I am planning my first river canoe trip to the Russian River in Northern California sometime in early June.
I Have a few questions:
What part of the river would you recommend running? Please be specific.
What is the best family spot to camp? I have a family and don’t want to be around a bunch of parting if I can help it.
Is taking my 21 month old son on a Russian River Canoe trip a bad idea? I’m an intermediate paddler and my wife a beginner. We are both very strong swimmers and live/play right near the ocean.
Russian River Gulch All I know is that the Gulch were it opens to the ocean is a beutiful spot. There is a large pool before it gets rough.
Years ago, I heard there was a lot of partying on the Russian River… Do not know if that is still true.
No opinion on taking a 21 month old on the river.
I took the extended family up there for two weeks a couple years ago, but we rented a house and cottage over in Capser. Casper Beach is right around the point from Rusian Gulch, and there is an RV park there, We took six kayaks and did the Noyo and Narvaro Rivers. Very calm, but not nearly as pretty as Russian Gulch
We did a camping tour in the van the year before, but we stayed at a rental on that part of the trip.
I paddled the sea caves at Fort Brag a couple of times, and I loved it. Once with a guide, and once with a local friend, but that is not a family/beginner trip.
I would talk to some of the outfitters in the area. I know the SOAR inflatable canoe company (www.soar1.com) is there in Healdsburg and rents out their canoes for several sections (Russian River Adventures.) There are also a couple of outfitters that rent aluminum canoes, and will help you with a shuttle if you have your own boat. Any of them could probably answer your questions as to which section is family appropriate with camping.
Also check out www.cacreeks.com, I think they had a good writeup on a couple reaches of the Russian.