The Gorge

Travel Destinations

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Eric S
Posts: 970
Joined: Tue Nov 26, 2002 2:42 pm
Location: MN, USA, Earth
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Post by Eric S »

Low/No Wind Days: Maryhill Loops Road

If you go to the Gorge, and have room in your transport, bring a skateboard or mountain board. When the wind shuts down you can go out East and hit the Marhill Loops. If I remember right you go out to the Maryhill Bridge on the Or. side and Cross over to Washington. It's out by the "Stonehenge" http://www.spottke.com/eric/trip2000/00 ... 260138.jpg

If you ride by on 95 going North it looks like this...

http://www.downhaul.com/misc/030122/rob1.jpg

I was out there last July with a Carveboard but lost my camera. It was the most awesome riding I've done on the street. The park is closed to all motorized traffic and has no outlet. The tar on the road is in great shape just look out for the cow poop. Some heffers run wild out there.

The road deadends at the top and there is a spring to drink out of http://www.researchgravitysport.com/ima ... l/pits.jpg When I was there, I was the only soul around. It was erie walking up the loops for miles.

Here are some good pics of Maryhill Loops, bring your rolling board of choice:

http://www.researchgravitysport.com/pho ... ryhill.htm


Thank You Sam Hill!
Portland Pete
Posts: 115
Joined: Thu Feb 27, 2003 7:06 pm
Location: pete at petegoodrich dot com

Post by Portland Pete »

Sauvie Island is a close getaway for Portlanders

East of Portland 30 minutes with west winds and a long
sandy beach.

Watchout for the freighters, they move faster than barges
Tighe
Posts: 5274
Joined: Sat Oct 26, 2002 10:06 pm
Location: Here, Now

Post by Tighe »

Gorge Windsurfing Sites:


Kite Beach, between Hood River Marina and The Event Site, OR - Kiteboarding
Beginners to Difficult
River: Wide, shallow near shore
Wind: Moderate west
Beach: Sand
Parking: Free
Amenities: Restrooms, water, boat ramp
Cautions: Shallow sand bars, Hood River current pushes toward Washington. Shifty wind and boat traffic inside marina. Tip: Usually more people here than anywhere else to help out.
Directions: Exit 63 off I-84, go north to the Columbia River.


Rock Creek, Mosier OR - Windsurfing
More Difficult
River: Wide with cross-choppy medium waves
Wind: Steady moderate
Beach: Small rocks
Parking: $2 day or $20 year, rough lot
Amenities: Porta-potty
Cautions: Watch for barges, deadheads, fishing nets, rocks and to the east submerged stumps
Tip: Drive down to the creekbed (usually dry in summer) to park.
Directions: Exit 69 off I-84, turn left on Rock Creek Rd, loop under freeway access road, then go right just after you cross the creekbed.


Bingen, WA - Windsurfing
More Difficult
River: Smooth flat water inside, small chop outside
Wind: Moderate west
Beach: Wide ramps down to narrow sand
Parking: Free
Amenities: Grassy rigging, porta-potties
Cautions: Watch out for fishing nets and working log boom. Keep the narrow beach clear fo equipment.
Tip: Excellent spot with smooth flat water inside for practising waterstarts and jibes, amd small chop outside.
Directions: Turn south at teh Bingen Marina sign one block east of flashing light or Hwy 14 in Bingen.


Rooster Rock, OR - Windsurfing
More Difficult to Most Difficult
River: Small swells and chop Wind: Nuclear fall, winter and spring east winds
Beach: Long and sandy
Parking: $3 day or $25 per year
Amenities: Lots of parking, grassy rigging area, picnic tables, restrooms, boat launch
Cautions: Strong current in easterlies. Longhike down bluff stairs and across beach
Tip: 40+ east winds early in the day common in fall, winter and spring. Lighter westerlies provide easter funboard sailing in summer.
Directions: I-84, exit 25, 25 miles east of Portland.


Home Valley, WA - Windsurfing
Easier to More Difficult
River: Protected inside, moderate chop outside. Good east or west wind.
Wind: Lighter westerlies than farther east
Beach: Gradual, sandy cove and gravel beach
Parking: Free
Amenities: Porta-potties, camping, swimming, ballfields
Cautions: Watch for fishing nets and barges.
Tip: Launch here for eastwind downwinders to Stevenson.
Directions: Hwy 14, milepost 50, 6 miles east of Stevenson.


Swell City, WA - Windsurfing
Most Difficult
River: Great ramps on windy days
Wind: Excellent west wind
Beach: Small rocky beach
Parking: Very limited, $3 day or $40 year pass
Amenities: Porta-potties
Cautions: Watch out for Oregon side wind shadow and submerged pilings.
Tip: Don't hog the limited shoreline with your rig.
Directions: Hwy 14, milepost 61, 4 miles west of Hood River Bridge.


