Kayaking in Tulsa

[Patrick]

The Jenks dam will only back up water less than 4 miles. In fact, I think it was closer to 2.5. The Sand Springs dam will back up closer to 8 miles which is a lot of water. When the spring rains come they will all be full.

It would be a shame if this leads to negative impulses, like closing the river to public use. There needs to be more education about the river and its nature so that folks don't take it lightly. That is why I offer my trips. To introduce people to their own river but understand that its like a wild animal. It may be trained but never totally domesticated.

Glad to hear from you... I was worried when I heard this story.  My wife and I really enjoyed our anniversary trip down the river with you.

[Conan71]

Waterboy knows better, and has serious respect for what that water can do, so I wasn't worried about him.  I drove through the TRC parking lot to see if I recognized the guy's car from Friday night to see if he was the unfortunate victim.  No car in the parking lot (it's an obvious launch point due to the ease of access to the ramp.  So either the victim's car has been moved or they launched from somewhere else.  I would hope that guy I talked to got humbled in a hurry and decided not to return until the water drops. 

Here's the last paragraph on an email which went out to TRC members this afternoon as a safety reminder.  The dock referred to in the email is the dock just north of the boat ramp at Riverwest Festival Park.  It's directly east of the three-bay structure which houses the rowing club.  When the river is full, it looks deceptively peaceful because there are no rapids north of the LWD to associate a sound with rushing water.  This gives you an idea of how quick the current is:

'If you look at the flow levels for this morning the stage average was 10. As stated in TRC's safety rules, NO ROWING IS ALLOWED AT FLOW RATES OVER 9 FEET OF STAGE (APPROXIMATELY 40,000 CFS). At 9 feet of stage it takes less than 5 MINUTES to drift downstream from the dock and over the low water dam. Going over the low water dam will most likely result in death. Also, please beware, safe levels of flow difer based on the skill levels of the rowers and the boats to be taken out. I just want to remind every member to check current flow + wind conditions before going out on the water. DO NOT ROW OUTSIDE OF YOUR SKILL LEVEL and please, do not take chances."

[waterboy]

Glad to hear from you... I was worried when I heard this story.  My wife and I really enjoyed our anniversary trip down the river with you.

Thank you Patrick. It was a great trip. As a reference, during our trip the water was a mere 5700cfs. This morning's release was 8 times that rate.

Conan is right about my respect for the river. My son wanted to go float yesterday and I told him it wouldn't be worth the risk. Windy out of the southwest, high, fast water and believe it or not, the water is still pretty cold. At any rate, we would have only left from far upstream and started our move towards the shore right after passing under the 11th street bridge. You simply don't have much time to correct for errors at that level. Five minutes for the distance from the rowing dock to the lowater dam computes to about 12 mph. Usual speed at normal level is about 5mph.

[SXSW]

The Jenks dam will only back up water less than 4 miles. In fact, I think it was closer to 2.5. The Sand Springs dam will back up closer to 8 miles which is a lot of water. When the spring rains come they will all be full.

It would be a shame if this leads to negative impulses, like closing the river to public use. There needs to be more education about the river and its nature so that folks don't take it lightly. That is why I offer my trips. To introduce people to their own river but understand that its like a wild animal. It may be trained but never totally domesticated.

Currently the river fills up when Keystone lets out enough water.  My question was if the larger Sand Springs dam is built could it act as a mini-Keystone dam and let water out more frequently filling up the river most of the year except in times of major drought?  Could you theoretically get by with a Jenks dam and a Sand Springs dam and then turn Zink Dam into more of a stepped whitewater area while maintaining water in the river most of the year due to daily releases from the Sand Springs dam below Keystone?  Something definitely needs to be done at Zink.

And I received your PM and will definitely take you up on the offer to float the Arkansas.  I'll let you know but probably next month sometime, when the river drops.  

[SXSW]

Thank you Patrick. It was a great trip. As a reference, during our trip the water was a mere 5700cfs. This morning's release was 8 times that rate.

Wasn't the release during the flood of 1986 over 300,000 cfs?  That is nuts!

[waterboy]

Currently the river fills up when Keystone lets out enough water.  My question was if the larger Sand Springs dam is built could it act as a mini-Keystone dam and let water out more frequently filling up the river most of the year except in times of major drought?  Could you theoretically get by with a Jenks dam and a Sand Springs dam and then turn Zink Dam into more of a stepped whitewater area while maintaining water in the river most of the year due to daily releases from the Sand Springs dam below Keystone?  Something definitely needs to be done at Zink.

