Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I kinda have this dream...I want to kayak down the river starting from the Bernalillo/Northern RR area where I live and go all the way down to NW ABQ, somewhere near Alameda Open Space.
Anyone have any info on how to get involved in that? Maybe Poncho has some info on it?
YES, it was great. Actually I went from around Algodones to Bernalillo. There is an outfitter in Bernalillo that will fix you up with a guided or self-guided tour with several different lengths to choose from:
Love to kayak as well but not really into anything nuts. I bet that would be a fun stretch to do. That site above needs to add some more pictures taken from kayaks during the trips.
I've rafted AND kayaked in shallow rivers and through white water stretches and have to say that the kayak is my preference due to it riding shallower in the water than inflatables and the ease of maneuvering with a double bladed paddle - and a rudder if the kayak is a "touring" model.
Anyone interested in upper body exercise who has access to 'quiet water' - lake or reservoir - could do worse than rowing a "touring kayak." With a foot-petal operated rudder, all you need to do is paddle without the added chore of keeping a straight course that occurs when paddling a kayak without a rudder. A rigid skeg does much the same thing, but a moveable rudder allows turning in circles using the foot pedals.
I kinda have this dream...I want to kayak down the river starting from the Bernalillo/Northern RR area where I live and go all the way down to NW ABQ, somewhere near Alameda Open Space.
Anyone have any info on how to get involved in that? Maybe Poncho has some info on it?
I'm not an expert on that subject, but I have canoeing in the past, Dominican Republic, Florida and once in New Mexico, from Cochiti to Northern Corrales 15 (?) years ago, helping a church group one Summer. Drive them to Cochiti, dump the "boats" and people, drive back to catch them... I did get a "Free" canoe ride in those efforts.
There are at least a couple of red safety flags in that story.
The first is that a partially submerged tree is mentioned as being involved. In river paddling parlance a partially submerged tree is called a strainer because the branches let water pass but the pressure of the water will pin a body preventing the possibility of surfacing for air or otherwise swimming away from the obstruction. Combined with the propensity for branches to snag cloths, lifejackets etc. makes submerged trees one of the most dangerous river features possible.
One of the most basic day-one rules of river paddling is to give strainers a wide berth.
The second flag is that even though all the participants in this trip were reported as having life jackets, the victim was found without one. This is unfortunately common in victims who are inexperienced or who underestimate the risk of the water they are paddling, so they wear their lifejackets improperly fastened, tightened, or even entirely unzipped.
A proper lifejacket is designed to be extremely difficult to be swept off in even the most forceful conditions. However, if not properly fastened, the come off more easily than a t-shirt. Always, no matter how calm the surface of the water seems, no matter how good a swimmer you are, properly fasten and zip your lifejacket and make sure all tightening straps are securely cinched.
YES, it was great. Actually I went from around Algodones to Bernalillo. There is an outfitter in Bernalillo that will fix you up with a guided or self-guided tour with several different lengths to choose from:
I second Quiet Waters. See the C-D thread at Where to Kayak?. The owner, Mike, is great. I've done a couple of kayak trips with him and really enjoyed them.
There are at least a couple of red safety flags in that story.
The first is that a partially submerged tree is mentioned as being involved. In river paddling parlance a partially submerged tree is called a strainer because the branches let water pass but the pressure of the water will pin a body preventing the possibility of surfacing for air or otherwise swimming away from the obstruction. Combined with the propensity for branches to snag cloths, lifejackets etc. makes submerged trees one of the most dangerous river features possible.
One of the most basic day-one rules of river paddling is to give strainers a wide berth.
The second flag is that even though all the participants in this trip were reported as having life jackets, the victim was found without one. This is unfortunately common in victims who are inexperienced or who underestimate the risk of the water they are paddling, so they wear their lifejackets improperly fastened, tightened, or even entirely unzipped.
A proper lifejacket is designed to be extremely difficult to be swept off in even the most forceful conditions. However, if not properly fastened, the come off more easily than a t-shirt. Always, no matter how calm the surface of the water seems, no matter how good a swimmer you are, properly fasten and zip your lifejacket and make sure all tightening straps are securely cinched.
Some great points here. Log jams are another thing that can cause big problems but I'm not sure how often that would apply to the Rio Grande. I remember once approaching one on a river near me that had the better part of the river damed up. I learned my lesson when I got too close to the small section that was open enough to let water flow but not passage. I'll just say that when the whole river is trying to get through a small window you are gonna get stuck fast to that log jam for as long as it takes to try and paddle away back up stream.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
