Paddling the National Parks by Kurt Repanshek

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2014 PADDLING GUIDE

CONTENTS

12 26 30 42 44 Editor

Kurt Repanshek Courtney Cooper

Row Your Boat, Deep In The Canyon By Patrick Cone

How To Decide Not Only Which Paddling Trip, But Which Outfitter

The talented and well-tanned guides at O.A.R.S. can help you tackle the most iconic river adventure in the Lower 48 with a trip on the Colorado River through Grand Canyon National Park. Here are some tips on how to pick not only a great paddling trip in the National Park System, but an outfitter, if you’d like their expertise.

Sea Kayaks And Sea Caves By Kurt Repanshek

Into, And Through, The Gates Of Lodore By Kurt Repanshek

Staying Safe On The Water By Kurt Repanshek

A Glimpse Of Some Prime Paddling Spots In The National Park System

Voyageurs National Park By Sea Kayak By Greg Breining

A Paddler’s Reading List By Kurt Repanshek

Our First National River By Jim Burnett

Keeping Our Paddling Waters Clean And Healthy

The Southwest’s Best Two-Day River Run By Kurt Repanshek

Exploring The River Of Grass By Michael Lanza

Paddling By Day, Glamping By Night By Deby Dixon and Kurt Repanshek

Essential Directory

Special Projects Editor

Patrick Cone Art Director

Channel Island Outfitters can lead you through the caves and down into the kelp forests of Channel Islands National Park. Decades of experience enable Holiday River Expeditions to show you the very best of the Green and Yampa rivers as they course through Dinosaur National Monument. Some quick pointers for how to stay safe whether you’re out on the water for a few hours or a few weeks. Whether you find yourself at Cape Cod National Seashore, Little River Canyon National Preserve, or even Theodore Roosevelt National Park, there’s a place to paddle. Minnesota might have 10,000 lakes, but all you need if you’re a paddler is Voyageurs National Park. Traveler’s reading list will help get you motivated to paddle, decide on a watery destination, and even learn some paddling skills. Streaming for 135 miles through the rugged Boston Mountains of Arkansas, the Buffalo River was our very first “national river,” and for just reason. It’s no easy task to keep all the waterways in the National Park System clean and healthy, but the staff at the National Parks Conservation Association rises to the task in regions as diverse as the Northeast and Texas. Limited on vacation time? Join Wilderness River Adventures to sample one of the best stretches of rivers in the Southwest with a two-day run through Cataract Canyon on the Colorado River. Paddle your family to an adventure in the River of Grass that is Everglades National Park. Yellowstone Lake offers one of the wildest paddling experiences in the National Park System, and the guides from Far and Away Adventures will help you master it. Traveler’s expansive park-by-park list touches on the paddling adventures open to you.

Contributors

Greg Breining Jim Burnett Patrick Cone Deby Dixon

Jeff Kantor Michael Lanza Rebecca Latson

National Parks Traveler’s Essential Guide To Paddling The Parks is published by National Park Advocates, LLC, to showcase how best to enjoy and explore the waters of the National Park System. National Park Advocates, LLC, P.O. Box 980452, Park City, Utah, 84098. © 2014 Essential Guide to Paddling The Parks. All rights reserved. The contents of this publication may not be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher.

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Essential guide to

Paddling the Parks P

addling down a river or across a lake in a national park setting is truly a wonderful, memorable experience, one that carries thrills and life-long memories. You can retrace the historic 19th-century journey of John Wesley Powell, or land on a lodgepole pine-studded shore where camp is set under swaying trees and the evening brings a vivid sunset.

Veteran paddlers have their special spots in the park system; I cut my white-water teeth on the New River Gorge National River and love canoeing in Yellowstone National Park. The scenery on the Yampa River and Green Rivers in Dinosaur National Monument is also amazing and the rapids breath-drawing. Cape Cod National Seashore can be enjoyed via canoe or kayak, while the spectacular Channel Islands National Park is ideally explored by sea kayak. Whether you choose the muddy Colorado through Cataract Canyon in Canyonlands National Park or through iconic Grand Canyon National Park, a breathtaking float down the Nizina River in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, sea kayaking along Cape Lookout

2014 PADDLING GUIDE

National Seashore, or a weeks-long excursion through Noatak National Preserve, you’ll find great and endless options for paddling in the National Park System. These are trips that bond parents and kids, friends and lovers. They offer introspection and test selfsufficiency...or simply provide for an afternoon’s fun in the sun! And you don’t have to travel far, as many paddling sojourns are likely within a day’s drive of your home. You can turn to commercial outfitters to orchestrate your national park trips involving canoes, kayaks, or rafts. They offer a firstrate adventure with sumptuous meals and knowledgable, proficient, and safety-conscious guides. But more than a few people handle all the logistics on their own and achieve the very same smiles, laughter, and camaraderie. But if you’re new to paddling, or haven’t had many opportunities to sample the various options, how do you decide where to float? After all, the experiences are highly varied and diverse. Are you looking for white-water thrills, or mellowness surrounded by great scenery, or

Swiftcurrent Lake, Glacier National Park / Kurt Repanshek

both? Would you rather paddle a canoe or sea kayak than ride in a raft? Do you want to explore a lake or head downstream on a river? Do you have a half-day, or half a month? Is your idea of a float trip based on doing some fishing, or being drenched through frothy rapids? What are the ages of those in your group? In the following pages you’ll find answers to those questions, and across the park system you can find something that meets your desires. Traveler’s Essential Guide To Paddling The Parks is the first guide specific to paddling adventures in the national parks. It is filled with articles evolved from paddling trips, information on how to choose a specific paddling trip and outfitter, and a list of nearly 100 parks to explore by water with links to businesses permitted by the National Park Service to paddle in those waters. You’ll also find some stories on protecting our watery thoroughfares for future generations. After all, we’re all better off with clean, healthy rivers. – Kurt Repanshek

contributors Greg Breining, who long has paddled Voyageurs National Park, writes about science, nature, and travel for The New York Times, Audubon, and many

other publications. His latest book is Paddle North: Canoeing the Boundary Waters-Quetico Wilderness. He

and his wife, Susan, live in St. Paul.

Michael Lanza, who took his family paddling in Everglades National Park, is the author of the awardwinning book Before They’re Gone–A Family’s Year-Long Quest to Explore America’s Most Endangered National Parks.

He is also the creator of the blog The Big Outside and Northwest Editor of Backpacker magazine.

on the cover Yellowstone Lake offers a paddle into the heart of Yellowstone National Park’s wilds. Photo by Deby Dixon

Patrick Cone, who has run the Colorado through Grand Canyon National Park, is an award-winning photographer, writer, and editor. He has worked on assignment for publications such as Arizona Highways, Ski, Skiing, Smithsonian, Sunset, National Geographic World, and dozens of other regional and national publications.

Jim Burnett spent 30 years as a ranger with the National Park Service, working in eight different parks, including Buffalo National River, which he profiles in these pages. A contributing editor at National Parks Traveler, he’s also a freelance writer and the author of numerous articles and two books, including Hey Ranger! True Tales of Humor and Misadventure from America’s National Parks.

Deby Dixon, who went “glamping” on Yellowstone Lake, has a rich portfolio of national park images. While her collection includes shots from North Cascades National Park, Zion National Park, and Yosemite National Park, most recently she has been based at Yellowstone National Park. She writes about her photo journeys as a contributing photographer at National Parks Traveler.

GET SOCIAL! Connect with National Parks Traveler on Facebook, Twitter and Flickr! Share how you experience our national parks by posting your favorite vacation story or sharing a photo. Join in the conversation and keep up-to-date on park news around the country.

NationalParksTraveler @ParksTraveler NPT Flickr album

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Row Your Boat, Deep in the Canyon

By Patrick Cone

’ve often said that if you’ve seen one Grand Canyon you’ve seen them all. Well, that does make some sense because, after all, there’s really just only one in the world. And deep in the bottom of this desert chasm lays the main culprit of erosion, the granddaddy of all American waterways: the Colorado River. It’s the big ticket, the plum, the one that challenges all paddlers and rowers. Whether by dory, rowboat, or kayak, it’s an exhilarating and beautiful paddle for over 200 miles, but it’s not for the faint of heart, or those looking for a quick excursion. It’s a real commitment. There is, of course, plenty of whitewater, with intense legendary rapids such as Lava Falls, Crystal, Hance, and

dozens of others. The anticipation as you approach these cataracts will peg your pulse as you drop over the lip. But it’s much more. There are a number of ways to experience the Colorado within the Grand Canyon, from commercial rowing trips to self-guided private rowing permits. The prized private permits are awarded each February via a lottery system by the National Park Service, and chances are now about 1 in 8 that you will win one; a few years ago the wait list was as long as 25 years. But it is, after all, a once-in-a-lifetime trip. But you’ll need a strong, experienced leader who knows the canyon before the river rangers will let you shove off. If you’re not ready to lead your own

Run the Colorado with a guide and they’ll do the hard work while you hang on. / Patrick Cone

2014 PADDLING GUIDE

expedition there are over a dozen commercial outfitters that will make it easier to get on the river, and more quickly, from 3 to 18 days. O.A.R.S. is one such outfitter. Founded in 1969 by guide George Wendt, O.A.R.S. leads three dozen trips a year down the “big muddy,” as it used to be called before upstream dams filtered out the silt. The trips are led by strong, muscular men and women in small boats, rowing 18-foot inflatables and sturdy dories. If this sort of trip appeals to you, they’re also an authorized concessioner for Arches, Canyonlands, Dinosaur, Grand Teton and Yellowstone. The company also offers tours in and around Yosemite and Crater Lake national parks, plus their guest-to-guide ratio is the lowest in the business. During this, its 45th anniversary, O.A.R.S urges you, “to just surrender yourself to the beauty, exhilaration, and renewal that this canyon provides.” You’ll come away from their trips refreshed, tanned, with sand in your hair and an unstoppable grin and attitude Your brain will get a workout as well, as river guides are born storytellers. You’ll learn the history, science, and tall tales of the canyon. The guides, with four passengers per boat, only row four to five hours a day which allows patrons to hike the backcountry of the canyon, to little-known grottos, waterfalls, and Native American sites. Then it’s back to a starlit camp dinner, as the river glides silently into the night beside your bedroll. In the night the roar of the downstream rapids will lull you to sleep. Some O.A.R.S. guides are now in their fourth decade on the job, a lifetime of learning the ways of the river. “We don’t just zip through the canyon in 8 days,” says O.A.R.S guide Steve Markle. “We take our time.” And the best way to protect these rivers, he says, is to take people down them.

O.A.R.S • • • •

Guiding trips around the world since 1969 National park tours in Arches, Canyonlands, Crater Lake, Dinosaur, Grand Canyon, Grand Teton, Yellowstone, and Yosemite. “Best River & Sea Outfitter on Earth” by National Geographic Adventure Outside Magazine rates O.A.R.S. as one of the top two outfitters in the world

www.oars.com P.O. Box 67, Angels Camp, CA 95222 info@oars.com (800) 346-6277

Taking time on the water is important. But the Grand Canyon is also the Greatest Earth on Show! While fiction authors muse about time travel, this is the real thing. When you push off from Lee’s Ferry into Marble Canyon, the walls start to rise above you, as you descend. New layers of stone are revealed, showcasing older and older eras, millions of years in the past. There are the long languorous stretches between whitewater, quiet and removed, that can make for a long paddle in a kayak or paddle boat. The world stands still. There are pristine beaches and side canyons, wildlife, flowers, and remains of previous cultures. It’s a trip into Middle Earth minus the dwarves (hard-working, bearded river guides might count). The looping river is also one of the most romantic places on Earth. O.A.R.S. guides will show you where to swim in the warm, shockingly turquoise waters of the Little Colorado River, stand beside Deer Creek Falls, or spend a day in the Havasu Creek pools and falls. You’ll make friends with your guides and bond with your river mates as you share the natural world together. The Canyon has been known to lure adventurers into its depths where they end up spending their lives exploring the wonders. One trip is not enough time to really know this place: there’s just too much to see, too many side canyons, too many trails, too many ways to slip your boat down a glassy tongue into a maelstrom of whitewater. An O.A.R.S. guide can help you find your way, and see things you may have missed by yourself. Head down the river, and you’ll want to come back as often as you can to the most amazing place you’ll ever know. It does change lives, I know: I still hear the river every night in my dreams.

Dories harken to the days of John Wesley Powell on the Colorado. / Patrick Cone

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2014 PADDLING GUIDE

PaddlingParks THE

By Kurt Repanshek

where to begin?

Yellowstone’s Lewis River Channel / Kurt Repanshek

Just 100 yards away, the thunderous roar of water released from the penstocks at the bottom of the Summersville Dam filled my ears...and left me questioning my sanity. Cloaked in a wetsuit, rain gear, and life jacket, I was a 19-year-old about to shove off on my first-ever whitewater rafting trip down through some of the biggest— and rockiest—rapids in the East. The Gauley River in West Virginia draws whitewater lovers from throughout the east for six weekends each fall, when releases from the dam fuel such punishing rapids as Lost Paddle and Shipwreck. I was a college student eager and anxious to become a paddling guide during my days in the Mountain State, and this was my test run. It launched me into three years as a guide on the Cheat and New rivers in West Virginia, and left me with a lifelong paddling passion that’s been sated by trips down the Green, Colorado, Yampa, Middle Fork of the Salmon, and onto many other lakes, streams, and oceans.

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But if you weren’t as fortunate to have a similar stroke of luck that left you with a passion for water, how would you decide where to paddle in the National Park System? Should you seek a whitewater experience the magnitude of the Gauley River with its Class V-VI rapids? Or are you looking for something requiring less adrenalin, something apropos for a family outing? Do you want to head out onto a lake and into the backcountry of a park? Are you a do-it-yourselfer, or do you want an outfitter to handle all the logistics?

Well-tested and deeply experienced outfitters are ready to guide you across the waters of the National Park System, or you can do it yourself. Kennecott River in Wrangel-St. Elias National Park / NPS

Relaxing after crossing the Narrows of Shoshone Lake in Yellowstone on a self-supported trip. / Bob Mishak

Here are some questions that will help you filter the choices:

Are you looking for a family outing, a group adventure, or a bonding experience with your teen? Answer that question and you’ll quickly winnow the possibilities. How much time do you have? A Colorado River trip through Grand Canyon National Park can take two weeks or longer, while you can paddle for a few hours on the Green or Nolin rivers in Mammoth Cave National Park. Where do you live? Today’s economics could really narrow your options if you don’t have the time or budget to drive or fly across country to float through New River Gorge National River or explore Channel Islands National Park by sea kayak. Are you happy being “motored” down the Colorado on an engine-driven raft carrying 18 people, or are you seeking more of a muscle-powered experience with fewer people? Do you want to go on a raft trip, a sea kayak trip, or a canoe trip? Again, answering that question can quickly produce a number of candidate destinations without overwhelming you.

2014 PADDLING GUIDE

If you decide to let an outfitter handle the logistics, check up on them. Sometimes endorsements can carry the day, such as the plugs O.A.R.S. has received from National Geographic Adventure and Outside Magazine, the Traveler’s own experiences with Holiday River Expeditions and Far and Away Adventures, the certifications Channel Islands Outfitters has received over its 20 years of guiding, or the reputation Wilderness River Adventures has built over five decades of river running. But don’t be afraid to call up a company and ask hard questions. Seek referrals, and ask what their return rate is. Ask them why you should go on one of their trips, as opposed to one offered by a competitor. Ask them what requirements their guides must meet. Are they certified in Wilderness First Aid? Is the company fully and appropriately insured? You might also check with the state licensing agency regarding the company’s history, and don’t be bashful about calling the National Park Service. After all, commercial outfitters that run trips within the National Park System need to be permitted by the park in which they operate. Once you have the answers to those questions, thumb through our directory to paddling in the national parks, read the park paddling capsules, and spend some time with the features on the Buffalo River, Everglades National Park, Grand Canyon National Park, Dinosaur National Monument, Voyageurs National Park, and Yellowstone National Park, and the answer likely will float to the surface.

