Unusually late spring rainfall has boosted Sierra snowmelt, creating potentially hazardous conditions for kayakers and others on Northern California rivers. The lower American below Lake Natoma, for example, has been running high for several days, and the National Weather Service in Sacramento has issued high water warnings via The Sacramento Bee and other news media.
Water in the lower American is cold, too, about 55 degrees. And faster, higher flows have obscured some brush and other obstructions, creating more hazards than usual. Not to mention stuff floating downstream. Some quick, informal checks along the American indicate that the water may be four to six feet above the banks where it ran just a month or two ago.
While such conditions might attract more experienced members of the whitewater crowd, “smooth water” paddlers should exercise strong caution. Better to wait for calmer conditions than take unnecessary chances - after all, it’s going to be a long paddling season with all this extra water, and that’s good news. Northern California kayaking rivers safety
About me
- Glenn Brank
- Sacramento, California
- I spent many years as a newspaper reporter and editor, legislative and business consultant, and government agency communications chief. Then I picked up a kayak paddle, and suddenly all that other stuff seemed unimportant.
Always wear a PFD!
Even paddle pups play it safe...