Video from our recon trip to the South Fork. Other than the fact that we got flipped 3 times, it’s a pretty cool video. Check it out!
It was actually a pretty nice trip, overall. I can see why people from the Bay Area like to come here. You can make it to the river, raft a trip, and still make it back home before the sun sets. The campgrounds have full facilities–the nicer ones even have hot showers, from what I’ve heard. There’s a very nice gear shop, The River Store, just around the corner from the takeout for the Chili Bar run. They even run a shuttle service so you can leave your ride at the put-in and retrieve it later.
Disadvantages include everyone having a hand in your pocket, even if it’s only a $1. We got charged some cash everywhere we went, from the takeout to the put in, and almost everything in between. Highly commercialized, and quite crowded. Very different from the isolation we’re used to at the Kings.
We did the Chili Bar run, which is a beginner’s course just prior to the intermediate Gorge run downstream towards Folsom Reservoir. The 3 biggest rapids on this run were enough to flip our 2-man kayak, but I think we’d stand a better chance with a real raft with a half to full complement crew. The latter half of the run is more like a pond, having to really work the kayak to get moving … the current was close to non-existent in some parts. Very slow, not very consistent.
Most of the rapids were prior to the last big one, Troublemaker. I’d classify this river, at 1700 CFS, to be a good Class III+ with Triple Threat and Troublemaker the ones pushing that up there. The thing about this river at this level is how technical it can get, especially when the water gets rough.
At Meatgrinder, the first big one, we encountered a long train of whitewater all the way through the rapid. We took a right hand line, where we should have taken center, perhaps. Following a raft ahead of us, we saw them flip at a large curl wave from the right. Not being able to correct by the time we saw that happen, we went in along with them. Portaging back to the kayak was tricky, but not difficult.
Second big rapid we came across, Triple Threat, was also a long train of whitewater leading into a narrow area with a big wave in the middle. There is no easy way to get through this one, and without enough momentum to get us through that big wave, we easily flipped and capsized. We stayed with the kayak this time, though, and managed to flip it back upright before continuing on.
The last rapid, Troublemaker, was much faster than the previous two, and more technical. The trick here was a fast approach from the right to left, then a quick right turn into hole. Not being able to turn the kayak soon enough before we hit the curling waves on the left hand side, we were easily flipped and carried through the rapid. I was rescued by a El Dorado County Sheriff’s raft (wut?) and Colin stayed with the kayak until he took out about 1/4 mile downstream at a big campground.
It may be worth coming back here with a full crew if we can raft both Chili Bar and the Gorge, but know that from Troublemaker to Lotus Camp the river is quite slow (yes, tubers slow). But at least Colin found what he wants to do: Sheriff raft rescue!
