Favorite Photos of the Year

Linda & David gear up for a cold and beautiful day on the Bruno Mountain section of the North Santiam River. The weather and the scenery made this one of the most memorable days I spend on the river this year. We were paddling this day as part of the Advanced Whitewater Seminar that I love to teach.

Patty charges through Spencer’s Hole during an OKCC trip to the North Santiam River, OR. The OKCC leads a number of great trips every month and I was happy to be a part of this one.

Mike Gottlieb drops one of many great waterfalls on Copper Creek, WA. Watch the video from this day.

Mike charges around the corner on the SF Yuba. We paddled this run with just the two of us, with little prior knowledge about the run. It was the biggest day of the year, with huge scary drops and complex portages. Ready the rest of the story.

Unknown paddler drops Pauley Creek Falls in Northern California. Read the story.

Another view of Pauley Creek Falls. Dan fires it up while Mike and Scotty watch.

Josh blasts through a narrow slot on the upper part of Opal Creek. This was the first day I hiked an extra mile and a half upstream from the usual point. Completely worth it.

A beautiful waterfall on Opal Creek, OR.

I love a good campfire after a hard day of kayaking. We paddled 30+ miles of the SF of the Salmon River, through the River of No Return Wilderness in Idaho.  It was high and we had a bad swim at the end of the day. In the morning we paddled out to the main Salmon and back to civilization.

Surfing the heck out of Spencer’s Hole during July’s Advanced Whitewater Seminar. Paddler: David. More photos.

Andy waits for his students below the final drop of Shippard’s Falls, Wind River, WA. Taking the Advanced Whitewater Seminar down their first waterfalls was my favorite day of teaching kayaking last year. More photos from this class.

Caitlin hikes a sand dune along the Columbia River. I just can’t believe how good we’ve got it in the Pacific Northwest – The best whitewater in North America alongside fantastic multi-day sea kayaking trips. Check out some other photos from this trip.

The McKenzie’s brilliant fall colors surround Dee. More photos and the story.

Matt & Mike paddle through the run-out on the Lower Wind River.

Mike N. charges out into the biggest surf I’ve ever seen. These photos were hands down the best I took all year.