Table of Contents
HISTORY: Thuse Donnellan, a Houston Entertainer
by Louis Aulbach
Backwater Backwash Car Shuttle
by Cecilia Gill
Trip Reports
Santa Elena Canyon
by John Rich
Buffalo Bayou Trash Bash
by Donna Grimes
Current River in Missouri
by Paul Woodcock
Hidalgo Falls Festival
by Scott Coultas
Blanco River
by Donna Grimes
Pecos at 400 cfs
by Paul Woodcock
Hill Country Easter Paddle
by Donna Grimes
Pecos River at 400 CFS by Paul Woodcock
Easter weekend , April 6 - 12, 2008, Dana Enos and I left to paddle the
Pecos River. This would be the first time I have paddled rapids and camped
out of a solo canoe. I took my Mad River Intrigue. It is a 16 foot crossover
solo tandem. There was plenty of room for my gear, even with the extra
seats in the canoe. We met David Conger and hired a shuttle. We were only
going to paddle a few miles the first day. The river was flowing 400cfs
so I got to experience a real strong current at the put in. I was amazed
at how easy I could control a canoe solo.
The first night a cold front came through and we decided to stay at camp
because we were afraid of hypothermia if we got wet. During the day it
started to sleet. We retreated to our tents. I climbed up the canyon side
just for something to do. I hate sitting in camp all day.
The next day David ran the first rapid but Dana and I portaged it as he
almost wrecked his boat getting through I still had concerns about my
solo skills. Over the next few day I became more and more confident. We
lined two other rapids but ran everything else. There were some real class
threes and I really appreciate David's skill in reading the rapids. In
the tandem I am in the back and follow the bow partner. In the solo I
am on my own.
I was given Some MRE,s from a Katrina victim so I survived on my own
cooking this trip. They are not too bad a meal but are too bulky to be
used on a long trip.
We had to wade a section of the flutes but Dana kept finding channels
to the right side so we floated most of them.
There were many exciting rapids but the two I remember the most were:
1 .Dana lead us into a small rapid and he just disappeared.
I followed him and discovered him in a large eddy. The only exit was water
running swiftly through the river cane. David went through first and I
head him yell "All Clear" I bent down in my boat and held the
paddle in front of my face hoping I would not get cut from the cane. I
was just a few feet above the water. The current rushed me through the
cane with the leaves slapping the paddle handle in front of me. Immediately
when I cleared the cane I was at a ledge with a large drop. I quickly
did a pry and found the chute and dropped over with my heart beating fast.
I guess David meant that he was all clear and not that the run was all
clear.
2. It was a long rock filled rapid and at the top it
looked as if it would pull you right over the ledge. There was a large
eddy in the middle and at the bottom a ledge running across the river.
I was surprised how easy it was to miss the ledge at the top and after
eddying out I looked for the passage that David had taken. The only thing
i could see was a path that ended with a large rock but David had gone
that way so with my heart in my throat I eased in the current. I shot
down the water like a rocket and just before hitting the rock managed
to turn the canoe making a perfect run. I would not even attempted this
if I had not seen David go first.
We all bounced off rocks and each of us got hung up at one time or another
but no one tipped over or damaged our boats. Life is good.
The last day we had to stay in camp for a day because of the strong head winds. I finished a book I had brought, so it wasn't a totally boring a day. I discovered is much easier to paddle tandem in the wind . I have never run the Pecos at this water level and It is the best trip I have taken in since the Hays River years ago. All I have to do now is put skid plates on my canoe. The Pecos is challenging river to run but those of you have the skills should put it on your list of things to do.