Today was another PERFECT Spring day in the Willamette Valley. I had already planned a trip to Silverton Reservoir with some close friends and the beautiful day and warm temperatures were a huge bonus! We had already planned when to meet and I wasn’t worried about parking too much at that time of the day and on a Monday. Well, the parking lot wasn’t full, but there were a lot of folks there!
An important note to mention! Silverton Reservoir is a great facility. They have a nice single lane boat ramp with docks on both sides. It’s an easy pull in and out. However, parking is limited. In addition, be sure to take a plastic card with you as parking is $5 per day, per vehicle. An important caution is that if you’re planning to go on another perfect weather day on a weekend, just be aware that parking is limited and there are no other parking spaces. There are quite a few NO Parking signs posted where they don’t want you to plant yourself. So, just be aware that it is a bit small for just how popular it is in the area.
This is the boat ramp and as you can see from the picture – the weather was perfect! I just happened to time this picture so it looks like we were the only ones there, but that wasn’t true at all. I have only been here one time previously, when I was new to kayaking. So, I’m afraid my previous trip was about learning how to kayak. Today…well, it was about enjoying the scenery! And it was absolutely beautiful!
When you look at the water area from the boat ramp, it looks rather small. However, once you kayak ahead and get around the corner up ahead, you start kayaking up the channel where Silver Creek leads into the reservoir. When I was looking up some facts on Wikipedia before typing this post, I learned that, “Silver Creek originates in the northwestern part of Silver Falls State Park at the confluence of its North and South Forks. From there the stream flows 9.5 miles (15.3 km) north-northwest through Silver Creek Canyon and into the Silverton Reservoir.”
And that is probably the biggest reason why the water is always so clean! When I would stop paddling and just take in the sights, it’s as though you could smell the fresh water. Hard to describe, but real nonetheless!
We continued our kayaking adventure until we reached a spot where the incoming current was just too fast to kayak against it. There was a log laying across the water and so I pulled up to it and was able to stop there without having to hang on for “dear life.” HA! It was truly breathtaking! And I just LOVE the sound of the crashing water, it’s just so soothing! We were facing the sun and it was just perfect!
All three of us stayed there for a bit. The other two were looking for agates which is something we all enjoy doing. No luck today though! On our trek up the creek we noticed a structure that someone had constructed with materials in the area. There was a blue tarp lying to one side, but underneath you could see fresh cut wood and an axe. So, it’s definitely being used by someone. I think they might be a good contestant for the TV show, Survivor! Ha!
As we were turning around, I had to take two more photographs. The first one below showing the beautiful sunshine and the second photo is looking back down the creek which we had paddled up – it was truly gorgeous!
Throughout the last four days of my various kayaking adventures, I have been just overwhelmed by the signs of Spring everywhere I’ve been. Everything is budding, some trees have the start of new leaves, nearly every bush is loaded with buds…and as much as I can’t wait for everything to get green again, the beauty of Spring is really something.
To be able to get out in my kayak and experience all of the beauty from a very up close view is really outstanding!
Once we returned to the main reservoir area, we made a right to check out the water on the east side. Well, we were hoping there would be another channel of water to follow. No such luck! However, what we did find was amazing!
These salamanders were all over that area! I have never seen so many at once. You couldn’t paddle a foot without seeing new ones. I’m guessing, on average, they were about 6 inches long. And, as my friends and I laughed about, we’re pretty sure it’s mating season because, well, they were busy! Ha! (But not the ones shown above)
We paddled around the rest of the perimeter of the reservoir. We came across these!
The first picture is a dead tree stump that looks like a crabby face. The two roundish holes are its eyes and the ferns on top are his hair. I was trying to think of a good name for him, but haven’t decided on one yet. I thought he was very cool! The second picture is the very sudden and steep drop off area on the far west side of the reservoir. I’m always willing to take chances and so I paddled right up to it. WARNING – there is no fence, barrier, floating barriers – absolutely NOTHING to keep you from tumbling over. So, don’t do as I did. Ha! And the last photo was one of about 10 ducks that we encountered throughout our kayaking adventure. They are very tame. Note to self: buy duck food to keep in my kayak for future encounters!
One last “serious” thought. While we were kayaking at Silverton Reservoir, we encountered two young females paddling/sunbathing on their paddle boards. They were both wearing shorts and swim tops. Neither one of them had a life vest. I asked them and they confirmed what I had noticed. Here’s the deal, the State of Oregon REQUIRES you to have a life vest for each person, including yourself, on a boat, kayak, and paddle board. Today’s water temperature was freezing. If either one of those girls had fallen in the water, well, I think the result would have been bad. If you don’t want to wear your life vest, Oregon law doesn’t make you, but they do require you to have one on board with you! Okay, I’m done with that!
This was a really great trip! The three of us are always willing to kayak at a “sight seeing” pace which allows us to notice so much more than most. If you want a fun place to kayak – go check out Silverton Reservoir!
2024 – Kayak Trip #15