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Sea Kayaks

By Kurt Repanshek

and

Sea Caves

Exploring Anacapa Island from the water. / Channel Islands Outfitters

ive islands, an east-west ranging chain that draws your eye into the Pacific sunset, long have lured the curious, industrious, and adventurous. Native peoples found the Channel Islands between 15,000-20,000 years ago, Spanish explorers landed here in the mid-1500s, and abalone harvesters and sheep and cattle ranchers arrived roughly 300 years later. Ever since, people have been leaving the California mainland to head out to sea for the islands—Anacapa, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, and San Miguel—and their unique, remote setting and unusual fauna that have given them the tag of “Galapagos of the North.” Today most are adventurers who find a throw-back of sorts at Channel Islands National Park and National Marine Sanctuary, a rugged landscape that protects the islands and their nearly 250,000 acres of bluffs, rocky shorelines, scrub, chaparral and grasslands that offer a primitive 12

2014 PADDLING GUIDE

experience for hikers and campers. No lodges, no stores. Just winds, sea spray, and tent sites. And the water, which attracts most. Beneath the Pacific’s blue surface around the islands rise towering “forests” of kelp and rich beds of sea grass that offer habitat for more than 1,000 species of marine life. It’s into these waters that Channel Islands Outfitters paddles year-round, to both explore sea caves that time and waves have gouged into the islands’ foundations and to enable you to slip beneath the surface with mask and snorkel to take a closer look at this unusual seascape. “It’s probably the most bio-diverse (national) park that we have. They call it the ‘Galapagos of the North’ for all the right reasons,” says Fraser Kersey, a co-founder of the company that has been guiding the curious and adventurous around the islands for two decades. “There are 150 species found nowhere else on Earth that are in the Channel Islands, and the history is

really fascinating, from the native Chumash people through the Spanish days and the ranching days. And how it’s all kind of evolved is absolutely fascinating. Going out there is like going back 200 years in California history.” Bald eagles wheel in the skies over the islands, rare island foxes romp the grasslands, and California Common Murres have been spotted nesting on 100-foot-tall cliffs within the park. This rich natural and cultural history, as well as the land- and seascapes, make Channel Islands National Park unique among the National Park System’s paddling destinations. While you’re not likely to paddle to the islands from the mainland—that sea crossing is best left to ferries—once you reach the islands Kersey or one of his guides will show you the jewels of the park. The outfitter’s most popular tour is the two-and-a-half hour kayaking paddle that takes you into some of the largest sea caves in the world and explores grottos with names like the

Channel Islands Outfitters • • •

Sea kayaking and snorkeling adventures at Channel Islands National Park and National Marine Sanctuary “20 Years Of Excellence” Certified B Corporation

www.channelislandso.com info@channelislandso.com (805) 899-4925 “Green Room” and “Neptune’s Trident.” And if you want to explore the longest sea cave in the world, Painted Cave, a tunnel that worms its way nearly a quarter-mile into the basement of Santa Cruz Island, they have a more advanced trip to this destination departing from Santa Barbara Harbor. “There are more than 200 navigable caves on Anacapa and Santa Cruz islands, which is our primary zone for kayaking,” explains Kersey. “Some are tall, some are short, some are wide, some are really deep, and some are really shallow. Each one is totally unique. Some are just quick in and outs, some you can actually get into and you can have it pitch black in those caves. So there really are a large variety that we send people through.” Growing in popularity are the company’s snorkeling trips, which allow you to spend about an hour exploring the kelp forests and their inhabitants. An early morning adventure for campers uses kayaks to get you to various

areas for snorkeling, while wetsuits, complete with hoods and booties, help ward off the waters’ chill. Channel Islands Outfitters operates almost exclusively in “Marine Protection Areas” (MPAs) that are essentially protected marine reserves where all life is protected from hunting and gathering, thus making wildlife encounters abundant and unadulterated. Naturally, the question of sharks comes up often among Kersey’s clients, and with good reason. One of the largest sea lion rookeries in the world is found on San Miguel Island, and where there’s prey, there are predators. “The way sharks migrate through Southern California is they come down through the Farallon Islands near San Francisco, past Point Conception, out to San Miguel and down to Baja,” he says. “They definitely exist out here. There are tons of different sharks, leopard sharks, horn sharks. Everybody is scared of a white shark pretty much. “They exist. Every now and again

we’ll see a juvenile in the channel, but I personally have paddled 200 days a year for the past 10 or 20 years and I’ve never seen (an adult great white). So I try to tell people it’s their natural environment, they do exist out there, but they’re so rare that it would be pretty exciting to see one.” While Channel Islands Outfitters doesn’t offer any whale-watching specific kayak tours, you’ll very likely spot some whales while making the hourlong ferry crossing. Orcas are frequently spotted, as are dolphins and sea lions. To help keep the islands’ environment healthy and flourishing as it has, Channel Islands Outfitters watches its carbon footprint and gives back. Last year, for instance, “we offset all of our carbon. Everybody’s trip that went out there was carbon neutral,” says Kersey. The company also is certified as a Certified For-Benefit Corporation for its business practices, and supports programs to get youth into the outdoors through 1% For The Planet. NationalParksTraveler.com

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The run through Gates of Lodore on the Green River offers scenery and pulse-charging rapids. / Holiday River Expeditions

Disaster Falls the

masters

Explore the Rivers of Dinosaur National Monument By Kurt Repanshek

Paddling trips on the Green and Yampa rivers in Dinosaur National Monument offer tranquil sections perfect for relaxing in the beauty of the scenery, as well as traces of long-ago settlers. / Kurt Repanshek (3)

2014 PADDLING GUIDE

alk to those intimate with Dinosaur National Monument, and they’ll quickly tell you this expansive monument that straddles the Utah-Colorado border really deserves to be known as a “national park.” The monument’s two rivers, the Yampa and the Green, alone should be justification enough to formally describe Dinosaur as a “national park;” they offer some of the best rafting in the West. Toss in the incredible fossil remains that are entombed here, the long Native American history, the more recent Western bandit history (Butch Cassidy slept here!), and the rugged wilderness that lies within its borders and Dinosaur easily deserves the “national park” designation. Not that there’s anything terribly wrong with its “national monument” status. Indeed, that probably fends off quite a bit of visitor traffic and helps Dinosaur retain its wild side. And experiencing that wild side is what makes a visit to this corner of the National Park System so sublime...and so unique. During a recent float trip on the Green River through the Canyon of Lodore, past Echo Park and massive Steamboat Rock, and then into Whirlpool Canyon and on through Split Mountain, dinosaurs were the last thing on my mind. In a small flotilla of Holiday River Expeditions rafts – with two “rubber duckies,” and one white-water canoe for good measure – we quickly passed through the

Gates of Lodore, a tremendous rift the river has cut through this section of the Uinta Mountain Range. It’s that sort of perspective – looking up at a cross-section of the mountains while drifting downstream – that makes a river trip such a unique way to explore a national park. The Yampa offers an equally impressive, yet scenically different, experience. The soaring sandstone cliffs colored buff, yellow, and tawny that the Yampa pulls you past are more indicative of southern Utah’s geology hundreds of miles away, and definitely different from the more aged, crumbly, and ruddy maw of the mountains the Green takes you past. Both rivers are alive with currents that thread through rock gardens and roar through channels that spew wave trains, pulling you constantly downstream through ever-changing patterns of light, from shadows cast by the cliffs to full sun reflecting off the leaping waters. Mountains soar up about you, revealing geologic twists and faults. Promontories of rock jut into the river corridor, while canyons cut deep behind them. Landslides and boulders that time sent down into the Green River created, and occasionally continue to alter, the rapids that Major John Wesley Powell and his band of men struggled to conquer in 1869. Disaster Falls in particular rightly earned its name from the major. A river trip through the Green River arm of Dinosaur allows time to contemplate the Earth’s forces and decorations. And it offers time to truly disconnect from the wired world and reconnect with friends and family. The crew at Holiday River, a company launched in 1966 that has established an outstanding safety record through the decades, floats both these rivers as well as the Colorado River through Canyonlands National Park’s Cataract Canyon. They can help makes your disconnect from the “real” world complete. On the river, Holiday River’s guides lead you safely through the rapids, intersperse the river running with hikes to limestone overlooks high above the Green or to ancient palettes bearing images both recognizable as bighorn sheep and mysterious as other-worldly aliens. All the while they regale you with the human history that has risen up from those who have traveled the river’s surface and the canyon’s trails. On the river, the canyons change color as the sun drifts across the sky. Deep reds, vermilion shades, blacks, whites, browns and buffs paint the rock

Holiday River Expeditions • • •

Running non-motorized trips since 1966 Specialists in floating Dinosaur National Monument and Canyonlands National Park on the Green and Colorado Rivers Family-oriented trips

www.bikeraft.com holiday@bikeraft.com 800-624-6323 as minerals add their own hues to the mountains’ seams. About these earthy tones, greens burst skyward where vegetation has taken root and figured out how to thrive in this arid setting. At camps tucked up onto sandy beaches with shaded tent sites, Holiday River’s guides prepare sumptuous meals – breakfasts of granola and yogurt, pancakes (blueberry or strawberry and peach), or “Big Drop” omelets; lunches of chicken caesar salad wraps, pasta salads, cold cuts and fresh fruits; and dinners of tender steaks, mahimahi, or pasta. After dinner, relax with the “Broom Dance,” a comical routine that tests your skills of observation, or

learn more about your fellow rafters through a game of “two truths and a lie,” or simply watch the sunset stain the mountains while the river gurgles by and the stars slowly poke holes in the night sky. Nights can be as magical as days. As the sun departs, bats arrive, flitting about to eat their dinner, while high overhead the Milky Way begins to draw back its curtain. Moonglow illuminates the canyon walls, not in the rainbow hues created by the sun, but more a black-and-white or even sepia tone. At one of our camps, the resident skunk came out around dusk. Not to welcome us to this patch of Dinosaur or to defend it with his perfume, but merely to search for any morsel that might have dropped unnoticed from our plates. Overhead, the moon was bright, casting the monument in yet another light. The lure of the dinosaur fossils sheltered within the monument’s Quarry Exhibit Hall is not to be minimized. But the pure rawness of the landscape found along the river corridors within Dinosaur’s boundaries adds so much richness to the monument. Until you experience that landscape first-hand, you’ll struggle to fully appreciate Dinosaur.

Holiday River’s guides turn into chefs and waiters once camp is established. / Holiday River Expeditions

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Precautions Paddling

In The Parks

•

If you’re paddling in the ocean (Florida Bay at Everglades National Park) or along coastlines (Cape Lookout National Seashore), know the tides. If the tide is running against you, you won’t be able to travel as fast as when it’s with you. Pace yourself and be realistic when it comes to how many miles a day you can cover.

•

Wherever you paddle, everyone should have, and wear while on the water, a Coast Guard-approved personal flotation device. Carrying an extra one in each boat is a good idea, as is having an extra paddle per boat.

•

Safety gear such as throw ropes, bailing buckets or bilge pumps, and First Aid kits should be on your gear list. Headlamps or some other lights are good if you find yourself paddling after sundown, and are required in some areas.

•

In lakes such as Superior (Apostle Islands National Lakeshore and Isle Royale National Park), Yellowstone (Yellowstone National Park), and Rainy (Voyageurs National Park), approaching storms can quickly whip up winds and waves, creating inland seas that can flip boats if you’re not careful. Keep an eye on the skies while paddling, and as a general rule stay within a quarter-mile of shore.

•

A GPS is handy, but batteries can die at the most inopportune time. A compass and set of pertinent topographic maps (not the maps parks hand out at entrance stations) provide sound backup if you’re adept at using them.

•

Whether you’re heading out for a day, or a week, let someone know where you’re going and when you expect to be back. At parks that require it, file a float plan before you leave shore.

•

Cellphones are becoming ubiquitous, but you might not always be within reach of a cell signal. If you’re really heading into the outback, consider renting a satellite phone.

•

Check with the specific park you’re visiting as to whether they require or suggest any other items, such as wetsuits or paddling helmets.

By Kurt Repanshek

ll throughout our National Park System there are waters perfect for paddling that range from placid ponds and lakes to tumultuous rivers filled with boulder-studded cataracts that require a careful eye and deft paddle. While paddling can open incredible vistas and portals into the parks, a measure of caution should be carried with you at all times, along with a dose or two of experience. Large lakes such as Superior and Yellowstone are frightfully cold even in August and you will only have a few minutes to avoid hypothermia if you fall in, while fast rivers can feature shallow spots with foot-trapping cobble beds or downed trees—strainers—that can be threatening. So wherever you paddle, be sure you’re prepared, both with your skills as well as with your gear. Here are a few things to keep in mind:

Everglades National Park is a paddler’s paradise with its endless options. / NPS photo

2014 PADDLING GUIDE

Traveler’s Gear List: Paddling In The Parks Paddling trips in the national parks take more than a little planning. Here’s Traveler’s gear list for overnight trips:

Camping

• Tent(s) with ground cloth and rain fly • Sleeping bags (bags that can retain heat when wet, such as those with synthetic, not down, filling) and sleeping pads, with repair kit for inflatable pads • Rainfly or mesh room (such as Kelty’s Bug Blocker) for dining area • Cookstove, with fuel and repair kit. Some stove manufacturers prepackage repair items in a handy waterproof bag • Eating utensils, plate, bowl, cup. Larger cook kit and frying pan depending on your menu • Biodegradable dish soap and nylon scrubbing pad • Lantern for camp • Waterproof matches or butane lighter stored in plastic bag or dry bag • MSR Dromedary water bag or something comparable • Solar shower

Boating

• • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Canoe, kayak, or raft Paddles, with a spare per boat Paddle leash for kayakers Paddle jacket Life jackets/PFD/spray skirt, with a spare PFD per boat Whistles attached to life jackets/PFDs Throw rope Painter (rope attached to boat’s bow for tying up, towing, or lining through rapids) Maps/GPS unit/compass Plastic map sleeve Dry bags for tent, sleeping bag and pad, rainfly, clothing Smaller dry bags (one per person) for personal items such as wallet, car keys, camera, cellphone) Bailing bucket or bilge pump and sponge Kneeling pad if canoeing

Personal • • • • • •

• • • • • •

•

• • •

Water bottles and filter or other purification system Bear spray if you’re paddling in bear country Insect repellent Headlamps and or flashlight, with extra batteries Rope for hanging food from tree or bear bar if available First Aid kit with bandages, butterfly closures, compresses, gauze rolls, adhesive tape, Ace bandage, triple-antibiotic ointment, safety pins, aspirin or similar, antibiotics such as Cipro, tweezers, needle, moleskin, wilderness First Aid book. You can make this easy by purchasing a prepackaged medical kit from REI, Adventure Medical, or similar outlet Towel and Hat Sunglasses and Sunscreen Camera and Binoculars Paperback book, deck of cards Water-proof, not simply resistant, rain gear, including jackets and pants Footwear: One pair for wearing while on the water and fording streams, another pair of lightweight hiking shoes or something similar that’s comfortable for hiking short distances and/or wearing around camp Clothing: A quick-dry, short-sleeve synthetic T-shirt or two for paddling in; swimsuit or shorts for paddling in; long pair of pants (preferably quick-drying), longsleeved shirt; maybe fleece jacket or windbreaker for off the water depending on season, long-range forecast; socks; undies Toiletries: TP, toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, Chapstick, deodorant, etc. A travel-sized packet of anti-bacterial wipes, or similar, is great to have Meals, including snacks while paddling, seasonings, and possibly an extra day’s meals just in case Personal prescriptions in waterproof containers

Miscellaneous • • • • • • • • • • •

Fire pan where required Trowel for digging cat holes and latrines if necessary Emergency shelter Duct tape Multipurpose tool Trash bag for hauling garbage out with you Duffle bag of clean clothes, left in car, that you can change into after ending the trip Camp chairs Notebook with pen/pencil Fishing gear Boating permit picked up at visitor center or park entrance station NationalParksTraveler.com

Essential

WaterGear By Kurt Repanshek

With a cot under you, such as the LuxuryLite Ultralite Cot from Therm-A-Rest, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll sleep easier after a long day paddling. / Ian Coble

You have your river, lake, or possibly even ocean trip on the calendar, but whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s in your gear bag? Here are some suggestions for some key items based on Traveler field testing. 18

2014 PADDLING GUIDE

Gear bags For starters, you need something to haul your gear in, whether you’re traveling by canoe, kayak, or raft. A good option is the Hummingbird Gear 65-liter Cargo Carrier (MSRP $99.95) Constructed out of vinyl and nylon, the bag is made for use in watery conditions. Featuring a padded shoulder harness and a simple waist belt, it is also meant to be worn like a backpack. A good-sized bag that can handle a fair amount of gear, the Cargo Carrier is a good base camp bag into which you stow clothes and odds and ends. But other dry bags you should consider are Kodiak Window Dry Sacks (MSRP $24.95-$47.95) from SealLine, a watery arm of Cascade Designs. What I like about these bags is not only that they come in a range of sizes, from 5 liters to 40 liters, but they have a clear PVC-free urethane window that runs the length of the bags. That takes the guessing out of where you stowed the First Aid kit. Through a range of bags you can properly, and dryly, pack your gear so you can 1) never deal with your base camp gear until you get to camp; 2) quickly find your First Aid kit or rain gear, and; 3) have a small ditty bag at hand with sunscreen, cellphone or camera, etc.

