Well, it's been a while since my last post, May 8th or so. Since then we have been in a sort of a drought with rain and river levels way below normal. Lots of work was done on the river on May 10th and 11th, on the 11th the infamous "Vortex of Death" was pretty much removed with 3+ hours of work by 3 strong men! Thanks!
On May 17th a pre-Paddlepalooza run discovered a very large jam which required a portage. The City of Auburn Hills was aware of it and it was actually (barely) cut through for the Paddlepalooza. (more on that later)
Over Memorial Day Weekend, many logs were thrown into the river, possibly by the damn beavers! These were cut into smaller more manageable pieces!
For the Paddlepalooza, the Oakland County Drain Commission did NOT come through! The water was way below average and the "race" was grueling! It was more like a hike than a paddle! But as they say (whoever "they" are) - 'A bad day on the river is better than a good day at work!'
There were around 40 or so boaters on the water that day and they earned every yard of river they walked!
On June 10th we joined Curt and Lori for an "Upper" MCR paddle from Elizabeth Lake Road into Cass Lake to Dodge Park No. 4. It was a wonderful trip and everyone had a great time!
On June 13th an organized trip down the river with "6 Rivers Adventure League" was made. The run was from Ryan to Van Dyke (Heritage Park) and there were around 25 or 30 people, it was a technical run with low water but a very nice evening.
A few more paddle trips were taken on June 24th and 26th. There was quite a large group on the 26th. Also, our friends at Clinton River Canoe & Kayak (Jerry and Rene Reis) aka Outdoor Escorts, found out they will be running the "Boathouse" in downtown Mt. Clemens across from the Gazebo - Congratulations! I am not sure of all the details, but once I find out I'll post the info here.
Not the MCR, but I was up in Mio/Fairview and ran the Au Sable river July 1st from Mio to Cummings Landing. It was a good trip with lots of scenery and wildlife!
On July 3rd (my birthday!) we had some strong stroms come through and dump some water. Dale made a trip down the river and on July 4th he made a run with Linda P. and didn't have his saw! There were a few trees down. On July 5th we took an afternoon paddle from Ryan to Van Dyke with some new friends Dale and Johnathon, first time on moving water and they did great!
Richey G. and Jim McH. made a run down the Paint Creek on the 4th and had and obstruction free run with some decent flow. Jim made a second run so it must have been good!
A final note to someone who emailed me, tried to get back with you but it didn't go through. The question was where could you go down with your kids. Here is the breakdown. The Upper MCR from Elizabeth Lake Rd. to Cass Lake/Dodge #4 State Park is easy. The Auburn Hills section from Squirrel and Auburn to Avon & Livernois is not too bad but only good if there is some water otherwise it would be a hike like the Paddlepalooza! Avon & Livernois to Yates (3 hours) is the fastest most gradient section and is an advanced area if the water is above 1.75 on the Auburn Hills gage. Yates to Ryan is an hour long run and is on the easy side. Ryan to Van Dyke is 2 hours and considered easy at lower water. The section through Sterling Heights' Dodge Park (Van Dyke to Garfield or so) is not being cleared and has many jams with nasty portages. (watch out for poison ivy)
The Budd Park (Clinton River Road) to Mt. Clemens (either Shadyside Park at Gratiot or the actual Downtown area with take out at the YMCA) is an easy stretch. Don't take the spillway on that last route, turn Left at the spillway. I'll try and post a more detailed blog note to detail all the runs with put in and take out spots and more descriptions.
Thanks for reading my blog! It is 12:30am and I needs to gets to bed! (I may go back and update this blog some time to also add more detail and more pictures, just wanted to get this thing updated!)
Until next time, maybe we'll see you on the river!
Rick
