Leif and Natalie

Although some people might say it's getting close to the end of the season, there is still some paddling to be had in colorado. If I can just hold on for one more month, it won't be the end of this season, it will be the beginning of next season. With some huge releases on the Big T (about 450 cfs today - the highest I've ever run it, and about as high as I would want to see) and a broken dam promising solid flows through Barrel Springs for some time to come (I had nothing to do with that broken dam), this could shape up to be a strong finish to 2010. However, it is November, and the two things I listed are just about the only two things running in the entire state of Colorado. A week or so ago, Natalie and I got desperate enough to drive up to Poudre Falls for a park n' huck photo session. It was a long drive for a pretty diminutive drop, and right when we arrived and stepped out of the car to scout, a light snowstorm started. We were both pretty grumpy. Natalie

Well, I suppose that despite the unseasonably warm weather, the paddling season might be starting to get close to finishing, although that's totally a matter of opinion. However, my favorite part of the end of the season here in colorado (which is a lot like saying "my favorite part of being eaten by a giant octopus...") is the Big Thompson. Near the end of the season, there are usually a couple good releases through the Big T, and it makes for some awesome paddling. It's a pretty good run even when other stuff is running, so in the late season when Gore is down to 1,000 and Barrel Springs is at its winter level, the Big T suddenly seems like the best run ever paddled by humankind. Over the past couple weeks, these last few releases have made my life an emotional rollercoaster ride. One minute it's perfect at 200 cfs, and I'm dancing around my office, the next, down to just 70, and I ride home to lie in bed and cry myself to sleep. At one point, I got de