The Hatchery, WA - Windsurfing
Most Difficult
River: Large swells
Wind: Excellent west
Beach: Rocks; east cove is easier
Parking: Limited, do not park on the road
Amenities: Porta-potties
Cautions: Watch out for crowded launch, don't bring your dog, and keep the roadway clear or this site may be closed.
Tip: Spectator jibeatorium
Directions: 4 miles west of Hood River Bridge on Hwy 14.


Inn Beach, Hood River, OR - Windsurfing
Easier, More Difficult
River: Flat water to small chop
Wind: Light west
Beach: Sandy protective cove
Parking: Free
Amenities: Grassy rigging, restaurant, hotel
Cautions: Boat traffic, barges
Tip: A good learning spot
Directions: Exit 64 off I-84, go around to the east side of the Hood River Inn.


Marina, Hood River, OR - Windsurfing
Easier, More Difficult
River: Wide, shallow near shore
Wind: Moderate west
Beach: Sand
Parking: Free
Amenities: Grassy rigging, restrooms, showers, food, picnic shelter, boat ramp
Cautions: Shallow sand bars, Hood River current pushes toward Washington. Shifty wind and boat traffic inside marina.
Tip: Good shallows for waterstart practice. Usually more people here than anywhere else to help out.
Directions: Exit 64 off I-84, follow signs to sailpark.


The Event Site, Hood River, OR - Windsurfing
More Difficult
River: Medium Chop
Wind: Good west
Beach: Contoured gravel
Parking: $3 day; $50 annual Hood river pass
Amenities: Grassy rigging, bleacher seating, restrooms, water, food
Cautions: Watch for barges and cruise boats in the river and docking.
Tip: Convenient for a quick sail, except during events.
Directions: Exit 63 off I-84, go north to the Columbia River.


The Hook, Hood River, OR - Windsurfing
Easier to More Difficult
River: Inside-flat, outside smaill waves and chop
Wind: Strong west
Beach: Rock ramps down to water
Parking: Free
Amenities: Porta-potties
Cautions: Big wind shadow to lee of the island; do not walk across the island- it's a wildlife preserve. Tip: Excellent spot for groups of differing abilities; practice waterstarts and jibes inside. Directions: Exit 63 off I-84, go north to the river, turn left to the end of the road.


Rowena, OR - Windsurfing
More Difficult
River: Moderate wave and chop
Wind: Medium to strong west
Beach: Slippery rock shelf ledges and gravel.
Parking: $3 day; $25 year pass
Amenities: Porta-potties, picnic tables, water.
Cautions: Don't park int he loading zone.
Tip: Please keep out of the wetland preserve area east of the park. Pay attention here as there are lots of differing abilities at this site. Fun and easy sail to Doug's Beach.
Signs will say: Mayer Park East
Directions: Exit 76 off I-84, go north, cross tracks turn right 3/4 mile to the park.


Doug's Beach, WA - Windsurfing
Most Difficult
River: Large swells
Wind: Strong west wind
Beach: Small sand, grassy
Parking: $5 day; $25 year pass
Amenities: Porta-potties, picnic tables
Cautions: Trains, barges deadheads. Cross tracks only at teh crossing. Signal well in advance before you slow down to park. Keep your car and gear off the highway.
Tip: Named for Doug's Sports' Doug Campbell. Sail up or downwind to get way from crowds. Shallow on Oregon side.
Directions: Hwy 14, 3 miles east to Lyle near mile post 79, parking on the water side of the road.


Doug's West, WA - Windsurfing
Most Difficult
River: Large swells
Wind: Strong west wind
Beach: Small sand
Parking: ???
Amenities: None
Cautions: It is illegal to cross the tracks where there is no safety crossing, the fine is $250.
Tip: Don't sail here unless you can figure out a legal way to cross the tracks.
Arrival by water from Doug's or Rowena is better.
Directions: Hwy 14, 3 miles east to Lyle near mile post 79.

Rooselvelt, WA - Windsurfing More Difficult to Most Difficult
River: Flat inside, large swells outside
Wind: Strong west wind
Beach: Sand, small rocks
Parking: Plentiful
Amenities: Restroms, camping, grass rigging, boat launch
Cautions: Fishing nets, barges.
Tip: Best early and late season, especially when cloudline is at Maryhill.
East side of jetty is good for beginners - sandy bottom and no current.
Stronger on Oregon side.
Directions: 33 miles east of Maryhill on Hwy 14 near milepost 133, watch for sign to park.
Tiny community is next to, but not on, the mile-long road down to the park.