The bag’s next best feature is the purge valve near the bottom. Dry bags without such valves can be a bit tricky to squeeze out all the air when you’re compressing them. With this purge valve, you simply squeeze out the air as you go about rolling the mouth of the bag closed. These bags come in a range of sizes, from just five liters all the way up to 40 liters.

Protecting Your Electronics Water in a national park, whether you’re encountering the white-water variety, or a relatively smooth lake, or even pools of water while canyoneering, can wreak havoc on cameras and other electrical equipment. They need protection. And Lowepro’s collection of DryZone bags can help you accomplish that task. I had an opportunity to test the DryZone 20L bag (MSRP $149.99) during a five-day paddling trip to Yellowstone National Park. We put in at Lewis Lake, paddled across it to the Lewis River Channel, and followed that a few miles to Shoshone Lake. There we spent five wonderful days paddling and exploring this great backcountry destination.

The DryZone bag came in handy as I was toting my Nikon D80 camera and three lenses. That took up less than half of the bag’s capacity. So in went a small digital recorder, an Olympus Stylus Tough point-and-shoot, and the SPOT Global Satellite Phone. And there still was a little room left for another lens or two. There’s also a small zippered pocket on the outside for small items, such as keys or lip balm, but really not much more. These camera bags are rugged. They’re made out of a dry-bag-like waterproof fabric carrying a Thermoplastic polyurethane coating. The 20L features an inner, removable, liner bag that securely nests your lens and cameras in padded compartments. Through a range of bags you can properly, and dryly, pack your gear so you can 1) never deal with your base camp gear until you get to camp; 2) quickly find your First Aid kit or rain gear, and; 3) have a small ditty bag at hand with sunscreen, cellphone or camera, etc.

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Backcountry Communications How far off the grid are you heading? If you’re planning to vanish into the backcountry for days on end, you might want to pack a satellite phone with you. Cellphones don’t always work in the backcountry, while sat phones are quite reliable... unless you’re surrounded by towering canyon walls. I’ve taken a SPOT Global Phone (MSRP $500; data plans extra) down the Green River through the Gates of Lodore in Dinosaur National Monument, and was stymied by the high canyon walls. But on Shoshone Lake in Yellowstone National Park the signal was strong and the clarity incredible. As for the phone itself, it’ll easily stash in your pack, as it measures just over 5 inches long, a bit over 2 inches wide, and 1.5 inches deep. Extend the antenna, and the length roughly doubles. The screen is small, about an inch wide and just over a half-inch deep. The shell is plastic, and so you don’t want to drop it, or drop anything on it. Standby time with fully charged lithium batteries is 36 hours. Conversely, that equates to about four hours of talk time. There also is a “minute alert” you can set to alert you when you’re running out of minutes. You have options to investing in such a phone. One is to rent a satellite phone; costs generally start around $12 a day. Another is to carry SPOT’s GEN3 Satellite GPS Messenger (MSRP $149.95). The latest iteration of this handy tracking device, GEN3 allows you to not only be tracked step-by-step by your family and friends back home, but you can send preset emails or texts to them. This unit still does not allow you to compose a message in the field, but it does let your family and friends know where you are and that you’re in good condition...unless you trigger the S.O.S message that summons professional rescuers.

2014 PADDLING GUIDE

Staying Afloat If you head onto the water with an outfitter, they’ll provide your personal flotation device, aka PFD. But if you’re going to regularly play in the water— rivers, lakes, and oceans—you’ll want to invest in your own. Now, how hefty of a preserver you’ll need, well, that’s another matter. Are you a trip leader, or merely baggage, a passenger on a float trip? Are you paddling white water, or lazy lakes? Those and other factors can go into your choice of PFD. Last summer I had the use of a Maximus Prime PFD from Kokatat, a California-based company that has been making paddling gear since 1971. The Maximus Prime is at the high-end, a Type 5 white-water rescue PFD that is of particular value to paddlers who might find themselves in a white-water rescue situation. The entire cut of the Maximus is user-friendly, offering a deeper opening around the armpits that eliminates chaffing. The front flotation panel is suspended off the shoulder straps for better movement when you’re paddling. A range of straps on the jacket’s front make it highly adjustable for a secure, comfortable fit. An O-ring on the quick-release safety harness on the back of the PFD permits you to attach a rescue line. A chest pocket can hold a snack or other small items, and there’s an adjacent tab for attaching a rescue knife, a handy tool to slice through throw rope tangles if they’re threatening your life. The Maximus Prime, needless to say, is more than what the average paddler needs. There is a whole range of lesser vests that would suit those not in the rescue business just fine. In the end, you want a vest that is secure and comfortable, that provides ample buoyancy for the conditions you’ll be in.

My Aching Back Long days in a canoe can lead to an aching back, unless you modify the basic seating situation. For years I resorted to a Crazy Creek chair, but I’ve found a newer, more comfortable solution. The Crazy Creek model worked relatively fine, in that it provided padding for the cane seat and a back for support that could be stiffened with the tug of a strap or two. But, in hindsight, the support it offered wasn’t the best. Enter the Paddler Chair (MSRP $60) from TravelChair, a company that’s been around since 1984. Not only does this chair offer an S-bend backrest that pulls its support from an aluminum frame, but it has a thickly padded seat and, best of all, a movable lumbar support. A mesh fabric covers it all, thus promoting quick drying. The chair weighs just 2.3 pounds and can support someone up to 250 pounds. It quickly attaches to your canoe, or kayak, seat with locking straps. One the back of the seat there’s a mesh pocket that keeps small items -- sunscreen, a point-andshoot camera, lip balm -- within reach.

Getting To The Put-In In these days of high gasoline prices and smaller vehicles, sometimes getting all your gear to the launching point can be a chore and require creativity. Fortunately, for those of us who struggle with cramming all our gear and luggage into our rigs, there’s the Atlas 8 from Precision Travel Werx. The Atlas 8 solved the lack of space problem my Subaru Outback offered for four men and their paddling gear for a five-day paddling trip. It swallowed it: A packable Ally canoe in its duffle bag; dry bags filled with sleeping bags and clothing; dry boxes with foodstuffs and a two-burner stove; five paddles; a bag with four PFDs, two throw ropes, two kneeling pads, two sponges, and two bailers; a “bug tent” for mealtime; two chairs; two tents; and various miscellaneous items you can’t do without. And there was still room to put some more gear into the 73 cubic feet of storage space, not to mention a Yakima roof rack atop the trailer that came in handy once we had assembled the Ally. Part of the beauty of this streamlined trailer, in addition to its storage capacity, is its lightness. The trailer weighs 550 pounds empty, and can handle 1,000 pounds on top of that. So smoothly did the trailer run that I had to constantly check my rearview mirror to ensure that it was still behind us. Those are some of the basics you’ll want to consider. Other items that you’ll want are a sleeping bag with synthetic fill that will keep you warm even if it gets wet; tents; cooking gear, and clothing. Check our gear list on page 17 to ensure you cover all the bases. NationalParksTraveler.com

New River Gorge National River / NPS

Paddling Information

Prime Paddling Spots In The National Park System Here’s a sampler of some of the best spots to dip a paddle in the National Park System.

Eastern Parks New River Gorge National River, West Virginia Despite its name, the New River really is one of the oldest rivers in the world, which is just an interesting tidbit, not the main draw, for paddlers. Rather, it’s the succession of rapids that range from playful riffles to demanding Class V waters that draw white water enthusiasts from throughout the East. The New, around which New River Gorge National River arose in 1978, cuts its boulder-strewn course north from North Carolina through the deepest and longest canyon cut by a river through the Appalachian Range. The national river includes 53 miles of the New, running from the Bluestone Dam and emptying into Hawks Nest Lake. But it’s the lower section (on the northern end) that attracts the most attention from paddlers. Here rapids named Upper and Lower Railroad, Double Z, and Greyhound test your skills. The season runs throughout the spring and summer.

Gauley River National Recreation Area, West Virginia The Gauley, sister of the New River, was added to the National Park System a decade later, as a national recreation area. Unlike the New, the peak season for running the 25 miles of the Gauley River that lie within the NRA begins the weekend after Labor Day and runs for six consecutive weekends as water is released from the Summersville Dam to push river runners down 25 miles of chutes, sluices, and rock mazes that generate white-water bearing VI+ ratings. Creating this incredible challenge is the fact that the riverbed drops more than 650 feet along the way downstream, while ledges and rock fields create more than 100 rapids—Iron Ring, Shipwreck, and Lost Paddle, just to name three—worthy of your attention.

Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail

Spanning nearly 3,000 miles throughout the Chesapeake Bay, this historic trail offers more than a few places to dip your paddle,

2014 PADDLING GUIDE

whether it’s used to propel a canoe or sea kayak. Pick up a copy of A Boater’s Guide to the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail and you’ll find out where you can paddle, locate launch sites, and receive a primer on Captain Smith’s early 17th century explorations of the bay. Under an innovative agreement with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a network of “talking” buoys has been anchored in the bay. Paddlers calling a toll-free number, 877-BUOY BAY, can receive information ranging from the latest weather forecast to recordings that interpret points along the water trail.

Cape Cod National Seashore, Massachusetts Though most visitors to Cape Cod National Seashore head to the beach, there are some surprising paddling opportunities here. While the Atlantic Ocean pounds away at the eastern face of this national seashore, venture inland and you’ll find some nice ponds and marshy areas to paddle, and, if you go far enough, even the calmer waters of Cape Cod Bay.

The park’s salt marshes and estuaries can be perfect for paddlers if you time the tides right, lather up with sunscreen and wear a wide-brimmed hat, and avoid the buggiest parts of the day (daybreak and sunset). The national seashore’s rangers can help you enjoy some of these waters, as during the high summer season they lead canoe trips near Eastham on Salt Pond and nearby Nauset Marsh as well as on Long Pond on the west end of Provincetown. Kettle ponds elsewhere on the cape, such as Long or Seymour ponds near Brewster, Cliff Pond in Nickerson State Park, are perfect for canoeing, while Little Pleasant Bay and Salt Pond Bay are great for sea kayaks.

Race Point Light, Cape Cod National Seashore. / NPS

Southern Parks Cape Lookout National Seashore, North Carolina Experienced at self-contained sea kayaking? Enjoy wind-whipped salt spray and camping among sand dunes? Cape Lookout National Seashore on the North Carolina coast offers paddlers a raw and challenging backcountry experience. “Nowhere else on the Southeast coast will you encounter an uninterrupted barrier island chain in such pristine condition on the magnitude of Cape Lookout National Seashore,” notes the seashore staff. Novice paddlers can work on their skills in the calm waters of Core Sound and Back Sound, while those with many watery miles under their paddles can head out the inlets into the Atlantic. With luck, your dinners will include fresh fish pulled from the ocean, sunrises will glow red, glistening off the waves, and sea oats will festoon your campsite. You’re more than welcome to plan a multi-day trip and camp on the seashore’s beaches. Just be sure to file a float plan with the park staff so they have an idea where you’re heading and when you plan to return.

Little River Canyon National Preserve, Alabama The Little River Canyon might only cover 14,000 or so acres atop Lookout Mountain in northern Alabama, but the river that carved it packs a lot of wallop for experienced kayakers. Said to have cut the deepest canyon (roughly 600 feet) in the Southeast, and offering the cleanest water in the region, the Little River boasts rapids ranging from Class III to Class VI that lure paddlers when spring runoff hits.

Everglades National Park, Florida Everglades’ sloughs and freshwater marshes are perfect for exploration via canoe or kayak, while the waters of Florida Bay are best plied by sea kayak. Paddlers will encounter toothy alligators and crocodiles, tropical birds, dolphins, and manatees dur-

ing canoe and kayak trips that can range from a few hours to a week. Both Turner River and Halfway Creek let canoeists and kayakers get up close to the wildlife in cypress and mangrove swamps. There are seven water trails found in the Flamingo area, ranging from 3.5 miles to as much as you want to paddle in Florida Bay. Paddler seeking overnight trips can stay for more than a day while camping on chickees, raised camping platforms, erected in Florida Bay. Nine Mile Pond offers a 5-mile loop and is a good bet for birdwatching and the occasional alligator sighting, all the while navigating through a marshy area studded with mangrove islands. Alligators and crocodiles are often seen along the 8.1-mile paddle along West Lake.

Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Tennessee and Kentucky Though not as renowned as the New or Gauley rivers, the Big South Fork has drawn acclaim for its whitewater. Angel Falls draws a Class IV rating for the way a choke point in the river squeezes the current, while Double Falls Rapid, the Washing Machine, and The Ell also have earned reputations for challenging paddlers. While some stretches of the Clear Fork, North White Oak, and New River (not that New River) might be manageable for beginners, most stretches require paddling experience before you put in. If you lack the experience, but don’t want to miss the adventure, look to an outfitter who can guide you on a river trip in the park.

Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky

Playing on the Obed / NPS

Obed National Wild and Scenic River, Tennessee Though encompassing little more than 5,000 acres on the Cumberland Plateau, Obed National Wild and Scenic River preserves and protects 45 miles of free-flowing streams. The main attraction is the park’s namesake river, the Obed. The National Park Service likes to say that the landscape within Obed Wild and Scenic River looks much as it did “when the first white settlers strolled its banks in the late 1700s.” Scenery aside, the Obed River is for experienced paddlers, as “lethal hazards abound on all sections of the park’s streams,” park staff note, adding that waves can reach 10 feet at times. Elsewhere in the park, though, you can find calmer waters to paddle, such as Clear Creek. It will help your experience if you’re somewhat cold-blooded, as “January, February, March and April are the heart of the park’s paddling season,” note park officials. “May and December are shoulder months when minimum flow levels may or may not be present.”

The country’s other Green River flows through this park where the main attraction is underground. Paddling either the Green or Nolin rivers is a great trip, as they meander for 30 miles through this rumpled, wooded landscape. Canoeists can camp on islands, within the flood plain, or at the Houchins Ferry Campground near the western end of the park. There are no rapids within the park, making these trips perfect for families or novice paddlers. Wildlife spotted along your trip could include turkeys, deer, beaver, and perhaps even fox or bobcats. Several canoe liveries can supply you with boat rentals and even shuttles.

Green River, Mammoth Cave National Park / NPS

Congaree National Park, South Carolina While you can experience the old-growth forest protected by Congaree National Park by strolling the boardwalks that wend their way through the swamp, paddling Cedar Creek brings the trees and undergrowth even closer. Bald cypress and water tupelo trees reach into the sky overhead, while Spanish moss hangs down from the tree branches. This bottomland forest is rich in birdlife, and the songs of chickadees, wrens, white-eyed vireos and warblers will serenade you. Though Ivory-billed woodpeckers perhaps once made these bottomland forests home, these days you’ll hear the pecking of Red-bellied woodpeckers, Downy woodpeckers, and Northern flickers, not that of the Lord God bird. The park offers ranger-led canoe tours down Cedar Creek on Saturdays during the winter months, but they fill far in advance. For information and reservations, call the park at 803-647-3980. If you are on your own, check the stream levels before leaving home; ideal gauge levels for Cedar Creek on the USGS website are between 3-5 feet. Anything above 6 feet starts flooding, while below 3 and you may have to pull over logs. A great day trip is to put in at South Cedar Creek landing and paddle down stream for 2-3 miles then paddle back - the current is not that bad between 3-5 feet; this way you don’t need a second car at a pull out spot.

Rocky Mountain Parks Glacier National Park, Montana Though best known for its soaring peaks, glaciers, and wildlife, Glacier also counts some great lakes for paddlers. Lake McDonald and Swiftcurrent lakes are the most obvious options, though Sherburne, St. Mary, Upper Waterton, and Lower Two Medicine lakes also are popular destinations for canoeists and touring kayakers. Overnight trips can be planned, though you’ll need to get a backcountry permit from the park staff and reserve space in designated backcountry campsites along the

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lakes. If you’re considering a trip on Waterton Lake, which extends into Canada and Waterton Lakes National Park, you’ll need to check in at the Goat Haunt Ranger Station (don’t forget your U.S. Passport to prove U.S. residency). Paddlers looking for whitewater can descend the Flathead River that marks the western border of Glacier.

Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming For those who ply the waters of this majestic park, the Tetons loom constantly overhead. Paddlers can enjoy that perspective from four lakes -- Jenny, String, Leigh, and the big one, Jackson. Jenny, String, and Leigh are for day-trippers, as the lakes aren’t large enough to require multiple days to navigate. Their generally calm waters also are good for family outings. Jackson Lake, though, can provide you with a two- or three-day adventure. If you’re looking for something that packs a little more adrenalin, then take a float on the Snake River as it heads out of the Jackson Lake Dam south towards park headquarters at Moose. Paddle through Oxbow Bend and you’ll encounter some wildlife -- eagles, osprey, perhaps some bison and antelope coming down to the riverbanks for a sip. While many folks tackle this river on their own for an afternoon or morning float, it can be tricky, so unless you’re fairly well-skilled and somewhat familiar with the Snake, you probably would be wiser to go with an outfitter.

mix of settings. There are vestiges of boreal forest, western forest, eastern deciduous forest, and even tallgrass prairie in the Middle of the Niobrara River Valley that is split by the 100th Meridian. Somewhat unusual is the fact that the park’s borders are defined by the river banks; most of the dry land is in private ownerships. Paddlers looking for multi-day adventures can choose from a number of private campgrounds to erect their tents.

Mississippi National River and Recreation Area, Minnesota Paddlers have 72 miles of river that mix rural as well as downtown experiences to consider when looking at this waterway. As the river passes through Minneapolis, you won’t necessarily get the feeling of wilderness, however, you can get a sense of the area’s history with stops at Fort Snelling. To help plan your trip, invest in a copy of the Mississippi River Companion, or download a copy from the park’s website. This guide helps you locate boat ramps, provides history of the area along the river’s path, and pinpoints state and local parks. There are no campgrounds within the national river’s boundaries, though you can download a map of regional parks within the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area to see where you might spend the night.

Mid-Continent Parks Niobrara National Scenic River, Nebraska Flowing 76 miles through the Sandhills of Nebraska, the Niobrara is born in Wyoming. It gathers momentum from hundreds of springs that feed it as on its course towards the Missouri in northeastern Nebraska. A rich variety of ecosystems are found along the river’s path, as the convergence of dry western air currents colliding with more humid air from the eastern half of the country create a surprising

Before you head out, though, check with park staff on river levels, as upper sections of the St. Croix and Namekagon rivers can get quite bony without adequate rainfall. During the paddling season, river flow data are published on the park’s website.

Ford Parkway Bridge over the Mississippi River / NPS

St. Croix National Scenic Riverway, Minnesota and Wisconsin Together the St. Croix and Namekagon rivers offer 255 miles of water gliding past a lush green landscape interspersed with “glimpses of a human presence.” In other words, you can sample a quasiwilderness experience, but you’re not too far off the grid.

2014 PADDLING GUIDE

Current River in Ozark National Scenic Riverway / Marty Koch

Ozark National Scenic Riverways, Missouri Fed by hundreds of millions of gallons a day of spring water, the Jack Fork and Current rivers that flow 134 miles through this unit of the National Park System were the motivators for protecting rivers in the United States as Wild and Scenic. Though not officially carrying the Wild and Scenic designation, this park established in 1964 was the first in the country to protect a wild river system. Today you can enjoy the benefits of that designation by canoeing, kayaking, or even taking a motorboat on the rivers for recreation. Nearly two dozen canoe liveries in the area can rent you a canoe and arrange shuttles if need be. Campgrounds and backcountry campsites dot the rivers, making it easy to coordinate a multi-day paddling adventure.

Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, Wisconsin Twenty-one islands in Lake Superior fall under the auspices of Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. Exploration by touring (sea) kayak is the way to go. Camping is allowed on 19 of the islands, making it possible to spend days on end exploring the waters, and islands, of Lake Superior. Unpredictable weather can whip Lake Superior into an inland ocean in minutes, so inter-island travel by canoe or sit-on-top kayak is not recommended in the national lakeshore.

There are several kayak launch areas in the lakeshore’s mainland unit at Little Sand Bay and at Meyers Beach at the end of Meyers Road. You need to obtain a backcountry permit for your trip, which will ensure that you’ll have a site when you reach each day’s destination. Individual campsites (for one to seven campers) with facilities like fire rings, pit toilets, and bearproof food lockers are located on 15 of the islands in the national lakeshore. Camping zones (for one to five campers) have also been established on 16 islands for visitors seeking a remote backcountry experience without any facilities. Individual campsites and camping zones can be reserved beginning one month before the start of a trip for $10 per night.” To help you reach your site, the park offers GPS coordinates for the sites. The park’s website also offers a mileage chart.

Isle Royale National Park, Michigan To the north across Lake Superior from Apostle Islands, this island park is not easily reached. But paddlers who make the effort are rewarded with bays and coves that offer some protection (and nice campsites) from the big lake, or smaller inland lakes, for exploration. Due to Superior’s reputation for tempestuous storms, cold water, and fog, experience is key to a paddling visit to Isle Royale. Paddlers are urged by park officials to familiarize themselves with weather patterns and consult the marine forecast at ranger stations and visitor centers before heading off. Being flexible with your plans so you can cope with the weather is essential, and a portable marine radio is recommended. Check with park officials for details on camping. In general, canoe-only sites are limited to two nights stay, for parties of six or less. The entire shore of Lake Whittlesey, Wood Lake, Intermediate Lake and Siskiwit Lake, and designated zones along Lake Superior, are open to camping with a one night stay limit per location. Camping on offshore islands is limited to designated campsites. Groups (7-10 people) must stay at designated “group campsites,” and must get backcountry permits. Shoreline camping is not open to groups.

Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota This is one park that is almost entirely dedicated to paddling. The prospect of paddling these inland highways of water that were navigated by 18th century fur trappers draws canoeists and sea kayakers from across the country. Rainy Lake is the largest of the park’s big lakes, but Kabetogama, Namakan and Sand Point lakes also draw their shares of paddlers. You also can leap-frog a canoe trip by tying together Kabetogama, Locator, War Club, Quill, and Loiten lakes via a series of portages, or perhaps the Cruiser Lake Trail that links Cruiser Lake. Just be sure to carefully study the available maps for these trails, as some of the portages might be longer than you’d like them to be Exploring this park by canoe or sea kayak takes time, but it’s well worth it for the solitude, sounds of wolves howling in chorus, moose and other wildlife sightings, not to mention your passage through deep boreal forests of the lake country opened up by the 18th century fur trade.

Missouri National Recreational River, South Dakota and Nebraska The Missouri River is one of the country’s iconic waterways -- sections of it aren’t much changed from when Lewis and Clark came through in the early 19th century-- and you can dip a paddle in nearly 100 miles of the river as it flows through the Missouri National Recreational River across parts of Nebraska and South Dakota. This is a big river, though, and windy conditions can challenge the best of paddlers. To help you get the most out of your visit, the park has developed two paddling guides: one to a 39-mile stretch of the Missouri that flows from Fort Randall, South Dakota, to Running Water, South Dakota, and another that stretches 59 miles from Gaving Point Dam, Nebraska, to Ponca, Nebraska. The guides point to areas where you might camp (both primitive and state park camping areas) and mention some of the wildlife you might encounter, such as least terns and and piping plovers. Sadly, the bison and grizzlies that once roamed this landscape are long gone.

Little Missouri River / Kurt Repanshek

Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota This badlands-rippled park might not come immediately to mind when you think of paddle trips. But you can spend five days navigating more than 107 miles on the Little Missouri River between Medora, N.D., near the park’s South Unit and Long X Bridge on U.S. Highway 85 near the park’s North Unit. Two days are needed to continue from Long X Bridge to Lost Bridge on State Highway 22 (Little Missouri Bay on Lake Sakakawea). River ice usually breaks up by early April. Moderate temperatures and spring rains may combine to produce satisfactory conditions for float trips with May and June usually being the best months. For much of the year, however, low water levels require boaters to frequently drag their boats through shallow stretches. Each year is difficult to predict, say park officials, and some years the river is not deep enough for float trips; sections of the river may dry up completely. Adding to that uncertainty is the fact that water levels vary daily; “easy paddling one day can become a trip requiring frequent portages the next.” A river depth of at least 2.5 feet (699 cfs) at Medora is required for fair boating and 2.5-3.5 feet (6991500 cfs) for good boating.

The NRA’s staff divides the paddling possibilities into two categories: downlake paddles and uplake paddles. Tackle the Escalante Arm of the reservoir, which is about 35 miles downstream of Halls Crossing Marina, and you’ll find a number of side canyons worthy of exploration both in your sea kayak and day hikes. More than a few alcoves, hanging gardens, and panels of rock art can be found in the area. With the drought of recent years, the reservoir’s levels have dropped significantly, in some cases opening up side canyons long underwater. The Cathedral in the Desert, a temple of Navajo sandstone once inundated by the rising reservoir, is one such treasure revealed. There are no camping fees assessed or required permits at the NRA, but if you are camping in the backcountry you must carry an approved human waste containment system, such as a portable toilet or enzyme-based waste bag system.

Canyonlands National Park, Utah While most of this desert park is dry, parched, and arid, it has its wet side. And what a wet side that is. When people speak of floating the Colorado River, and are not referring to the section that flows through Grand Canyon National Park, they’re likely talking about Cataract Canyon in Canyonlands. Cataract is one of the classic white-water river trips in the Southwest. One with spectacular tawny sandstone walls rising high overhead. But it’s not for sissies, as the folks at Canyonlands like to point out: “Cataract Canyon contains 14 miles of rapids ranging in difficulty up to Class V. It is a particularly hazardous and isolated section of the Colorado River and is subject to extreme water level fluctuations.”

Southwest Parks Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Utah Glen Canyon attracts a large amount of houseboat traffic, but experienced paddlers can find some incredible solitude in the backwaters and side canyons of Lake Powell.

Alaskan Parks Noatak National Preserve, Alaska Situated in Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve and Noatak National Preserve, the Noatak River drains the largest mountainringed river basin in America that is still virtually unaffected by human activities. Three-hundred-thirty miles of this river -- from its source in Gates of the Arctic National Park to the Kelly River in the Noatak National Preserve -- bear the Wild and Scenic River designation. Floating the river can be a once-ina-lifetime experience...but it’s one that shouldn’t be taken lighten, as it involves a lot of logistics (bush planes to get you to the river, for starters) and some measure of experience. “The headwaters of the Noatak River are in Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve and flow 400 miles to its mouth in Kotzebue Sound on the Chukchi Sea,” the park staff notes. “The rugged mountain walls of the Brooks Range enclose the portion of the river that is within Gates. Once the river flows into Noatak National Preserve, the landscape opens up to vast tundra plains and long vistas.”

Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska Head to Alaska and you find big water -- not necessarily big rapids, but rivers that make those in the Lower 48 look like creeks. The most popular rivers in Wrangell-St. Elias for floating are the Copper, the Nizina, Kennicott, Chitina and Nabesna. As park officials put it, “The rivers of Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve offer visitors adventure and solitude. It is possible to travel for days at a time without seeing another person, trail, sign or bridge.” Go prepared and experienced, or find an outfitter who can take you downstream.

Cataract Canyon rafting / NPS

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Rainy Lake offers day after day after day of adventure for paddlers. / Jeff Kantor

Voyageurs

Exploring The Big Lakes Of National Park By Kayak

By Greg Breining

Of Minnesota’s fabled 10,000 lakes, none are so pristine, so haunting, so alluring to anglers, boaters, and campers as the rockribbed lakes of the north woods, where the cry of loons and howl of wolves soar over the gray water. The wildest and most beautiful of all are the thousands of lakes, large and small, sprinkled along Minnesota’s border with Canada, the location of Voyageurs National Park. 26

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s national parks go, Voyageurs is unusual—as much as water as land. Nearly 40 percent of its 218,000 acres consist of four huge lakes: Sand Point, Namakan, Kabetogama, and the giant Rainy, which stretches some 50 miles long, deep into Ontario. Voyageurs was named for the fur-trading French Canadians who paddled their 25-foot canots du nord down these lakes 200 years ago to reach the interior of North America. Yet the honor gives short shrift to the Indians who traveled these waterways for thousands of years, probably well before the advent of the birch-bark canoe, in pine-log dugouts. So, if you choose to explore Voyageurs in a canoe, you’re in good company. But even the voyageurs got wind-bound. Up here, the ideal paddle craft is a sea kayak. On the large lakes of Voyageurs, you can paddle for days over more than 60 miles of interconnected waterways with only a single portage at Kettle Falls. Even as large as Rainy Lake is—some 50 miles in length (reaching far into Ontario)—an experienced kayaker can navigate the lake in all but the worst windstorms. The shorelines of these big lakes are tangles of bays, points, and channels. The big lakes have more than 500 islands and 600 miles of shoreline. Paddling inattentively for a half-hour, you can get thoroughly turned around. Of course, a GPS will set you right. In fact, you can download waypoints for campsites and day-use sites. But I still like an old-fashioned map and compass, which force me to keep a watchful eye on the changing kaleidoscope of lake and shoreline. Hundreds of tent sites and picnic areas dot the shore. (Thirty campsites can be reserved. The rest are open to whomever shows up first.) Wherever

you camp, black bears will be nearby. Stash food in the steel lockers. If you’re camping at a site without a locker, the standard advice is to hang food and anything else that might smell like food from a high branch or suspended between two trees. But here’s another tactic: Cover the pack with a waterproof construction bag and stash it in the woods, far from camp, the shoreline, or any trails. This land is wild, but it’s hardly untouched. You might spot several remnants of the past. A gaping hole on rocky Bushyhead Island is the shaft of an gold mine opened and abandoned more than a century ago. A 6-inch iron ring sunk in the outcrop deep in Lost Bay on Kabetogama Lake anchored a boom that corralled sawlogs. Pilings on Hoist Bay date to the area’s logging era. Most notable is the Kettle Falls Hotel, built a century ago where Namakan plunges into Rainy. Once a popular meeting place of loggers, prospectors, bootleggers, and prostitutes, the hotel has been visited by such luminaries as Charles Lindbergh, John D. Rockefeller and several members of Congress. Renovated by the National Park Service in 1987, it’s open for lodging, dining, and drinking.

Paddling in Voyageurs brings incredible solitude, and great fishing, as the author has discovered time and again. / Susan Binkley

When to visit? Early summer is probably best for fishing. Try mid- to late summer to avoid mosquitoes and to go swimming. Early fall, when a tinge of yellow colors the aspen, is a magic time. There are fewer boaters on the water. You’ll have your pick of camp-

sites. Even the uneven autumn weather can be a plus. When clouds and mist cover the lakes, the landscape seems its most elemental. Dodging among the black islands in a kayak, quite often you share the lake only with yourself.

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By Kurt Repanshek What better way to get inspired for a paddling trip than to stock up on reading materials? The following titles can help you fill out your gear list, offer insights on where you’re heading, or provide evening entertainment once you reach your water-front camp.

Canyons And Ice, The Wilderness Travels Of Dick Griffith

Dick Griffith might not be the last great American adventurer, but if such a tally is ever made he certainly deserves a place in the top two or three. For more than six decades, Mr. Griffith has been exploring wild and rugged corners of the world. Through the pages of this biography, Canyons and Ice, The Wilderness Travels of Dick Griffith, Kaylene Johnson traces the paths Griffith blazed down the San Juan, Green and Colorado rivers, the Urique River in Mexico, and across Alaska. While Griffith might have not been the first person down all of these rivers, he set a high bar for his approach and method to exploring these areas.

The Last Voyageur: Amos Burg And The Rivers Of The West

For Amos Burg, floating boats down rivers came to be almost as routine as walking down streets came to others of his generation. But was it the thrill of adventure, or the desire to be a writer of adventure tales, that motivated the Oregon man to paddle the West’s major rivers? In The Last Voyageur: Amos Burg And the Rivers of the West, Vince Welch attempts to answer that question while tracing Burg’s exploits from his boyhood days on the Columbia River. In the end, of course, it really doesn’t matter what motivated Burg, for he explored rivers from Oregon to Alaska, through the Grand Canyon, across England, and even around the tip of South America, an odyssey by sea that many tried to dissuade him from mounting.

One Night In The Everglades

Parents and teachers struggle as they try to connect today’s youth with national parks, to instill a life-lasting bond between these wondrous places and younger generations, to give them places to enjoy and appreciate, and to nurture tomorrow’s stewards. Laurel Larsen and Joyce Mihran Turley, make strides in that direction with One Night in the Everglades. This insightful book, carried by Ms. Larsen’s simple yet colorful words and Ms. Turley’s wonderful illustrations, takes young readers (ages 8-12) one a one-night journey in the Everglades. The trip is built around the work of Ms. Larsen, a research ecologist, to gather data that can restore the River of Grass

The Grand Canyon Reader

In this wonderful book, Lance Newman has compiled an outdoor literary fan’s best compilation of short stories, essays, and poetry regaling the Grand Canyon. Within its covers you’ll find writing by Edward Abbey, John McPhee, Terry Tempest Williams, Barry Lopez and more. Mr. Newman scoured more than 42,000 articles and essays written in the last 500 years. There’s even one entry by Pedro de Castaneda, who in 1540 stood at South Rim of the canyon, near present-day Desert View, in search of the fabled golden cities. Among the stories is Lava Falls by Bill Beer, who in 1955 swam the length of the canyon with a buddy, John Daggett, and lived to tell about it

Paddle North, Canoeing the Boundary Waters-Quetico Wilderness

If you prefer the steady dip of a paddle over a footstep down a path, a book about canoeing from Greg Breining is a book of dreams. Mr. Breining’s effort—Paddle North, Canoeing the Boundary Waters-Quetico Wilderness—approaches paddling the big lakes and narrow streams of that area with keen and insightful personal musings. The joy and wonder of this book is found within the narrative Mr. Breining weaves as he canoes through the landscape, a narrative that shows he is surely as deft with word-smithing as he must be with paddling.

