Power to the paddlers

This isn’t Maine or Minnesota, but Washington and beyond through the Inland Northwest is second to none for a diversity of choice options for paddling a canoe or kayak.

Choosing a place to paddle among so many alternatives can be daunting, and timing is critical to both enjoyment and safety, especially this year in a region flush with spring runoff.

Novice and experienced paddlers alike can make better trip selections by:

•Researching options in a local guidebook.

•Joining local paddling groups, such as the Spokane Canoe & Kayak Club.

•Joining online groups to get regular water conditions reports from other enthusiasts.

The SCKC Web site ( www.sckc.ws), for example, was the first to post reports of logs that fell across the Little Spokane River downstream from St. George’s School to form hazardous conditions this spring.

Through years of researching the region’s waters, guidebook authors and club paddling trip coordinators have learned that popular canoeing and kayaking waters can change from serene to wicked as quickly a raccoon surprised by a stray dog.

New paddlers in particular can benefit from “route comparison charts” in books and from a trip leader’s experience.

For example, the Northwest Whitewater Association cancelled a traditional trip on Idaho’s Lochsa River in April when the trip leader recognized through river gauge reports that the unusually cold spring conditions left the river too low.

Safety hinges on finding and timing trips geared to the skills of paddling group members as well as their expectations.

For example:

The Skagit River offers one of the region’s top bald eagle viewing opportunities for paddlers, but prime time is in winter.

Ross Lake paddling routes lead more than 50 miles round-trip into the Cascades wilderness, with options ranging from rustic camping to comfy cabins.

The Palouse River and Hangman Creek offer a narrow window of choice water levels before they become to “boney” to run.

The Spokane River has something for every type of paddler — beginner canoeist to expert whitewater kayaker — in 14 segments along the 112-mile river from Lake Coeur d’Alene to the Columbia River at Lake Roosevelt.

The Coeur d’Alene River can be a moving-water daytrip or a flatwater overnight expedition, depending on your preference.

Guidebooks and paddling clubs help expand a paddler’s horizons.

Paddlers see clear distinctions in the region’s waters, depending on where the streams tumble out of the mountains or whether they flow into the Columbia River, into Puget Sound, or directly into the Pacific Ocean.

Western Washington streams tend to be more developed, often influenced in the lower reaches by tides and frequented by salmon and steelhead.

The waters of Eastern Washington and the rest of the Inland Northwest tend to be less developed and more inviting to campers and trout or smallmouth bass.

In addition, whitewater roars and rumbles down the mountains east and west of the Cascades, giving the region a third dimension to the paddler’s eye.

Washington alone includes 4,700 square miles of water that provide a lot of room for discovery.

A little pre-trip research and connections with experienced paddlers will help you launch in the right direction.