Arlington, OR - Windsurfing
More Difficult to Most Difficult
River: Big swells
Wind: Strong west wind
Beach: Launch from green sandbagged area only.
Parking: West end or near restrooms only.
Amenities: Nice park in town iwth swimming beach, playground equipment; marina has restooms and boat launch.
Cautions: Barges (moving and moored)
Tip: Beat sailing is out near grain elevator. Proected water for beginners and families on the town side of the freeway.
Directions: Exit 137 off I-84 loop under the freeway and out to the grain elevator.


The Wall, WA - Windsurfing
Experts Only
River: Big smooth swells
Wind: Strong west wind
Beach: Rugged shoreline
Parking: Limited pull-outs along the road.
Amenities: Part-time porta-potties
Cautions: Barges, rattlesnakes, fishing nets. Don't block cars in.
Tip: You'll see "The Wall" fron the water as you readh toward shore.
If the first spots are full, keep going and you'll probably find someplace to launch; the rroad coninues through primative Cliffs Park to John Day Dam and Hwy 14. The closer you get to the dam, the swifter the current.
Directions: East from Maryhill, 1 1/4 miles on gravel road. Watch for turn-offs leading down to primative launch sites, including the "Fishing Platform" and the "Cove".


Boardman, OR - Windsurfing
More Difficult
River: Wide river offers flat, chop and rollers
Wind: Variable but usually sailable
Beach: Peagravel, rocks or sand
Parking: Plenty
Amenities: Nice waterfront park, marina, camping, restooms, showers, swim beach
Cautions: Popular fishing and waterski area.
Tip: Best launch is east of park, turn right at the "T" intersection and head for the water. Bring all your toys: bikes, blades, waterskiis, canoe etc.
Directions: Exit 164 off I-84. Go north toward river, turn left at "T" intersection for park and amenities. Turn right to the sailboard beach, or for a very sandy launch, go about 1 mile farther to the Port of Morrow West Beach.


Rufus, OR - Windsurfing
More Difficult
River: Narrow fast current and swells
Wind: Strong west, fast current in spring
Beach: Small rocks down gradual slope
Parking: Plenty of free parking between large gravel pits
Amenities: Porta-potties
Cautions: Watch out for barges. Don't get stuck driving in loose gravel.
Tip: More consistent wind thatn Maryhill when the cloud line is at The Dalles.
Directions: Exit 109 off I-84, head for the river, go left after you cross the tracks, almost 1 mile to the gravel piles.


Kite Beach in Hood River, OR


Hood River Marina Boat Dock, Hood River, OR

<provided by Dougs Sports>
Tighe
Tighe
Posts: 5274
Joined: Sat Oct 26, 2002 10:06 pm
Location: Here, Now

Post by Tighe »

a good gorge guide supplied by Windance

http://www.windance.com/west_coast_guid ... _intro.htm
Tighe
Tighe
Posts: 5274
Joined: Sat Oct 26, 2002 10:06 pm
Location: Here, Now

Post by Tighe »

Streaming web cam (highbandwidth only)
http://www.e-stormwarning.com/kite_cam.shtml


Hatchery Cam:

http://www.hatchcam.com/


Avery Web Cam: (Good indicator for Dougs Beach):

http://www.fsvisimages.com/images/photo ... 1large.jpg


Forecasting:
http://www.nwweather.com

NOAA link for The Dalles http://www.srh.noaa.gov/data/forecasts/ORZ041.php
Tighe
Tighe
Posts: 5274
Joined: Sat Oct 26, 2002 10:06 pm
Location: Here, Now

Post by Tighe »

Geo
Location: St. Paul

Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2003 9:54 pm    
Post subject: Thank you letter to the Gorge



I got out to the gorge for my 1st time ever for the last week of July. It was actually BETTER than advertised, if that’s possible.

Marc and I watched the web for weather before we left. We already had air reservations, so we were going no matter what, but nothing like a good weather report to stoke the stoke. The web said: 20-30 in the area around hood river for something like 5 days in a row from about 9 am to 6 pm. With 90 degree temps. Not ever having been to the Gorge, I figured this was just an internet sales ploy of some sort….usually the forecast changes from day to day, right?

We arrived on Wednesday noon to Portland, got our Thrifty extended white panel van (only $200 a week!) and headed straight out to Hood River….right into a 2 hour traffic jam. So the road leads nowhere but Hood River and the desert for like 50 miles at least with no exits, and there’s two lanes going about 10 miles an hour. Buzz kill. But at least the wind was kickin’, right? Nope. No wind. None. Finally the traffic cleared out: we saw what the problem was: or wait, no we didn’t; there was as far as we could see nothing to slow traffic, no construction, no crashes. Oh well, on our way….and look, Marc: those are whitecaps, right?

