A tandem kayak, Colorado, 26 miles, Tstorms, bad decisions 10/11-14

[Mojave River Angler]

A friend and I put in at Moabi park to float the canyon then paddle the lake and go under the bridge and on out to Site Six on the point of the island. Plan got all messed up from the beginning because of the storms that left the river muddy. Not much fishing in a muddy river. Then the wind blew out of the south and made it hard to go down river...and they cut the upper dam output from 19,600 to 9,000 cfs. The 17 miles we were supposed to "float" and fish we had to paddle. What we should have been able to cover in 8 hours then became 12. Fortunately the weather layed down in the evening and the lake was flat for our crossing. We were about a mile or so from the bridge when the sun set. So we paddled on under the bridge and then through the dark(no moon) around the island to get to site six at about 8pm. We trolled lures across the lake but had no takers. Fished the next day in the channel between the island and the CA side. Didn't really find much except micro stripers near shore. Did find a nice sized sunfish under some slips on the south side of the island. Fished the backwater of Moabi again on the last day to pick up small SM bass and more tiny sunfish. Went home tired and a bit more educated about that region. Ran into a guy at a swapmeet in LHC the last day we were there who gave us a few tips on where to try again next time as well as better times of the year to try.

The canyon is really beautiful. A must see. If you have a power boat that is reliable...go see this. If you want to hit the area via kayak, send me a pm and we'll talk about planning and parking locations. A friend of mine says that he has done the run from Moabi to Castle Rock in as little as 7 hrs and as much as 17. The weather and water flow is a big factor in how long a trip will take. Technically, you can't camp the canyon because it is a refuge. There are alternatives. And, as with most areas, don't expect people with power boats to pay you any respect in your kayak. This is why I chose October to go.

I'm not giving you pictures...go see it. Don't paddle for 26 miles like we did.

MRA

[OnShore]

Awesome trip! Got any pics? Been planning a 40 mile trip from Blythe area down through imperial wildlife areas and out before the dam. Sweet.

[Fishin Magician]

Carl,
I know the feeling. I did that trip back in the seventies with my boy scout troop. It was supposed to be a two day trip to Havasu. We ended up getting seperated (15 canoes) and the lead group passed the campsite. We had to keep going and reached Havasu at sundown. Wind was in our face and 3 foot waves. It took us another 3 hours to cross to Crazy Horse campground on the island. We arrived after 11pm, tired and extremely sunburnt (August). Our parents were pissed, to say the least, at what a cluster F it turned into and the shape we were in when we arrived.

[Mojave River Angler]

I really didn't do much for pics but I did take my sons new POV camera. He go a Freestyle HD from Woot. I set it up on a small tripod on the front of the kayak and gave it a go. Image quality is great but I need to get a polarized lens and fit it to the front of the waterproof case. Every time the sun got into the image it just overloaded the CCD and it makes a pink line top to bottom. Since our movement was so slow the video isn't real exciting (like whitewater would be). I have not set up an account to share that stuff yet. I will have to do that soon.

[dondadda]

i've been wanting to do a trip just like that. I've looked into similar trips out of bullhead, where you drop in and a van picks you up down river. I would assume there is info on when they alter the water flow?? Sound like a cool trip and good thing it didn't turn out like Deliverence....(insert dueling banjo song)

[Hawk]

i've been wanting to do a trip just like that. I've looked into similar trips out of bullhead, where you drop in and a van picks you up down river. I would assume there is info on when they alter the water flow?? Sound like a cool trip and good thing it didn't turn out like Deliverence....(insert dueling banjo song)

You can find a lot of info here.

http://www.usbr.gov/lc/

http://www.usbr.gov/uc/


This is where I usually look


http://www.usbr.gov/lc/region/g4000/hourly/rivops.html