Just returned from a rafting and kayaking trip on the Middle fork of the Salmon. I was delighted we managed to draw a permit this year, chances are about 1 in 50 for the peak season. Water levels were perfect 3.5 on the gage, and the weather cooperated. The hot springs and rapids were glorious, oh what a river. We had were involved in some interesting rescue situations. At Haystack rapid there was a boat wrapped. The kayakers managed to get a line to the boat and they had been trying to free the boat for about 3-4 hours when we arrived. The location did not lend itself to a Z drag system since there were no reasonable anchor points. About 15 people were lined up to pull the boat off when the front tube of the raft blew out. The differential drag on the boat (rear tube was still inflated so it was catching more water) was enough to easily free the boat (didn't even require any pulling). Interesting because I have always heard that you should not deflate a boat in a wrap, but in this case they could have freed the boat hours earlier without damage. Some of the kayakers were professional swift water rescue people. Sometimes it pays to take a long hard look at a situation and think how the water is working on a boat. That was the first lesson; the second lesson occurred when I misread the entry at redside rapid. This rapid is deceptively tricky a rock with a significant pillow creates a jet of water that shoots you over to a perfect wrap rock. I entered much too high on the pillow and didn't have much of a chance to pull away so I hit the lower rock broad side, as the raft broached I jumped on the high side. I could hear the boat wrapping around the rock as water poured over the lower tube. I stayed on the tube and assessed the situation, and decide the best chance to free the boat was to flip it over. I flipped the boat over using my weight on the higher tube and the boat was immediately freed. It is much easier to recover from a flip than a wrap! I was pleased that I assessed the situation correctly and took appropriate action, but now I want to run redside again and do it properly! I have run it several other times successfully. In some rapids entry is critically important... no kidding. Everything was still tied in except my GPS unit ; - ( which went floating down the Middle Fork. Incidentally, my watershed dry bag performed beautifully not a drop of water in the bag after being submerged for 15 minutes. I was embarrassed by my misread of the rapid, but I was pleased that I managed to stay calm and take action. I have taken several swift water rescue classes and remembered flipping a boat might help to relieve water pressure. I also own a very stiff self bailing Sotar raft which was slow to wrap, I am not sure I'd had a chance with a more flexible boat, and probably no chance with a bucket boat. Now that my GPS is on its way to the Pacific ocean I did some research on GPS units. Initially I wanted switch to a Garmin unit, but as I did more research I chose the Meridian line from Magellan. Why isn't Garmin using memory card technology in their units? I have unlimited memory in my Meridian because it has SD memory cards; there is no comparable unit in Garmin's line up. I can use a card reader for fast USB downloads of maps. I bought the MapSend software for the US and it looks extremely useful. MapSend software would have been helpful on our Middle Fork trip because it includes the side streams, campsites, hot springs and rapids (although not great with trails). The Middle Fork moves quickly (4.5- 5.0 miles per hour) so it is easy to over shoot your camp. Campsites are pre-assigned so if you miss your camp you have to find one that is available. The detailed map features will be an asset in locating campsites. The guide map for the Middle Fork has no coordinates so GPS maps are the way to go. I have been thinking about the Blue Nav maps from Magellan; has anyone used them? I purchased the Meridian marine version and I'm seriously considering purchasing the blue Nav CD. One nice thing about Garmin is they have many more map choices and the interface is more intuitive. -- MZ visit my website: http://www.mzuschlag.com *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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