paddling with a camera

Tag: St Vrain

  • Winter Kayaking on the Lower St Vrain Creek

    Winter Kayaking on the Lower St Vrain Creek

    February 11, 2016. I did some scouting and a little bit of paddling on the lover St Vrain Creek.

    First, I checked some potential launching spots, i.e., bridges, below I-25 highway. Then, I ended up paddling upstream from the county road 19.5 bridge (Wildcat). I use that place near St Vrain Power Station quite often, mostly as a starting point for downriver trips on the South Platte River. It was also a starting point of the 31 miles South Platte River Marathon which I tried to organize a few year ago. You can paddle 1 miles down the St Vrain to the confluence with a flow even below 100 cfs. The 7.6 miles of the river from the road 19.5 along the Wildcat Mound to highway 60 near Milliken is really scenic. I call it Wildcat Mound run in my paddling.

    Pictures below show the river at 150cfs. I paddled about 2 miles upstream to the diversion dam where I had a photo session. Then, after sunset, I returned back as quickly as possible since it was getting really cold. Pictures were shot with Pentax Optio WG2 camera and Sony A7R 2 on a tripod (2 last pictures).

    I paddled my old Seda Cyclone kayak in this trip. I would prefer to use another boat for an upstream/downstream workout, i.e., JKK Supernova kayak, but that little blue kayak looks better in pictures. Years ago, I did several upstream trips on the St Vrain with Sisson Nucleus kayak.

    St Vrain Creek below I-25
    St Vrain Creek below I-25 freeway (from frontage road)

    St Vrain Creek
    St Vrain Creek upstream of Colorado Blvd (county road 13)

    St Vrain Creek
    Launching my kayak under bridge of county road 19.5 (Wildcat) near St Vrain Power Plant

    Paddling upstream St Vrain Creek
    Paddling upstream

    Old trestle
    Old trestle. It could be destroyed by the recent flooding. Before the flooding, the trestle wasn’t really visible from the river.

    blue whitewater kayak and river diversion dam - St Vrain Creek near Platteville in northern Colorado
    A longer photo session with my Sony A7R 2 camera at the diversion dam

    St Vrain Creek at dusk
    After sunset … Back to my launching spot after 20 minutes of cold downriver paddling and another quick photo session.

  • 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 and Flying with Geese at St Vrain and South Platte Confluence

    Paddling and Flying with Geese at St Vrain and South Platte Confluence

    During my last paddling trip I made a stop to photograph the confluence of St Vrain Creek and South Platte River below Platteville. It was just before sunset. Hundreds of Canadian geese were passing by. I had my drone about 8 minutes in the air and some of flying geese were captured in my pictures.

    Pictures of my drone (DJI Flame Wheel F550 with Panasonic Lumix GM1 camera) were shot earlier during my first stop at Wildcat Mound about 1 mile below the confluence.

    My next visit to this river section with be probably on SUP and without the drone. I paddle Badfish SUP with a short fin which is probably safer at some shallow and rocky spots below the confluence.

    South Platte River and St Vrain
    Aerial view of the South Platte River with Sea Wind canoe and a paddler/pilot.
    South Platte River and St Vrain
    Aerial view of South Platte River and St Vrain Creek confluence looking upstream, i.e., south
    South Platte River and St Vrain
    Aerial view of South Platte River and St Vrain Creek confluence
    DJI Flame Wheel F550 drone
    DJI Flame Wheel F550 drone with Panasonic Lumix GM1 camera on a sandbar
    hexacopter drone with camera and canoe
    Sea Wind canoe with DJI Flame Wheel F550 drone

    I am adding the above pictures to Aerial Landscape gallery in my stock photography portfolio. They are available for license and immediate download as royalty free images.

    Related posts:
    Aerial View of South Platte River at Wildcat Mound below Platteville
    Paddling SUP on South Platte River from Kersey to Kuner
    South Platte River below Denver – GPS/photo river guide




  • 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.