Welcome to my Campfire
	A Swim on the Eel River

Pete, I hear you and your buddies took a close look at the falls on the Eel and decided to run the rapids in the canyon just below the main drop. Tell us how you made out!

Well, Nanook, in all our wisdom we decided to put in right below the main falls and run the next four drops.

Three of us, one amateur, and of course, the amateur made it through, I've been shaking my head ever since in disbelief.

Looking upstream from the end of the portage trail. The drop far upstream is the main fall. Pic by Mike Grant, contributed by Sammy Solo.

I have a couple of new theories since this trip.

1. Wear two life jackets. I got shot down through that white half-air half-froth and didn't see very much daylight. Not cool.
2. Use flotation in the boat. My Appalachian took hell. It spent the majority of the run underwater, and got pinned three times. Hard on the boat, and it took us a lot of time to get it free. Almost had to leave it. Flotation would keep it up out of the water a lot more where it could sail through the bad stretches.
3. Wear two life jackets.
4. If you are running rapids beside your canoe that is not equipped with flotation, you do not want to be below or above the canoe, beside it is the only place to be. I got sucked under the canoe, the canoe got sucked over me. Not cool.

If you want to get in shape, go run up and over those cliffs eight or nine times. I'm still sore.

We're going to try the river again this weekend, minus the rapids perhaps but we'll see. Depends if I can find some flotation.

Pete

• Mitchell, you and Alicia went for a trip on the upper Nashwaak after several days of heavy rain. How did you make out?

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