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Cliff Jacobson: Expedition Canoeing, 20th Anniversary Edition

Not only does Cliff Jacobson tell you what to pack, how to navigate with maps, compass and GPS, and how to make field repairs, but he outlines how to pick the perfect crew for an extended trip. This paddling master has traveled the world and explored some of the greatest rivers by canoe. His practical experience has led to a book that should be part of any paddler’s reference library.

Running Dry, a Journey From Source to Sea Down the Colorado River

Part travelogue, part warning shot across the bow, Jonathan Waterman in his latest book takes us on a year-long journey down the Colorado River from its Rocky Mountain beginnings to the Sea of Cortez. But water is scarce in the Southwest. John Wesley Powell warned the government more than a century ago that there wasn’t enough water to go around in the West, and Marc Reisner reiterated the message a bit more vehemently in Cadillac Desert, the American West and its Disappearing Water. Now Mr. Waterman, author of Where Mountains are Nameless, Arctic Crossing, Kayaking the Vermilion Sea, and In the Shadow of Denali, attempts to convince local, state, and federal officials—and all the souls who live from Colorado and Wyoming to southern California—that there is no possible way the Colorado River can survive, let alone sustain, the demands being made upon it.

Adios Amigos: Tales of Sustenance and Purification in the American West

River time. It’s that blissful moment in time reached only by pushing off from terra firma, leaping board a raft, kayak, or canoe, and leaving the real world behind; preferably for more than an afternoon. In the West, this generally is accomplished by heading for the Middle Fork of the Salmon, the Green, the Selway, or the Lochsa rivers. For those truly lucky souls, it means putting in from Lee’s Ferry onto the Colorado River for two or more weeks of riverine solitude. In his book, Adios Amigos: Tales of Sustenance and Purification in the American West, Page Stegner pulls together a collection of essays written over the course of a quarter-century on river running and which are now forever preserved in this anthology. It’s a must-read for any selfrespecting (or self-deprecating) river rat. Within its pages the author captures those moments on a river that are both nerve-wracking and soul-satisfying.

Dinosaur, Four Seasons on the Green and Yampa Rivers

Tucked away at the corner of northwestern Colorado and northeastern Utah, Dinosaur National Monument is a remote, oft-overlooked wilderness. Writer Hal Crimmel and photographer Steve Gaffney give it substance and definition. What they present is Dinosaur, Four Seasons on the Green and Yampa Rivers, a stirring portrait of the landscape that is Dinosaur. Mr. Crimmel comes to this collaboration with a lengthy resume as a river runner with a naturalist’s eye, while Mr. Gaffney captures the varied breadth, as well as tightly focused vignettes, of the monument with his camera. Together they’ve created a work that blends history with interpretation, river running with quiet introspection.

Down The River

One of the keenest observers of the Southwest, one with more than a little experience with river running, was the late Edward Abbey. In this collection of essays he mixes his insights, observations, and opinions on everything from running the famed Tatshenshini River in Canada and the once-proposed rules to rid the Colorado River through Grand Canyon National Park of motor-driven rafts to what it takes to be a river guide. “There will always be one more river, not to cross but to follow. The journey goes on forever, and we are fellow voyagers on our little living ship of stone and soil and water and vapor, this delicate planet circling round the sun, which humankind call Earth.”

Sea Kayaking, Basic Skills, Paddling Techniques, and Trip Planning

Compared to sea kayaks (or touring kayaks), canoes can be viewed as river barges. Slow to go from point A to B, but with ample space for what you need and then some. But kayaks can get you there faster, cope with gusting winds better...and require a somewhat different collection of gear. In his book Dan Henderson covers those topics and more, taking you through the basics of entering a kayak and plotting courses across open waters to packing for a multi-day paddling adventure.

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Massive, water-stained bluffs soaring over 500 feet above your canoe or kayak; the highest waterfall between the Appalachians and the Rockies; potential campsites on gravel bars along over a hundred miles of clear, free-flowing river; all this and more make the Buffalo National River a worthy addition to your list of must-do float trips.

Paddling Buffalo The

Americaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s First National River By Jim Burnett

Americaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first national river (1972), the Buffalo River flows roughly 150 miles and includes nearly 95,000 acres of public land along its corridor. State of Arkansas photo

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pring is the season to float the Buffalo, especially the upper (western) portion of this scenic river that begins in the rugged Boston Mountains in northern Arkansas and flows eastward for 135 miles to join the White River. Water levels in this all-natural river are dependent primarily upon rainfall, so be aware that floating conditions vary widely from month to month—and can even change dramatically overnight after a heavy rain. The best combination of moderating temperatures and adequate water levels often begins around mid-March and then shifts downstream as spring moves toward early summer. If you’re looking for a combination of some of the best rapids (Class I and II) and striking scenery along this river, the 10-mile stretch from Ponca to Kyles Landing is often a good choice for a spring trip for boaters with some experience—or those who don’t mind the risk of a possible dunking. That section of the river is also one of the most popular early season floats on the Buffalo, so if your trip includes a weekend—or spring break for students—expect to share the area with plenty of other visitors. If you’re looking for a quieter experience, try a weekday float. With more than 20 potential put-in points along the river, there are plenty of other choices for trips ranging from a few hours to a week. Some Buffalo River regulars say the scenery from Ponca to Kyles Landing is as good as you’ll find along the river, and my introduction to that section some years ago absolutely lived up to its billing. A great example of that prime scenery shows up only two miles into the float when Roark Bluff begins to appear on river left. The view lasts for quite a while. This rocky bluff, the longest on the river, borders the water for threequarters-of-a-mile while rising as much as 220 feet above your head. The vertical scenery just keeps on growing as you continue downstream, and four miles into the trip, the aptlynamed Big Bluff tops out at over 500 feet of mostly vertical cliff face. Big Bluff is often described as the highest such feature along the Buffalo, so it’s a popular spot for a photo—but you probably can’t capture all of this view in a single image. Another three miles beyond Big Bluff, a popular stop on river left offers a leg-stretch and some bonus scenery. A moderate hike of 0.7 miles up a side

A winter canoe trip on the Buffalo River. / State of Arkansas

canyon leads to a waterfall in Hemmedin Hollow. With a drop of just over 200 feet, it’s the highest waterfall between the Appalachians and the Rockies. Like the Buffalo itself, the vigor of the falls depends upon rainfall; the flow is dramatic shortly after a heavy rain, but can diminish to a trickle or less after a prolonged dry spell. Under those conditions, you’re not likely to get here by boat anyway, as this section of the river would probably be too low to float. If some fast-water challenges are on your agenda, you’ll usually get your wish on this trip. Some of the best rapids come shortly before you reach Kyles Landing. At ideal river levels, Gray Rock Shoal (also known more poetically as Hell’s Half Acre) is a favorite for white water fans. Gray Rock itself juts out from the bank on the left, and at most water levels, keeping to the right reduces your chance of taking an unplanned swim. The takeout point at Kyles Landing is just over a quarter mile beyond Gray Rock, and using a shuttle from a local canoe outfitter to return to your starting point can save some wear and tear on your vehicle. The steep gravel road into that area can be a bit rough, and the park website recommends a high clearance vehicle for this drive. Want to spend the night along the river? The park offers eight developed and seven primitive campgrounds, with facilities ranging from “bare-bones” to showers and RV hookups at Buffalo

Point. Some campgrounds are seasonal, others are open year-round. Backcountry camping is allowed on many gravel bars along the length of the river and offers you another option. Check the park website for details on camping and backcountry regulations. Perhaps you—or someone in your group—isn’t an experienced boater, so if you’re looking for a float trip with limited whitewater, there are some good options along other sections of the Buffalo. A popular choice, and one of my personal favorites for an easy paddle at good water levels, is the 7.5mile run from Buffalo Point to Rush. This section also has some fine scenery, including Toney Bluff and Ludlow Bluff, which some sources say even tops Big Bluff as the highest along the river. No matter which section you choose, keep in mind that relatively small changes in river levels impact both the level of effort and boating skill required, so always check the weather forecast and current conditions before heading for the river. An interactive map on the park website includes river gauge readings at key points, as well as the location of river access points and campgrounds. When water levels and the weather are favorable, it’s really hard to have a bad float on the Buffalo, especially in the spring, when the dogwoods are in bloom. Pick a section that fits your interests, and enjoy one of the premier river trips in America! NationalParksTraveler.com

Vigilance is necessary to ensure the coral reefs of Biscayne National Park remain healthy and colorful. / NPS

Park Waters RUN DEEP

By Kurt Repanshek

Keeping Our Paddling Waters Clean And Healthy

e look to national park vacations as a healthy lifestyle ingredient, one filled with fun, laughter, and lasting memories. Not on our agendas is worrying about mercury in the fish we pull from mountain streams, droughts that would beach our boats, or industrial and agricultural pollution that impairs the very waters we enjoy in the parks. Sadly, those issues aren’t foreign to the National Park System: • In 2008 the results of a six-year study of fisheries in Glacier, Mount Rainier, Olympic, Rocky Mountain, Sequoia, Kings Canyon, Denali, Gates of Arctic and Noatak national parks turned up disturbing levels of mercury and DDT. • Climate change poses threats to the marine life in the coastal waters of Everglades and Biscayne national parks. • A long-running drought in the Southwest is draining the Colorado River Basin, a problem that carries

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worrisome consequences for parks lining the Green, Yampa, and Colorado rivers, and park visitors looking to those waters for paddling fun. • Drought also is impacting the Great Lakes, where water levels are dropping and costing the National Park Service in redesigning and building dock facilities. Each region in the country has its own unique set of concerning issues confronting the lakes, streams, and even oceans we play in. In those regions, National Parks Conservation Association staffers work to generate resources to help address those issues, raise public awareness, and seek agency and political support to ensure that these waters are clean and healthy for park visitors today and 50 years from today. Here’s a look at some of the regions and the issues confronting them, and how NPCA staff are making a difference.

“Superstorm Sandy” Delivered Climate Change Lessons To Northeast Parks When Superstorm Sandy battered the East Coast in November 2012, it greatly impacted more than 75 units of the National Park System and exposed the risks both waterfront parks and even those along the Appalachian ridgelines face from more of these potent storms. Fire Island National Seashore was cleaved in two, areas of Gateway National Recreation Area were flooded and swept away, downed trees littered the Appalachian National Scenic Trail, and General George Washington’s Revolutionary War headquarters at Morristown National Historical Park was blockaded by uprooted trees. “In terms of climate change, Superstorm Sandy made it abundantly clear that we must fortify our waterfront national parks and neighborhoods in the region against future storms,” says Oliver Spellman, senior program manager for NPCA’s Northeast Region. “Certainly, hard infrastructure plays a strong role in protecting communities, but NPCA and many other organizations in the area are focused on the important role that soft infrastructure projects, such a restoring marsh islands, softening shorelines, and planting oyster beds, must play to create healthier ecosystems and protect waterfront communities from the next natural disaster.” Easing the human footprint also can play a roll, by increasing ferry access to units of Gateway and other urban parts in a way that reduces vehicles numbers while providing a “cost-effective and environmentally friendly mode of transportation that will allow more urbanities in the region to enjoy the park,” he says. Progress in these directions was quickly made after Sandy as President Obama’s Superstorm Sandy Taskforce provided critical leadership, coordination, and oversight to the region as it rebuilds communities and national parks in the storm’s wake. In another area, creation of the Jamaica Bay-Rockaway Parks Conservancy at Gateway NRA is viewed as a critical step by government and non-government entities to increase coordination among agencies and provide increased funding opportunities for the park. The announcement of the Jamaica Bay Science and Resiliency Center, a cutting edge climate change research entity, is a critical step forward in coordinating and expanding the research ef-

Superstorm Sandy chewed a breach through a section of Fire Island National Seashore. / NPS

forts needed to keep the region resilient and protected from future flood and storm events. “Many non-profits have worked tirelessly to influence decision-makers and implement projects that improve our waters,” Mr. Spellman points out. “The NY-NJ Harbor Coalition, which NPCA co-chairs, is an innovative alliance of leading non-profits in the region that are working together and with government officials to improve the NY-NJ harbor. In addition, groups like The American Littoral Society and the Jamaica Bay Ecowatchers, continue to lead on-the-ground efforts to build marsh lands, restore shorelines and educate communities about the important waters we share.” If you enjoy leisurely summer days in the waters of Sandy Hook, kayaking Jamaica Bay, or surf casting along Great Kills, you can help with these, and other, projects by encouraging your elected officials to act and supporting the many NGOs and organizations that contribute to these efforts. Consider becoming a member of organizations that are working hard to keep our waters clean, resilient and accessible, such as the NPCA and the NY-NJ Harbor Coalition. Your help makes all the difference.

Chesapeake Bay’s 64,000 Square-Mile Watershed Grapples With Water Quality To many anglers and paddlers, the Chesapeake shoreline and its rivers

and streams can appear to comprise the “world’s largest gated community.” Physical public access is limited along the nearly 12,000 miles of tidal shoreline of the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries, including many of the 55 national parks in the Chesapeake basin. Public access sites for paddling, fishing, hiking, and swimming are on average about 15 miles apart in the region. The National Park Service has been working closely with communities and partners to increase public access and build 300 additional public access sites by 2025 along the region’s water trails, such as the Captain John Smith Chesapeake and Star-Spangled Banner national historic trails. Access is one thing, water quality is another. Air and water pollution from land-based activities degrades water quality and limits recreational opportunities in impaired waters in many parts of the watershed. Pollution threats include storm water containing fertilizers, chemicals, and sediments as well as municipal wastewater and industrial wastes that poison aquatic life, such as blue crabs and oysters. Sadly, paddlers should be wary of entering waters after storms near urban centers near Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park along the Potomac River near Washington, D.C., or near Fort McHenry National Monument along the Patapsco River in Baltimore, Maryland. Following rain events, storm water pollution dumps into rivers,

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streams, and lakes that flow through and around national parks. NPCA is a part of a coalition that supports implementation of the Chesapeake Clean Water Blueprint. The Blueprint sets pollution limits that each of the six Bay states and the District of Columbia must meet by 2025 to achieve fishable, swimmable waters in and surrounding national parks. Additionally, as natural gas hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) continues to expand in the gas-rich states of New York and Pennsylvania, the future of the Delaware River is increasingly uncertain. Gas companies hope to soon drill in the basin, yet the impacts of drilling to the region’s air and water quality remain unknown. Can fracking be conducted in a way that protects the environment along the Delaware River? Or will drilling further pollute air quality in the region and threaten the water quality of the Delaware – the drinking water source of roughly 15 million people? Not all the news is worrisome. In 2009, President Obama issued Executive Order 13508 declaring the Chesapeake Bay a national treasure. The order called for a strategy for protecting and restoring the Chesapeake, including advocating land conservation and public access. New national parks have also been designated within the Chesapeake watershed that can be explored by paddlers. Fort Monroe National Monument, designated in 2011, alone added two miles of Chesapeake Bay shoreline to the National Park System. How can you help? Join NPCA’s “Freedom to Float” campaign, which is dedicated to promoting public access for recreation and community stewardship while protecting

clean water. Download the Chesapeake Bay Explorer App to find places where you can explore the region’s beauty, history, and heritage—as well as places to paddle, fish, swim, hike, and camp. Stay on top of the fracking issue and voice your opinion that fracking along the Delaware should not move forward until decisions can be informed by a full environmental impact study.

