Kern River Photo Gallery

HBO Enlightened - The Weekend
October 31, 2011

Sierra South was asked to help with the filming of a recently aired episode of the new series Enlightened, starring Laura Dern and Luke Wilson. This episode was filmed between Sandy Flat and Miracle last fall. "We have helped with Hollywood productions on the river for over 20 years now," said Tom Moore, "we have a good reputation down there. We have specialty camera rafts and have quite a bit of experience in understanding what the director wants in a scene, and being able to deliver that in a manner that is safe, yet still what the director envisions It's an education process with the crew to teach them how the river operates. Most of the time we will also be in charge of the safety of the on and off water production as well as training the on-screen talent for river stunts. Occasionally we will step in for actual river stunt work. This time it was easy water in inflatable kayaks so no stunt work was involved. It is always a bonus when they mention the Kern River on camera."

Evan Moore on the South Fork Tule River
July 6, 2011

The various forks and tributaries of the Kern, Kaweah and Tule rivers have some incredible paddling. Last week local paddlers Eric Giddens, Evan Moore, Spencer Josif, Johnny Chase, Austin Nickell, and Andrew Pernicano went exploring on the South Fork of the Tule River and found a short jewel of a run around Camp Nelson. Check out this drop!

Snow on Sherman Peak. Olancha Peak in the Distance.
Sherman Peak Web Cam #3 - July 4, 2011 (SWFRS)

Yep, there was still snow on 9909' Sherman Peak on July 4th, and much more at the higher elevations of the Sierra. As a result of all that snow, flows on the Upper Kern this week have been comparable to the big El Nino season of 1998. Yesterday at noon the flow at Riverside Park was reported at 5244 cfs. In 1998 on the same day the Upper hit 4977 cfs.

Congressman Kevin McCarthy, Son Connor and Friends
Upper Kern Raft Trip - Father's Day Weekend 2011

Sierra South enjoyed a surprise visit from U.S. Congressman Kevin McCarthy and his son Connor and friends for a Father's Day weekend Upper Kern raft trip. Kevin, a Bakersfield native, represents the Kern River Valley in Congress in the 22nd District. Kevin is the Majority Whip of the Republican Party in Congress and is afforded 24 hour protection with the US Capitol Police. "It was fascinating to see what is entailed to insure the safety of our highest political leaders", said Tom Moore, co-owner of Sierra South. "This is a bit unusual for the Capitol Police, but Kevin had wanted to run Class 4 whitewater for some time. He and Connor had a blast." The water was at a great level. Ryan and Matt Barlow, twin brothers, guided the trip. Perhaps an internship may be in their future? They both happen to be juniors at Cal/Berkeley and political science majors. We shall see!

SierraSnow - June 14, 2011
NASA/GSFC, MODIS Rapid Response

The Corps of Engineers Flood Control Requirements report forJune 16 still indicated nearly 281,000 acre-feet of runoff from snow remaining in the Kern River basin. This high resolution Aqua MODIS satellite image from June 14 shows just how much snow remains in the Sierra with the start of Summer just a few days away.

Kern River Crew - Evan Moore and Johnny Chase
Weekend Shorts

Kern River Crew & Sierra South paddlers Evan Moore and Johnny Chase, get out for a little (high water) playboating on the Kern.

CNRFC AHPS/ESP Kern River (Lake Isabella Inflow) Flow Probability Forecast

Plot of CNRFC AHPS/ESP projected flow probabilities for Lake Isabella inflow as of May 11, 2011.

Kern River Crew - Evan Moore, Javi Ruiz and Johnny Chase
Kaweah 2011

Kern River Crew & Sierra South paddlers Evan Moore, Javi Ruiz and Johnny Chase paddle the North Fork of the Kaweah River over spring break 2011.

Evan Moore on Brush Creek at the 2011 Kern River Festival

Taking first in the Brush Creek Downriver (in a long boat) this year was Eric Giddens, followed by long boats Taylor Robertson and Macy Burnham. Shaun Smith broke up a long boat sweep of the top four, finishing just a couple of seconds behind Macy. Amanda Maruschi edged Rose Schermerhorn and LIz Brackbill in the Women's division. The Kern River Crew Evan Moore and Johnny Chase finished 1-2 in the Men's Junior division, and Sage Donnelly was the top Junior Woman.

