Class V experienced boaters tackled the Chelan River Gorge this past weekend and enjoyed the beautiful water and challenging run.

Click Here for a Great Photo Library!

On Saturday morning, July 11, 10 kayakers from the west side of the mountains were on hand to challenge the Chelan River Gorge whitewater. "This is a unique opportunity," said Thomas O'Keefe, the regions representative for American Whitewater, a nation wide organization that advocates for public access on American rivers.

"You generally don't find this level of difficulty in the summer. It's usually only available during snow melt," said O'Keefe. "It's extra special because it is so close to a community."

Initially, the kayakers were very confident in their ability to run the shortest river in Washington. It wasn't until they reached Entrance Exam from the launch upriver by the dam that they realized they had a serious Class V river on their hands.

As a group, kayakers are very conservative. It was apparent when they reached Entrance Exam that it would be awhile before one attempted to run the four consecutive waterfalls that begin the run down the deep canyon.

On the cliffs above the action, spectators were lining up to watch these extreme sports aficionados take on the river. The kayakers parked their kayaks in an eddy just upstream from the entrance to the gorge and went downstream on the rocks to study the water. In the end, four of them portaged around the entrance. "The entrance exam sequence is very challenging and difficult," said one kayaker on Sunday after the test runs were complete.

However, all of the kayakers who made the run were delighted with the beauty of the run. "It is beautiful... the water is aquamarine in color and the gorge is stunning."

On Sunday, as they got near the end of the gorge, they were going to take a break and eat lunch, but saw approximately 50 spectators waiting on the old bridge over the river and made the decision to not make them wait any longer.

Some of the spectators on Saturday and Sunday easily waited up to two hours to watch the kayakers attack the lower reach of the gorge. As the boaters came through, cheers went up.

Some people may wonder if 10 boaters is worth the release. O'Keefe said he put a lot of downward pressure on this initial test. "I was focusing on getting real experienced people here," he said. "There is a small population of folks who can do this."

The next test will be on July 24 and 25. The five kayakers who ran the gorge on both days have already signed up to run it again at the end of the month. Kris Pomianek, PUD, said 30 had already signed up for the next test run. "We expect a lot of Leavenworth and Wenatchee kayakers to show up on the 24th," she said.

Todd Gillman summed up the experience for the kayakers when he wrote on his PUD report; "I think all Class V boaters in the Northwest should have the opportunity to see this short gorge. It has beautiful water, unbelievable clarity usually associated with cold snowmelt."

The PUD will be running another test for the kayak community on July 25 and 26.