# Year-Round boating locations?



## dzader (Apr 22, 2004)

*Asheville*

Asheville is an awesome little town I would call it the boulder of north carolina with less extreme leftists. Plenty of culture there tons of boating NOC is nearby with all its benefits. Good luck


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## ACC (Oct 30, 2003)

Hey bro, are you up in Keystone now? I am around for a couple days, then back to the right coast. About NZ - it could be year round if you live on the North Island. A few good runs up there (the wairoa) are dam release and the others run whenever it rains. On the south island, murchison has fairly continuous year round boating, but it is all II-IV. The west coast south island (V-V+) season is in the spring / summer + rain, not year round, but you could always live in hokitika durin g the season then go back north.


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## marko (Feb 25, 2004)

Oregon or Washington is a great place for year round boating. I lived in Eugene for a short period of time during the winter. The boating is good...mostly playboating near Eugene. But you can drive to good creeks. The economy in Eugene is worthless!!! Jobs are very hard to get. I have a friend in Seattle and he absolutely loves it. He is a full on creeker and has plenty of stuff to run near him. He says in the winter if a storm rolls in and its to cold he just goes skiing and kayaks a couple of days later. Jobs are probably easier to come by up there.

Good Luck...


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## huckit21 (Nov 4, 2003)

Hey Alex, i am moving out to ashville in march. i here your not too far away send me an email with all your info and i will give you a call. later

eric


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## russllmar (Oct 22, 2003)

*Asheville is as good as I know of.*

Hey, I live just south of Asheville now(Brevard). It is good to go generally. Compared to colorado it is great for boating(summers excepted). It is a pretty fun town centrally located for anywhere in the southeast. Most regions are about an 45 to an hour away. Green is about 50 minutes and runs pretty much year round. It is the class V run that runs alll the time. Others depend solely on rain. There are many small towns around Asheville that are just as nice as the city, just depends on what your looking for. Jobs are kinda hard to find but doable. Cheapish housing. About September through November is hurricane and rain. January through Mayish is more rain. Summers just depend but is a good time to travel( like back to Colorado). The green is an easy way to hook up with boaters pretty fast. There are many good boating towns out there, I will probably go NW for my second choice. Chatanooga, Tn is another good one, similar to asheville without the green but has as many other runs as asheville. Email me if you want to boat sometime. I will be around till end of spring sometime and then back somewhere in the southeast in the fall. Russell


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## Meng (Oct 25, 2003)

Yeah, Nor. California has good year round boating too. Especially Arcata. And when there's no rain, theres always ocean surf.

Definitely would say NZ is year round... there's lots of stuff that runs winter on the nortwestern South Island too, and by ChCh. The Hoki scene does run in the winter but its usually real cold and too high from what i've been told).


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## Blumpkin (Oct 31, 2003)

Recently at Tallulah I had the great opportunity to speak with a well known old school boater. I asked him the same question. He didn't even have to think about his answer, which was Asheville, NC and Seattle, WA. Evidently, Seattle's plentiful precipitation provides for year-round, world class boating, within a short distance of the city, although a bit cold.


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## ShaneRobinson (Nov 7, 2004)

*Northwest has it all!*

I grew up in Colorado and learned to boat there. I now live in Seattle, and it has everything!!! Boating all year round. I mean absolutely any kind of boating you want 365 days with 4 hours drive. The only thing you will miss is the sun. It is suprisingly sunning in seattle, but all the rivers are in deep forested gorges with no sun. Even in the summer people are in drysuits, but when sept rolls around and colorado is checking the gore gauge and your are trying to decide on the countless option in BC you'll be glad. And unlike Ashville, there is some of the best skiing in the world (also year round). 

Call me when you move up here 
Shane
206-465-4740


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## wetvirginia (Feb 29, 2004)

*Fayetteville, WV*

If making $$ isn't your concern, then winter in Fayetteville. I went to the dries put in waves yesterday, and had a line of 1 person. The creeking is good all winter, as is the play...very rarely is it TOO cold to paddle, and when it is, go to Snowshoe, or a hike. Work here is almost non-existant in the winter, unless you want to work construction, and have an "in" with someone local. Also, supply your own women please....our supply is depleted enough. But, rent is cheap, (I pay $225/mo) and expenses are low....

Brian J
going to the dries in 15 mins....


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## JCKeck1 (Oct 28, 2003)

Sounds like WA is the place to be. I was there last winter and got on top tye, tumwater and Icicle. The job market seems better there than any of the other suggestions. Plus I love skiing - I'll see you in 2008 after I've fullfilled commitments here!


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## wolf (Dec 4, 2004)

How can there be a discussion about year round boating with no mention of Portland, OR? It's got Seattle beat by a long shot. Some may disagree, so let's take a look:
SEATTLE: negatives: A big ass city with an absolute nightmare traffic jam, day in and day out. super expensive rent. lame close-in winter time paddling (there are a few exceptions).
positives: Robe Canyon! (there's the exception) and it's still an hour away with no traffic. You're close to the Olympic Peninsula, which offers lots of great winter boating, but again, you've got to be willing to drive.
The spring and summer, when IT becomes MECCA. But we're talking about year-round right?
PORTLAND: wait a minute....I just figured it out. The reason nobody mentioned P-town on this thread is because there are enough Colorodo paddlers out there already who realized that boating only two months a year SUCKED! 
unfortunately now they know, and the locals definitely know that the play spots are all getting crowded and you might even see another group on some of the world's most incredible creeks, where a few years ago that was damn near impossible. So let it be known, I never told you anything. Portland sucks!


