Those pics are fantastic. Thanks for sharing carvedog. I hope the look on my little crumb-snatcher's face is that completely euphoric. What river was this on?
Those pics are fantastic. Thanks for sharing carvedog. I hope the look on my little crumb-snatcher's face is that completely euphoric. What river was this on?
thanks yakmom. I thought being on the river was great and then getting out there with my family took it to a whole new level.
The river is the Middle Fork Salmon last September.
We did get stuck once pretty badly ( tying a fly on instead of rowing) but the flip/swim potential is very low that time of year. For me anyway since I used to guide out there. I still wonder if I am soft in the head for taking the kids out there this young. But they do seem to be at their best when we are out there, so I guess I'll keep going.
We flew them into Indian Creek ( 25 miles down) and then went 5 nights/six days down from there. Thanks for letting me share ladies.
edit to add: those last couple of pics are the day stretch of the Headwaters Main Salmon near Stanley.
River dad here, but the mom could post the photos just as well! We just came off a trip about a week ago. Wow, how much fun we had! It was probably the best vacation of our lives. We ran the top Boundary to Cache Bar in eight days. The kids loved it, especially when they started fishing.
What's with the helmets? Probably not necessary, except for when they were in the IKs. This trip was self-supported so we didn't know what to expect for a first-time adventure on this river. The flows were perfect and the rapids were totally manageable, especially with a tad of scouting.
That Lake Creek second rapid is another story - what a shocker! Lots of whitewater and it tries to push you into a mega rock and drop place.
The MF Salmon is a great river for kids at 2' and below as far as I'm concerned.
Hey gals, I have been a boater my whole life & reciently became a mom! I have stumbled across a few other boater moms, & would Love to connect with more! It's great to have friends you can connect with on many levels...
HI
I am a mom with three teenagers. At age 52 I want to become an experienced river rafter (I've always been a kayaker) I need suggestions for a raft that is easy for me to row and that can cary gear for 5 people for multiple day trips. I am 5' 4" and weigh 115 lbs. I welcome suggestions!
My friend is your size and captains a 16 ft vanguard with her 3 kids (we're about your age also). Mostly class IIIs. The kids are in duckies alot. Another friend rows a 14 ft Hyside with 2 pre teen kids and she is your size.
I am 5"10 and do ok with a loaded boat through IIIs. I am well conditioned. We still have a 14ft Maravia and a duckie with our 2 teens. We are going to add a 16fter for our longer trips. Its nice to have the boat just with my hubby now when they are in the IK or in another boat. When the teens are in the boat, so much insight into the teen person is gained.
The amount of gear doesn't really change, just the size of the passengers. We carry more food of course.
We started out in canoes, john boats to raft and IK.
My kids have grown up on the water. Our 15 yr old daughter is loving taking over the oars, seeing her confidence grow on the water and in life. I'd add a photo but can't figure it out. Our 12 yr old son swam this summer on his first solo rapid from the IK. But got back in and was ready to go.
I love this forum! Two replies within 1 hour of posting my question.
We have been using a 16ft cataraft and I've had a hard time rowing it. I'm not strong enough. I depend on my husband to row and deal with all the equipment while I take care of all the food and kids' stuff. It's a typical division of labor.
Probably what I really need to do is spend more time rowing and getting better. I'm going to do a 5 day raft guide training this spring on the Animas River which is literally in my backyard. I want to be self sufficient so I can do trips without my husband. My kids can certainly be in duckies so I need a raft big enough for gear and food for say a 4 day trip. I also want my kids (ages 18,16,13) to become better rowers - so it needs to be a boat that they can row too.
A friend of mine with two kids has a NRS E150 and she recommended I get that. It's pricey. Brand new it's $5250 and that's without the frame.
A 15 foot raft is right between the two suggestions for a 14 and a 16 footer.
OMG! carvedog, that is soooooo cool!!! No you are not crazy for taking a 4yo on the middle fork, my dad took me on the middle fork at 4... also, I turned 7 on the Salmon too!!!! (The main though,) but still how cool is that! What lucky girls you have!!! BTW, can you tell me how you posted the pictures to the body of the message????
peggyz, you absoulty CAN row a 16' raft... it's about finess, not streingth. you could row an 18 footer! I know many small women who are great rafters! We had a rookie guide at my company this year who was like 5ft nothing and maby 110... maby, & she did awesome! I am not a small woman, so it took me years to learn how to finess... but believe me, it is much better than muscling & you will learn quickly. I would think more about what you are running than your streingth when considering boat size. 12-14 footers are great for all these little low water techincal rivers like the animas, arkansas or rio grande. 16-18 footers are better for high volume rivers like the green & colorado.
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"There is nothing in this world my dear friend, nothing! Quite so delightfull as messing about in boats! Simply messing about in boats! said Ratty to Mole." -The Wind in The Willows
Our kids have had most of their birthdays on the river. We've even had their friends with us for their friends' memorable birthdays.
Wanted to share our 15 year old with her immunity necklace on the San Juan this summer for her birthday. Allowed her no chores for 24 hours. She could also ask each person on the trip to do something for her. We then passed the necklace onto the next birthday guy and gal on each successive night. Nothing better than a DO cake on the river.
I agree with rivermamma, size does not make the rower, but rather the fitness and finesse of the captain with hours and miles to hone our skills. Our daughter is rowing lots now and is wanting to guide when she hits that age. Always knowing our limits is what makes us great boaters.
On our trip on the San Juan in June, all 5 of our rafts were managed by us gals (all over 48 years old). The men were loving being in the duckies with kids and passengers on the boats.
We have been using a 16ft cataraft and I've had a hard time rowing it. I'm not strong enough. I depend on my husband to row and deal with all the equipment while I take care of all the food and kids' stuff. It's a typical division of labor.
Have you checked into your rigging setup? If it is hard to row, maybe it's overloaded, which makes cats like big pigs. Or maybe the weight it not very well centered, or in relation to where the oars are. A well loaded boat shouldn't be that tough to row on mellow water, so if that's a problem you might look into your rigging/loading.
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