Des Moines River Water Trail, 2004
12/18/04
Saturday (12/18/04) was a cold blustery day for a run from Birdland to the Botanical Center and back. The waves pulled me along with a wind from the North at over 20 mph. It was hard to get turned around, but fun with waves and spray in my face. Gulls, ducks, ferile cats and eagles kept me company. Next up, New Year's day paddle from Sycamore Access up to Saylorville dam, meet at 10 AM. Sycamore Access is off NW 66th right by the river, take Morningstar Drive on the east side or Beaver Ave. from the west.
11/28
My October paddle was at Easter Lake, from the well-kept boat ramp out to
the island and over to the beach and back. My first 3 November weekends were spent
reading and scoring 22 trails grants, but this weekend was one for getting back to the
river. For November, I enjoyed the Harriet St. to Yellowbanks run on Nov. 28.
I have not missed a month of paddling since April of 1997.
It was just above freezing. Having done our Sunday ritual, I got the tow car (a
silver Cavalier I call the Silver Toad) hooked up to the Jimmy and headed out for YB at
about 1 PM. I had the Silver Toad dropped off at YB by 1:30. With winter gear
on and GPS fired up, I pushed off from a relatively clean Harriet St. a little after 2 pm.
I noted that the water trail sign that was rescued from the high water is very
happy on higher ground. The trash can is emptied on a regular basis and others are
helping to keep the area picked up. Hooray!!
There were 3 eagles in the area as I started downstream.
It was quite a gray day, but no wind. The river was running at 1500 cfs, and I was making 4.5 mph with steady paddling. There were shallow areas but no need to walk. I stopped for a break below the eagle nest about 4 miles in and noted that there were pelicans on an oxbow lake just across the sandbar. The new power plant is coming on line, with a low roar and steam from several cooling towers. I also noted a second eagle nest just across from the power plant. There were at least 8 eagles in the trees and flying with me as I made my way downstream.
As I passed the Hwy. 65 bridge at about 6 miles in, it became a race against the dark. The sun had been a hazy glow and was now bidding the day farewell. Fortified with an energy bar and some good hot tea, I dug down and gave it my best stroke. My mantra was DNR director Vonk's reported observation that there is not enough water trail work to justify a full-time water trail coordinator. That kind of nonsense is the reason that MN has 3,000 miles of posted and developed water trails and Iowa has 10 (the miles that I was covering in the gathering darkness) plus others in progress without any help from the DNR. Well, it got me worked up and moving smartly downstream. I can only hope that DNR will give water trails some staff time and some funding to make water trails a reality. (PS. It turns out the whole thing is more complicated than originally reported, so I'll reserve judgment and see how things progress)
Just at sunset (4:45 per the Garmin GPS) I pulled up to the YB boat ramp. With boat loaded and having avoided the deer running through the park I made my way back to Harriet St. to pick up the Jimmy. The downside of running late is that you have to hook up the tow car in the dark, but all went well and my happy caravan was soon home in Des Moines.
11/16/04
The survey about paddlers, water trails and boat registrations was completed by about 60 paddlers. The results were that top priorities were environmental (clean water, improved greenways) with strong support for better facilities, including water trails. (see survey results) There is apparently some movement toward a water recreation program in the DNR and also some simplification of boat registration procedures. Stay tuned.
New Year's Day paddle, Saturday, Jan. 1, 2005. Meet at the Sycamore
boat ramp off NW 66th in Johnston at 10 AM. Bring treats.
The 04 Project Aware video and photos are out. Check out the Mad River Paddler.
10/19/04
Thanks to Humboldt County CCB and volunteers, the Willow Access at Bradgate has been cleared of downed trees. The river is running high right now, a good time to paddle down to Rutland.
Three water trail grants came in this year; Polk County, Big Sioux Corridor, and Waterloo for a white water course. There are 22 grants for the FRT program, I have a lot of reading and scoring to do.
9/19/04
The Big Sioux River canoe float was very enjoyable. We paddled about 10 miles in the
Akron area (NW Iowa) along the Iowa-South Dakota border. Shuttles were well
organized, we had many young folks along, the take out was ok for being improvised after
the big rains. The grill after the float was much appreciated. See the Big
Sioux link above for more information and photos.
9/12/04
The River Ripple went well, 100 people and about 70 boats, mostly kayaks. The Corps
left some water in the river, there was very little walking. The pre-launch shuttle
went well, there were volunteers to help at Eddyville and Ottumwa, all in all
well-organized. Thank you to Big Brothers Big Sisters for a lovely day. One
first for me, a hot dog from volunteers who were grilling on a pontoon boat in mid-river.
