"I admit that I'm less of a fan of the extreme sports movement, ala canyoneering and extreme kayaking, but only because they often leave equipment behind."  -Splinter

Sorry Pete, sarcasm can be difficult to express online.

Ahhhh! Gotcha. I was hoping that was the case but you never know. Figured there might be some ruffled feathers in the Gorge where kayakers have been all about dropping the waterfalls.

I once hiked into the Salmon River Gorge just to carry my broken kayak back out of the Gorge after it broke near the end of the run. It was a huge amount of work but felt good to have it out of there so someone else didn't see it on their run. Such a magical place. Made me wish kayaks were made out of biodegradable material though.

pete

Pete, I don't doubt that — to clarify, I'm talking about webbing left behind, wrapped around trees at the top of waterfalls. I suspect it's primarily canyoneers, but extreme kayakers use ropes to rappel the big drops, too… so I don't really know who leaves the hardware behind. I'm certainly no expert in either sport, but is it safe to assume that your practice (of retrieving everything) is the only accepted practice?

Tom

Hey Tom,

Well, I think in some cases, yes, kayakers have left rappel anchors. I only personally know of one in the Salmon Gorge but I don't do a lot of the big waterfalls like others these days so there could be others I suppose. Strangely enough, most kayakers have actually jumped off Final Falls in the Salmon Gorge rather than rappel. I saw on the other hiking site people thought the rope at the falls on the NF Clack was from kayakers but I highly doubt it. I think more often ropes are left from summer hikers and other locals. On well traveled runs like the Little White Salmon and Green Truss on the Middle White Salmon, there are fixed ropes at the common waterfall portage. I've used these ropes but, in general, I'm not a fan of fixing ropes.

I'm a bit unusual in that I would much rather find a way to scramble around something than rappel or jump. Those things scare me.

I think most kayakers don't boat something planning to leave hardware and ropes in the canyon. But, if a big waterfall is commonly portaged I can see some of the pros leaving stuff there for future use. Again, not sure I'm a fan of this and I'm not really tied into that scene.

I suppose it would bother me the same way that unnecessary flagging (not the trail related flagging) bothers me. It's a bit annoying but I don't spend too much time thinking about it.

pete

Pete Giordano said:

....I think more often ropes are left from summer hikers and other locals....

...I'm a bit unusual in that I would much rather find a way to scramble around something than rappel or jump. Those things scare me....

I think you're right about the ropes -- often they're pretty sketchy ropes, too. I found a plastic clotheslines leading down the face of a falls in the Coast Range a couple years ago... half-expected to find a skeleton at the bottom. On my first trip into the Salmon River Gorge (1983), we dropped in at Split Falls, and found a huge, 1" hemp rope tied around a tree that we used to get down the final 20 feet or so (we were young). These days, I avoid ropes, entirely. I'd much rather pull myself up (or lower myself down) with vine maple..! I can't imagine jumping -- the kayak reports that involve doing this simply amaze me! That's brave!

Tom