects dating back to the 1990s.  

Eric strikes a pose on top of the ridge

Friends Eric Straubhar and Kirk Bachman rounded out our crew. Eric and Kirk and I have done a number of Middle Fork trips and other trips together in recent years. But they'd never done the Grand Ronde. We all have the gear needed for a river trip, so it's pretty easy to put a trip together. Those guys are awesome hands on the river or anything outdoors for that matter. 

We had chilly mornings and sunny afternoons. It was key to bring plenty of firewood for warming fires in the morning and evening. Both of the camps we stayed at had plenty of surplus wood, just behind camp, too.

Just a lovely afternoon on top of the ridge ... barely a whisper of wind

Other spring rivers
: As things warm up, the Payette River and Salmon River will be great choices moving forward. The Lower Salmon will be doable as long as it's below 20,000 cfs at The Slide (dangerous rapids above that level). The South Fork and Main Fork of the Payette are starting to come up, and the North Fork will be running soon. See Idaho river flows USGS site for real-time flows. 

The Riggins day stretch or Vinegar Creek to Spring Bar are several other good spring river trips. And the mighty Lochsa should be cranking big-time with the best snowpack in the state. Looks like it's already running close to 5,000 cfs this week.

Iphone doesn't do it justice, but these rams were impressive!

Hells Canyon and the Hagerman section of the Snake River are a couple of other spring river options. This is still pre-permit season in Hells Canyon BTW.
- SS    

Friday, May 15, 2020

Forest Service opening campgrounds beginning next week in preparation for Memorial Day weekend

Elena, left, just finished her MBA at Boise State, and Quinn finished his junior year at Colby-Sawyer College. 
Hi all,

I am assuming that people are chomping at the bit to go camping, and next week, the Forest Service is opening a wide array of campgrounds in the Boise National Forest beginning on Wednesday, May 20, in the Cascade Ranger District around Lake Cascade, Warm Lake and the South Fork of the Salmon River.

More campgrounds will open later in the week in the Idaho City, Lowman and Mountain Home districts, and Forest Service officials requested that the public remain patient as they work to open the campgrounds and remove downed timber and other debris prior to Memorial Day weekend.

The opening of campgrounds is good news for Idaho campers who have been yearning to go camping in the national forest where there are camping facilities, water and rest rooms. Forest officials recommend that forest visitors should follow the state's Recreation Responsibly guidelines in terms of going in groups of 10 or less, practicing good hygiene, wear PPE and maintain social distancing of at least six feet from strangers. 

Up to now, mainly day trips have been emphasized for hiking and biking, and campgrounds and rest rooms have been closed.

More updates:
  • Idaho State Parks are open for day use only. State Parks will be opening campgrounds for Memorial Day on May 30. 
  • The famed Middle Fork of the Salmon River and Main Salmon-River of No Return will be re-opened for public use on Saturday, May 16. Permits are required through recreation.gov
  • Access to the desert rivers in Idaho, the Payette River, non-permitted sections of the Salmon River, are open. Desert river flows are on the wane for rafting ... Owyhee River flow was 700 cfs today (1,000+ cfs is best for rafting), and Bruneau was falling below 800 cfs (1,000+ best for rafting).
  • Yellowstone National Park will begin a phased reopening starting on Monday, May 18, with access from the south portal, north of Jackson Hole, Wyo., and the east entrance via Cody, Wyo.  
  • Can't see as much detail as to what's planned for campground openings and other facilities in the Payette National Forest or Sawtooth National Recreation Area at the moment, but keep checking to see what is planned as Memorial Day approaches.
Mountain snow is melting, and that is opening up more hiking and biking trails and forest roads.
The U.S. Forest Service interactive map showing what facilities are open and closed is still mostly red with closed sites, but it should be turning more green next week and beyond as facilities begin to open for the summer season.

It's really fun to hike up to the top of the Grand Ronde River canyon for excellent views.
Wendy and I took our kids Quinn and Elena on a 4-day trip on the Grand Ronde River in Eastern Oregon last week, and it felt wonderful to get out of town and go camping on this scenic river just 3+ hours from Boise. We had great weather for the trip.