Yum. Photo
journal in progress.
9/6/04
August 0f 2004 was not my best month. I did get out on Gray's Lake in Des Moines, and noted that the damage to the bridge was limited to a small section of railing. Also, the MLK construction work is quite amazing.
I took a drive up to Jester Park on Saylorville Lake, where the water trail sign had been well under water along with everything else on low ground. The flooding is long gone, and the water trail sign is cleaned up and looking good. (Thanks , Polk County, for taking such good care) The Jester Park access is looking good, just like everything the PCCB cares for. Someday, a water trail from Madrid to Woodward and on to Jester Park is going to get done.
I really enjoyed paddling today from Harriet St. to Yellow Banks. The city is keeping up with the trash, so it's pretty good at Harriet St. It was a gorgeous day, with a cool breeze at my back and enough water to float the whole way. Bald eagles, blue herons, Canadian geese and a squadron of white pelicans came down the river with me. The new natural gas power plant may be online, but it makes no noise and emits no smoke, wow. Yellow Banks was gorgeous as always, many people fishing in the river and along the shore. The toilet facilities at YB had been looking a bit abused, but they are in fine shape now. Check out this soon-to-be fully developed water trail. Also, I enjoyed visiting with several people at YB, including a friendly canoeing couple from Des Moines who got out their map and marvelled at the idea of paddling from Estherville to Keokuk. Go for it.
8/8/04
A tale of a water trail sign. The water trail sign at the SE 14th St. access (Harriet St.) went under water in early June. As the water receded in late July, I was sad to see no sign of it (ha!). Then, last week, the sign(s) and the metal post were lying by the boat ramp, fished out by the local natives I would guess. I had talked with Parks Director Don Tripp about placing the sign higher up the bank to keep it above water just a few days before at the Principal Riverwalk dedication, so I gave him a call. "We'll take care of it right away," he said, and two days later the sign was cleaned up and moved to higher ground. Thanks to Don and the city workers. And, the area is staying pretty nice with regular trash pickups.
7/11/04
Canoe Van Buren was a big success. The first CVB was in 2000, the event was held in
2001, and 2002, then cancelled in 2003. More than 90 people in 60 canoes and kayaks
participated. A big thank you to the Villages of Van Buren and the VBC Trails
Association for all their hospitality and hard work. We saw water trail signs at
several stops, in a few months the water trail should begin to take shape. Photos and videos.
6/28/04
River levels led to the cancellation of the river sections of Project AWARE. More
than 100 volunteers spent time cleaning up in the Des Moines River watershed between
Humboldt and Des Moines. See the Ames
Tribune article.
I enjoyed the time spent with AWARE, but I was disappointed that the group did not spend
any time on the Des Moines. I put in about 80 miles on the river. My week with
AWARE went something like this:
6/6/04
I had a nice run from Sycamore Access to Prospect Park in Des Moines. 12,000 cfs
made for an average of 4.5 mph. Power boaters were coming too close for comfort, I
think they were wanting to run me off, fat chance. Is it really legal to go 140 mph
on the Des Moines River? One crazy told me he did that by Cottonwood, he blew by me
so close he sprayed me with his jet engine going 37 mph by the bike trail bridge south of
Euclid.
Be advised, Yellow Banks boat ramp is closed (open as of 6/10, you may want to call
ahead), as is Jester Park. You can get onto the lake at Madrid and Luther, but there
is no current. Ledges is closed, there is some current at Hwy. 30. Hopefully
things will get more river-like by Project AWARE.
5/22/04
Thanks to Skunk River paddlers for a good trip from Sleepy Hollow to River Valley Park.
We had a great time on the river before the big rains fell. Check out
Saylorville Dam by the way. It's been going up 5 feet a day, it will be full in 5
days at that rate, so look for a lot more water coming down the Des Moines River into
downtown. Get ready for some sandbagging if we get a lot more rain.
My water trail sign at Harriet St. is under 5 feet of water, but it will get moved to
higher ground when the water recedes. I saved the trash can at Harriet St. thanks to
the warning from the USACE predictor.
Thanks to Rep. Boswell and Principal for an excellent Trails Summit on 5/27. This
was an excellent opportunity for a variety of trail advocates to hear each other out and
look for common ground. Rep. Boswell was optimistic that more federal trail money is
coming to Iowa, and there was a surprise announcement of a new funding initiative for
trails from the Greater Des Moines Partnership.
My lovely wife and I went to Colorado for a niece's graduation. We took time to
visit paddler friendly whitewater courses in Golden (Clear Creek) and in Denver
(Confluence Park on the South Platte). I have video for your edification and
entertainment, including an amazing
flying kayaker.
