Friday, November 6, 2009

Allegheny River - Emlenton to Parker - August 15 & September 6

We've gone down the Allegheny River from Emlenton to Parker twice now. It's an easy 6 or 7 mile paddle (or float). The first time we went, Robbin and I rented kayaks at Parker's Landing Outfitters and made the journey with Robbin's brother Bob and his wife Donna. The second trip was with the same company, but Robbin and I had our own kayaks by then. The Allegheny is wide but shallow enough that there isn't too much boat traffic. We were able to paddle abreast of one another and talk. Although it's a beautiful area, there isn't too much to explore, just the occasional fallen tree, rock formation, or small island to paddle around. About 4 or 5 miles downstream, the Clarion River empties into the Allegheny. This is where the trip gets interesting. The Allegheny flows pretty fast and when the river level is higher it's really fast. To get into the Clarion you have to make a 90 degree turn, paddle across the strong current, and go under a bridge. As you'll see from the picture below, you have 3 shots to get under the bridge while current is trying to take you down stream (paddle faster Robbin!!). Once we got into the Clarion River, there was hardly any current at all and there are a lot of large rocks where you can stop and take a break. It became tricky again leaving the Clarion. I paddled straight out into the Allegheny and the current hit me so hard that I thought I was going to roll over. Another great part of this trip was finding the little town of Foxburg. It's a mixture of old and new with a great little pizza shop, a winery, an Inn, a nice restaurant, and some interesting little shops. It's worth a visit even if you're not kayaking.










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