We chose to do a short section of the river at a slower than average pace to give us a bit more time to explore on shore. It also proved to be a good choice since the days are starting to get pretty short this late in the season. We averaged about 12 miles a day, which works out to around 3 hours of paddling. The river is quite low in October only flowing at 5600 cfs, compared to its yearly peak of 17,000 cfs in June each year. You can find the current flow at the on the USGS site.

Once on the river, it was easy to see why the Upper Missouri is a national Monument. The section we paddled is known for its white cliffs. As a climber, I couldn’t help, but drool over the miles of 100-300 foot sandstone walls. The only comparable place I have seen this amount of sandstone is the New River Gorge in West Virginia. But, anyone will appreciate the aesthetic beauty of the walls surrounding the river.

One of the highlights of the trip was hiking up Neat Coulee from the Eagle Creek Boat Camp. This coulee progressively narrows resembling a whitewashed Zion slot canyon. This walk should not be missed.

Overall, the camping was excellent. I, however, expected it to be less developed. Most of the boat camps have vault toilets and fire rings. The sites have been so heavily used that that the the grass had been worn away to bare earth. While it isn’t exactly a remote wilderness experience, it is for the best, as coping with the thousands of boaters who make the float each year means that concentrating the impact will actually preserve as much of the area as possible. Luckily, my dad and I avoided the hordes of people by rolling the dice on a late season trip. In fact, we only saw one group of people cruise by on a motor boat late Saturday afternoon (after September 15 the motorized craft restrictions were lifted).

It was a great experience with none of the stress of a climbing trip or the sacrifices of a backpacking trip. The scenery is breathtaking. The canoeing is easy (think giant moving lake). If you like the outdoors and just want to unplug and unwind for a few days, I highly recommend it.

Distance: 44 miles
Time: 4 days
Outfitter: Upper Missouri River Guides

On Saturday we went out and rode some of amazing singletrack that circles Mt. Hood. The weather was beautiful and the trails were in pristine condition. I have yet to find another place with XC trails that are as good as those outside Hood River. The climbs are perfectly graded to keep you legs screaming, while not so steep that you can’t turn your crank over and are forced to hike-a-bike. Finally after cresting the climb, you are treated to 5 minutes of pure bliss. The sweeping curves on the descent are wide enough to ride wide open and there isn’t a death cookie to be seen.

On race day, the weather took a turn for the worse and by lunch it was pouring rain. I was forced to shoot in the trees to stay somewhat sheltered, but it was really dark and balancing the strobes with the ambient was challenging. In any case, it was a great race. You can check out the result on Skibowl’s website.

Every time it snowed, the drive to school was that much more fun. The funny part about it was that my first car, a ’83 Volvo 240 Turbo stationwagon, only had one wheel drive. I’m not kidding–only the left, rear wheel had power go to it. I’m not sure it this was some type of cruel Swedish joke or if it had something to do with being rear ended at 40 mph. 1WD “allowed” it to spin really well to the right, but not to the left! This car also had no windshield defroster, so I had to drive with my windows down…in Montana…in the winter. This actually didn’t bother me, since you were fine as long as you bundled up before you left and you ALWAYS bundle up when the high is 0. This attitude changed one night when a snowplow passed me… After I spit out a couple ice chunks, I discovered about a foot of snow on my lap. But, I didn’t stop! I drove that snowbank all the way home.

Anyway, I found myself down in Hood River for the Oregon Trail Rally last weekend. And while I have slide my car though a turns out on a few Montana farm roads, these guys do it at 60 mph with a 500 cliff on one slide and a really hard tree on the other.

Oren and I have been going on Spring Break ski trips for about 5 years. And this one had the best snow by far.