Saturday, April 10,
Clean-up and float trip. We had a lucky 13 from Central Iowa
Paddlers to pick up, the city sent Angel with a garbage truck, and we had the place
looking good in 90 minutes. It was a little chilly, but Rick, Dick and I had a good
paddle to Yellow Banks.
Jeff at YB says the new boat ramp at Hwy. 65 will be in by July. Eagles, herons,
geese and cormorants were seen and enjoyed.
3/13/04 and 3/28/04
Just me, 6 miles from Sycamore access in Johnston to
Prospect Park access in Des Moines. Thanks to John T for checking in. It was
windy, with some pretty good waves at times and occasional spray in the face. The
river was low by Saylor Creek, I had to do some walking. There were many gulls and
several eagles that stayed close by. I got in just before the 40 mph winds kicked
in.
The March 28 runfrom Harriet Street to Yellow Banks was lovely, with somewhat fickle
weather. One minute sunny and warm, then rainy, then the wind would bluster for a
few minutes. The city is doing a really nice job of keeping the big junk out, the
trash can is being used. The trail sign needs to move to higher ground (the top of
the ramp would be good).
I had much fun with the camera, check it out. This the panoramic view of
the Vandalia Road bluffs east of Hwy. 65, and another view as the river turns south towards Yellow
Banks past smaller loess formations. Also, later winter and early spring
river photos from around the state
2/21/04
Sycamore to Cottonwood fishing pier, not a long trip but filled with beautiful natural
sights. With flow rates at about 200 cfs, it's easy to get to the many sandbars and
spend time watching the wildlife. Last week, I drove into the Sycamore Access
parking lot and got stuck in a foot of snow, but I got out eventually (thanks to the kind
gentleman who gave me a push and got me out of the icy rut). Saturday there was
still some snow, but it was melting fast. I'm hoping we get a little water this year
(but not too much).
This is the debut of a new digital camera, a Panasonic FZ10 with more megapixels, bigger
zoom, and longer video clips. I was very pleased with the results of the first
outing, check it out.
2/15/04
I am thrilled that Des Moines Parks and Recreation has put up water trail signs at Prospect Park and Harriet St. boat ramps. We have water trails in Des Moines!
Read Nate Hoogeveen's new book Paddling Iowa. It will be for sale at Canoesport Outfitters during Expo, and it is at bookstores and outfitters now. You may also contact Nate at paddlingiowa~at~yahoo.com. (See Front Cover) The book is $19.95 plus tax. It is published by Trails Books, Black Earth, Wisconsin.
1/12/04
There is an effort underway to convince the Des Moines Water Works to change its proposed
low-head dam on the Raccoon River by Interstate 35 to a tapered dam with gradual rock
rapids. Read more about it.
Also, there is fund raising going on by the Iowa
Whitewater Coalition to turn the dams in downtown Des Moines into safed, multipurpose
structures. There is a raffle on a white water boat donated by Canoesport Outfitters
and there will be an Iowa River's Cookbook supported by generous donations from Des Moines
visionaries.
An excellent Armchair Paddler on water quality monitoring at Canoesport Outfitters on
1/11/04. Thanks to presenters and audience, good job Robin.
Project AWARE is June 19-26,
Gotch Park to Des Moines. Registration forms are available.
1/4/04
We had a great New Year's Day Paddle, only one
person got dumped. See photos of New Year's day paddle from
Sycamore Access.
12/20/03
Big news . . . New Red Wing boat ramp near Hwy. 61 in Keokuk improves river access!! I paddled from Harriet St. access up near Scott Ave. on 12/20/03, many eagles around the area. It was good to get out after being sick (flu and pneumonia) since Thanksgiving. My streak is intact, paddled every month since April of 1997.
Des Moines Public Works is doing a nice job of keeping the Harriet St. (Des Moines) boat ramp cleaned up. I watched eagles fishing and in the trees. Also, a great big mature bald eagle flew right in front of me at the Yellow Banks boat ramp. I'll be kayaking at Harriet St. tomorrow. I'm still planning a New Year's trip from Sycamore to Saylorville at 10 AM New Year's Day.
The Federal Trails Grant committee was appreciative of the Skunk River Water Trail grant, so we'll see. These grants are geared to multi-purpose trails, and water trails are the most multi-purpose you can have. Van Buren reports they are in the bid letting process and that they are willing to share helpful hints to get through all the hoops more quickly. Thanks to the DOT's Steven Bowman for all his assistance.
