WRO guide Ryan Casey wins the first year of the North Fork Championship! This is an extreme kayak race down the North Fork of the Payette River in Idaho, probably one the hardest roadside whitewater sections in the country. The race was held in a rapid named Jakobs Ladder, often regarded as the single most challenging rapid in this impressive section of whitewater. Pro-kayakers came from far and wide to compete in this impressive event. It was awesome to see a local Idaho favorite take first place in the race and claim the $4000 cash prize! The competition was very stout, but Ryan’s years of experience on the North Fork showed in this incredible race. This event truly is a big deal, and has qualified Ryan to compete with the World Whitewater Grand Prix in Chile this coming December. Check out a write up on the North Fork Championship by Canoe and Kayak Magazine.
I decided I did not want to miss the first year of this epic event. So I packed up my camping gear and headed for the Payettes. I did not get on the water at all, but sure had fun spectating the race and taking pictures of a few friends that competed in the Elite Division. I hope you enjoy a few of the photos I took over the weekend!
Ryan Casey
Here is a little more info on new WRO guide, Ryan Casey. Ryan is no stranger to Idaho whitewater and river trips! Ryan grew up in the Wood River Valley of Idaho near Sun Valley, and then moved to Colorado to attend Rocky Mountain High School. He attended University of Vermont on a Nordic Skiing scholarship, where he received a degree in Food Science with a focus in Sports Nutrition. Ryan has been an avid kayaker most of his life chasing rivers around the globe. His kayaking adventures have led him to places like Madagascar, Russia, Canada, Norway, Peru, Ecuador, Mexico, France, and not to mention many rivers across the US. Ryan spent 10 years raft guiding on the Salmon River near Stanley, Idaho. Ryan also teaches swiftwater rescue courses with Rapid Action Rescue. With over 20 years of playing and working on the river, he has un-paralleled whitewater experience! Ryan spends his winters ski patrolling at Sun Valley Ski Resort in Idaho, with this other job comes high levels of Outdoor Emergency Care. It’s easy to pick out who Ryan is because he probably the only person around that is nearly 7 feet tall!
Ryan Casey
Middle Fork Salmon season has started! Check back for more photos throughout the summer river season…
For most of early May, the temperatures were high and the snow was melting. As a result, all the river gauges around Idaho were spiking and the rivers ran bank full. Having spent a lot of the winter in the office, I knew it was time to get out and enjoy the melting snow. We rounded up a few friends and headed for Stanley. With the road into Boundary Creek still deep under snow, we put in on Marsh Creek to access the Middle Fork Salmon and the Frank Church Wilderness. Marsh Creek is really fun in itself with some great whitewater excitement before you reach Boundary Creek or the Middle Fork Salmon proper.
Beautiful day in the Impassable Canyon on the Middle Fork photo: Iris Conrad
Bill and I entering Dagger Falls photo: Iris Conrad
The first night we camped at Dagger Falls, just above Boundary Creek launch site. Dagger Falls is the biggest rapid on the Middle Fork and a popular place to watch Salmon jumping as they migrate up river during summer months. On this spring day, Dagger was full of water and was not an obstacle for fish, but was for us in our raft and kayaks. There is always the option of carrying all your equipment around the rapid and continuing on your way as a normal Middle Fork trip would, passing Boundary Creek just below Dagger. After scouting it for awhile, I decided if my friend Bill Blackadar (who was already trying to talk me into running it), wanted to ride with me for a little extra punching power in the boat, we would go for it! His girlfriend Erin waited around the corner in her kayak for safety in case things went south and we needed help below the rapid. Iris took the camera and Bill and I made our way back to my 12’5″ foot Avon Explore waiting in the eddy above. As soon as you pass under the bridge, there is no turning back! Two friends, one small raft, and one large rapid is a recipe for a good adrenaline rush. Before you get into the real rapid, you have to negotiate the swirly waters of the tight entry gorge. Hoping when you get through there, you are still where you wanted to be. As I tapped my oar on the left cliff right above the drop, I knew we were right on the line we had discussed. From there on, it’s just keeping the boat straight and taking the three punches from Dagger. We rounded to corner in high spirits as we were both in the boat and it was black side down! After we loaded a few bags that we had carried around, we floated passed the Boundary Creek launch site. As you enter the fun waves at First Bend Rapid, it’s another great high water Middle Fork day…
Good excitement in the middle of Dagger! photo: Iris Conrad
We made it through the main drop of Dagger! photo: Iris Conrad
The Middle Fork Lodge Gauge was reading about 5’5″ feet throughout our weekend trip, which is a really fun high water level on the Middle Fork Salmon. It was a great four day trip with cloudless skies and warm weather on our own private river. We only saw two other people the entire trip, and they were on a self -support kayak trip. We first ran into them at Dagger campground and after that we boated a fair amount of the river with our new friends. So after they pretty much joined our group, I guess you could say we didn’t see anyone else on our 115 mile trip. The hillsides were yellow with the arrowleaf balsamroot in full bloom! Spring is such a beautiful time in Idaho. To have four cloudless days in early May is unusual and very lucky!
The last big hit in Dagger Falls! photo: Iris Conrad
After a trip like this, it makes you even more excited for the commercial river season to begin. Which if you're me, this means many more river miles and much less computer time in the days ahead. This puts a smile on my face! For those of you joining us this summer, I look forward to sharing something very special to me with all of you… and it’s not too late to still make plans for a trip this summer if you need a break from your “real world”.