Everglades, Biscayne National Park’s Treasures Need More Protections You have to get wet to truly appreciate Biscayne National Park in South Florida. Gazing out across Biscayne Bay, and beyond Hawk Channel into the Atlantic Ocean, you can take in the expanse of the park’s surface, but none of the wonders that lurk beneath. At Biscayne, 95 percent of the landscape is actually waterscape, a wondrous realm of marine life and the skeletal remains of shipwrecks dating back hundreds of years. It’s a vast marine park perfect for exploring by sea kayak as well as with mask and fins. While the park’s spectacular marine resources are under water, that doesn’t mean they’re not at risk from us. Coral reefs in Biscayne’s waters are being attacked by climate change, and both plunderers and unwitting visitors are damaging them and other park resources. The park’s semi-tropical waters seem wonderfully warm to swimmers, but climate change is ever-so-slightly boosting the temperatures to the point where some corals are stressed. They in turn push out their “zooxanthellae” algae that give the corals their distinctive colors. If temperatures are warm enough for long enough, the corals themselves

White ibises gather to feed in the Ten Thousand Islands area of Everglades National Park. / Michael Lanza

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die, leaving behind white, or bleached looking, skeletons. Decades of “bleaching” events and diseases have been devastating to coral reefs in and surrounding national parks in the Caribbean and South Florida, so much so that the losses are akin to “losing the Redwoods.” Also harming these wonderful resources are divers who inadvertently kick them with their flippers, or back their boats into reefs. Park officials have respond by using buoys to mark both reefs in the shallows, as well as historic shipwrecks so anchors aren’t dropped onto them. Biscayne’s once-rich fisheries also are risk, from commercial and recreational anglers. Numbers, and overall size, of some species have dropped substantially. The park’s prior attempt to implement a marine reserve that would be closed to fishing was opposed by the state of Florida, and now park staff are supporting the state’s preference to allow fishing. According to Caroline McLaughlin, Biscayne Restoration Program Analyst with the National Parks Conservation Association, “Marine reserves are the best, science-based way to protect and sustain coral reef ecosystems and fisheries populations. The park’s decision to move away from the use of a marine reserve is missed opportunity to provide much-needed protection for Biscayne’s threatened resources.” However, Biscayne officials are pushing a fisheries management plan with a goal of boosting the abundance and average size of fishery-targeted species in the park’s waters by 20 percent. Next door in Everglades National Park, a similar debate is under way around the park’s desires to create a wilderness waterway in the park’s 10,000 Islands area. While the designation is proposed in the park’s draft General Management Plan, some in the fishing community oppose it as it would restrict access to some areas to non-motorized watercraft, such as sea kayaks. You can help protect these waters and their resources by contacting the two parks and voicing your support for protections against damaging activities and the need for increased enforcement and education. You can also submit comments on Biscayne National Park’s Draft General Management Plan in favor of creating a marine reserve to protect the park’s threatened coral reef ecosystem and fisheries populations. Deadline for comments is February 20, 2014.

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Colorado River’s Flows Threatened By Growing Demands, Drier Climate “Running on empty” unfortunately is a very apt description of the Colorado River Basin, which long has had its water overcommitted. Today, the vast watershed that stretches from the mountains of Colorado to the Gulf of California and helps nourish some 30 million residents in the Southwest and Mexico is mired in a long-running drought that threatens to dramatically recast the already-arid region. Major John Wesley Powell warned the government more than a century ago that there wasn’t enough water in this dusty region to sustain sprawling populations. Today that message rings true in oversubscription from municipal, agricultural, and industrial interests, coupled with keen competition among basin states for their allotted shares, hydropower, and tribal commitments. Combined, the demands greatly challenge the Southwest’s environmental needs and recreational desires. Keeping water in the river system promises to grow even more difficult in the face of proposals to divert water out of the channel to quench the thirst and needs of such cities as Phoenix, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles. By 2060, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation projects that there will be more than a 3-millionacre-foot shortage in the basin. The nine units of the National Park System that help define the river basin -- Rocky Mountain, Black Canyon of the Gunnison, Curecanti, Arches, Canyonlands, Dinosaur, Glen Canyon, Lake Mead, and Grand Canyon -- have been sculpted through time by the currents of the Colorado River and its tributaries. Today, while the drainage’s slacking waters might not outwardly impact the

A long-running drought is creating problems in the Colorado River Basin, where there’s not enough water to go around. / NPS photo by Michael Quinn

2014 PADDLING GUIDE

Non-native Asian carp threaten to upend the native ecosystem of the Great Lakes if they can reach those waters. / Asian Carp Coordinating Committee

appearance of these parks, they impact them just the same. Fisheries suffer from reduced currents and dropping reservoirs. River runners see the Green, Yampa, and Colorado rivers changed by the lower flows. Vegetation and wildlife in the parks that rely on the rivers are impacted. The very force that has created these national parks and which in many cases defines many of them is substantially at risk. The growing recreational uses, as a consequence are at risk as well. The fate of the Colorado River Basin, and all that rely on it, is vested with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which manages the water draws on the basin. Significantly, BOR and the National Park Service are co-leads in the first environmental impact statement process to consider release protocols at Glen Canyon Dam that will profoundly influence river experiences for the thousands of river runners through the Grand Canyon. A draft management plan is expected to be released for public review by year’s end. In a bid to at least slow the region’s unabiding thirst on the Colorado River Basin, the National Parks Conservation Association’s Southwest Regional Office is working with other stakeholders to identify solutions for environmental and recreational flows. “The Colorado River, America’s Nile, is a force that has created some of the most iconic landscapes on our planet. Its main stem, reservoirs and tributaries offer unparalleled recreation opportunities,” points out David Nimkin, NPCA’s

Southwest Region director. “Over-use, a changing climate and management choices profoundly challenge this remarkable river. People who care about the river and these parks can lend their voices and influence the current public processes that will protect the ecological and recreational values we enjoy.”

Asian Carp Just One Aspect Of Non-Native Invasion Of Great Lakes They are some of the most acrobatic fish you’ll ever encounter, hurtling their silver bodies high out of rivers when motorboats pass by. But Asian carp that have been invading the Mississippi River drainage the past two decades pose a serious threat to both the native fish in the Great Lakes and Minnesota’s waters and to regional economies. Capable of growing to 4 feet in length and 100 pounds in weight, these carp can take over ecosystems. Asian carp, which are filter feeders, were introduced to the United States in the 1970s to help keep wastewater treatment facilities and aquaculture ponds clean. But floods in the 1990s enabled them to reach the Mississippi River, and they’ve been headed north ever since. If the carp reach Lake Michigan and spread to the other Great Lakes, it’s feared that they’ll quickly overwhelm the lakes’ $7 billion sport fishery. Since 2011, the National Parks Conservation Association has led a coalition to halt this invasion at the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area and the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway.

“We’ve got to get some policy in place to protect our recreation and our native fish populations, both of which support our multi-billion dollar tourism industry and thousands of jobs and businesses,” says Lynn McClure, director of NPCA’s Midwest Region. Over the last few years, Asian carp have been caught in several places in the Mississippi River in Minnesota within the Mississippi National River and at the mouth of the St. Croix River. Blocking their way to the Great Lakes has been the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal that connects the Illinois River to the Great Lakes. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers maintains three electric barriers in the canal system to prevent Asian carp from entering Lake Michigan, but a recent study by the Corps and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service indicates that fish can get beyond the barriers by traveling in a barge’s wake. Elsewhere in the Midwest Region, officials are keeping an eye on development of a General Management Plan to guide oversight of the Ozark National Scenic Riverways in Missouri. Longneeded to protect 134 miles of the Jacks Fork and Current rivers, the draft GMP aims to better control horse access, camping, off-road vehicle use, and motorboat travel in the rivers, all of which will protect the water quality of these rivers and preserve the atmosphere that Congress intended when creating the nation’s first Wild & Scenic River. “What’s happened over the last 30 years, is that an increase in motor boat use that wasn’t historically allowed in parts of the river has really made an impact on canoe and kayakers,” says NPCA’s Ms. McClure. “We hope paddlers will make their voices heard and call for a quieter Ozark.” You can participate in NPCA’s efforts to restore Midwest national park waterways and restore the Great Lakes at npca.org/midwest.

extend nearly 700 feet above the river’s clear, quiet pools and rushing rapids. One hundred thirty-five miles of the Buffalo comprise the country’s very first national river, which attracts more than one million visitors each year who float the crystal waters, camp on the gravel bars, and hike the trails – generating $38 million toward the local economy. Now, a hog farm you can’t even see from the Buffalo might not sound like much of a threat. But when you realize this farm could have as many as 6,500 pigs generating an estimated 2 million gallons of manure a year, and that the manure would be spread on fields atop the region’s porous karst geology, well, you can sense the issue. The problem lies largely in that karst foundation. This type of geology is composed of easily dissolved rocks, such as limestone and dolomite. Via sinkholes and underground caves in the geology, groundwater can flow miles very quickly. The National Parks Conservation Association’s Southeast Region has been working closely with local river advocates on a campaign (and lawsuit) to both prevent damage from the C&H Hog Farms operation and to see restrictions established concerning future operations in the watershed. While the hog farm is up and running, you can help work to minimize its impacts on the Buffalo River by asking the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality, and Arkansas Governor Mike Beebe

to implement better protections for the national river’s watershed. Elsewhere in the Southeast, NPCA staff is working in support of a petition filed by the State of Tennessee to protect more than 500 miles of ridge lines in the headwaters of the Big South Fork River that flows through the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area from mountaintop removal coal mining. Coal mining, along with being visually unappealing, can generate siltation and other runoff that pollutes rivers and kills stream life. Such an impact on the park would be felt particularly by those who visit to challenge themselves on the Big South Fork’s rapids. “This would have a huge impact on the water in the park,” says Don Barger, who heads NPCA’s Southeast Region. Hogs and coal mining are just two of the more obvious threats to our parks’ waters in the Southeast Region, which spans Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, South Carolina, Arkansas, Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi. Much work also needs to be done to prevent landscapes from being lost to development. “Supporting land acquisition (through the Land and Water Conservation Fund) for critical parcels at the Obed Wild and Scenic River (and many others) is a perennial issue, especially in the East where development is rapidly impinging on the wild experience,” points out Mr. Barger.

Can Hogs Be Farmed Safely Upstream Of Buffalo National River? Often the health of our rivers, lakes, and streams in the National Park System is endangered by something we don’t immediately see. Such is the case in Arkansas, where a hog farm less than 6 miles upstream from the Buffalo National River poses an industrial threat to the river. The Buffalo River travels through the heart of the Ozark Mountains in northwestern Arkansas, and runs beneath magnificent cliffs which at times

Paddlers on the Buffalo River / State of Arkansas

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Careful monitoring of the Rio Grande, here flowing through Santa Elena Canyon, is needed to keep it healthy. / Rebecca Latson

Rio Grande River Grapples With High Salinity, Bacteria Loads Born in southwestern Colorado’s San Juan Mountains, the Rio Grande pulls in the currents from the Pecos and Chonchos rivers, and that of lesser tributaries, as it builds its international reputation. And while a nearly 200-mile stretch of the river carries a “wild and scenic” designation, stresses and strains have exacted a toll on the river. Running as it does through the desert Southwest, the Rio Grande often runs low; it’s estimated that only about 20 percent of its natural input reaches the Gulf of Mexico. But the river also is stressed by high salinity and bacteria, including Fecal Coliform and E. Coli, in places. Big Bend National Park and the Rio Grande Wild and Scenic River claim 245 miles of this renowned river. And while many of those miles wend their way through rugged and remote canyon country, sections of the river neverthe-

2014 PADDLING GUIDE

less are on the state of Texas’ list of impaired water bodies. The primary concern is high total dissolved solids (high salinity), but bacteria can be a problem in the very upper reach. National Park Service officials note that “the quality of water in the Rio Grande through the Big Bend region is highly variable.” Monthly testing over the years has demonstrated that bacteria levels rise after rainstorms, a phenomenon thought to be tied to animal wastes and other pollutants washed down tributaries and into the main river. While bacteria levels fall during low river flows, that’s when high salinity levels return, notes the Park Service. That said, water quality in the river as it flows through the national park and its adjacent state park is not an obstacle for paddlers. But vigilance must be ongoing to see water quality issues don’t become a problem for paddlers. “The Rio Grande is constantly trying

to supply water to a human population that demands more and more,” says Suzanne Dixon, who heads the National Parks Conservation Association’s Texas regional office. “Rainfall is uncertain, groundwater resources are threatened, and recreational boating here in Big Bend is dependent on both. But despite the ever-increasing demands and threats to this river, the river still flows yearround and offers itself up once again, this time to people who love to paddle on rivers.” Recent Park Service studies point to “outstanding recreational values” along the Wild and Scenic River stretch of the Rio Grande, values which add to our knowledge about this stretch of the Rio Grande administered by Big Bend National Park. Recent research publications about the Rio Grande continue to publish and expand knowledge of this stretch of the Rio Grande. Yet no matter how unique and pre-

Removal of the Elwha and Glines Canyon dams mark the biggest river restoration project in the United States. / NPS photos

cious we view this river, it needs more of our attention and understanding to be able to absorb the demands made upon it. You can help improve the Rio Grande’s health by volunteering at the annual river cleanup day held in Big Bend National Park and in the Big Bend Ranch State park. And if you live in the region, conserve water resources. Volunteer opportunities also exist within the park to work with visitors and scientists seeking to learn about and restore the Rio Grande and manage/assist park visitors to enjoy this resource.

Olympic National Park’s Elwha River Running Wild Again Run, river, run. That was the sentiment in the fall of 2011 when work began on the largest dam removal project in U.S. history. Taking down the 105-foot-high Elwha Dam and its sibling, the 210-foot-high Glines Canyon Dam, was history in the making. With the Elwha River’s headwaters high in Olympic National Park, it was more than just the removal of concrete. When the dams were built a century ago to generate power, they severed some of the largest salmon runs outside of Alaska. Now, with those barriers removed, native salmon fisheries are being reopened. Within months of the Elwha Dam’s removal, the first King salmon were spotted heading up the river into

the park. When the river’s restoration is complete, five salmon species, in numbers upwards of 300,000 a year, are expected to have reclaimed the Elwha, a natural revival important to the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe whose culture long has depended on a healthy fishery. This restored fishery will carry economic pluses for surrounding communities, and provide prized recreational outlets for paddlers who once again will have a wild river to navigate. And, it will prove that dams aren’t always the solution. The research revolving around the Elwha River’s restoration—studies into sediments, fisheries, floodplain restoration, and nutrient loading—likely will benefit other areas where dam removal is being considered, or in process. “The restoration of the Elwha River is an incredible opportunity to experience the rebound of an ecosystem and a culture 100 years after two dams deprived both of salmon, a vital resource to both,” says David Graves, Northwest Region program manager for the National Parks Conservation Association. “The National Park Service has worked to reach this goal for more than 20 years since the passage of the Elwha River Ecosystem and Fisheries Restoration Act in 1992. We applaud their perseverance.” While NPCA’s staff has closely monitored the restoration project, the Elwha is not the only watery issue on

its agenda. Here are some others: Expansion of Oregon Caves National Monument in Oregon will protect the headwaters of River Styx/Cave Creek that runs through the cave. The nonprofit parks advocacy group continues to oppose the rebuilding of the Stehekin River Road in North Cascades National Park, a project that would require moving a wilderness boundary and placing the realigned road on the existing path of the Pacific Crest Trail. “It’s an expensive ‘road to nowhere,’” says Mr. Graves. The office supports the Wild Olympics Wilderness & Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 2014, legislation that will protect 19 rivers and their tributaries, including the Elwha River. You can help by asking Congressman Derek Kilmer, D-Washington, to support increased funding for the National Park Service in time for the NPS centennial in 2016 so that parks will continue to be preserved and protected for the next 100 years and beyond. If you do, also thank him for introducing his Wild Olympics legislation that designate the length of the Elwha River as a Wild and Scenic River, forever preventing future dams. Lakes, rivers, oceans. They’re all vital components of our National Park System, and all key to how those parks endure...and how we enjoy them. Working to keep them clean and healthy is in all our best interests.

