My partners and I have aquired a Driftboat. None of us have pulled an oar on the Bogachiel before, any advice or info is welcomed.

Put in's, take out's, easiest drift etc. Don't want gps locations of honey hole's just a safe place to go.

Never pulled an oar or never did it on that river ??? If its the former.. take someone with you that has. It don't take long to learn the basics, but the penalty points for mistakes can be huge. True story.

Hatchery down to Wilson's is the standard drift. Real easy and some decent water. I'm 15 and can row it so you should be fine.

Having "never pulled an oar" I would like to mention that the stretch from Wilsons to Three Rivers is pretty much Frog Water.

The Bogie confluence with the Calawah can be a bit intimidating and I am glad I didn't try it my first time out (20 years ago!)

Some time in the lake (Lake Pleasant ie) might be a good call. That way you can get a feel for the oars.

Don't forget your PFD!

Brad says:

Wow ! I can only dream of doingl 1/4 of the things I could do at 15!!

Have fun kid and don't abuse your knees

Thats cool !! I wish my 15 year old would even try and oar. So far he thinks its to much work so spends all day leaning against the side up front talking smack... Nothings worse.

I can take a lot but I hate a leaner

sounds like a smart kid... why waste time rowing when you can fish?

On the other hand I wish my dad would've turned me loose on the oars at 15...

Wilson's to Leyendecker's (3 Rivers) would be my recommendation to start out.
Not that Hatchery to Wilson's is that technical. But I'd recommend getting feel for your boat and oars so you won't be embarrassed dropping out of the launch at the Hatchery. The thin, fast water there can turn you around pretty quick. Dropping down to the mouth of the Calawah is more bark than bite, but the chute out of the Ice Box might give you problems if you aren't comfortable with your boat. Not a good place to get sideways. The rest is a cake walk.
Have fun be safe and if in doubt wear a PFD.

B-Run is right better safe than sorry! It is not too hard to get into trouble on a river ......Good luck

Stay clear of the snag right at the hatchery put in.

Stay clear of the snag right at the hatchery put in.

Flipped a boat one time dude. What you need is big water, to start out. Or summer flows. The Boge not a bad river. But things change every rain, sand bars, log jams,sweepers, got to be on it guy. I never do a river till been on it with someone that has been on it befor!!!! Seen a boat flip in frog water going around a sweeper one time. Do it in the summe or in the spring . If things go bad you walk. And if you are good you will find the cuts. And won't have to drage the boat to far. It,s all fun just be safe. Always!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ono,

How about a report. I'd love to hear about your first drift boat trip and I'm sure there are a lot of other "seasoned veterens" that would too. No matter what stretch of river you take, the first one's always a memorable one. I remember how nervous I was to float from Plum's Landing to Fall City my first time out. Looking back it was pond water, but Ron L. who has spent his life with DB's was a wise man to inist on a "milk run" to get a feeling for the sticks. You just want to be ready when you turn it up a notch. No doubt that time will come soon enough. It's when we get a little too comfortable or confident that we get ourselves into trouble.
So come on Ono, we're holding our breath here.

Hey Mooch, a question on what you are calling the Ice Box? I have only floated that section once, and I don't really remember the spot exactly. Is that where you end up going right for the big stump on the right side? It has been bugging me so I just thought I would ask. Thanks!

ONO....you and Steve need to stick to Lake fishing or better yet ... guide fishing before you tackle drift boating. Them rivers take a toll on the ole body!

Riverdog,

What I always refer to as the IceBox hole is at the BIG clay bank with stream coming down, where it takes a 90 right after Tall Timbers. As you leave the hole there is a steep chute with standing waves that sets up along the right bank. Pretty straight forward but if you pull a sucker move like trying to stay left you could "suck" a lot of water going through the standing waves sideways. I've trained a number of greenhorns on the Bogey and this is the one spot they seem to have the most difficulty. Least I always seem to get wet on their first time. Funny too, because they're usually more freaked going into the Calawah from the Hatchery Hole than coming out, but the opposite on that Ice Box chute; they invariably underestimate it. But that's usually where the problem starts isn't it?

Mooch, what is the correct line thru that slot?

Piper,

It's not really that tough a section if you're familiar with your boat and oars. It all funnels down through one chute. I'm basically lazy so I prefer to leisurely set myself up early at the top right side along the bank and follow the seam down through the chute. Typically I try to avoid having to make awkward adjustments through thin tail water or later down in the heavy stuff. That way all I need to do with the oars is dip occasionally to maintain attitude and keep the bow into the waves. The problem for first timers is they typically tend to over correct or worse they wait too late to make their adjustments. This is just not a good place to do either. I think it's generally a good idea to keep oars out of heavy water as much as possible but I have found that it's difficult for someone just learning to row and who is not familiar with their boat to lay off the sticks at these times. Oh well we all gotta learn the hard way. But river rats and guides like Bob sure make it look easy don't they. Pure poetry in motion if you ask me.

The new dudes might want keep in mind there are definate advantages to floating rivers with alot of boat traffic for the first time. If you're not sure you can always hold up and wait for a boat or two to come through and watch and learn from their example. Of course, it's always nice to know there will be someone at the bottom end to fish you out if you dump it too. On a river like the Bogey you won't have to wait long either. Who knows, you might even get to watch Bob float through. Stay clear of his tater gun though.

Thanks Mooch,
That kinda what I thought.

Boy you aren't kidding about watching the experts go thru. During the snoopy rod tounament I was fishing with Pat Grahm, everytime another boat would go by he would say "Oh, there gonna hit that rock!" sure enough, BANG... BANG... BANG.

We never touched a rock that day. And Bob... He floated in the Queen Mary and I swear that he was loading the Spud gun thru the rapids cause he always managed a shot at us on the way thru!

Guy's when we finally put this puppy in the water I will make sure to post the results.

FYI...I myself will not be on the oars, one more physically fit than I will be doing the honors. He is also paying close attention to all the info being posted. We may also enlist the help of an experienced oarsmen on that particular river, as has been suggested. When the final plans have been completed I will let you all know.

Here's a true story concerning a driftboat: In 1995 I purchased a brand spanking new Alumaweld 17' Classic, beautiful thing. That year if you recall we had a real high water season... couldn't even bank fish. Every time we wanted to try this thing out the rivers were running high. On or about the 4th month of not using this boat my neighbor started asking me how my "planter" was doing? Refering to the DB. To make a long story short, after about three months of putting up with this, I hauled her down to Sande's and put it up for sale. Never used the boat True Story.