QUEENSRIVERFIRSTDESCENT,
ATLANTAIDAHO,USA,
SPRING, 2019
Theroadtoprosperityisn’teasyandneverhasbeen.The
QueensRiveris threehoursawayfromBoise,highin Idaho’s
Sawtooth Mountains.SethStoenner,followed byBernie
Engelman,TaylorCofer,andMikeFerraro,hikedupa trailof
variedqualityforsevenmilesonthefirstdaythrough“the
portal”area.Aftera nightoutundertheIdahoskies,thecrew
putonandrana two-milesectionofclassIV-V,thenhiked
througha swampandbackto thetrail.Onceonthetrail,they
walkedbackdownstreamtothecar.Thismissionwasin the
nameofexploration-sometimesyouwin,andsometimes,
yougeta goodstory.Whiletheamountofwoodmadethis
runnotparticularlyworthdoingwitha kayak,it wouldmake
foranepicbackpackingtripfortheadventuroushiker.Who
knows,theremight even be a few rapids upstream yet to
discover.
Report: Mike Ferraro | Photography: Bernie Engelman
FIRSTDESCENT,DULIEVRE,
CANADA,JUNE 2019Paddlingalmosteverydayisonlya luxurydirtbaggers,riverguidesorthe
unemployedgettoenjoy;that’snotnecessarilytrue.OttawalocalsJuanLavin
andPaigeYounghavemanagedto balanceworkwhilesearchingfornewrivers,
newwaves,andnewdrops.Sometimesit meansdrivingovernight,wakingup
beforethesundoes,or carcampingto catchthefirstraysof thesunasit kisses
thewater.Manymissionsdofail,forcingyouto returnto classicandfamiliarruns.
However,othersinvolvefindingepicrapids,pristinenature,andfirstdescents.
ThesesuccessescandifferentiateyourregularTuesdaymorningroutinefrom
anepic,pre-workTuesdaymorningadventure.That’showJuanLavinclaimed
anotherfirstdescentjust 20 minutesawayfroma paddlingmeccaandhis
hometown,Ottawa.Thoughothershavekayakedthissectionofriverbefore,
thedropsthemselvesareseldom-runorunknowndescents,primarilybecause
ofwaterlevels,hiddenchannelsandaccessissueswithHydroQuebec.The
finalsectionoftheDuLievreis a sectionthatrarelyseeswaterduetoa large
damupstreamanddeviationpipes.Additionally,therearemanysharp,oddly
placedrockslitteredthroughout,includingtheentryandlandingof mostof the
waterfalls.Stayingalertis criticalwhilekayakingbelowthedamaswaterlevels
canchangein a matterof minutes.Aftercarefulpreparations,includingscouting
whentheriverwasdry,thecrewfinallygotoutthisspringandcompletedtwo
separatedescents.(OnefirstD, onehadbeendoneoncebefore,manyyears
prior).ThroughtheeffortofpaddlerslikeJuan,PaigeYoung,anda fewothers,
newsections(oroldforgottenones)arebecomingpopularorremembered
onceagain.Someofthewizardtrickstofindingtheseplacesincludeendless
hoursonGoogleEarth,bushwacking,droneflying, and losing yourself in the
wild.Buenaslíneas,staysafe,explorelots!Report and photography: Juan Lavin