Gear Garage Live Show | January 21st 2025

This podcast is the audio version of the Gear Garage Live Show, where we answer submitted questions and talk all things whitewater.

Topics and links that Zach talked about this episode

• Online Rowing School
• Answer Questions

Some of the Questions that Zach covered in the Q&A section of this episode

Topic: Grand Canyon Permit Fees

Hey Zach. Saw an article about the proposed increase in permit fees for Grand Canyon. Interested to get your thoughts.

Topic: Selway & Middle Fork Salmon Snowpack

Storms have been tracking your way this year it seems, more than Northern California.

Can you assess the current snowpack for Middle Fork of the Salmon and Selway? Too early to predict the future, but what is the current state? Love the show!

Topic: Setting Safety

Hi, I'm 75 and a forty year rafter. Last October (2024) myself, another rafter and an IKer boated the Lower Salmon. The river was at 3130 cfs on the day we went through Snow Hole. At that level I believe it's a 4+, there was no visible clear line through. We figured our best bet was to get as far river right as possible. I made it through and into the eddy at bottom right.

I pulled out a throw bag and waited for the IKer. He came through swimming, I threw the throw bag but it was too short to reach him. I didn't pull into the current to rescue thinking the rafter still has to go through. The rafter got tossed out of his boat which didn't flip. Again my rebagged throw bag rope was too short to reach him, but his boat was pulled into the same eddy I was in. Both boaters self rescued to the downstream shore and I tied up the unattended raft to my raft and pulled it out of the eddy.

I have been wondering if I should have chased the first or second swimmer instead of staying in the eddy. If I had left the eddy not sure if we could have gotten the other rafters raft out of the eddy. Any thoughts would be appreciated.