Trip Report: Whitewater Kayaking the Lower White Salmon River
When: 01/12/2018
Location: Lower White Salmon River
Conditions: Cold and snowy, perfect for a day on the water! (if you have a drysuit)
Duration: 2 hours
Difficulty: beginner to intermediate
Kid Friendly: No
Pet Friendly: No
Usefull links: www.americanwhitewater.org
The Full Report:
The Lower White salmon is a classic class 2 whitewater kayak run in the pacific northwest! This really is a great into to whitewater, once someone has been working on their roll a bit. You put on the river right across from Wet Planet rafting company in White Salmon, WA. You have a choice to put in above or below an optional class 3 called "rattlesnake." Most people wanting to keep it class 2 will skip this one.
After that, it is pure class 2 fun until the takeout at Northwestern Park. This river channelizes well so it can be run down to a low flow. (1.7ft was our run). There are lots of awesome eddy lines to practice on with deep seams. There is also the famous "cave wave" on this run. It’s about 3/4 down the run on river left right where a cool cave forms in the rock. The higher the water the better the wave. Many people who run the class 3 section above this run will come down this section just for this wave!
Before the takeout (which is easily marked by a bridge overhead and a paved ramp down to the river) there are some awesome wave trains and a few waves to surf. This is a really clean class 2 that I would suggest to anyone who has a bit of whitewater experience. If you go in the winter with snow on the ground....it’s a real gem!! Summer is nice too though.
The Full Report:
The Lower White salmon is a classic class 2 whitewater kayak run in the pacific northwest! This really is a great into to whitewater, once someone has been working on their roll a bit. You put on the river right across from Wet Planet rafting company in White Salmon, WA. You have a choice to put in above or below an optional class 3 called "rattlesnake." Most people wanting to keep it class 2 will skip this one.
After that, it is pure class 2 fun until the takeout at Northwestern Park. This river channelizes well so it can be run down to a low flow. (1.7ft was our run). There are lots of awesome eddy lines to practice on with deep seams. There is also the famous "cave wave" on this run. It’s about 3/4 down the run on river left right where a cool cave forms in the rock. The higher the water the better the wave. Many people who run the class 3 section above this run will come down this section just for this wave!
Before the takeout (which is easily marked by a bridge overhead and a paved ramp down to the river) there are some awesome wave trains and a few waves to surf. This is a really clean class 2 that I would suggest to anyone who has a bit of whitewater experience. If you go in the winter with snow on the ground....it’s a real gem!! Summer is nice too though.