Thu - February 24, 2005

Afternoon on the Lower Poudre: from South Platte to Ogilwy Ditch Dam (almost ...)


Cache la Poudre River
Cache la Poudre River is almost not flowing in Fort Collins which is normal for winter. Only some puddle paddling is possible for really desperate. So, when I noticed unusually high flow in the Poudre at Greeley I had to go. 170 cfs!

I launched my Sisson kayak at Mitani-Tokuyasu SWA on South Platte River but, soon, I entered the Poudre and paddled upstream. It was a sunny warm day with air temperature above 50F. The river flow was really good in comparison to my previous trip two years ago when I had paddled Sea Wind at 70 cfs. The river was fast, twisty, with many trees in the current. Paddling was challenging in some tight places but calmer segments provided a chance to rest.

After 1.5 miles I reached an old farm bridge. I call it a discontinued bridge since its span is shorter than a current width of the river. I couldn't find any visible traces of a road going to it. There was a log jam just above the bridge. I used a very narrow channel to paddle around it but still ended up with a short portage. In my return way I managed to push kayak above some junk in that channel without stopping.

After 3 miles and 1:10h of paddling I reached a bridge on the 45th county road with a gauge station. Two years ago, I needed 1.5 hour in Sea Wind and with a lower flow for the same upstream paddling. Just below and above the bridge I had to negotiate some windy and fast channels, but, further upstream, the river slowed down. It was difficult to read water when paddling against low sun in the late afternoon.

I turned around after paddling 4.4 miles just before sunset. I managed to maintain 2.6 mph to that point. It's a better speed than I can usually keep when going upstream of South Platte River.

Later, I learned that I was less than 0.5 mile short of a diversion dam feeding Ogilvy Ditch. That ditch is visible from a highway when driving to my launching spot. However, the dam was not marked on any topography maps. I found it on aero photographs from 1999 which are quite good for the Greeley area. A little bit further upstream, just above highway 85 there is another dam.

I am always trying to find some historical background for places where I paddle. It looks like the Ogilvy Ditch was built sometime in 1880's and one of it builders was Edgar Emerson Clark, a prominent figure in history of Greeley.

I paddled down river in a hurry using last beams of the sun. The day in Greeley seems to be longer than in Fort Collins. The sun is not hiding so quickly behind mountains. After sunset it was rapidly getting cold, but I didn't want to stop to find my gloves. I reached my launch area still in a good visibility.

During the trip I saw two herds of whitetail deer. I always enjoy watching them. I also met a large flock of wild turkey, at least 40 birds. A quite impressive view when they flew over the river. I used to see a smaller turkey flock in 2001 when I started to paddle South Platte, but then nothing in the following years. All this in addition to a regular assortment of birds, muskrats, and dead or hibernating turtle trapped in a log jam.

It was a good river workout, although the river was less challenging than in my Poudre Loop below Fort Collins. I prefer to paddle rivers like Poudre or St Vrain Creek with more compact river valleys than wide and shallow South Platte River. I didn't have time for pictures. The picture above showing a calm river segment comes from my 2001 winter trip.

GPS trip odometer: 8.64 miles, moving time 2:25 h stopped time: 0:10 h, moving average 3.6 mph (2.6 mph upstream), max speed 8.20 mph. River flow: Poudre @ Greeley: ~170 cfs. Air temperature ~55 -> 34F. HRM: 135.

Posted at 09:39 PM    


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