NationalParksTraveler.com

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Wilderness River Adventures • • •

Offering the best of Cataract Canyon through Canyonlands National Park Motorized and oar-powered Grand Canyon trips Five decades of experience

www.riveradventures.com 800-992-8022 Cataract Canyon / NPS

CataractCanyon Sample the Best of the Southwest’s Rivers

It’s just two days on the river, but that section of river is one of the best not only in the West but in the entire country for whitewater aficionados and admirers of spectacular red rock scenery.

rom the time your raft enters the Colorado River near Moab, Utah, until you reach Lake Powell in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, this outing through Cataract Canyon in Canyonlands National Park will both infuse you with the joy of riverrunning and provide a solid introduction to the lore and history of canyon country. Cataract Canyon, with more than two dozen Class IV-V rapids, is one of the iconic river runs in the Southwest. But Wilderness River Adventures’ trips through it are about more than just frothy, foaming, and leaping whitewater. The company’s guides will lead you into side

2014 PADDLING GUIDE

Wilderness River Adventures’ big rigs allow you to enjoy the scenery and hold on while the guide negotiates Cataract Canyon. / WRA

canyons that dart off from Cataract Canyon to marvel at ancient stone granaries, petroglyphs and pictographs, and cliff dwellings that are relics of ancient civilizations. And they’ll verse you into more recent history that revolves around running the mighty Colorado. Your day starts out mellow enough, with an easy downstream float to the confluence with the Green River as it drains south out of Wyoming, through Dinosaur National Monument, and into Canyonlands National Park. Here

Ancient granaries cling to the cliffs of canyons that stem off from the Colorado River in Canyonlands. / WRA

you’ll spend the night in camp 1,000 feet below the park’s Confluence Overlook, dining on fresh meats, seafood and vegetables. After a breakfast that might include eggs, hashbrowns, toast, and coffee or juice the next morning, you’ll head into the maw of Cataract. You have little time to prepare yourself for running rapids, which are squeezed into a 14mile stretch of raging water, as the very first, Brown Betty Rapid, is an impressive Class III. It’s during the short lulls between the rapids that you have the time to step ashore into this landscape that so riveted environmental icon Ed Abbey. As you walk into the side canyons threaded into the sandstone walls, feel the sun on your back, and try to follow the flitting western collared lizards with your eyes, you’ll understand why Abbey so loved the Southwest. You’ll also gain greater appreciation for the task Major John Wesley Powell and his band of nine men took on in 1869 when they became the first whites to navigate, over a period of roughly two-and-a-half months, the Green River from Wyoming into Cataract Canyon and through the Grand Canyon to present-day Lake Mead National Recreation Area. Unlike the major and his men, you won’t have to strain at the oars of wooden boats. Wilderness River Adventures’ trips through Cataract Canyon are aboard eight-passenger Motorized Snout Rigs that power you through the rapids. And you won’t want for food or drink, as the company provides a filling lunch and snacks and variety of beverages to keep you sated and hydrated. After traveling through Cataract Canyon, you will be in the upper reaches of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and land at Hite Marina. From there you can extend your adventure by adding a scenic flight over Canyonlands back to Moab, or pick up your rig that was shuttled to the marina while you tasted one of the finest experiences the Colorado River offers.

NationalParksTraveler.com

Everglades By Michael Lanza

n a windless morning, under the kind of flawless blue sky that always appears in ads for Florida vacations, our paddles send quiet ripples across the otherwise glassy surface of Chokoloskee Bay. As our two canoes glide past a signpost marking the Indian Key Pass water channel, two ospreys lift off from their nest atop the post and flap lazily over the water. Just minutes into our three-day, wilderness canoeing trip into the Ten Thousand Islands of Everglades National Park, we don’t yet realize that that will be the least-dramatic wildlife encounter we will have out here. My wife, Penny, and I, with our tenyear-old son, Nate, and seven-year-old daughter, Alex—in canoes laden with camping gear, food, and five-gallon water jugs—have come to explore one of Earth’s greatest wildlife sanctuaries. Sprawling over 1.5 million acres, Everglades is the third-largest national park in the contiguous United States—bigger than Glacier or Grand Canyon—and home to 350 species of birds and 300 kinds of fish. But to really experience

2014 PADDLING GUIDE

Exploring the River of Grass

this place, we’ve decided to canoe and camp in this marine wilderness. Indian Key Pass channel, ranging roughly 200 yards to a half-mile wide, meanders among tiny, flat islands covered in forests of dense mangroves. My nautical map shows hundreds of isles, or “keys,” knitted together by a maze of channels. Looking out on this ubiquitous land- and seascape, Penny and I agree we’re happy to have chosen one of the most beginner-friendly, multiday canoeing trips in the Everglades. It would be easy to get lost out here. In the main channel, the air erupts with movement and noise. Songbirds chatter and flit among the trees along the shores. Cormorants and brown pelicans skim the water’s surface. Great blue herons lurk motionlessly at the water’s edge, ready to stab at fish. After a few hours of paddling—and at times, Penny and I stepping out of our canoes to drag them through green water just inches deep, as low tide fast approaches—we reach the outermost islands. Now, instead of the unbroken horizon of mangrove keys, we gaze out onto the vast, flat, wavy

blue plain of the Gulf of Mexico. We swing around to the northwest, paddling past the tiny Stop Keys. Almost four hours after launching, we spot our destination: Tiger Key, another small, amoeba-shaped spot on my map of a constellation of similar spots in the Ten Thousand Islands. We pitch our tents on a white-sand beach that we have all to ourselves. “Cast Away,” this ain’t. Penny and I, and even our kids, have camped in many wilderness settings; perhaps none have been so easy to take as this. We spend the warm, sunny February days with the kids playing in the sand and water, and taking canoes out to explore the shore of Tiger Key. We see more osprey, white ibises, egrets—and canoe through a hidden mangrove tunnel into a secluded lagoon to find 10 fluorescent pink roseate spoonbills perched together in one tree. A dolphin swims circles around Nate’s and my canoe. And every evening, we all stand awestruck on the beach watching a blazing, red-orange sun slowly submerge into the gulf.

Everglades National Park (305) 242-7700, nps.gov/ever

Trip Planner

Navigating in the Everglades is extremely challenging; the maze of mangrove-lined bays and waterways can all look the same. First-timers should canoe or kayak one of the easier, marked routes like Indian Key Pass. Plan three to four days—with one or two layover days for exploring—for the 16.4-mile, out-and-back canoe trip from the park visitor center in Everglades City to Tiger Key via Indian Key Pass. If you’re planning three to four nights, move camp once to Jewel Key (where only two parties are permitted to camp per night), about five miles, or two to three hours, southeast of Tiger Key.

Maps

Lostmans River to Wiggins Pass nautical chart, $21, available at the Gulf Coast Visitor Center in Everglades City, (239) 695-3311; or from the Everglades Association, (305) 247–1216, evergladesassociation.org

Guidebook

A Paddler’s Guide to Everglades National Park, by Johnny Molloy, $20 johnnymolloy.com

Outfitters/Rentals

North American Canoe Tours, based at Ivey House B&B (239) 695-3299, evergladesadventures.com Shurr Adventure Co., offers one-day and multi-day guided trips (877) 455-2925, shurradventures.net

Above Left: Indian Key Pass in the Ten Thousand Islands area of Everglades National Park is a good introduction to paddling this huge park. / Michael Lanza Left: If you only have a few hours for paddling, check into a ranger-led canoe tour in the park. / NPS Above: Roseate spoonbills are locals in Everglades National Park. / Michael Lanza

NationalParksTraveler.com

Still waters make for spectacular sunsets on Yellowstone Lake. / Kurt Repanshek

Paddling the

AmericanSerengeti By Deby Dixon and Kurt Repanshek

ellowstone Lake covers 136 square miles with more than 110 miles of shoreline. It’s a tempting playground for paddlers, with a surrounding landscape still unchanged by humans. In fact, it’s the largest body of water above 7,000 feet in North America, and surrounded by a cornucopia of wildlife. I learned that first-hand when I jumped from my canoe and saw at my feet the signature of wilderness, a grizzly’s paw print bigger than a saucier pan in the wet sand of a beach deep 44

2014 PADDLING GUIDE

in the lake’s South Arm. My adrenalin, already elevated from this track, got a boost seconds later when I noticed the thread of loping wolf tracks that ran down the beach. In Yellowstone National Park, where most visitors search bumper-to-bumper for wildlife along the park’s Grand Loop, I had come practically face-toface with that wildlife by paddling deep into the heart of the park. Here, across from Chipmunk Creek near the bottom of the South Arm, we watched grizzlies forage lush meadows, awoke

in the inky predawn to the harmony of howling wolves, and listened to bull elk summoning their harems and the raucous chortling of nearby sandhill cranes on their migratory stopover. Along with the bears, wolves, cranes and elk, we encountered bald eagles with six-foot wingspans, osprey, honking Canada geese, yipping coyotes, and prancing mule deer. It’s only deep in the backcountry, whether of Yellowstone or Yosemite or Glacier or Great Smoky Mountains or Everglades, that you gain a good

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and sound appreciation of the National Park Service’s mandate to protect “the scenery and the natural...objects and the wild life therein...” These wild backcountry locales have been preserved by the National Park System, and for that we’re all fortunate. It’s surprising and rewarding that so few people are drawn to Yellowstone Lake and the park’s Shoshone and Lewis lakes. They are the quickest avenues into the backcountry, and, if you’re properly outfitted, about the easiest routes, too. Though it might seem to be more of an adventure than some bargain for, if you’ve got sound paddling skills with either a canoe or sea kayak, the trip is well-worth the effort. But if you question your skills, or your comfort sleeping on the ground, Far and Away Adventures will pamper you with an adventure you’ll not soon forget. After all, not everyone who wants such a paddling adventure in the national parks has the gear to pull it off. But Far and Away welcomes you with sea kayaks and guides to teach you the skills and keep you safe. Plus, their luxurious base camp on the shores of Yellowstone Lake’s South Arm makes a great destination at day’s end. This is a wonderfully adventurous approach to exploring Yellowstone away from the crowds of summer. Once you reach camp farther down the shoreline, you’ll choose a tent—which has already been set up and outfitted with a cot covered by a warm sleeping bag—and relax with newfound friends around a campfire while the guides attend to dinner. All the while the lake serves as your backdrop, changing from a wave machine to, if the winds settle, a glassy, unbroken surface reflecting the scenery. You can’t beat this setting for a family adventure. Remember your childhood climbing over rocks, searching for birds’ nests, and puzzling over animal tracks in the mud? Far and Away has been successful in designing vacations to meet adventurous family’s needs. Their guides understand that parents value adventure trips for more than just fun. Far and Away combines entertainment and education as children are led by enthusiastic guides to discover a new world of appreciation of nature and themselves in it. It’s only by being out here, on the shores of one of Yellowstone Lake’s arms, that you truly begin to get a true sense of how big Yellowstone and

Far and Away Adventures sees that you’re well-nourished, and comfy at night, during your exploration of Yellowstone Lake. / Deby Dixon

Far and Away Adventures • •

“The American Safari” Outfitting sea kayak, fishing, and backcountry adventures in Yellowstone National Park

www.TheAmericanSafari.com (208) 726-8888

the lake really are. In every direction you see a wilderness-setting, from the stands of lodgepole pines nodding ever so gently in the breezes, to the grassy meadows and on up towards the summits of Mount Sheridan at 10,308 feet, Overlook Mountain at 9,321 feet, and Mount Stevenson at 10,352. The encampments rival the safari setting of a Hemingway story. A full service kitchen with dinner served with chairs and table set with stoneware, linen and stemware, illuminated by candlelight and soft lanterns. Tents are furnished with elevated beds, comfy bedding, full-size pillows, and carpet under foot. There is even a nightstand.

Your nights are as restful as days are refreshing. While enjoying breakfast or lunch back at the cloth-covered table, snacking on smoked salmon or cheese and crackers, you’ll no doubt feel a pang of sorrow for Truman Everts, the poor, near-sighted soul of the 1870 Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition who became separated from the party and spent 37 days wandering through this very Yellowstone Lake backcountry and lived to tell about it. Two nights and three days on Yellowstone Lake with Far and Away is a great way to be introduced to Yellowstone’s wondrous backcountry. And while you’ll walk through some of the same landscape that Truman Everts did more than a century ago, you definitely won’t go home hungry. NationalParksTraveler.com

2014 PADDLING GUIDE

Traveler’s Essential Paddling Guide To The Parks

Directory Paddling Information

Where in the National Park System can you paddle? Here’s a directory of the parks with recreational paddling opportunities, listed alphabetically by park name. While there are more than a few parks with rivers or lakes where you could launch a raft, canoe or kayak, this list is designed around parks where paddling is an integral part of the park. So, for instance, Canyonlands National Park is included since the Green and Colorado rivers that are popular with rafting flow through it. Fort Sumter National Monument, which is surrounded by water, is not. Parks where rivers are “poached” by kayakers also are not listed. Where parks have links to paddling information and authorized outfitters, they are provided. However, some outfitters are renewed on a yearly basis, so check with the park before choosing a company.

NPS-Authorized Outfitters

Acadia National Park, Maine Whether you look to Somes Sound, Frenchman Bay, Western Bay, or one of the park’s ponds or lakes, you have plenty of paddling options. You can’t see the park from Western Bay, but its waters are calmer than those of Frenchman Bay. Alagnak Wild River, Alaska With headwaters in the Aleutian Range and its mouth in Bristol Bay, this wild river challenges paddlers with Class I-III rapids. Not for the inexperienced. Amistad National Recreation Area, Texas A 60,000-acre reservoir along the U.S.-Mexico border, this national recreation area offers many places to find watery solitude. With arms that reach into the Rio Grand, Pecos and Devils rivers, you can discover plenty of protected coves. Anacostia Park, District of Columbia Located in the nation’s capital, Anacostia offers a public boat ramp for shoving off into the tidal Anacostia River. First-timers can get an introduction to paddling at Bladensburg Marina. Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, Wisconsin On the southern shores of Lake Superior, Apostle Islands National Lakeshore is a sea kayaker’s paradise with 21 islands for exploration. Nineteen islands are open for campers. Looking for the best wilderness experience? Head to Outer Island with its pine forests and calving blocks of rock. Assateague Island National Seashore, Maryland/Virginia With the Atlantic Ocean on one side, and Chincoteague, Newport, and Sinepuxent bays on the other, you won’t lack for kayaking or canoeing waters at this national seashore. Big Bend National Park, Texas The Rio Grande, a wild and scenic river, rims the southern border of this park and carries you through canyons with walls rising 1,500 feet. Wildlife – herons, green kingfishers, and red-eared slider turtles – share the river corridor with you. Big Cypress National Preserve, Florida

Swiftcurrent Lake in Glacier National Park is popular with canoeists...and moose. / Kurt Repanshek

Thick with sloughs and streams, this preserve is a great bet for birding in the winter season. If you’re lucky, you just might hear the scream from a Florida panther! Try the Turner River Paddling Trail for a daylong exploration of a landscape of saw grass, cypress, and mangrove.

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Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, Colorado Experts paddle here, and for good reason. Most rapids are Class V...or too great of a challenge to risk. “Kayakers run the river at their own risk. The Gunnison River through the National Park has claimed the lives of even the most experienced, respected kayakers,” notes the park staff. “The river’s hydraulics can make self-rescue or rescue by others impossible.”

Angel Falls Rapid in Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area / NPS Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Kentucky/ Tennessee Whether you choose the Big South Fork of the Cumberland River or one of its main tributaries, this park along the KentuckyTennessee border has plenty of paddling possibilities, from adrenalin-packed white water to calmer paddles. Experienced paddlers will want to challenge themselves with Angel Falls on the big river.

Big Thicket National Preserve, Texas If you’re looking for a half-day trip, or multi-day adventure, Big Thicket can match your needs with its rivers, lakes and bayous. Canoeists looking for a great outing should consider Village Creek, which offers more than 20 miles of calm, free-flowing waters rimmed by Bald cypress and tupelo.

Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, Montana/Wyoming With canyon walls rising 1,000 feet, a 71-mile-long reservoir at full pool, and boat-in campgrounds, this NRA in northern Wyoming and southern Montana is an undiscovered jewel. Biscayne National Park, Florida More than 95 percent of this park is covered by water, making it a great destination for paddlers. Don’t forget your snorkeling gear, as there’s a lot to see under the surface. But you might need your own boat, as the concessionaire is now closed.

Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor, Massachusetts/ Rhode Island There’s nearly 50 miles of the Blackstone River to explore, so you can spend a day, or days, exploring this national heritage corridor in the Northeast.

Blue Ridge Parkway, Virginia/North Carolina Though designed around a twolane road, the Blue Ridge Parkway does offer one place for paddlers: Julian Price Lake (Milepost 297). Bluestone National Scenic River, West Virginia While canoeing and kayaking are popular on the 10.5-mile stretch of the Bluestone River that is protected by the scenic river, paddling generally is best only in the springtime when runoff fills the river. Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area, Massachusetts This NRA encompasses a sprawling harbor. But the best sea kayaking is done in the protected waters of Hingham Harbor. Don’t know how to sea kayak? Sign up for kayaking lessons offered by rangers at Spectacle Island.

Buffalo National River, Arkansas The Buffalo River, the country’s first national river, rolls freely for 135 miles and offers adventures year-round. That said, your best water conditions are found in the winter and spring months.

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Canaveral National Seashore, Florida Sea kayakers and canoeists can choose from the Indian River, Mosquito Lagoon, or the Atlantic Ocean for playtime. Just be sure to watch out for nesting sea turtles in the spring and summer months. Canyonlands National Park, Utah Mazes of colorful canyons are the main attraction for hikers at Canyonlands, but the waters of the Green and the Colorado draw both canoeists (the Green) and rafters and kayakers (the Colorado). And there still are those gorgeous canyon walls to admire!

