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Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend January 2, 2006 Davey Grantland of Ashland, left, and Ryan Allred of Medford paddle on rain-swollen Bear Creek Sunday just downstream from the Barnett Road bridge. Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell For some dauntless kayakers, storm rainfall turns Bear Creek into an inviting ... River wild Kayakers enjoy ‘urban whitewater’ from Phoenix to Medford By BILL KETTLER Mail Tribune Some surprising things float down Bear Creek when the water gets high and fast, including men and women in tiny little brightly-colored boats. A few hardy kayakers rang in the new year on the water Sunday, paddling down Bear Creek’s roiling, brown torrent within sight of stores, motels and restaurants. Strollers on the Bear Creek Greenway bike path could see kayakers riding on a standing wave just downstream from the pedestrian bridge near Barnett Road. "Our favorite stretch is from Phoenix to here," said Davey Grantland of Ashland as he climbed out of his kayak at Bear Creek Park to take a break. "There are lots of rapids, and no dams." Grantland and his friend, Ryan Allred of Medford, have made half a dozen trips down Bear Creek this winter. Swollen by heavy rains, the normally placid stream acquires all the attributes of a real river, including the big waves that attract kayakers who know how to surf on them. "You can go a long way to look for these waves, and you don’t always find them," said Allred, 27, a math and science teacher at Cascade Christian High School. Advertisement Bear Creek was flowing at about 2,200 cubic feet per second Sunday afternoon — about 30 times its normal midwinter volume, and more water than the Rogue River carries on a typical late summer day. While that much water made the creek a fun and challenging place to play, it added an element of risk, too. At high flows, the water is filled with logs and other hazards, and the fast-moving water leaves little margin for error. "A run like this can be very dangerous," Allred said, noting that any stream in flood flows through the trees that line the bank at normal flows. Any of those trees could become a "strainer," a place where fast-flowing water could pin a boat and trap a paddler. "For your average kayaker this would not be a good run," said Grantland, 25, who works as a teacher’s assistant. He emphasized that no one should attempt winter kayaking on Bear Creek without enough experience to feel comfortable on rapids that are class 4 and 5 (on the six-point rating scale where class 6 is life-threatening). Urban kayaking presents challenges unlike those found on wilderness streams. Obstacles on a small stream such as Bear Creek can change quickly with rising flows. A log jam can appear overnight on a stretch of water where no hazard existed before. Just finding a place to get off the water can be difficult on a stream that flows past shopping centers and parking lots, and the banks are often lined with blackberry vines that can tear the expensive "dry suits" that many paddlers wear to stay warm in the icy water. Small urban streams are rarely kayaked, so there’s often little common knowledge about rapids and hazards. Boaters depend on word of mouth from other paddlers to keep informed about changing conditions. "That’s why I want to talk to these guys," said Ashland paddler Alice di Micele, as she stood on the pedestrian bridge over Bear Creek watching Allred and Grantland. One thing that didn’t trouble the paddlers on Bear Creek this New Year’s Day was pollution. "When it’s this high I don’t really worry about it," Allred said. "It’s mostly sediment. Any pollution would be really diluted." Allred said Bear Creek still retains touches of a natural stream despite its urban setting. He and Grantland saw a great blue heron and a kingfisher on Sunday’s wild ride downstream from Phoenix. They also saw things that a wilderness paddler would never see, such as the homeless people who camp along the stream. "It’s actually really startling how many homeless people there are," he said. "You don’t see them until you’re out here (on the water)." Reach reporter Bill Kettlerat 776-4492, or e-mail River wild ">[email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker dvd-r Distance Education Computer Security Cheap Website Hosting Sports Equipment Student Loans Online Pharmacy tcg student loan consolidation Online Casino Reviews Myspace Home Equity Loans Windermere Van Vleet Deep Muscle Stimulator Discount Hotel Reservations High End Computers Online Casino News Online Bingo Entertainment Guide Salvia Divinorum Online Casino Fundraisers Advertisement s