In the Brush Creek Extreme Giant Slalom Shaun Smith outmaneuvered Eric Giddens, with Spencer Joseph taking third. In the Women's race Amanda Maruschi got her second win of the day, finishing ahead of Sara James and Diane Gayglos. Evan Moore and Johnny Chase repeated their 1-2 finish in the Men's Junior division, and Sage Donnelly was the top Junior Woman.

Chattersaurus Hooligan Boat at the 2011 Kern River Festival

In its second year, the Hooligan BYOB competition was once again a big spectator and participant favorite. Inspired by the event at the FIBArk River Festival, paddlers constructed their own boats out of "non-boat" materials and attempted to paddle their creations from upstream of the bridge in Kernville, down through the class II rapids in Riverside Park.

Kern River Crew - Evan Moore and Johnny Chase

Kern River Crew & Sierra South paddlers Evan Moore and Johnny Chase, get in some gnarmy paddling on the Kern.

Alan Henz's 1st Place Entry "The Original Bucket Boat"
2010 Hooligan Build Your Own Boat Competition

The 2011 Hooligan Build Your Own Boat competition is Saturday, April 16, during the the 47th Kern River Festival, April 15-17.

Honorary Mayors Mean River Gene (Geno Hacker) & Whitewater Whitman (Lucian Whitman) - 2011 Whiskey Flat Parade, Kernville, California

Congrats to Mean River Gene (Geno Hacker) and Whitewater Whitman (Lucian Whitman), co-winners of the annual Whisky Flat Mayor's race! In the 2011 edition of the annual Whisky Flat Parade the new mayors and their families rode through beautiful downtown Kernville on their Kernville Riverside Park Renovation Project Float. Geno and Lucian raised over $20,000 for the project. In addition to the whitewater park project, some funds will go to the Kern Valley Search and Rescue, as well as a portion to the Kernville Chamber of Commerce, which puts on the annual winter festival. Great fun was had by all.

Sierra Snow from Sherman Peak Webcam #2
February 4, 2011(SWFRS)

California Cooperative Snow Surveys has completed the first snow survey of 2010-2011 season in the Kern River basin. Despite the mostly dry and warm weather we've seen in recent weeks, the February 1 Kern snowpack was measured at a remarkable 211% of normal for the date and 129% of the normal seasonal (April 1) total!

Eric Giddens Helping Volunteers Collect River Profile Data

The Kern Valley River Council (KVRC) was recently awarded a $25,000 grant from the USFS, Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act. The Kernville Riverside Park Renovation Project's goal is to enhance the ecological, aesthetic, and recreational value of the 1/4 mile stretch of the Kern River starting just above the Kernville Bridge, through Riverside Park in Kernville. KVRC is a 501(c)(3) non profit organization that runs the Kern River Festival every year and organized the 2003 Wildwater World Cup Kayak races on the Upper Kern.

Sierra Snow from Sherman Peak Webcam #1
December 30, 2010 at 11:45 a.m. (SWFRS)

Who would've thunk it? At the end of December, in the middle of a strong La Nina, the Southern Section Sierra snowpack is reported at a phenomenal 284% of normal for the date. Three of the snow sensors in the Kern River Basin -- Pascoes, Tunnel Guard Station and Casa Vieja Meadows -- have recorded more snow in three months than would normally occur over an entire six month season! On top of that, the River recently peaked at 21,741 cfs, and today is running about 1500 cfs! Happy New Year!

Eric Giddens Checks the Gage at Riverside Park
The stage is 13 ft - near the peak of 21,741 cfs (12/19/10)

In response to extremely heavy rain below about 7000 ft., the COE gage in Riverside Park recorded a peak of 21,741 cfs at 4:00 p.m. on Sunday, December 19th! Kern locals Evan Moore, Eric Giddens, Rebecca Giddens, Geno Hackett & Johnnie Chase checked out the river from Riverside Park, before getting in the water when the flow was near its peak. The Johnsondale RAWS recorded about 12 inches of rain from 1:00 p.m. Friday to 3:00 p.m. Sunday, and about 15.5 inches for the rain event. BTW, the Upper Kern is still at 1520 cfs at 2:00 this afternoon.

Sierra Snow Forecast
December 15, 2010

The BUFKIT analysis of the 12/15/10 12z GFS forecast an unbelievable 16.5 inches snow water equivalent from early Friday morning (12/17) to late Wednesday afternoon (12/22)for the Sierra near Mt. Goddard (C01). And it was pretty close!