And I received your PM and will definitely take you up on the offer to float the Arkansas.  I'll let you know but probably next month sometime, when the river drops.  

That would be a better question for someone like Kirby C. (V2025). I would say that the policies for releasing water and how much water would likely be a Corps decision, heavily influenced by politics (otherwise the burgs along the river may end up in warfare when SS decides they want more water for a festival and Jenks needs the water for a ferry) . That seems like a good idea though.

I wondered why the river was dang near bone dry last week even though there was voluminous rain already within the watershed, and, its spring you know rain is inevitably coming. I guess there was some concern somewhere else along the chain of lakes and dams that brought them to shut the gates off rather than prepare for heavy rains. But that is their usual practice. They seem to binge/purge.

[SXSW]

That would be a better question for someone like Kirby C. (V2025). I would say that the policies for releasing water and how much water would likely be a Corps decision, heavily influenced by politics (otherwise the burgs along the river may end up in warfare when SS decides they want more water for a festival and Jenks needs the water for a ferry) . That seems like a good idea though.

I wondered why the river was dang near bone dry last week even though there was voluminous rain already within the watershed, and, its spring you know rain is inevitably coming. I guess there was some concern somewhere else along the chain of lakes and dams that brought them to shut the gates off rather than prepare for heavy rains. But that is their usual practice. They seem to binge/purge.

I think that is what most people want, more consistency in releases from Keystone dam so there's always "water in the river".  Not like it is right now, although sometimes it would be, but maybe around ~35,000 cfs to keep the banks noticeably full.  A separate, large dam in Sand Springs could help regulate the erratic releases the Corps sends down from Keystone, and another dam south of Jenks should keep most of Tulsa's stretch of the Arkansas full the majority of the year.  I don't know the status of either of those dams but I thought they were already funded?  I believe the whitewater park was part of the failed river tax proposal.  I hope that happens someday, I could see it being a regional draw to Tulsa.

[Conan71]

5000 to 10000 cfs is more than enough to keep the river filled in at Zink. 2 to 2.5 feet at the gage (sorry I don't have the URL bookmarked on my iPhone to give a corresponding flow, but I think 2 ft is around 2000-3000 cfs release) ensures that below the 21st St bridge. You start to see sand bars and rocks north of the bridge below about 2ft. The corps couldn't sustain 35k cfs for extended periods without depleting Keystone. Keep in mind Keystone as well as other dams provide power and flood management so it's a delecate balance. In addition to the recent heavy rains, snow melt is on the increase in the Rockies right now though that plays a lesser role in all the water we see right now. 

[waterboy]

I jogged over the Pedestrian Bridge this evening and looked for the safety cables. There are three different "snags" along the cable which is held up by orange plastic floats. These are trees that have been caught on the cable and build up because of the swift current. They appear to have been in place for quite some time. I am just surmising that this fellow was in trouble before he went over the dam. Maybe a heart attack or injury of some type. He had several opportunities to jam his kayak safely into these snags or latch onto the cable and wait for help.

I also think he may have put in at West Bank or the Skate Park. Otherwise he would have had time to realize the strength of the current and had time to pull to either bank. I checked my water profiles from last year at this time and sure enough, I floated down with JtCrissup and a friend in a 16ft canoe and a 10ft kayak. My notes show that the water was 45,000cfs and that we had little trouble dealing with it. We started our movement to the bank just after passing the least tern islands and were easily able to make it over to where Elwoods is in that half mile.

[Conan71]

It's hard not to speculate but I'm guessing this was someone without a lot of experience or knowledge of the sport and this particular river. I fear people buying a Yak then assuming it's a safe idea to get into the Arkansas River since it looks deceptively serene right now.

Not being properly prepared nor appreciating the power of a large moving body of water like that puts other lives at risk when they have to come rescue you. I realize those people know what they sign on for when they take the job, but still, just imagine if one of the witnesses had thought they were capable of swimming to the kayaker.

[SXSW]

This was posted on the TW comments section:

I'm having a tough time doing this and not sure I'm doing the right thing but just in case relatives, loved ones and friends may want to know the sad and horrific sight I witnessed at Zink Dam. Even though I didn't know him the image of the accident will be with me forever. My sincerest condolences to them. Boaters, swimmers and fishermen need to know how dangerous the Zink Dam spillway rip current can be during high run-off.
I ride bike on the river trails regularly and generally ride across the pedestrian bridge to see what the fishermen are catching off the west end fishing pier and sometimes watch the trapped logs and other floatsam being battered by the incredibly strong undertow.

