paddling with a camera

Tag: Evans

  • Paddling South Platte River from Evans to Kuner and beyond

    Paddling South Platte River from Evans to Kuner and beyond

    South Platte River paddling

    This year Annual Joint Club Paddle returned back to a traditional section of the South Platte River on March 26th. The trip started from the Riverside Park in Evans and eded up after 9 miles at Kersey or after 15 miles at Kuner. It was a nice weather and plenty of water for paddling at ~700 cfs flow at Kersey.

    stand up paddleboards on South Platte River

    There were 3 stand up paddleboards this year. I paddled 13.2’x30″ Voyager by Red Paddle, inflatable touring SUP with a pivoting fin by Frogfish. I paddled with the main group to the first dam, and then went a little bit faster reaching Kuner after ~3.5 hours and 15.4 miles.

    paddlers on South Platte River

    There were some changes on the river. Portages over dams were somewhat more difficult, especially, for larger groups. The group did a longer portage over the first dam on a left shore. I managed to do a short portage portage on the right. I wanted to be on the right shore for some photography.

    SUP portage over dam

    Is it possible to paddle downriver from Kuner to Fort Morgan?
    Is it worth it?
    My answer for both questions is yes.

    10-20 years I was actively training for marathon paddle races including Texas Water Safari and WaterTribe events. It motivated me to paddle in winter and spring when lakes in northern Colorado were frozen. During that time I explored different sections of the South Platte River all the way to Fort Morgan and a little further to the Snyder bridge.

    I still have some old pictures, stories and blog posts from this series of “paddling on wet sand”, probably, with many broken links. Sorry! At least, they can give some ideas what to expect.

    There are numerous dams and a lot of water diversion. So, it is really necessary to check river flow data and plan accordingly. Sometimes, it may be wiser just to paddle the Evans to Kuner section with a more reliable flow. It’s better to plan shorter paddling sections or/and have some exit strategy if your paddling is going slower that expected. I paddled at flows as low as 100 cfs at Masters, but it required a lot of kayak dragging.

    Good news: some dams may be opened and runnable, especially, in winter and early spring.

    Related posts:
    My First Paddling on the South Platte River near Greeley
    New Year Paddling – 22 Miles to Fort Morgan on the South Platte River
    Paddling on Wet Sand: Discovering the South Platte River in Eastern Colorado
    Paddling on Wet Sand: the South Platte River below Fort Morgan
    30+ Miles of South Platte River in Eastern Colorado

  • Scouting the South Platte River near Greeley, Colorado

    Scouting the South Platte River near Greeley, Colorado

    I haven’t paddled the South Platte since the last winter, so I decided to do some scouting around Greeley. There some changes …

    Riverside Park at Evans with a river access

    Riverside Park at Evans

    The park was rebuilt after flooding damages and reopened in October of 2018. The river access requires a longer walk than it used to be, but it is more comfortable. A concrete path leads directly to a huge sandbar. No more scrambling downhill through that concrete rubbish. The parking lot is accessible only from the 37th Street in Evans. You cannot drive around ball fields as before.

    Kersey – county road 53

    There is a construction of new bridge, so no parking along that road near the river. A little spot good for a couple of cars next to a water gage is still open. It looks like the main river channel is not obstructed, but I did not have a chance to check more carefully.

    Update: Weld County Road 53 will be closed from March 25 until April 29. The new bridge is built, and the are down to connecting the new roadway to the old roadway and then demolishing the existing bridge. I am sure it will change the river access.

    Kuner – county road 61

    It looks the same.

    Milliken – highway 60

    Another bridge construction. It used to be a good parking spot there with a not easy but doable river access. It’s gone now! This was the end of my favorite “Wildcat Mound” river section with a start at the lower St Vrain Creek. Of course, you can paddle further downriver to Evans, but it would be 17 instead of 7 miles with 2 additional dam portages.

    South Platte River at Evans looking downstream

    Self shuttle

    In the past, I did several river trips with a self shuttle using inline skates or bike to carry a packraft or towing a kayak. A traffic along, and, especially, across the river in Weld County has significantly increased during last a few years – a lot of farm and cistern tracks. It makes my self shuttling less attractive.

    Wildlife rangers

    In February of 2017 I had a long chat with a Weld County wildlife ranger under the Kuner bridge. I was lectured that I couldn’t legally access the river there, because the Kuner and Kersey bridges had no right off way and landowners could get upset. They also don’t allow to launch any boats from Mitani-Tokuyasu SWA above Kersey (I was using that spot 15 years or so). The ranger got some landowners complaints about trespassing, but none against paddlers. During my 20 years of paddling the South Platte I didn’t upset anybody except two wildlife rangers.

