‘Sail’-in Down the Klamath River

By Wilderness Adventures July 27, 2013

After getting out of the beautiful Trinity Alps, we drove to Patricks Point State Park in Redwoods National Park. We stopped at a beach to have a quick lunch and threw the frisbee. We then went on a day hike on the Trillium Falls Trail where we saw massive Redwoods and ate blackberrys along the ominous trail. The trees were so large we could fit 3-4 kids in a hollowed out trunk. Maddie almost got stuck inside a tree and Daniel and Derek scurried ahead of the group multiple times scaring us  on the trail. After the day hike we drove to nearby “Big Tree” and along the way we saw a bunch of wild Elk off the road. When we got to camp in the afternoon we made another trek to the beach near our campsite. We were suprised to see four harbor seals lounging on rocks at the beach. Evan made some great seal impersonations and we all enjoyed watching the waves crash against the rocks. At night we had chicken stir fry and s’mores, and all shared stories around the campfire. 

 

The next day we drove east into the mountains to Happy Camp, California where we camped near the Klamath River. We drove past some massive Redwoods on our windy drive while most of the kids slept. This trips favorite song of the week was “Sail” after Abigail showed us the “Sail Cat” hilarious Youtube video. On the river the boys had an algae fight, and at camp we were greeted by three local dogs, one of which was a husky that Maddie claimed was her spirit animal. We all slept together outside on tarps under the stars and the full moon eagerly awaiting our raft trip.

 

We woke up early the following day to get started rafting. Garrett led his boat in cheers to keep the boat at a steady pace through the calm water. Daniel, Maddie, Katie, Derek and myself (Evan) did “Sail-Cat” impressions jumping off into the water shouting “Sail” and flailing our limbs in the air into the water. We ate an incredible lunch on the shore of the River and continued rafting Class 2 and Class 3 rapids. Jacob demonstated a unique Hawaiian paddling stroke that gave us a few laughs and Christine’s friendly jokes with the raft guide, Tyler kept spirits high and smiles on everyones faces the entire day. When we arrived to camp we all rested while the raft guides cooked us a magnificent dinner, which consisted of ginger sauced chicken, rice and veggies. A favorite among all was the delicious local salsa and chips served as our appetizer. Katie has continued her hot sauce streak, having hot sauce accompany every meal she has eaten thus far. Needless to say, we have been going through a lot of hot sauce in this group! We played a small juggling game where Christine impressed everyone with her creative skill; definitely living up to her nickname, Maradona, one that the raft guides had given her. Evan found great success in raft wars, remaining victorious as the “king of the hill” of his raft while the others swam below. 

 

We woke up the next day very well rested to a buffet of pancakes, sausage, freshly squeezed OJ and local coffee. We rafted an exciting Class 4 rapid called “Devils Tooth”. Daniel impressed the group with his ability to dive deep under water with a life jacket on, watching most others fail at this such feat. Not to your suprise, we were all dissapointed getting off the River having to say goodbye to our wonderful raft guides, the beautiful Klamath River and “Jimmy”, our trip frog. After rafting we loaded up the U-Haul and drove to our campsite at Lake Siskiyou, located at the base of Mt. Shasta. We drove through Yreka and the kids have a weird inside joke with the name and have not stopped yelling “YREKA” at random moments. We ate chicken alfredo for dinner and roasted marshmallows around the campfire with our new addition to the group, Kody, Derek’s pet rock. Derek has adopted Kody whom is determined to climb Shasta with us… Wish us all luck! We cannot wait to summit this beast!