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| The beginning of a perfect day |
This past spring I found myself with an unplanned mid-week day off due to lack of work. Most of the time I welcome these days and scramble to find someone to join me in some type of outdoor endeavor. With notice going out the night before I couldn't find anyone in a similar situation so I planned for a peaceful kayak ride down the Le Sueur River solo.
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| looks fun right ? |
As I loaded my kayak gear I threw in a couple pack-rafts and a dry suit just in case. On my way south I stopped at a little park, the detour nothing more than slowing down and taking a right hand turn. The creek I had checked out on my way home a couple weeks prior was now flowing strong and from what I had seen looked to be a fun ride. The Le Sueur would have to wait just a little, maybe an hour and a half. From the parking lot, the pack-raft now loaded on my back, I hiked up river on the well worn trails that honeycombed the park with a watchful eye dead falls and strainers in the creek. Less than a mile upriver, as the rapids looked like they were petering out and the vegetation was beginning to make the paddle more trouble than it's worth, I dropped in.
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| There are twelve of these at the end of the run..looked to be recently built....going back with kids next spring so they can have fun too |
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| Rush River |
.On my way down, I hit bottom a few times and ducked and weaved through dead falls, but damn was I having fun. With the water being way up from recent rain, I didn't take long for my true plan to materialize, something I was waiting for but wanted a couple other paddlers to join in as a challenging day.....kayak or raft three of the "fun" rivers in the vicinity. I say fun because they all have long stretches of class I and II white water, with one rapid pushing a III at really high levels. The creek I was on would just be an unforeseen bonus, upping my challenge to 4 creeks in a day, unfortunately the challenge would be mine alone.The Le Sueur was definitely going to wait, I had a mission and with a late start I would have to hustle.
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| Start point on High Island Creek |
The first creek was 7 Mile Creek just north of Mankato, from there I headed 10-12 miles north to Rush River. Rush was flowing well and was lots of fun, it's wider than all the others and strainers or trees completely blocking the river were non existent. After a quick shuttle with the mountain bike and a snack in the van on the way to High Island Creek, I was back in my boat in about an hour and a half. High Island is a favorite of mine, since finding it a couple years ago I've been down about a half dozen times. Feeling comfortable running this creek solo, I decided to give the now discontinued Alpacka CuriYak a run. I bought a couple of them for my kids when they were closing them out, and I wanted to see how they would behave in some light white water.
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| Lots of this |
As the description stated....the CuriYak didn't do so well in anything but flat water. At about 200 pounds, when I went through the rapids the stern would drop in and fill the boat with water. My kids weigh much less, and in the summer months I'd have no problem letting them run this river and maybe get a little wet. If not for the dry suit this would have been a miserable run, by the end of it I was a little chilled despite staying dry. Last but not least, came Sand Creek, this run is fantastic and has the biggest water. I was a little nervous since it looked way higher than when I ran it last, it also usually has some strainers in the worst possible places, usually in fast water and in the spots where the river pulls you in. By now I had three creeks done and had plenty of time to run this one ,so I went for it, but was cautious. The run went without a hitch, but did contain two sketchy areas with trees all the way across the river. I still haven't paddled the Le Sueur River....maybe next spring.
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| The take out.....1/2 mile hike to the shuttle bike or several more miles of paddling fast moving but flat, water |
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| Back in the Yukon Yak on Sand Creek.....all photos basically look the same cuz no one else was with me to take pictures of |
x 4
1) 7 Mile Creek... approx 1 mile
2) Rush River...... 6 miles
3) High Island Creek.......5+ miles
4) Sand Creek...........5+ miles
Bike shuttle..........approx 20 miles
I'm up for it again next spring and may add in one more..... Cobb River?
D Rider........................out
