BRT Insights - WW Kayaking & Hiking

Get great photos outdoors in any weather - even underwater.

Digital camera technology marches onward just like that of computers and other electronics. We have more and better choices in waterproof digital cameras than ever before. Please add a comment if you have any experience using these cameras.





More information:
• Olympus Stylus Tough 8000 waterproof digital camera.
• Top five waterproof cameras under $300 right now - ZDNet 30june2010. (Samsung AQ100, Pentax Optio W90, Canon PowerShot D10, Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX5, Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS2)
• Reviews - Waterproof Cameras & Equipment for Whitewater River Kayaking, Rafting, Canoeing & River-Tubing.

IceRocket Tags: kayaking, river tubing, float tube, waterproof camera, photography.
Technorati Tags: hiking, paddlesports, paddle boating, rafting, canoeing.

Labels: equipment

The west end of Putah Creek Riparian Reserve begins where Pedrick Road (Co Rd 98) crosses Putah Creek. The western end of the reserve is in Yolo County, but east of Brooks Road the reserve lies in Solano County. (Yolo & Solano County, California, USA).

Map of Putah Creek Riparian Reserve.

• Instructions for online interactive topographic maps & road maps.
• Click on Map button for road map, Topo button for topographic map.
• Full-Screen Map - Putah Creek Riparian Reserve.
• Names of landmarks (A, B, etc.) - DoubleClick or point on the red markers.


Coordinates of Landmarks:
N 38.52695 W 121.80362 - Pedrick Road - County Road 98 (A)
N 38.52445 W 121.78865 - Putah Creek Picnic Area (B)
N 38.52445 W 121.78865 - Hwy 80 under crossing (C)
N 38.51823 W 121.76042 - railroad under crossing (D)
N 38.51815 W 121.75684 - Old Davis Road (E)
N 38.51983 W 121.69521 - Mace Blvd - County Road 104 (F)

The entry to the parking lot on the north-west corner of the Pedrick Road bridge was unmarked. The trail then headed east under the bridge.

Putah Creek flowing under Pedrick Road bridge.

Bikers are restricted to remain on Levee Road, while hikers and joggers can use the trail that runs closer to the creek. With some short hikes to check out the trail and lots of stops to take photos my early morning trip went longer than planned. Picnic benches are available at Putah Creek Picnic Area and at Brooks Road.

Campfire circle at Putah Creek Picnic Area.

The reserve continues east and crosses under Hwy 80 and the railroad tracks, then ends at the parking lot on the north-east corner of the Old Davis Road bridge over Putah Creek. Levee Road continues east to the bridge where Co Rd 104 (Mace Blvd) crosses the South Fork of Putah Creek. After passing the UCD Raptor Center the Levee Road passes through private farm property, so all bikers and hikers are restricted to stay on Levee Road in this area. It was very hot and sunny on Levee Road in late morning. The rough, loose gravel on the road was hard on me and my bike. Be sure to bring a pump and a patch kit. It would be a very long walk back to civilization if you got a flat tire. I brought a half-gallon of my homemade sports drink recipe, but that was not enough to keep me fully hydrated for a trip that extended into the heat of the late morning.

What flowers are blooming in July at Putah Creek Riparian Reserve??

Mid-summer is not a great time for wildflowers, but I did see flowers on field bindweed, yellow starthistle, Datura inoxia, mustards, wild radish & sunflowers. The Datura & sunflowers were quite beautiful.

Datura plant in bloom.

See more photos from Putah Creek Riparian Reserve:
• 2010-07-18 Putah Creek Riparian Reserve pictures.

For more information:
• Map to the Trailheads - Solano County hiking and biking.
• California Maps - Atlas & Gazetteer by Delorme, 2008.
• Hiking Trails of Yolo County - Davis Wiki
• Putah Creek Directory. (Set display options: alphabetical 100. Section 5 = camping & hiking)
• Hiking, Biking & Camping Trip Reports - BRT Insights.
• Putah Creek Kayaking & Canoeing Guide.
• Photos: Olympus Stylus 720SW camera.

IceRocket Tags: hiking, biking, Yolo County, Solano County, California.
Tags: wildflowers, photography, landscape photography, Putah Creek.

Labels: biking

Sports drink recipes may help paddleboaters and other athletes to play hard, train hard and recover quickly from delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS).

Nancy Clark at MomsTeam reports that: "When compared to a placebo, antioxidant-rich pomegranate juice improves recovery and decreases muscle soreness after muscle-damaging exercise in trained men. The same holds true for other colorful, antioxidant-rich juices such as grape, blueberry or cherry." (Sports Drink ... - MomsTeam 10july2010) "Some preliminary evidence suggests that drinking tart cherry juice may help to reduce muscle pain after vigorous exercise." (Tart Cherry Juice as a sports drink - BRT Insights 01oct2009) See also a study on cherries that found "athletes who drank the juice recovered faster after Marathon running" (Marathon runners should pick cherries for speedy recovery - ScienceDaily 03april2010.) Untrained athletes, weekend warriors and fitness enthusiasts sometimes also need help for their aching muscles. Kayakers, rafters, canoeists & innertubers may want to include these juices in their hydration plans, both on and off the river.

It will be interesting to learn if the muscle recovery benefits are provided by homemade sports drinks made from many other colorful fruit juices such as watermelon, plum (prune), cranberry, raspberry, strawberry. All of these fruits rank highly when tested for antioxidants, but I haven't found any direct tests of their ability to reduce delayed onset muscle soreness after exercise.