    A few years ago, a friend wanted to train with a racing canoe on the South Platte during winter, So he called Colorado Parks and Wildlife Department. He heard the same story. Yes, you can paddle the river. No, you cannot legally access the river anywhere (Kersey was specifically mentioned). However, they didn’t mentioned, that there were several public riverside parks along the South Platte below Denver including Brighton, Fort Lupton, Evans or Fort Morgan. My impression is that they really represent interests of hunters and landowners. Paddling or recreational use of the river is just a nuisance.

    I am still paddling the Horsetooth Reservoir this winter, but my first paddling on the South Platte will be the upstream/downstream workout starting at Evans Riverside Park. I am also checking water levels at St Vrain Creek.

    Related links:
    South Platte River below Denver, Colorado GPS/photo river guide (updates are required)
    South Platte River from Wildcat to Evans by SUP
    Wildcat Mound Run – the South Platte River by Bike and Packraft

  • South Platte River from Wildcat to Evans by SUP

    South Platte River from Wildcat to Evans by SUP

    March 14, 2015. 16 miles stand up paddling (SUP) trip from Wildcat on St Vrain Creek on the South Platte River to Evans Rob Bean. Beautiful, warm weather. Numereous bald eagles, turkeys and other birds, one turtle, and surprisingly a lot of people with children playing on the river.River flow: St Vrain Cr at mouth 230 cfs, South Platte River at Fort Lupton ~350cfs. Water level on the South Platte was lower than during my last trip. Some of rocks near Wildcat Mound visible in my aerial photos were exposed. I used a short fin on my Badfish SUP and paddled without special problems, but Rob was forced to remove his regular fin in the last miles of paddling..

    We finished our trip at highway 85 bridge at Evans about 1 mile upstream from the closed Riverside Park. I was describing this place in my previous posts: comfortable parking (limited to ~10 cars) at the end of frontage road, a pretty good river access under the bridge, but the place has a lot of “urban” character (graffiti, garbage, beer bottles).

    Rob’s pictures from this paddling on facebook.

    Access to the river from the county road 19.5 looks more or less the same as before flooding. River flow ~200cfs. I started paddling trips here with flow as low as 90cfs.
    Wildcat – March 8, 2015. Access to the river from the county road 19.5 looks more or less the same as before flooding. River flow ~200cfs.
    paddling South Platte River by SUP
    Rob is paddling on St Vrain Creek just above confluence with South Platte River
    paddling South Platte River by SUP
    The first diversion dam above highway 60 bridge.
    paddling South Platte River by SUP
    Railroad trestle below highway 60 bridge.
    paddling South Platte River by SUP
    Portaging the 2nd dam. Water was low enough to just go over the dam.
    paddling South Platte River by SUP
    Landing at Evans under highway 85 bridge.
  • Paddling SUP on South Platte River from Kersey to Kuner

    Paddling SUP on South Platte River from Kersey to Kuner

    March 8, 2015. A short, 7 mile, stand up paddling (SUP) trip on the South Platte River from Kersey to Kuner with Rob Bean and a company of goose, deer, and bald eagles. It was easy paddling with a good flow of 1100 cfs and beautiful warm weather. After, paddling I did some river scouting around Evans Riverside Park and further upstream.

    Rob’s pictures from this paddling on facebook.


    paddling SUP on South Platte River
    Launching our paddleboards below Kersey bridge next to water gauge station

    paddling SUP on South Platte River
    I paddled my Badfish SUP with a short fin and never touched the bottom. Rob paddled with a regular fin and had to step out of his board once or twice, but I believe it would be possible to avoid any shallows with a more careful navigation.
    paddling SUP on South Platte River
    Finishing our run at Kuner on left shore above the bridge
    paddling SUP on South Platte River
    A typical bridge river access on the South Platte.
    A part of Riverside Park at Evans reopened in September 2014 with entry from 42nd Street. There is access to a small lake, but no access to the river.
    A part of Riverside Park at Evans reopened in September 2014 with entry from 42nd Street. There is access to a small lake, but no access to the river.
    Evans river access
    A bike trail going under hwy 85 bridge at Evans. Off road parking at the end of frontage road. The river access is not bad for the South Platte standards (no fences), but the under bridge scenery is pretty ugly.
    Bike trail destroyed by South Platte River flooding
    And, the bike trail ends just below the bridge. This is how probably the river shore looks further downstream at Riverside Park after the 2013 flooding.
    St Vrain Creek above confluence with the South Platte River.
    Let’s move 16 miles upstream: St Vrain Creek at Wildcat about 1 mile before the confluence with the South Platte.
    Access to the river from the county road 19.5 looks more or less the same as before flooding. River flow ~200cfs. I started paddling trips here with flow as low as 90cfs.
    Access to the river from the county road 19.5 (no fences) looks more or less the same as before flooding. River flow ~200cfs. I have started paddling trips here with flow as low as 90cfs.
  • Opening 2015 Paddling Season on the South Platte River

