It rained like crazy last week with flood warnings after the downpours on Friday the 13th. The USGS gage at Stanton Station was at over 5.5 ft Friday night. I did a quick check Saturday morning around 9 am and it was still at 4.5 ft. This was the highest that I had opportunity to try the river. I quickly loaded up kayak, paddle, PFD, 2 water bottles, and my waterproof mobile protector. My middle daughter road with me for the 15 minute drive up to my drop off point on River Rd.
I didn't waste any time getting the boat in the water. It was 10:20 when I pushed off. The water was very fast. There was dull roar from the water going over the low head dams at the water plant. I didn't have any concerns about hitting bottom and just took off.
Overall the trip was really great. This is the first time that I have done this trip where I didn't hit bottom in any meaningful way. I could just follow the current the whole way without constantly search for the deepest channel. I could tell that I was really moving quickly, particularly since I was in an 8 ft rec boat (Emotion Comet). There were lots of riffles, but no real white water. I didn't see anyone on the river until just after going under the route 31 bridge.
After going under the route 523 bridge, I went through the partially wash out dam at Darts Mill. It had nice drop and I had bit of wash over the front of the boat. I continued on to the next washed out dam roughly mile further. This is where I took on a lot of water last trip. I though it would be smoother this time due to higher water, but this was not the case. There was a large drop where I hit a rock just before a small wave that had significant wash over the boat. I had roughly 2 inches of water in the boat. Unfortunately I didn't take a pump or sponge, so I just let it go as I was only 3/4 a mile from my take out. The weather was warm so it was no big deal.
I reached my take out at intersection of Case Blvd, Pennsylvania Ave, and River Rd at noon. It drained the boat and waited for Jill to pick me up. The 9 mile trip only took me 1 hr and 40 minutes which is at least 40 minutes faster than my normal time. I'm going to continue to watch the gage at Stanton Station (http://waterdata.usgs.gov/usa/nwis/uv?01397000) for water of 4.5 ft or higher as this was absolutely the best trip that I have had on the South Branch of the Raritan. Clear paddling!
Scott
