Kern River kayaking and rafting news, and weather
River Notes for Thursday, February 4, 2010Important information about River Notes. The February Sierra snow course measurements are nearly completed. With 13 of 16 courses measured, California Cooperative Snow Surveys is reporting the Kern snowpack at 131% of normal for the date, and 80% of the average (April 1) seasonal total. There's a lot of lower elevation snow in the Kern basin, and basin ground water should be partially recharged from October's substantial early season snow and melt. This should kick-start the runoff, so we're expecting an early and fast start to the 2010 boating season! Speaking of Sierra snow -- it's already snowing again in the Central Sierra, and it looks like the Southern Sierra could see a couple feet of new snow between now and Sunday morning. A transition back to a wetter pattern appears to be underway. The computer weather models have been all over the place, but considering the CPC's above average precipitation outlook for both the 6-10 day and 8-14 day outlook periods, and the recent response of the atmosphere to the MJO's enhancement of El Niño convection, a wet February looks more likely than not. Learn to kayak! Our proven teaching method takes you through a gradual progression that maximizes the fun. We've designed our beginning class for those who have never river kayaked before, or who have played around with kayaking some, but have not had formal instruction in the fundamentals of river kayaking. We also offer a 5-day total immersion learn-to-kayak class. Our Kayaking School page has all the details on these, and other whitewater and lake touring kayak classes! With the great outlook for the boating season, take advantage of our Early Bird weekend pricing, and reserve a Kayaking 101 or Kayaking 201 class now! We have great prices on new and used kayaks, and all the gear you need for the 2010 boating season. Many items, including boats, are on sale! Need help? Our river guides, instructors, and store employees actually use the products we sell. Call 800-376-7303, and you'll talk to a knowledgeable person that can answer your gear questions. The new 2010 Jackson boats are in! Check them out in the New Boat Barn. We think the new elite versions of the boats are the best ever made by Jackson and worth every penny. With the Sweet Cheeks and Happy Feet system, you also get the best outfitting ever. It takes just a minute or so to understand the process to get the correct fit. It is not hard to master and we will be happy to show you how. Cross-linked plastic and a composite beam support make these hulls the stiffest and most durable on the market. The come with a 2 yr. double warranty. Check out these Jackson videos of the Star Series in action and the Elite outfitting. We usually have the new Star Series, Funs, and Heroes in stock. The new creek boat, the Villain, isn't in production yet, but we are anxiously waiting. Because of the El Niño, we're thinking that Brush Creek is going to be runnable a number of times this Winter! Here's a Brett Duxbury video of Liz Brackbill, Geno Hacker, Marc Vernon, and Rebecca & Eric Giddens paddling a sudsy Brush Creek last October. (Some browser/plug-in/connection combinations are slow to start.) Want to check on the Kern snowpack and see where the snow sensors and snow courses are located? We've put together a Kern River Basin Snow Courses & Sensors Google Earth KMZ file mashup that shows the station locations in Google Earth and links to the California Data Exchange Center (CDEC) data page for each station.
The ICF Freestyle World Championships were held in Thun, Switzerland in September 2009, capping a great freestyle paddling season with our good friends at “Team Jackson” mopping up in nearly all categories. The new Jackson All-Star 2010 was “the” boat of the competition, that’s for sure. Eric Jackson and the “family” were medalist in nearly every category. Now is a great time to order the 2010 Jackson Star of your choice: The Star, All-Star, Super-Star, and the new Mon-Star. The Mon-Star is the 1st truly playful big guy’s play boat for paddlers over 200lbs. If we don’t have a boat in stock, Jackson is not only fast on the water, they are fast in shipping and production. With the excellent flows on the Lower Kern in August, Evan Moore and Spencer Josif gave their new 2010 All Stars a good workout at the KRT and Royal Flush playspots. Check out their Lower Kern Playboating video on YouTube.
Describing the numerous on-river and off-river recreation options, the July/August 2008 issue of Paddler Magazine selected Kernville as one of the 'Best Paddling Towns' in the U.S. The article rated Kernville a 5-star weekend destination and a 5-star 'Near Home' vacation destination. The 2010 Kern River Festival is April 17-18, make your plans now! Sierra South has been running raft trips, and teaching kayaking classes on the Kern River since 1985. The 2010 season will mark our 25th year on the Kern River! We talk a lot about the "Kern River basin" in Rivernotes. During the Winter, we frequently refer to the Upper Tyndall Creek, Pascoes, and Wet Meadows snow sensors. During the paddling season, it might be Limestone, The Forks, Kern Falls, or Kernville. Here's a satellite overview of the 1000 square mile N.F. Kern drainage area with a few of the features labeled. If you look near the bottom of the photo, you'll see Lake Isabella. We're located just north of the lake! Here is a snapshot of today's flow and reservoir data, based on reports from the Corps of Engineers (COE) and Southern California Edison (SCE). Click on "Current" to get the latest COE info. For SCE flow information, call the flow phone at 877-537-6356 or 760-376-8821. According to SCE, the flow phone values reported for Above & Below Fairview, and Below Democrat Dam are updated every 5-10 seconds. All other flow phone data is manually updated twice a day (7am & 2pm) when an operator is on duty.
More information concerning flow and weather can be found on our LINKS page. Interactive Maps to Kernville & Road Conditions
Don't Miss Out - The Sierra South Rapid!If you would like to receive email notification of equipment sales, special promotions, and other paddlesports related news and offers, please take a few moments to subscribe to The Sierra South Rapid! Email List, the fast-track to great deals on paddlesports gear. Barry Tessman
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