    Opening 2015 Paddling Season on the South Platte River

    winter paddling on South Platte River
    Paddling Sea Wind canoe upstream of the South Platte River above Masters

    March 6, 2015. Finally, I started my 2015 paddling season on the South Platte River. I took Sea Wind canoe to Masters (about 28 miles east of Greeley on highway 34) and paddled 2.5 miles upstream and back: easy workout, a short photo session, watching bald eagles and deer.

    Masters offers a typical bridge access to the river with a barbed wire fence and wide shoulder parking. It is similar to Kuner access, perhaps a little easier and shorter. There is a diversion dam just above the bridge. It was open and easy to paddle in both directions. Several diversion dams below Kuner can be open and runnable, at least in winter. River flow was much lower (~650cfs) than at Kersey (~1000cfs), but I still had plenty of water to paddle.

    Riverside Park at Evans.The main park access from 37th Street remains closed, but the park was partially open in September 2014. Here is information from City of Evans webpage:

    On September 13, 2013, Colorado experienced widespread flood destruction from what the media referred to as “biblical” rains. Riverside Park was completely destroyed in that flood.
    One year after the flood, on September 13, 2014, the City was able to proudly open a section of the park accessible from 42nd Street. The 7-acre Riverside Lake was opened for fishing and a portion of the trail around the lake was opened as well.

    It would be worth to check if there is an easy access to the river from the reopened part of the park. Last year, I was looking for an alternative river access at Evans. There is a possibility to launch boats under the highway 85 bridge (the end of the frontage road on left shore where a bike trail starts).

    South Platte River 2 miles above Masters
    South Platte River 2 miles above Masters

  • Car Photography Session on the South Platte River

    I started my winter paddling season on the South Platte River in the middle of November. It was a short trip, rather a photo session. The goal was to photograph old cars on the river shore at the Patterson Ditch dam. That time I packed my “big” camera, Canon EOS 40D together with a tripod, launched my Thunderbolt-X kayak at Evans Riverside Park and paddled about two miles down river to the dam.

    I spent about one hour shooting the dam and old cars protecting river banks. I was planning to start paddling back exactly at sunset, but I stayed at the dam much longer enjoying the gentle light after sunset. I paddled upstream with in a falling darkness. It was a good workout. Only once I got stacked in a sandbar. Hundreds of geese were landing on the river and ponds nearby. At the end I had some problems to find my launching spot and a pathway to my car. It seems it was much easier to paddle on the river than to carry kayak on land in the complete darkness.

    It wasn’t the first time when I photographed these old cars. It must be some strange attraction. Here are my three earlier posts where these old cars were involved:


  • Paddling Sisson Nucleus on South Platte River above Evans

    A nice sunny weather and a good river flow. This time I launched my Sisson Nucleus in the afternoon at Evans River Park and paddled upstream to take a closer look at the portage over Latham Ditch Dam near La Salle. After a mile of upstream paddling I stopped under railroad bridge to take some documentary photos of an old palisade blocking passage and gathering logs and other junk. These pictures will go to my S. Platte River paddler guide. So far, I have covered about 50 continuous miles of the river from St. Vrain Creek to Masters.

    The river below the dam had very little flow and was very shallow. Most of the water went right through a channel with steep banks closed by three gates. I paddled the shallow river to about 200 yards below the dam where I got finally stacked in sand. At that water level the portage was not difficult despite of some huge logs blocking access to the river. However, at higher water with flow over the dam, the landing there would be much more difficult.

    I paddled about 3 miles upstream and turned around at sunset after shooting a couple of pictures. In my return way I choose different route around the dam. I paddled into channel and took off on a very steep shore between gates. Very uncomfortable at least in my tippy kayak, requiring some strength from a solo paddler, but obviously possible. It sounds like a good safari training. I did the same portage with my Spencer X-treme canoe during my birthday run down St Vrain Creek and South Platte river to Evans in April.

    I finished at Evans shortly after sunset with a thin layer of ice forming on a deck of my kayak. It was nice to be able to change into dry cloths and have a cup of hot tea before driving home.

    GPS trip odometer: 5.92 miles, moving time 1:49 h stopped time: 0:39 h, moving average 3.3 mph, max speed 8.5 mph. Average HRM: 131. River flow: S. Platte @ Kersey: ~850cfs. Air temperature 42-35F.