Arrowleaf Balsamroot photo: Seth Tonsmeire
Check back for many more photos and river stories from the upcoming river season.
Looking Up River at the start of the Impassable Canyon. photo: Shane Moser
Every day in Salmon, Idaho feels more and more like spring at this point. The grass is starting to green up, Mountain Blue Birds, Robins and many other migratory birds are showing up. The summer rafting season will be here before we know it! At WRO we are looking forward to getting back on the river for another great season. Our first scheduled commercial trip on the Middle Fork Salmon is June 16th. Although I will probably have to sneak out of the office here shortly for a little spring boating before June!
Middle Fork Salmon in April photo: Shane Moser
Check back for more updates and photos in the coming months!
40 years in Business in 2012! The years do slip by. Forty years ago we were just getting our rafting business going…acquired the last Main Salmon permit issued by the Salmon Forest Service, purchased Green River rafts which were the top of the line back then and started the search for more wild rivers in the West. The WRO guides were all Tonsmeires (picture below), who migrated to Idaho from guiding on the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. Things have changed a bit over the years; we have lighter more maneuverable rafts that are self bailing, waterproof everything, comfortable lifejackets, and better designed tents and sleeping bags. Not to mention the gortex and polypropylene clothing. It’s made camping and rafting cushy.
Tonsmeire Brothers: The Original Crew
The one thing that hasn’t changed is our dedication to making your experience safe and adventurous. We believe a quality wilderness experience is one in which you interact intimately with the natural environment on wild rivers and in their beautiful canyons. We have remained committed to running small, spontaneous trips that make you feel young again. To find beauty in the ridiculously simple. To forget about deadlines and telephones. To gaze at the stars, soak in a hot springs, run fun rapids, enjoy campfire meals and forget about time. To feel like you’re with friends. These are the types of experiences we like to send our new friends home with.
Thanks to all of you who have contributed to these memorable years.
What is a scow? A scow is a large wooden boat, usually around 30ft long and 9ft wide. These large crafts were designed as cargo boats to deliver supplies and equipment along the Salmon River from Salmon City to Lewiston. This trip was 305 miles, with many challenges to face on each journey. These cargo giants supplied homesteaders, miners, sheepherders, and anyone else trying to make a living in the rugged Salmon River country.
Harry Guleke or “Cap Guleke” was one of the most well known drivers of these early scows. He was known for being the best boatman of his time, running cargo for more than 18 years and racking up as many as 200 trips down the Main Salmon! Guleke and his crew delivered ninety thousand pounds of equipment and supplies to the Salmon River Mining Company at Five Mile Bar, and nearly three million pounds of cargo during his career! Guleke and the wooden Salmon scow became well known when Field and Stream published an article about him in 1921. Newspaper articles and stories of the old days and historic boatman fill the Salmon Historical Museum. These boats were built in Salmon, heading downstream never to be seen again, giving the Main Salmon the nickname “The River of No Return.” Once these boats reached their destination they would be taken apart and the boatman would return for the next trip via railroad travel. Upon return to Salmon, they would start building a new boat in preparation for another departure from Salmon City. Guleke was a very well liked man and would always draw a crowd upon his departure.
Guleke Scow Downtown Salmon City in 1919
Other old timers like Johnny McKay would take a year to three years on this Main Salmon river journey. Often building a winter shelter of borrowed wood from the scow. Over these long trips, he would try to placer mine enough gold to buy supplies and build a boat for the next trip. Johnny McKay spent forty-eight years on the River of No Return, completing twenty trips. Inscriptions left on rocks by early boatman are the only reminder of these early days; many are at Barth Hot Springs (known earlier as Guleke Hot Springs). Whether hauling cargo or spending years placer mining on the banks of the river, these early characters pioneered river life on the Salmon River!
Big Boat Entering Black Canyon Rapid photo: Seth Tonsmeire
"Big Boat Idaho,” was built by local long time river-runner Jerry Myers of Salmon, Idaho. After much time and research, Jerry and his friends came up with the plans for a close to exact replica of the aforementioned historic boats. A few years after construction the scow made scenic float trips around town, but never passed the end of the road. The boat was parked in downtown Salmon for the last few years going unused and baking in the summer sun. Jon Green, a local Salmon City river runner and guide, decided that the boat had been parked long enough and needed to see the river once again. Jonny has a history degree and has always been very interested in the history of the Salmon River Canyon. He made the deal and was soon the proud new owner of a wooden scow, named “Big Boat Idaho.”
Big Boat at the original Guleke Hot Springs photo: Seth Tonsmeire
Bailey Rapid photo: Seth Tonsmeire
Captain Jonny and co-captain Shane Moser have been long time friends of mine. When I got the invite to join their scow trip, I did not want to miss this opportunity! Nine friends (mostly river guides) loaded up Big Boat Idaho and headed for Corn Creek, the end of the road! Over the next seven days, I experienced the Main Salmon in a new way, a flashback in time. The stories of the historic scow trips I have read now come with a new understanding, and more appreciation for these old time river-runners and pioneers of the Main Salmon.
Elkhorn Rapid photo: Seth Tonsmeire
5 Mile or Split Rock Rapid depending on who you ask...
Group Shot from the Big Boat trip
I hope you enjoy the photos and video from the “Big Boat Idaho” trip.
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