Biking and packrafting – self-supported trip on South Platte River

In my last visit to the South Platte River I used Alpacka Yukon packraft combined with inline skating between Kersey and Kuner. The river has a good flow again after heavy rains, so I did another packrafting trip (May 22, 2011) – a classic run from Evans to Kersey. This time I used my mountain bike for a shuttle.

Biking leg

9.11 miles from Kersey bridge to Evans Riverside Park, 50 minutes. It was a typical car shuttle route. The road from the river bridge to Kersey is narrow and with high traffic, the highway 34 is also very busy but has a wide shoulder lane, the rest of the course had almost no traffic. The folded packraft traveled on bike racks and all other stuff including my big camera and tripod went to backpack. It got quite heavy!

Transition

10:17 minutes. Inflating the Alpacka Yukon packraft. I left my bike at Evans.

Paddling leg

9.13 miles downriver to Kersey, 2:30 hours with a long photography stop at the first dam. Cruising speed: 5.5-6 mph with the river flow ~2200 cfs. I could easily float over the first dam. The second portage was more difficult because of dense weeds.

Wildlife

Eagles are gone, now it is a pelican time on the South Platte in addition to resident geese and ducks. Beavers were very noisy and had a good time in a small pond next to the Kersey bridge.

The pictures below were shot with Pentax Optio W30 camera.