Cape Cod National Seashore, Massachusetts From ranger-led canoe trips to exploring marshes and tidal zones on your own, there are plenty of paddling options to take you away from the beaches. A great family outing is the ranger-led canoe trips on Salt Pond and into Nauset Marsh. Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail, Virginia/ Maryland/Delaware/Pennsylvania/ District of Columbia On this, the country’s first national water trail, you can paddle rivers that flow into the Chesapeake Bay or explore the bay itself.

Cape Hatteras National Seashore, North Carolina Pamlico Sound offers somewhat protected waters for sea kayakers, while those seeking a greater challenge can head into the Atlantic. Cape Krusenstern National Monument, Alaska Looking for a challenging paddling experience? Look no farther than this national monument in far north Alaska. There you can test yourself in the Arctic Ocean or one of the monument’s protected lagoons. Cape Lookout National Seashore, North Carolina Between the relatively calm waters of Core and Back sounds, and the Atlantic Ocean, you can find an easy morning’s paddle, or a week-long adventure, at this national seashore. With the dunes open for “backcountry” paddle-in camping, a real adventure awaits the ambitious.

Channel Islands National Park, California Explore the watery backcountry of the National Park System with a kayak adventure at these park of islands off the California coast. Don’t forget your snorkeling gear or hiking shoes for a cross-training experience.

Scorpion Rock in Channel Islands National Park / Channel Islands Outfitters Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, Georgia Forty-eight miles of watery trail blend a rural and urban experience as this river flows through Atlanta and its suburbs. Unfortunately, no overnight paddling is allowed.

Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park, District of Columbia/ Maryland/West Virginia Spend a day paddling through history down this canal and alongside its famous towpath.

Chickasaw National Recreation Area, Oklahoma Lake of the Arbuckles covers a bit more than 2,300 acres and is renowned for its bass fishing and day boating.

Cumberland Island National Seashore, Georgia Sea kayakers often are spotted exploring the marsh on the west side of the seashore, though it can be buggy.

Southside Marsh in Cape Lookout National Seashore / NPS

Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Utah/Arizona Paddling among the redrock cliffs of southern Utah is a memory you won’t erase from your mind. Distances require good preparation and ability, but the solitude you can find will be worth it.

Curecanti National Recreation Area, Colorado The once-wild Gunnison River was dammed by this recreation area, so while you won’t find whitewater to buck, there are three sprawling reservoirs that offer everything from day canoe trips to sea kayaking adventures. Morrow Point Reservoir offers the best sea kayaking adventure, though you need to haul your gear down 232 steps to the water.

Delaware & Leigh National Heritage Corridor, Pennsylvania Both white-water rafting and stillwater canoeing can be found in this park in eastern Pennsylvania. Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, New Jersey/Pennsylvania Within this NRA you’ll find 40 miles of the free-flowing Middle Delaware Scenic and Recreational River to explore by canoe, kayak, or raft for one day or for several.

Dinosaur National Monument, Colorado/Utah Two rivers await the adventurous in Dinosaur, and both offer multi-day trips. Take the Yampa River and your scenery is soaring sandstone cliffs, while the Green River is cut through sedimentary layers chock full of marine fossils.

Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida Getting here is the hard part, but once you do, you have Garden Key and perhaps Loggerhead Key to explore. Late winter is a great time to come to observe thousands of nesting birds.

Ebey’s Landing National Historical Reserve, Washington This surprising historical park offers wonderful kayaking in Penn Cove, with the possibility of heading into Puget Sound, Admiralty Bay, and Saratoga Passage. On shore you can explore military history at two state parks associated with this unit of the park system.

Warm Springs Rapid offers the best ride on the Yampa River in Dinosaur National Monument. / Kurt Repanshek Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor, New York Come to paddle and you’ll find more than 500 miles of interconnected canals, rivers, and lakes awaiting your paddle strokes. Everglades National Park, Florida You can go for a few hours, or stay out for a week, in the River of Grass with its many streams, sloughs, and bays and the largest protected mangrove forest in the Western Hemisphere. Winter months are the high season for paddling, due to the somewhat cooler, less buggy weather.

Fire Island National Seashore, New York Experienced paddlers can enjoy day trips in Great South Bay, or reserve some sites in the Otis Pike Fire Island High Dune Wilderness to fashion a multi-day adventure.

Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve, Alaska This park exists for the true wilderness adventurer, with lakes and rivers to paddle reached by floatplane. The upper stretches of the John River can offer a Class II-III float at high water; the lower reaches make an excellent family float.

Glacier Bay National Park / NPS

Gateway National Recreation Area, New York/New Jersey Here in the heart of the New Jersey-New York metropolitan area you can find some wonderful paddling. There are seven launch ramps for kayakers in the Jamaica Bay Unit, a seasonal kayaking program is offered at Great Kills in the Staten Island Unit, and paddling is popular at Horseshoe Cove in the Sandy Hook Unit. Gauley River National Recreation Area, West Virginia Though the whitewater season is just six weekends long every fall, this river has a well-known, and well-deserved, reputation among paddlers. The 25 miles of river are run in one day, and you’ll lose count of the rapids that can reach Class VI in size.

Glacier National Park, Montana Canoeists and touring kayakers have more than a few lakes – Lake McDonald, St. Mary Lake, Swiftcurrent Lake, just to name three – to choose from. Whitewater runs are made down the Flathead River that marks the park’s western border.

Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, Alaska With a properly packed kayak, and the requisite skills, you can disappear into the arms of Glacier Bay for a week or two. While you can start off from Bartlett Cove, you also can be ferried farther up the 65-mile-long main bay and dropped off, with a pickup arranged as well.

Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona There is no finer river experience in the Lower 48 states than a two-week run through the Grand Canyon on the Colorado River. But that’s not to say you can’t take a shorter, or longer, trip. The point is to gaze up along the cliff walls of this mile-deep canyon while enjoying river time and forgetting what you do outside the canyon.

Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming You can head out for several days in a canoe or touring kayak on Jackson Lake, or spend a scenic float trip down the Snake River with the ever-present Tetons overhead. With bald eagles, bison and antelope on the shores, you won’t lack of images to capture in your camera.

Great Egg Harbor National Scenic and Recreational River, New Jersey Roughly half of this 129-milelong southern New Jersey river flows through the Pinelands Reserve, aka the Pine Barrens, a gorgeous area of pines. The best area for canoeing is said to be the 22 miles between Penny Pot County Park and Atlantic County Park at Lake Lenape. The river is the largest canoeing river in the Pinelands. Great Falls Park, Virginia As the Potomac River flows through this park it leaps, jumps, and launches itself through rapids. Experienced kayakers and whitewater canoeists come to test themselves against the Class II-VI rapids below the falls.

Gulf Islands National Seashore, Florida/Mississippi Though there’s lots of water to explore here, courtesy of the Gulf of Mexico, the park likes to showcase its Blueway trail for canoes and kayaks at Perdido Key Area. This 5.5-mile trail leads you past a 19th-century fort and through rich birding areas.

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Horseshoe Bend National Military Park, Alabama While it’s a national military park, preserving a landscape that witnessed the 1814 battle between General Andrew Johnson’s 3,300 troops and 1,100 Red Stick Creek warriors, a river flows through it. And the Tallapoosa River lures more than 15,000 paddlers a year to 33 miles of river.

Isle Royale National Park, Michigan Surrounded by water, and dimpled with lakes on its interior. Isle Royale National Park draws paddlers seeking a true wilderness experience. But you’ll need skills for paddling at-times-turbulent Lake Superior and you must be self-sufficient.

Katmai National Park and Preserve, Alaska Come to admire the brown bears fishing at Brooks Camp, and then head out to admire the park’s landscape by water. The 86-mile Savonoski Loop, which can take 10 days to paddle, is popular with canoeists.

Kenai Fjords National Park and Preserve, Alaska Kayaks are the recommended mode of water travel here, but if you’re inexperienced you should look for a guide. Wind and rain are common, though that doesn’t bother most paddlers. Landing in the surf is another issue.

Lake Chelan, North Cascades National Park, Washington This unit of North Cascades National Park Complex offers a number of backcountry, paddle-in campsites you can reserve. Pick up a fishing license, as Lake Chelan holds trout and kokanee.

Lake Clark National Park and Preserve, Alaska Lake Clark is the main attraction of this Alaskan gem, but there are many other lakes and rivers to explore by paddle. But there are no roads in this park, so you’ll need a bush pilot to give you a lift.

Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada Both Lake Mead and Lake Mohave have seemingly endless miles of cove-sculpted shoreline to explore. But don’t forget to dip your paddle into Black Canyon below Hoover Dam. It’s an entirely different riverine experience.

Lake Meredith National Recreation Area, Texas Though the reservoir level is at an historic low, there’s plenty of water for canoeists and kayakers to explore this NRA hidden in the wind-swept plains of the Texas Panhandle.

Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area, Washington Nearly two dozen boat launches give you plenty of options to put in on this 130-mile-long lake created by the damming of the Columbia River in eastern Washington. Multiple-day paddling trips are common here; just study the regulations pertaining to camping, campfires, and human waste.

Lassen Volcanic National Park, California Just because this park is named for a volcano, don’t overlook its paddling opportunities. Manzanita, Butte, and Juniper lakes all are open to canoeists and kayakers. Kayak rentals can be arranged at the camp store at Manzanita Lake.

Lewis & Clark National Historic Trail, Idaho/Illinois/Iowa/Missouri/Montana/Nebraska/North Dakota/Oregon/ South Dakota/Washington Spanning 10 states, you’d think this historic trail would offer a few paddling opportunities. And you’re right. Head to the Wild and Scenic Upper Missouri River in Montana, or you can tie into the Northwest Discovery Water Trail in Idaho and Oregon.

Mississippi National River and Recreation Area, Minnesota No need to disappear into the wilderness while on this stretch of the Mississippi. You can choose to paddle through downtown Minneapolis if you desire!

Missouri National Recreational River, South Dakota/Nebraska The untamed West no longer exists, but you can get a sense of it while paddling down this national recreational river. Just close your eyes while you drift and listen to the currents and birds.

Natchez Trace Parkway, Alabama/ Mississippi/Tennessee Though more popular with motorists, paddlers can find a watery respite in the Tennessee River. At Milepost 327.3, George Colbert in the early 1800s operated a ferry here. Today it’s a great spot to launch your canoe or kayak into the river. New Jersey Pinelands National Reserve, New Jersey This, the country’s first national reserve, embraces New Jersey’s Wharton State Forest, where canoeists long have paddled the Mullica, Batsto, Wading and Oswego rivers. The Great Egg Harbor National Scenic and Recreational River also flows through here.

Kobuk Valley National Park, Alaska It’ll take a couple flights at least before you can dip a paddle into the Kobuk River. One flight, at least, to Alaska, and then another by bush plane to get you and your gear to the river. This 61-mile stretch of meandering river is best handled in a kayak or collapsible canoe due to shallows.

New River Gorge National River, West Virginia One of the best whitewater rivers in the East, the New River was attracting paddlers long before it became a national river in 1978. That designation has bolstered its prominence among kayakers and rafters. Some stretches of the Kobuk River are perfect for birding. / NPS

Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky Never mind the netherworld underground, this park boasts two rivers that offer 30 miles of paddling options. Camp along the way for a two-or-three day adventure.

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Redwood National and State Parks, California Coastal waters studded with sea stacks, protected lagoons, and inland streams such as the Klamath River and Redwood Creek offer adventure and challenges.

Both rafts and inflatable kayaks, aka rubber duckies, float the New River Gorge National River. / NPS Niobrara National Scenic River, Nebraska Born in Wyoming and continually fed by springs as it courses through Nebraska’s sandhills, this 76-mile-long river can entertain you for a day, or days by linking together campgrounds.

Ozark National Scenic Riverways, Missouri With more than 130 miles of river to paddle between the Jacks Fork and Current rivers, canoeists can spend a long weekend, or a week, exploring these watery threads through the Ozarks.

Noatak National Preserve, Alaska You can spend two or more weeks negotiating the nearly 300 miles that the Noatak River wends through the national preserve. Put in on this wild and scenic river near its headwaters in Gates of the Arctic National Park and run all the way to its outlet at Kotzebue Sound. Or coordinate with a bush pilot to drop you off and pick you up anywhere along the way.

Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, Michigan Choose from the challenging waters of Lake Superior, or head inland to the lakes within the 11,740-acre Beaver Basin Wilderness. Beaver Lake, at 762 acres, is the largest.

North Cascades National Park Complex, Washington state Within this complex of parklands you can find long lakes to paddle (Diablo and Ross), while the Skagit and Stehekin rivers attract both kayakers and rafters.

Point Reyes National Seashore, California Tomales Bay, a 15-mile stretch of water protected from the Pacific Ocean by the seashore’s main landmass, is perhaps the most popular paddling area here. But kayaking is also permitted on Drakes Estero and Limantour Estero from July 1 through February 28 after the harbor seal pupping season.

Rio Grande Wild and Scenic River, Texas Extend your float down the Rio Grande River through Santa Elena Canyon in Big Bend National Park by continuing down the Rio Grande Wild and Scenic River as it meanders 196 miles along the U.S.Mexican border.

Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway, Wisconsin/Minnesota Two rivers – the St. Croix and the Namekagon – offer day paddles as well as extended trips for those with the time. Check the park website for details on camping options and regulations.

Salt River Bay National Historic Park and Ecological Preserve, Virgin Islands You can sea kayak among mangrove stands in the warm Caribbean waters here. Contact the Virgin Islands Department of Tourism at 340-773-0495 or St. Croix Chamber of Commerce at 340-733-1435 for more information.

Otter Lake in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore / NPS Obed National Wild and Scenic River, Tennessee Sometimes overlooked by many paddlers, expert whitewater paddlers are either well-familiar with this unit of the National Park System, or should be. Standing waves in the Obed River can climb to 10 feet under the right conditions.

Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail, District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia Two water trails, along the Youghiogheny River and Potomac River, offer more than 400 miles of paddling. This makes a perfect tie-in to the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail and the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park. Some areas feature whitewater, so plan carefully and don’t forget to pack your experience.

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, Michigan There are warm, lazy rivers and cold, challenging Lake Michigan waters here, which offer a nicely varied mix of experiences. The Platte River bends and meanders through thick forest, while Lake Michigan paddlers enjoy views of 500-foot high bluffs.

Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota Badlands stretch in all directions as you work your way down the Little Missouri River as it cuts through Theodore Roosevelt. Time your trip carefully, as low water could mean more walking than paddling.

Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve, Florida Established to protect the last unspoiled coastal wetlands on the Atlantic Coast, while also tracing 6,000 years of human history, Timucuan offers some great paddling opportunities in the St. John River. Extended paddles can take you into the Florida Sea Islands Paddling Trail.

Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River, New York/Pennsylvania This stretch of the Delaware offers the longest, free-flowing river remaining in the Northeast. Its Class I-II rapids are the perfect challenge for canoeists and kayakers looking to expand their skill range.

Virgin Islands National Park, U.S. Virgin Islands Surrounded by warm, turquoise water, it’s not difficult to find a spot to launch a sea kayak in this national park. If you need a rental, stop at Cinnamon Bay where the concessionaire can set you up. Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota With so much water – Rainy Lake, Kabetogama Lake, Namakan Lake, and Sand Point Lake just to name four lakes – your biggest problem might be deciding where to paddle. You can sojourn on large Rainy Lake, or string together some backcountry lakes with a few portages. Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, California The cool waters of Whiskeytown Lake are a magnet for canoeists and kayakers come the hot summer months. Watch for the ranger-led kayak programs, particularly the moonlight paddle.

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Wrangell-St.Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska It’s so big, so beautiful. Here, in the largest park in the system, you have a tantalizing handful of rivers to choose for your paddling adventure: The Nizina, Kennicott, Chitna, Nabesna and White rivers, to name the main ones. Here, as the park notes, you can “ travel for days at a time without seeing another person, trail, sign or bridge.”

Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming/Montana/Idaho Lakes – Yellowstone, Shoshone, and Lewis – are the paddling attraction in Yellowstone, and they don’t disappoint. Shoshone offers your own private geyser basin to explore, while Yellowstone Lake is a wonderfully remote and wild backcountry paddling experience.

Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve, Alaska Two great rivers – the Yukon and the Charley – offer solitude in the more than 200 combined miles as they flow through the preserve. Perfect for rafters and experienced whitewater canoeists. Just beware of the mosquitoes.

Rafters enjoy time after tense moments on the rapids of Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve. / NPS

2014 PADDLING GUIDE

parting shot

by patrick cone A private rowing trip sizes up a rapid in Grand Canyon; the calm before the storm.

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2014 PADDLING GUIDE