Yesterday while on the pier I noticed a kayaker 75 feet east of me who was paddling about 25 feet from and parallel to the edge of the dam. To the best of my recollection he was wearing a helmet, had a back pack or something else on his back and maybe a life vest. He looked like he knew what he was doing as he appeared to handle the paddle and craft well. Although he was paddling adeptly he was getting closer and closer to dam edge. The water was very fast. Then just in time he expertly turned and pointed the kayak to go over the dam. I couldn't tell whether his action was to prevent from going over the dam sideways or he really wanted to go over the dam. We'll never know. There were three of us on the pier watching and at least two people on shore watching and perhaps some on the pedestrain bridge.

I thought he made a pretty nice move as the kayak shot over the dam but when it hit the water it went under. Then I expected it to bob up with him in it and see him continue on his journey downstream. But it never came up for what seemed like an eternity but probably was 10 to 20 or so seconds. Finally the tip showed up and then several seconds later he bobbed up with helmet on and tried to grab or put his arm around the end of the kayak. He was about 75 feet east of us as we watched helplessly so we tried to call 911 on our cell phones. I didn't get through but one of the others did. It seemed like the kayaker and his craft stayed under for longer periods than they were floating. The turbulent water must have lots of air in it and I'd guess because of that it has a lower bouyancy.

Anything that is caught in the rip current stays submerged more than on the surface but everything usually seems to be forced by the currents from the center of the dam toward the west end. We could see him and the kayak were coming closer to us. The fisherman reeled in his line and tried to cast out to hook him because if he had we might have been able to get him to shore and get him out. The problem was that he would pop up in a differnet place each time and not be visible long enough to snag him. Each time I saw him he was face down without his helmet and I could see something on his back like a backpack or whatever. I think that whatever prevented him from keeping his head up and out of the water. There was at least one small log close by and he could have been struck by it knocking him unconcious.

Neither he nor the kayak made it to corner of the spillway and both floated off downstream fully visible and he was face down the rest of the time. I followed him on my bike and got ahead of him past the PSO plant and knew of an opening where I might be able to help. But he had just floated past too far out. I then returned to the bridge and told a policeman what I saw.

[waterboy]

Man, that's gruesome. I guess he was just overconfident and unlucky. I learned with my airboat that decisions on direction change have to be made a quarter mile in advance on this river. If you wait too long, you have little choice because of currents, obstacles, wind etc. You also can easily be confused by the conflicting signals being sent to your brain by the currents. Out in the middle of the river you have no concept of how fast you're going unless you fix your sights on something and ignore your instincts. Its like crossing a high speed expressway on foot. Most folks are killed because they can't correctly perceive the distance a car can cover at 70mph. Perhaps he got out of position trying to get to shore and thought last minute that his only chance was to shoot over the dam. Tragic.

I saw a quick shot of the kayak. It looked to be a Pelican Pursuit. Awful boat. Poor maneuverability, very tight and low sitting. The reason everything seems to drift to the west side is that they constructed a channel that runs parallel to the dam which takes the water over to the deeper channel. That's where you see most of the fishermen.

[SXSW]

Waterboy, we know you're the resident expert for all things related to the Arkansas River in Tulsa County, but do you also kayak on other area rivers?  I am thinking about checking out the Mulberry and Buffalo rivers in Arkansas for either rafting or kayaking as I've heard good things and both are only about a 3 hour drive from Tulsa.  Do you, or anyone else, have experience with these rivers? 

[waterboy]

Sorry, I don't. I have visited the websites for the Mulberry and spoken at length with my son and a friend who have done them. My wife did the Buffaloe. They were all quite positive. The Mulberry can be very challenging in the spring, in fact, they close it off when the water is too high.

[SXSW]

I've heard good things about both the Mulberry and Buffalo rivers.  When the rivers are low they are pretty tame and good for rafts/beer drinking like the Illinois.  When the water goes up they can be pretty challenging even for experienced kayakers. 

The city/state needs to do a better job of promoting the mountains, rivers, and lakes near Tulsa.  Not many (or any) central U.S. cities the size of Tulsa have such a great outdoor playground so close to the city.  Some people who have lived in Tulsa for years do not know about the many opportunities in eastern OK, western AR, and southern MO.  IMO Tulsa should play up its proximity to the Ozarks and also as the heart of Green Country with forests and hills (unlike the central and western parts of the state).