Forty for Forty: Paddling the Lower White River

Article in partnership with The Wenatchee World 

Forty for Forty: Paddling the Lower White River

by Andy Dappen

Chelan County has no waterways qualifying for the federal designation of being a “Wild and Scenic” river. Our closest contestant may be the White River, flowing 33 miles from the eastern boundary of the Glacier Peak Wilderness into Lake Wenatchee. In summer, the name of this river would seem a misnomer. Instead of being white, the glacial till saturating the water reflects both forest and sky and takes on a beautiful blue hue. Couple that with dramatic cliffs and peaks confining the blue water and you’ll be hard pressed to find a prettier river.

Even though a dirt road follows the river valley upstream for 10 miles on the lower stretches of the White, the thick riparian vegetation and tall timbered forest essentially erases awareness of the road’s existence. Add to this the hundreds of birds you will see and the dozens of salmon you might see and the setting actually feels more like the type of river you’d encounter in northern British Columbia or Southeast Alaska.

So while ‘Wild and Scenic’ the White may not be, wild and scenic the river surely is.
 

Details: Paddling the Lower White River

Access: A superb introduction to the natural beauty and teeming wildlife of the White River is to paddle the final six miles of the river before it enters Lake Wenatchee. For canoeists and kayakers with intermediate paddling skills, this meandering stretch of water offers a surprising sense of wildness. Stop on some of the sandbars found along the way and study the tracks – you’ll find the prints of deer, bear, raccoons, coyotes, geese, ducks, shore birds, and songbirds. Views beyond the aqua-colored river vary from sheer, gray-walled peaks to silver-snagged marshlands. Meanwhile, the constant presence of sweepers, logjams and submerged makes the river an obstacle course to navigate. This adds very real danger, but also excitement to Chelan County’s version of a wild and scenic river.

Difficulty: Intermediate paddling skills are important for the White River. Even though there’s no true whitewater, this is NOT a river for novices or beginners. The current is swift and many hazardous sweepers, submerged logs, and logjams (both natural and man-made) are passed along the way. In many places, you need precise maneuvering skills to thread narrow gaps flanked by logs or branches. In other places, you may need to pull over quickly to walk around a blockage spanning the entire river. Paddlers should be adept with forward and backward ferries to position their boats as well as with draws, braces, and rudders to turn quickly.

Paddling Details: For the nitty-gritty details of accessing this stretch of river, where to put-in, where to take-out, a weir that should be scouted, and a map of the Lower White River, see the ‘White River-Lower’ entry in the ‘Paddling-Whitewater’ guidebook at www.WenatcheeOutdoors.org or see https://wenatcheeoutdoors.org/2020/09/30/white-river-lower/

Recommended Season: mid-July through mid-September. With its flat grade, this section of the river holds enough water to accommodate paddlers throughout the summer. On September trips, you may scrape bottom occasionally or need to walk your boat over a few shallow riffles. On the plus side, lower water allows for the possibility of seeing salmon spawning. 

Salmon: In a number of areas the river gravels and current are perfect for spawning salmon to build their redds in late summer. A salmon redd is a depression in the gravels of the river bottom created by a female. Each female excavates a few of these depressions and, during the one or two days when she actually spawns, she will deposit a few hundred eggs in each of her redds. If salmon are in the river, please don’t walk on the gravel beds where they are spawning – float over them or walk on the beaches beside the gravel beds.

Bugs: From early July through the middle of August, mosquitoes can be an annoyance when ashore. Bring repellent. Even if the bugs are bad ashore, they won’t be a problem once you’re paddling.

Land Designation: The riverbanks are a combination of lands owned by the Chelan-Douglas Land Trust (CDLT), Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Forest Service, and private citizens. From a fish and wildlife standpoint, the White is the most productive river in the county, which is why the CDLT has put considerable effort, resources, and funds into protecting 8.6 miles of the river’s shoreline. Many of these holdings are along this stretch of the river and a few are farther upstream. More information about these properties and their location can be found at this link: https://www.cdlandtrust.org/what-we-do/land-conservation/lake-wenatchee-area/white-river

Upcoming Events: Join us for Mindful Mondays on Monday, August 4, at Coyote Dunes. This guided mindfulness walk invites participants to slow down, engage their senses, and discover how nature can calm the mind and uplift the spirit. 
 

Andy Dappen is the founder of WenatcheeOutdoors.org and a former board member of the Chelan-Douglas Land Trust. Join him in supporting CDLT’s many projects that enhance our quality of life in Central Washington.  (https://www.cdlandtrust.org/support-us/membership)

Forty for Forty. Recognizing the 40th Anniversary of the Chelan-Douglas Land Trust with 40 stories about places the CDLT has protected and kept open for public access.