Kayaking Advice

[AquaMan]

I would love to join in on this as well.  Sounds like an adventure.

Plenty of room on the river. I'm trying to find a trailer to haul the craft and a day with water in the river. It will likely be short notice.

[SXSW]

They have to get the gates on the low water dam fixed first before Zink Lake can start holding water for more than a couple days (if you're lucky) again.  That and the ongoing drought and late snowmelt in the Rockies have really dried out the river in Tulsa. 

I think kayaking will become more popular once they retrofit the low water dam and make it safer.  Right now it can be very dangerous during high flows, which are unpredicatable on the Arkansas.  The new design sounds like it will be much better.  Hopefully they can build a whitewater park below the dam one of these days.  It is perfectly set up for it and could be a major attraction.  Lots of cities wish they had the same set-up.

[AquaMan]

Its worth noting that in my memory the only folks who went over the dam did so either purposely or with little regard for consequences. I have easily beached my kayak where the new restaurant is after travelling from Sand Springs at 40,000cfs and routinely paddle upstream at 10,000cfs. You really have to try to get in trouble on Zink Lake below 40k.

Now I'm anxious to get back on. The road they're building below the bridge may pose some serious danger for an unwary craft though. Might be advisable to exit early. They now have the bridge beams running transverse across the river.

[Conan71]

They have to get the gates on the low water dam fixed first before Zink Lake can start holding water for more than a couple days (if you're lucky) again.  That and the ongoing drought and late snowmelt in the Rockies have really dried out the river in Tulsa. 

I think kayaking will become more popular once they retrofit the low water dam and make it safer.  Right now it can be very dangerous during high flows, which are unpredicatable on the Arkansas.  The new design sounds like it will be much better.  Hopefully they can build a whitewater park below the dam one of these days.  It is perfectly set up for it and could be a major attraction.  Lots of cities wish they had the same set-up.

I've been in touch with the organizers of the Leadville Trail race series on Facebook, they said it's finally starting to melt away and when I'm there in two weeks for a pre-ride that it will finally start looking like summer in the upper Arkansas River watershed.

[AquaMan]

PTL!

BTW, I saw Leadville from high atop Pike's Peak. Some pretty good hills to ride bikes on up there. The fog can descend on you pretty quickly.

[SXSW]

I've been in touch with the organizers of the Leadville Trail race series on Facebook, they said it's finally starting to melt away and when I'm there in two weeks for a pre-ride that it will finally start looking like summer in the upper Arkansas River watershed.

I'll be up that way in late July.  Mainly hiking and biking.  Or just escaping the heat and humidity.

[Conan71]

PTL!

BTW, I saw Leadville from high atop Pike's Peak. Some pretty good hills to ride bikes on up there. The fog can descend on you pretty quickly.

JFC! What's the visual range from Pike's on a clear day?

[AquaMan]

Dunno. We actually saw Leadville from about half way up the mountain. As soon as we hit the peak a cold, dense fog kept us from seeing anything over 10 ft in front of us. Weird, cause it was late July.

RM thinks the gold in those mountains may have washed down into the Arkansas here in Tulsa. Pass it on. (more likely the lead got into our water supply!)