Jackson Kayak

Rock Island has been spilling every day since I got here. This means waterfalls, BIG rapids, BIGGER WAVES, and HUGE HOLES! For a Jackson, that means a slice of heaven in our back yard. Yesterday they only released 3,600 cfs all day, a normal release, the first in two weeks. This morning Kristine heard the siren go off, meaning, “Recess time”. Kristine wanted recess too, so we all piled in the Mini Cooper and went to the hole. We did our seal launches, then paddled up to the “top wave” which is pretty much a secret. Meaning, never a line, and I don’t know anybody else who really knows about it or the levels it is good. Kristine took a couple of sneak peak photos of that wave… what do you think?

Then we went down to a really cool little hole on river left and did a couple of surfs with Kristine on the shore shooting. Finally, it was time to head to the main attraction, Rock Island Hole at 8,050 CFS, oh yea! Well, Kristine wanted to take some photos but there is no way to the island at that level without kayaking. I ferried her across by swimming myself and holding her stern. She was nervous but we ferried above the island in flat moving water and she made it OK. Emily, Dane, and I started surfing away with Kristine on the camera, and the video camera rolling. Why? Because we have never taken photos of Rock Island hole at this level, certainly not in July!

Emily was trying to learn to get big bounces, apparently has her eye on aerial moves, while Dane is just a kid looting a candy shop, sampling whatever sparks his fancy at the moment, and then discarding it for something sweeter. One moment it is really fast clean spins, then it is going for air blunts, get an occasional one, then goofing around with some front surfing, paddle twirls, and the occasional oops and roll up in the boils downstream.

I was doing the harder moves, because they were available, buy right up against the meat of the hole, making for a fun surf in the meat after the moves.

THEN, the sirens went off, signaling that they would be opening another gate, with Kristine barely making it to the island as it was. This time, I got her moving fast and jumping in my boat, with Emily taking the cameras, to ferry over the channel at the bottom of the island to safety. She looked at me, at the moment she was about to peel out and said, “I can’t do this”- I yelled “Go Go Go” like the paratroopers do, and off she went, down to the seam, happy to be in a Fun, so didn’t catch her edge. She got out before the water went up…

Here I am, now the river is flowing at 12,400 CFS, and it is almost time for a second session- Oh yea- now the meat will be BIG, and the shoulder will FEED hard into it, so it is game on! I am curious to see if Emily and Dane will dare this time- meanwhile the Brave Wave may be high enough to blow the lake out and form too, very cool.

Off to the river!!!!

Enjoy this short photo essay of our trip today- Kristine took photos for about 15 minutes, at the most, before getting chased off.

Dane Moving Into the Abyss at 8,000