Once in a while, good things do come to those who wait (and who religiously follow release predictions and gauge levels and then take their chances): after being shut out a week earlier by a release that had suddenly dried up midday Wednesday, the Thursday Paddlers finally got on the Savage May 16 at a perfect, moderate level, putting on at 450 cfs and taking out 2 ½ hours later at 430 cfs. We even had delightful weather—clear and into the 70s—to further reward our patience.
At those levels, the Savage is a splashy, constantly fast-moving, technical Class III run, not too pushy but requiring quick maneuvering to dodge rocks and holes. A few days earlier, water had been flowing down the spillway of the Savage River Reservoir, pushing the river up to full release levels of more than 1400 cfs. We needed less—but not so much less that we'd be shut out again. A gradual, natural decline by Thursday gave us our chance, and seven of us grabbed it—kayakers Mark Brenneman, Bruce Campbell (Personal First Descent), Jon Hauris, and Zofia Kosim, and canoeists Ross Dence (also PFD), Frank Fico, and trip coordinator Larry Lempert. We started a few hundred yards above the dam, below the usual put-in, to avoid a riverwide strainer. We were glad to see that a second strainer above the dam—which had required portaging a few weeks earlier—had shifted enough to allow easy passage. There were three or four other strainers on the run that were nearly riverwide and required careful manuevering or quick ducking. Frank ably led the way. We had one swimmer at Memorial Rock, easily rescued. It was a delightful day, well worth the wait.