Flowers galore!
But it was cold at night, and with plenty of firewood along the river corridor, we had a great campfire each night and also each morning. That just felt wonderful hanging out around the fire, feeling the warmth of the fire, the wonderful smell and sounds of the campfire, and swapping stories into the night.

Remember to respect other people when you're out visiting our public lands or going camping in the coming days or weeks. In other words, give them personal space out of respect for their health and safety and yours.

Let's continue to flatten and crush the COVID-19 curve in the weeks ahead!
- SS  

Thursday, May 31, 2018

Snake River Raptor Fest, Big Water Blowout in Riggins and the Grand Ronde River

Steve on the Grand Ronde River last weekend ... 

There are many deluxe camps in the forest along the river. 
Hiking up the mountain behind camp is always rewarding and beautiful. 
Hi all,

The weather has been pretty topsy-turvy lately, with major rainstorms or hail late in the day. But the 10-day forecast for Boise and surrounding areas in the valley looks like summer is coming BIG-TIME! 

Just as we turn the page into June, forecasters are predicting temperatures in the 80s on Saturday, low 90s on Sunday, and mostly 80s through mid-month. Bring on summer!

For my outdoor tip this week, I'm recommending two weekend events and providing some recap notes from our Grand Ronde River trip in Eastern Oregon. 

First, the events ... the Snake River Raptor Fest in Kuna sounds like a lot of fun this year, particularly because of the 25th anniversary of the Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area, a great location at Indian Creek Winery and live music! I'll be manning a table and signing copies of Cool North Wind, a well-regarded biography of Morley Nelson's life with birds of prey. The event runs from noon to 5 p.m. There will be live birds of prey on display and kids activities as well. Hope to see you there. 

This is what one reviewer had to say about Cool North Wind"It is truly an amazing book, and a fun, entertaining, and enlightening read!" American Falconry 

BTW, I'll be on a panel at the Idaho Environmental Forum next Wednesday, June 6th, to talk about Morley Nelson as part of a discussion about the 25th anniversary of the designation of the birds of prey area. Former Congressman Larry LaRocco will be on the panel along with Amanda Hoffman, area manager of the birds of prey area for the BLM. The deadline for signing up for this IEF luncheon program is on Monday. 



The first weekend of June also marks the Big Water Blowout in Riggins ... Take a wild ride with a local outfitter or bring your own raft and try your hand at running some big water on the mighty Salmon River. The Salmon River has been flowing in 50,000-60,000 cubic feet per second range in the last week or so after two peaks over 70,000 cfs. Should be cranking in the 65,000 cfs range this weekend! 

A lot of big water whitewater boaters were at the Lochsa River Memorial Day gathering last week, so they'll be tuned up for some more big water fun in Riggins! 

For a lower-key river adventure, I would recommend running the Grand Ronde River right now. We camped on the river for 4 days last week, Thursday-Sunday, and it was a super fun time. The whole canyon is really beautiful right now, chock full of wildflowers and very green! We picked a campsite that ended up having a resident bighorn sheep herd grazing on the opposite mountain from camp. We hung out and watched the wild sheep in the morning during breakfast and also during the cocktail hour in the evening. There were at least 4 baby lambs that were chasing each other around in the rocks and a small group of about 12 sheep ... really precious to watch! 

With fairly high flows in the 9,000 cfs range, the Grand Ronde scoots along at 7-8 mph. That means you can clock a lot of miles fairly quickly, and then make a base camp. The whole section we typically run is only 35 miles in length. So we went down about 20 miles in 3 hours, base camped for 3 days, and then rowed out 15 miles the last morning. 

The put-in for the Grand Ronde is at Minam, northeast of La Grande on Highway 82 (paved road all the way to the put-in; unusual for some rivers), and the takeout is at Powatka Bridge by the Wildcat Creek road. You do drive a gravel road from the takeout to a point near the little town of Wallowa, where you jump back on the highway. Super easy drive in the whole scheme of things to do a stellar river trip. 

The Grand Ronde is great for kids, side-hiking, wildlife-watching, camping and R&R. I highly recommend it! 

- SS