Table of Contents

Meeting Announcement

July 6, 2006 General Meeting Minutes

2nd Quarter Pool Session Report

Paddling in the West

Lake Houston State Park

Trip Reports

Marilyn Kircus: Lake Charlotte

Justin Ceterski: Pedernales River

Jared Davidson: Week of Rivers 2006

Christy Long: Week of Rivers 2006

Christy Long: San Marcos Cleanup Photos

Christy Long: Buffalo Bayou

Frank Ohrt: Rio Vista

Christy Long: Oyster Creek

Upcoming Trips

One of the pleasures of paddling is meeting people from other places who share an interest in our sport. In 1995 I learned about a Virginian, Roger Corbett, who led paddling trips to Wyoming and Montana. I called him, and he invited me to join his group. I paddled with him for several years, and others from Houston joined us. Although Roger has passed away, his wealth of information and careful planning made it possible for me and others to lead trips to the area.

This summer I coordinated a trip to Montana and Wyoming with the help of two people from the East Coast who had paddled with Roger. The Internet makes it possible to monitor snow pack and river levels. We didn’t want to make the drive without enough water in the rivers. Our first week of paddling began July 17 near Missoula, Montana. We camped under shady pines at Ekstrom’s campground. Remarkably, there was a restaurant here with a great salad bar. The menu was limited, but the food was good and the service friendly. It was a treat not to have to cook after a day of paddling.

Rock Creek and two sections of the Blackfoot River were our first three days. Rivers in the West are different from Texas’ pool/drop rivers. Western rivers usually have continuous flow, and no shortage of rocks. They require a paddler’s close attention. They are scenic and sometimes technically demanding. It is important to have researched the river ahead of the trip. Not all of our group had whitewater experience, so a few did not do a whole trip, either setting up an intermediate shuttle, or portaging rapids.

We took a day off to move east to Bozeman, Montana. For the next two days, part of the group did slower-moving sections on the Missouri and Yellowstone Rivers. The whitewater paddlers did runs on the Gallatin and Yellowstone Rivers. On Sunday we relocated to the Gros Ventre Campground near Jackson, Wyoming. The Jackson area has a number of rivers, most of which have both slow-moving stretches as well as sections for highly-skilled paddlers. Rivers in the area include the Gros Ventre, Hoback, Wind, Snake, and Greys. There are scenic areas along the Snake, where there is often wildlife to be seen early in the day or in the evening. There are small lakes in the Grand Tetons for a quiet paddle and which kids would enjoy, and large lakes such as Jackson Lake and Lake Yellowstone. There is something here for every paddler.

The Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks in Wyoming, along with Glacier NP in Montana, offer beautiful mountains, scenic hikes, fascinating thermal displays, and abundant wildlife. So there is plenty to see and do for those who don’t paddle and for those who want a break from paddling. It’s also a welcome temperature change from Houston. I hope you can visit these unique places.