In Hood River finally, and stopped at a couple of places to check out rental equipment. Ended up at Windance Rentals, located at the far east end of town right off the freeway. It’s run by Gary and Nancy, who are the nicest, most accommodating, patient folks. Given that most of us don’t have Gorge gear, it’s pretty much a bargain to rent whatever you want on different days for only about $250/week. When we got there, apparently Gary was out sailing for the 1st time in a month or two, but Nancy checked the wind, set us up with 68, 78 and 89 liter boards, and 3.7, 4.1 and 4.5 sails. (It’s not THAT windy is it?). She recommended going to Celilo, about 20-30 minutes east, and when we got there, we knew why. Whooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo. The kinda wind that we only get here when it’s about 40 degrees out. After rigging up the 3.7 Ezzys on the smallest Riccis, we went out and were……..overpowered?! Not silly overpowered, but enough to wanna make sure you don’t get picked up and thrown 20 feet downwind off a 4-5’ breaking wave.

As we came in to tighten things down a bit, this guy comes over to say "Hi". Man! Friendly folks here! It turns out this guy was Gary form Windance, and he saw that we were "on his equipment", so he wanted to make sure we were set up ok. He had been out, and said "hey why don’t you try my rig out?" (Well this is not something that one hears offered very often in nukin’ conditions) Despite our objections, he insisted that he was done, and we should try the 68l Ricci with a 3.3 sail. (Ain’t that size a KIDS sail?) It was incredible to ride on something that small (my board is 104l, and my smallest sail is 4.1), but it was great. Unbelievably light. I’d like to say that I shredded and made all my jibes carving at full speed, but the truth is that I didn’t come very close to making even slow jibes. (Where exactly am supposed to put my feet? ) Still fun, and really easy to waterstart in the shadow of the breaking waves….apparently .4m does make a big difference when the gusts are breaking 40mph.

We tired fairly quickly and figured it would be good to save our body parts for the days ahead. We did leave at 6-7pm thinking it was SO GREAT that Gary went out of his way to help us out. And as it turned out everyone in the Gorge seems to be the same way: happy to be living there in the summer, and happy to share nature's bounty. The openness and friendliness were genuine everywhere. I have never seen so many FIT folks in one place at one time – even the guys who were 60 ears old looked like they could shred at anything they put their minds to.

Thanks to Randy and Tighe and Lakawa Chat, we located Tucker Park and camped there, about 10 minutes up the hill from Hood River. GOOD CALL! We camped next to a babbling brook with dry, warm, fantastic weather the whole week. Of course, we were only there between 9pm and 8am, but if you get skunked, it would be relaxing. I felt that there couldn’t be a nicer place in the Gorge for 20x the cost of staying there (a whole $12/night).

For the next 4 days, the wind continued to blow from 7-8am to 6pm or so. The days were 3.7 / 4.0 / 4.5 - 5.5, 6.5. it could only have been better if it built in the increasing wind direction, but who is complaining. the amaxing thing about he Gorge is how different it can be only a mile or two between spots. One day we went to Doug's, found it dead (10mph?) and went 2-4 mi down to the other side of the river to 4.0 conditions. Wierd. By the last day, I was making all my jibes and carving up the smooth 4’ swells in Swell City having SO MUCH FUN in conditions that seemed just like surfing. And there was hardly anyone else out, because it was ONLY 6.0.

On my only "bad" day of sailing (just had the wrong stuff up, or the wrong stuff in me), I got tired out pretty quickly (2-3 hours) at the Event Center. Wind died, and so marc and I headed up towards the hatchery (you could see white caps there). I wisely was NOT inclined to get out there with the locals, because it was very rough. Somehow I didn't feel like being a landing pad for someone's post-loop fin. It was really cool to watch those guys at home in the 4.0 conditions doing loops, vulcans, really nice hero jibes, and a bunch of stuff that I can’t even describe. It SEEMED like nobody hardly ever fell, mostly because they even fall with style. Miss a trick, get he sail up clew first, stabilize the board with water up to your knees, and off you go……loop ……vulcan…..easy! I thnk you can actually learn by just watching (and hard to hurt yourself watching) and looking carefully.

It was a real treat to have such a great experience out there. before leaving, we were already planning on making it an annual thing. And it made getting through what seemed like a really slow summer very bearable. And, gosh! Fall winds are already coming in!
Tighe
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