Alright, you guys deserve more than 1 post every 2 or 3 weeks so im attempting to dump at least a months worth of pictures on you here. Spend a moment and check them out. I've been playing around with stitching photos together as well so i got some cool shots - some average ones as well.
Its been quite and epic month since the Kimshew, this is the low down on how its gone:

• West Branch of the Feather - average - dont bother.
  
• 1 week break and back up to Corvallis – where I did some awesome high water snowmelt boating on EF Rock Creek, Canyon Creek OR, and Opal proper.
• Back down to Cali only to get skunked by flows and weather for a while – we tried for Super Dink but got 35 degrees and no go so we headed south for warmer weather
• EF Kaweah – Finally with my new boat
• 3 day Royal Gorge – lowish but awesome
• 2 Day South Merced
• Attempts at Fantasy only to be denied
• Lots of sitting around and eddying out in Coloma
• Drop Jono off at the Sac Airport and head back to Corvallis for another week off of boating to hang with the crew, watch Jeff defend his Worm Hole Physics Masters and to watch anna break her finger in 2 places while we checked out a new climbing spot up the North Fork of the Middle fork of the Willamette.
• Back to Cali and 3 days of hiking the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne while a certain few boat the 30 mile run inside Yosemite Park. This was quite the hike, check out the pictures.
• Charge down to the San Joaquin for a first known decent of the lower 3 mile of the NF San Joaquin. This was pretty epic and gripping at times. We confluenced with the Devils Post Pile section of the San Joaquin at flows 2 to 3 feet higher than standard levels…Luckily we the 6 miles we spent on the river only contained the “Class 4 Gorge” which there wasn’t much class 4 to be found…I think it was buried under another few feet of water and if I had shoved a piece of coal up my ass before the confluence it would have been a diamond by the time we took off the main for of the SJ at Cassidy’s Crossing just above the Crucible Gorge. The trip took 2 days in all with a 1-2 hour hike down on day one and a 4 hour brutal hike out on day two. All said the run was amazing – lots of technical boulder gardens, some steep completely walled in gorges and a some portaging as to be expected.

Here’s a ton of pictures, enjoy.

Big Fluffy on Opal at high water. It looked and felt more like BC than our Oregon backyard. 100 degrees on a huge snow pack will do this to ya though...yeee haw

A throw and go on Opal - unheard of! except at 2 or 3 grand with the wood in Big Fluffy canceling out the seal launch option. Jeff's probing the depth for us on this one.

EF Rock Creek with too much wood and a little too much water to run the whole section, but plenty clean and plenty full to toss ourselves off the 25footer...Me, Jeff, Richard, Rick and EJ all fired this baby off and had a helluva good time doing it, good lines by all with good safety and good pics - epic.


Getting me some in my GUS - I love you Pugsy

EJ keeping his back safe with one of the prettier and most controlled plugs i've seen...good shit.

While the rest of us continued to enjoy the big ass tree. General Sherman is what they call this beaut. you could make 60 homes with the amount of wood in him...but you cant cut him down cause the woods so fragile it shatters under its own weight when it falls....good thing mother nature figured out a way to save these giants from being logged to extinction.


More big ones - tree photos and many river photos are from Jono Ramsey.


We moved on North and squeaked in a run on the Royal Gorge of the American. We were 1 of only two groups to get on this run this year due to weird flows and a short window. It was a tad low but it treated us well and the adventures were had. One of our group decided to run the big falls in the gorge solo and blew up on impact off the 60footer. He swam to shore only to watch his boat and paddle float off the next 20 footer and into a cave while his only option was hiking a crack 100 feet out of the walled in gorge to escape...scary moment for sure.

The First major gorge - 40ft entrance, 60ft middle falls and a 20 ft exit (not shown). this was the seen of the crime for one of 2 destroyed boats for the trip.


Evan lining up the 40 ft entrance falls...this was a good morning run for both Chris K and Evan, way to fire it up with drowsy eyes...i took the high left line with my boat on my shoulder.


Chris K Doing his thing


Lizzy English rallying a walled in mini-gorge with 55ft rattle snake falls just downstream


Jono and his tiny red Mamba bringing some light to the Royal Gorge















Evan showed us the lines and was spot on with his beta...charging this fun 15 foot slide to boof slot...times were good.

yay

hris K and Rattlesnake Falls, they seem to be a good match



Evan seeing if he's a good match with Rattlesnake as well...as it turned out they worked out great.


Scott's Drop.....blah, no thank you






I called this one the Chiropractor falls...It was closest to vertical without being vertical falls i have ever slide off...no boof possible here, manditory plugger and when i hit i got pealed open like a can of tuna, i heard my neck crack 5 or 6 times before i surfaced...ouch, but in a good way...


Evan, getting his plug on

Do the dry your drysuit jig - drying out and warming up on after day 2 on RG of the American.