River Notes Archive

• Sierra South Rapid! News Feed! • Shop at the Sierra South River Store! • Check which New Kayaks are on Sale! • Browse New & Used Kayaks, Rafts & Gear! • Kayak Comparison Chart • 2006 Class Info & Class Calendar • 2006 Event Calendar • Kern Festival 2006 Photos & Results • "Around the Kern" Resource Guide • News from the Past...

Updated 10/14/06 o American Rivers marked the 38th Anniversary of the signing of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act by announcing a challenge to designate 40 new Wild & Scenic rivers by the 40th Anniversary in 2008. That initiative notched its first win with passage of legislation to designate a section of the Black Butte River and its tributary Cold Creek in California. More. o In a major victory for wildlife protection, federal Magistrate Judge Elizabeth La Porte of the Northern District of California today threw out a controversial Bush administration Roadless Rule and reinstated protections for over 58 million acres of roadless National Forests, making them off-limits to logging, road construction, and other development. More. o Summer 2006 was the second warmest June-to-August period in the continental U.S. since records began in 1895, according to scientists at the NOAA National Climatic Data Center in Asheville, N.C. Additionally, the 2006 January-to-August period was the warmest on record for the continental U.S. More. o The globe is warming, but the American West is really cooking - hotter and faster on average than the rest of the U.S. and the world, according to a leading climate researcher. More. o California is blessed with some of the most beautiful and diverse rivers in the world. From the steep creeks of the high Sierra to the broad and powerful rivers of the Central Valley, each river tells a personal story and provides a unique experience to the visitor. More. Splashes: Rolling - AW Safety Code - River Quotes - Foamies - Water Art

River Notes for Friday, November 24, 2006

Important information about River Notes.

Sierra South has been running raft trips, and teaching kayaking classes on the Kern River since 1985. The 2007 season will mark our 22nd year on the Kern River!

NOAA released its final Winter Outlook for the 2006-2007 U.S. Winter season on November 16. The revised outlook indicates a somewhat better chance of a wetter than normal Winter in Southern California, than the outlook issued October 19. The outlook takes into account expected impacts resulting from the developing El Niño, and other factors.

The computer models have been forecasting a chance of a little rain and snow for the Southern Sierra Monday. Today's 09z SREF puts the odds of more than 0.1 inch of precipitation in the Southern Sierra for the 24 hr. period ending Monday at 4:00 p.m. PST at about 50%, and the odds for more than 0.25 inch at about 30%. We'll see!

The thought of mountain snows and blustery Winter weather have us looking forward to the Holidays. Need some gift ideas for your friends and family? The Sierra South River Store is loaded with Holiday goodies and sale items. Don't know what to get? You can't go wrong with a Sierra South Gift Certificate.

The 2006-2007 El Niño has continued to strengthen. Another strong westerly windburst has occurred, and TAO/TRITON 5 day data shows a large area of Pacific equatorial SST anomalies exceeding 1.5°C, and depth averaged temperatures exceeding 2.0°C. This TAO/TRITON section plot of depth averaged temperatures shows the evolution of the upper ocean temperature anomalies.

Dr. Klaus Wolter's Multivariate ENSO Index (MEI) for September/October increased from 0.892 to 1.03, and the expected increase in the MEI for October/November will likely move the MEI above the strong El Niño threshold, as defined by the index, but well below that observed in the very strong 1997-1998 event, when the MEI peaked at 2.85.

Our world-famous Lickety-Split and Lickety-Blaster raft trips are far and away the two most popular and most affordable Class 2-3 whitewater rafting runs available on the Kern River. Both are full of enough excitement to challenge just about everyone from young tikes to grandmas and grandpas. Already paddled the Kern? Click here to find photos of your raft trip!

Need paddling gear? Before you buy gear from a store that only exists on a computer, check out our River Store. We're located in Kernville, California, just yards from the Kern River. We are river people. Our river guides, kayak instructors, and outfitter store employees actually use the products we sell. Need help? Call us, and you'll talk to a knowledgeable person that can answer your gear questions.

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!

If you are looking for a new boat, check out the recreational, touring, whitewater kayaks, inflatable kayaks, and kayaks in our Boat Barns. Bring up your old boat and let us sell it on consignment on the Used Boat Barn. We have great results selling used boats. Call us @ 760-376-3745 for details.

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.

River Notes for Friday, November 10, 2006

Important information about River Notes.

Sierra South has been running raft trips, and teaching kayaking classes on the Kern River since 1985. The 2007 season will mark our 22nd year on the Kern River!

It's COLD in the High Sierra this morning! As the sun rose at Casa Vieja Meadows (8300') in the Kern basin, the snow sensor there recorded a temperature of 13°F. Brrrr... It looks like the higher elevations of the Kern basin could get a little snow this weekend and then maybe a little more around Tuesday. We'll see!

The thought of mountain snows and blustery Winter weather have us looking forward to the Holidays. Need some gift ideas for your friends and family? The Sierra South River Store is loaded with Holiday goodies and sale items. Don't know what to get? You can't go wrong with a Sierra South Gift Certificate.

Dr. Klaus Wolter's Multivariate ENSO Index (MEI) for September/October increased from 0.892 to 1.03. This increase moves the MEI to just below the strong El Niño threshold, as defined by the index. This is the highest value of the MEI for August/September and September/October since the very strong 1997-1998 event, when the MEI peaked at 2.85.

NOAA released an updated Winter Outlook on October 19. The outlook is based on the most recent U.S. Seasonal Outlook, and takes into account expected impacts resulting from the developing El Niño.

Our world-famous Lickety-Split and Lickety-Blaster raft trips are far and away the two most popular and most affordable Class 2-3 whitewater rafting runs available on the Kern River. Both are full of enough excitement to challenge just about everyone from young tikes to grandmas and grandpas. Already paddled the Kern? Click here to find photos of your raft trip!

Need paddling gear? Before you buy gear from a store that only exists on a computer, check out our River Store. We're located in Kernville, California, just yards from the Kern River. We are river people. Our river guides, kayak instructors, and outfitter store employees actually use the products we sell. Need help? Call us, and you'll talk to a knowledgeable person that can answer your gear questions.

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!

If you are looking for a new boat, check out the recreational, touring, whitewater kayaks, inflatable kayaks, and kayaks in our Boat Barns. Bring up your old boat and let us sell it on consignment on the Used Boat Barn. We have great results selling used boats. Call us @ 760-376-3745 for details.

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.

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