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## marko (Feb 25, 2004)

Oregon boating in the winter is good! When I was in Eugene I never seemed to have problems with lines at the local playspots except when Lake Creek was running. There always seemed to be something to do. My worst case scenario was having to play on the Willamette in downtown. Which is still fun. The McKenzie at 4.9ft has an UNBELIEVABLE wave!!! I never got to venture into the creeks but I know they are incredible.

DOWNFALL TO OREGON---The economy is horrible! Maybe it has improved in the past two years but when i was there I was competing with 15 other people for a gas pump attendant position. LAME!!

SEATTLE---Let's not forget about Skook!!!


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## erdvm1 (Oct 17, 2003)

Joe, This Southeast is the place to be for boating. You already know that. The down side is I know nurses that live in Ashevegas and they don't make all that much although the cost of living there is HIGH. The place to live and work is Chattanooga. Very central location and good pay. Has a CO feel (add humidity). I can hook you up with a bunch of kayakers in the medical field out there. WA is cool but it's just that cool. Lot's of boating with a PFD only in the Southeast. Horsepasture, Linville, The Green, Little River Canyon, Chick Cain..........Overflow and on on on on. BTW don't listen to Blumpkin until he gives you the JABA. 

Blumpkin are you paddling? There's a ton of snow out here. 112% of average snow pack!!!!!!! Post a picture of JABA the Hut!!


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## Blumpkin (Oct 31, 2003)

No, no JABA for you! Haven't paddled since Tallulah but I'll be running the Upper Yough, Upper and Lower Blackwater, and Lower Big Sandy in the next month or so. So, to stay on topic, there is also year-round boating if you live in the DC area, although not as plentiful and somewhat rain dependent, except Great Falls. The economy is booming but the traffic is an absolute debacle. I hear there's good year-round boating in Fargo, ND.


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## N. Wigston (Nov 5, 2003)

whistler bc would be a good place to live. you can boat exceptional class V from march to november, then ski whistler/blackcomb when its cold. i was there in march and had several choices of sick creeks to run that were flowing well. some stuff was already too high. we did the ashlu and it was one of the best runs i've done. and it wasn't very cold either. i've had colder days in may in colorado.


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## kentboater (Feb 27, 2004)

I've heard NZ is great but I looked into it and it's a bitch to move there. The government keeps immigration to a minimum and as far as visas go anything over 6 months is next to impossible.


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## erdvm1 (Oct 17, 2003)

Joe, NZ has a shortage of nurses (and vets). THey'll let you in for sure. What do you say I meet you there in 2 years? Did you get that phone messgae about the paddle. Merry Christmas. Matt


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## wolf (Dec 4, 2004)

Vancouver is really nice, eh. Lots of rain-fed boating that goes through the winter. When things get a bit chilly, you can always head a few hours south and catch some peninsula runs like the Big Q or Elkhorn.
Work can be a bit of a bitch and if you do find it taxes can put the strain on you (they are somewhere around the highest in the world)


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## Guest (Dec 20, 2004)

Coming from the SouthEast, Asheville's pretty sweet. Another unknown option is Richmond, VA. Paddling on the James is pretty sweet year-round. The James goes right through the middle of down-town. Always a playspot. And when the water gets high (70-80,000 CFS), there's holes that'll eat you alive. Super easy daily paddling with a 9-5 job. Also close to DC & Great Falls. Everything else is a little bit of a drive, but not too far. Gauley's only about 5 or less hours away. But if you're looking for a super easy place to live with a good boating community, and super easy daily paddling and not having to deal with that much traffic, Richmond could be an option. You can also paddle at night, due to the lights of the city reflecting off the river... pretty cool. Also, lots of jobs that are easy to find and get.


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## wolf (Dec 4, 2004)

Alright, one more option. Basel, Switzerland. Year round boatin'. The Birs flows right through the middle of the city (like Richmond) and dig this: the city did a 10 million dollar reclamation project on the river to bring back the beaver. They took out all the low-head dams. The head engineer on the project was a long time paddler and turned the whole river into an absolute play paradise. It's rain dependent, but fortunately we get enough of that. 
That's for starters. We've also got the Black Forest about 1/2 an hour away and it's holding some beautiful creeks: The Alb, Pragbach (google it) Murg, Wehra, Ibach, etc.
If that's not enough you've got the Bremgarten wave / hole combo about 3/4 of an hour away. It's the site of quite a whitewater fest in the Spring. The flows go for about 6 months a year.
But wait, that's not all. You've got the frickin' ALPS in your backyard. Literally hundreds of rivers and creeks to choose from.
Yes sireeeeee. It's good to go! And the economy, well damn if they don't pay you what you're worth. Now all you've got to do is go and find yourselves a Swiss bride or groom and join the party.


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## WesternMD (Dec 5, 2003)

Virginia is for LOVERS. (an old TV add)
West Virginia is for KAYAKERS!!!!!

West Virginia & Western Maryland are truly great places to be a kayaker. I was very saddened when I had to leave CO a year ago, but the ever-present waters of the east have eased my pains. There's great things to do in CO, and greater things to paddle in WV!! Been paddling almost every week since.

....just have to put the skiing behind you. But ya'll know skiing on the est just isn't the same. That's OK, not time when there all this water.

Just my 1 cent


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