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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (June 3, 2017)
LIFESTYLES WEEKEND, JUNE 3-4, 2017 Photo courtesy Zan Aslett It can be hard to stay focused on loading the rafts each morning when surrounded by the stunning John Day Valley. Photo courtesy Richie Gardner Scanning the far hills at dusk gives you a good chance to spot a herd of California Bighorn sheep. Floating the John Day River can be the best way to see the often-scorching scenery T Photo courtesy Zan Aslett Rock and sage-covered hills line much of the John Day River. RAFTING DESERT he John Day River’s rafting season is short. The scorching temperatures of the desert valley quickly decimate snowpack and siphoning for agricultural production often leaves the river unrunnable by midsummer for all but the lightest of vessels. So in the few weeks when it is warm enough to sleep outside and the river is still relatively full of water, the John Day gets packed with an array of colorful floaters in search of smallmouth bass and a suntan, a few fun rapids, great stargazing and the oppor- tunity to float lazily down the third-longest undammed river in America. canyon walls. But one of the joys of floating is This Memorial Day Weekend, our six-boat crew (three large rafts, two hard-shell the ability to tumble off the side of the raft into the cool water whenever the thought pleases. kayaks and one inflatable kayak) navigated Along the way, we were serenaded by the 70-mile Wild & Scenic stretch of river western meadowlarks and canyon wrens, between Clarno Bridge and Cottonwood and watched curiously by colorful Bullock’s Canyon. It took five days and four nights, orioles and the spying eyes of chukars looking although you could add or subtract a day or down from their rocky perches. The small- two depending on the urgency of your return. mouth bass fishing is excellent — it’s not But urgency isn’t something that comes unreasonable to catch 30 in a day, and because naturally along the float, which is marked they are plentiful and an by cataclysmic geology, introduced species, anglers astounding wildlife and More online are welcome to keep and a roadless and motorless For video of the eat them. There is no daily section that leaves rafting journey limit and can make for thoughts and worries of down the river visit excellent eating. the workaday world far eastoregonian.com On successive evenings behind. around a riverside This year has been campfire, equipped with binoculars, we were an exceptionally good one for the river, able to watch two different herds of bighorn with flows topping out at 10-year highs and sheep pick their way across the high ridge, pushing through more than 20,000 cubic silhouetted against a twilight sky. On another feet of water per second. But by Memorial night we watched three peregrine falcons Day those high flows were already dropping return to their rocky perch to fly bombing runs dramatically, down to 4,000 cfs. So in order to capitalize on the water while through the hoodoos and vertical columns like fighter pilots, either looking for a last meal of it’s in the river, the crowds were substantial. the day or just showing off for one another. We were joined by dozens upon dozens of others, camping at picturesque spots along the A rattlesnake slithered through the middle of camp the same eveening, eliciting a few way and marveling at the valley’s remarkable gasps, and massive elk tracks were found in geology and sparse beauty. the riverside sand the next morning. Temperatures were in the 90s throughout There are two sets of rapids along the route most of the days, and shade on the river that require attention. The first is Upper and is limited to a few scarce juniper trees. Lower Clarno, located just five miles from the Sunscreen had to be applied liberally and put-in, and the second is Basalt Rapids, about hourly, but even so it prove no match for 12 miles farther downstream. Neither are that much direct sun and the oven-like bare THE By TIM TRAINOR ♦ East Oregonian Photo courtesy Zan Aslett The leisurely float makes for excellent sightseeing and wildlife watching. terribly difficult, but both contain holes that could easily flip a watercraft that ventures too close. Scout both before running. We rescued one fisherman caught on rocks and ejected from his catamaran, so even in safe sections you’ll want to keep your wits about you. An upstream wind often kicks up in the afternoon, so if you’re trying to cover miles you’ll want to get an early start. Being a desert river surrounded by a tinderbox of cheatgrass and dry sage, fire pans are required year round and no fires of any kind are allowed from June 1 to October 1. You are required to have a toilet system to carry out your waste. Floating permits are required on the Clarno to Cottonwood section during the primary boating season from late May to early July. Currently those permits are unlimited, which means the river and put-ins and take-outs can get very busy. It’s worth it. ■ Tim Trainor is outdoor page editor of the East Oregonian. Send your outdoor stories and photos his way at ttrainor@eastoregonian.com. Staff photo by Tim Trainor Photo courtesy Zan Aslett The John Day River oxbows often in the 70-mile stretch between Clarno and Cottonwood Canyon. Rafting and kayaking allows you to get up close and personal with the remarkable geology along the river.
