Wobbly pops,

The drifts that are mentioned are all great starters. A couple of other local "starter" drift boat floats might include:

Skagit - anywhere rockport down
Snoqualmie - good tune up stretch is from just below Tokul Cr. down to Fall City (I'm going to get email on this zipperdrift rolleyes )
Kalama- Beginners Hole to Modrow or let your buddy get you started out of Pritchards
Cow or NF Lewis - great if you dont mind dodging sleds
Lower Natsop or Snooch ("officially" delisted from the dreaded zipperlist.)
Bogachiel- from Wilsons to Leyendeckers
Lower Hoh (check ramp conditions and river channel changes first)

One proviso when floating the Yakima with a dboat, watch out for the wind.

By the way, no matter what your buddy says you might want to avoid the Calawah (the boat ramp is a ruse! don't be fooled.), the Solduc , the Cedar river watershed, upper Wenatchee river including the Tumwater canyon , the Kahuna stretch of the Nisqually and either of the upper double D's. eek Just to mention a few really nasty ones.

Too many rivers too little time.
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Matt. 8:27   The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!”