Yep, That Looks Like Fun!

It takes years of training, both mental and physical, to look at a river at its max flow and say to yourself:

- Tom Potter

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As winter nears its end and temperatures in the Wenatchee Valley start to rise, the snow pack of the Cascades begins melting into its respective drainages.

While most see this as a simple transition of seasons,  white water kayakers flock to the Pacific Northwest to challenge themselves on some of the most pristine whitewater in the country.

From steep, remote creeks, to high volume rivers, the Wenatchee Valley hosts a variety of river characteristics that will keep even the most traveled paddler coming back year after year.

I was introduced to the whitewater scene in 2009 when a friend invited me to join him in a six-week whitewater raft guide-training program in Leavenworth.

As we had both recently been laid off from our commercial construction jobs in Seattle, moving to Leavenworth for a summer of whitewater adventures seemed like a logical move. What I didn’t know is that I was embarking on a life-changing journey that has molded me into who I am today.

My first season of whitewater paddling was full of pushing my limits as a person and truly learning the technique of navigating rivers in ways I didn’t know were possible. There were countless moments of fear, intimidation, and exhaustion followed by celebration and a level of camaraderie that I had only found on the river. I was hooked.

After finishing my undergrad in 2011, I moved to Leavenworth with one goal, to really learn the rivers in the area. With Icicle Creek and the Wenatchee River literally flowing right into town, I figured Leavenworth would be a good base camp for an aspiring whitewater kayaker.

I spent most of my spare time paddling laps on Tumwater Canyon of the Wenatchee River and learning the ins and outs of the steep and technical Icicle Creek.