Homemade Hydration Drink Recipes made from Colorful, Antioxidant-rich Fruit Juices.

At the store read the labels carefully when purchasing fruit juices. Watch out for 100% juice that is a blend of apple or other less colorful juices. Thompson seedless grape juice does not provide the same benefits as the purple grape juices. Watch out for cheap juice cocktails and juice drinks that may contain little fruit juice with a lot of junky refined sugar added.

The 100% pomegranate, blueberry and cherry juices cost more than some other juices, but they may be worth it for the athlete suffering from sore muscles! Typically these juices need to be diluted considerably when making my Hydration Fruit-Ade homemade recipe, so the costs can be spread out over large volumes of sports drinks for good hydration throughout the day. The best value on antioxidant-rich juices in my local stores may be the purple grape juices. Straight out of the bottle these juices are a thick, excessively sweet syrup that only a child can enjoy, but when properly diluted in the Fruit-Ade sports drinks they make a great-tasting sports drink for adults.

More about:
• Grape juice sports drink DIY recipe for reducing delayed onset muscle soreness in athletes - BRT Insights 21aug2010.
• Sports Nutrition: Antioxidants help reduce post-exercise muscle soreness - pponline.
• Sports Drinks for Hydration of Paddleboaters - BRT Insights 14sept2009.
• Paddle boaters need good hydration for optimum performance - BRT Insights 09sept2009.
• Food & Drink for Outdoor Activities - BRT Insights.
• Why the Color of Your Food Matters - iVillage Health 05nov2009.

Tags: delayed onset muscle soreness, kayaking, hydration, sports drink.
Tags: DOMS, whitewater, river, kayaking, paddlesports, paddleboating, rafting, canoeing, tubing.

Labels: food-drink

Kayaking, Rafting, Canoeing & Innertubing Guide & Maps.

The Klamath River watershed drains a huge area of northern California and southern Oregon. This includes Siskiyou, Humboldt, & Trinity Counties in California and Klamath County in Oregon.

Klamath Region Rivers and Creeks listed west to east:

• Klamath River, Indian Ck [Siskiyou Co], Elk Ck, Clear Ck [Siskiyou Co]. (A)
• Trinity River, Coffee Ck, Indian Ck [Trinity Co], Browns Ck, Canyon Ck, New River, Hayfork Ck. (B)
• Cal Salmon River. (C)
• Scott River. (D)
• Shasta River. (E)

Klamath River Regional Map for Paddleboaters.

• Instructions for online interactive topographic river maps & road maps.
• Full-Screen River Map - landmarks for Klamath River watershed rivers & creeks.
• Point or DoubleClick on the red markers to see their names.
• Topo button = topographic map. Map button = road map.

Online Guides for Paddleboating in the Klamath River Region:

• California Rivers Rafting, Canoeing & Kayaking Directory.
(Click on "All Tags" then click on a river. Display options - alphabetical 100. See online paddleboating guides & river flow sites in Section 1.)

Guidebooks for Paddle Boating in the Klamath River Region:

• Canoer's Guide to the Wild and Scenic Middle Klamath River 4th edition, 2006. (Klamath River)
• Paddling Northern California by Charlie Pike, 2001. (Trinity River)
• Ann Dwyer's Easy Waters of California North, 2000. (Klamath River, Trinity River)
• Best Whitewater in California, Third Edition 1998. (Klamath River, Indian Ck, Elk Ck, Clear Ck)  (Trinity River, Coffee Ck, Canyon Ck, New River, Hayfork Ck) Cal Salmon River, Scott River.
• California Whitewater - A Guide to the Rivers, Third Edition 1995. (Klamath River, Trinity River, Cal Salmon River, Scott River)
• Western Whitewater From the Rockies to the Pacific, 1994. (Klamath River, Trinity River, Cal Salmon River, Scott River)
• Paddler's Atlas of U.S. Rivers West, 1993. (Trinity River)
• West Coast River Touring - Rogue River Canyon and South, 1974. (Klamath River, Trinity River, Hayfork Ck, Cal Salmon River, Scott River, Shasta River)
• Down the Wild Rivers- A Guide to the Streams of California, 1972. (Klamath River, Trinity River, Cal Salmon River, Scott River)

Klamath River Region paddleboating reports NEEDED!!

• Please send your trip reports from boating trips on Klamath Region creeks & rivers. Stories, pictures & videos from boating trips will be linked here.

Environmental Protection & Outdoor Activities in Klamath River Watershed.

• California River Directory - Watershed Conservation & Recreation. Websites for California river canyons. (Click on "All Tags" then click on the desired river. Display options - alphabetical 100. Section 1=kayaking, 2=rafting, 3=environment-conservation, 4=fishing, 5=hiking-camping, 6=local-websites)

More Information on California Rivers & Creeks:
• Whitewater River Boating Guides & Maps for Kayaking, River-Tubing, Canoeing & Rafting in California. See the river guides for all the other regions in California and Nevada.
• Instructions for river guides - whitewater rafting and kayaking - BRT Insights.
• Securing our legal rights to whitewater paddleboating in California and Nevada.
• Some Klamath Region rivers & creeks have been protected in the USA National Wild & Scenic Rivers Program and/or the California State Wild and Scenic Rivers Program.

IceRocket Tags: kayaking, river tubing, float tube, river map.
Tags: Klamath River, Trinity River, Cal Salmon River, Scott River, Shasta River, California, river, rafting, canoeing, paddle boating, paddlesports, kayaking, wild and scenic.

Labels: guide