Hello New guy!

Erik1969 · 05-29-2014, 09:48 PM

Hello everyone. I am Erik Blohm and have been checking out your group for a little while. It looks like a good place to meet others to paddle. I have been whitewater/sea kayaking for 10 years now.
Local Rivers I have run.
-Cuyahoga most of it including gorge and Kent section(many times).
-Rocky River West branch (II+)
-Big Creek near Chardon (very nice class III)
-Chagrin Aurora branch (nice class II+)
-Grand River many times and play at Harpersfield wave whenever it is in! I once paddled it on a warm October evening Harpersfield to Hidden valley with the full moon lighting the way awesome!
-Ashtabula
-Neshannock and Bear Creek LOVE BEAR!!! (Steve Z showed me those! Thanks Steve)
-Slippery Rock Kennedy Mill to Eckert or Harris maybe 100+ times (I really love the Slip!)
-Yough many times
-I love to surf kayak on Lake Erie at Walnut beach and Headlands.
-Cheat Narrows, Lower Moose, Ocoee, Nantahala.
-I once ran Mill creek below Lanternman to silver bridge. Does anyone know how the park views this? We did it stealth.
Anyway I am not bragging by any means! Just want to say I am experienced.

I Live in Garrettsville and have run Silver Creek many times. The section is only .75 miles long but at higher levels approaches II+ (the dam and falls are III+) a real nice surf wave sets up on it! I am starting to work on promoting it as a Whitewater play run.

While I like easy class IV I also enjoy the Clarion and local class I-II and flatwater at local lakes. I have 4 girls (10,9,7,5) and a boy 13 and want to get them into moving water this summer locally. I am going to buy a Canoe to get them started. I am not a canoe'er! I am a pilot and have a lot of weekdays off but no partners so I often paddle solo. Anyway I look forward to meeting and running some local stuff!

swampboy62 · 05-30-2014, 07:28 AM

Hey Erik!

Good to hear you're still paddling! I kind of faded out of whitewater for a couple of years and focused on mountain biking, but I miss it a lot and hope to get in some local runs this year.

Bear Creek has been on my mind lately with the rain events we've had. That creek is just a lot of fun! Deer Creek is another one I'm waiting to get back on.

Never heard of Silver Creek - I had to check out the Garrettsville area on hillmap to find it! But if you register with American Whitewater you can add it to the river info pages, and that will at least give people a reference if they're interested in running it. Do you have a gauge correlation with Eagle Creek for runnable levels?

Also never heard of Big Creek - looks interesting. Do you know anything about Mill Creek that drains into the Grand River at Hogback Ridge Metropark? It looks interesting, and the birdseye view on Bing Maps shows a mess of rapids.

I'm hoping to get in a lower Slip run pretty soon. It's been a while, so I'm waiting for the levels to drop to 'tame'. Might be able to pull it off this weekend, but more likely next. I will try to remember to post it up before hand.

And Mill Creek in Mill Creek Park is off limits. I don't agree with this, and am not sure it's even legal for a local park district to declare a public waterway off limits. Nevertheless you can get ticketed for paddling there. It's really a shame too - Mahoning County's only whitewater is verboten. Goes well with the fact that Mahoning County also has zero miles of legal mountain bike trails.

Steve Z

BOBK · 05-30-2014, 09:37 AM

Mill Creek Park is known as The Green Cathedral for a reason. It is still a place where you can go to enjoy the quiet noises of nature, away from the madness of the modern world. It is also a small sanctuary for quite a bit of wildlife. It has maintained its level of pristine beauty because it has not allowed mountain biking on any of its 15 miles of paths and confined boating to only 2 of its 3 lakes and not on Mill Creek itself. Those of us fortunate enough to have had the park as our backyard understand the need to continue to adhere to this policy. There are plenty of other places to go as evidenced by Eric's list.

swampboy62 · 05-30-2014, 01:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BOBK

Mill Creek Park is known as The Green Cathedral for a reason. It is still a place where you can go to enjoy the quiet noises of nature, away from the madness of the modern world. It is also a small sanctuary for quite a bit of wildlife. It has maintained its level of pristine beauty because it has not allowed mountain biking on any of its 15 miles of paths and confined boating to only 2 of its 3 lakes and not on Mill Creek itself. Those of us fortunate enough to have had the park as our backyard understand the need to continue to adhere to this policy. There are plenty of other places to go as evidenced by Eric's list.

Go to Quail Hollow SP and spend some time there. Do the mtb trails detract from the beauty of the park?

Go to McConnells Mill SP and spend some time along Slippery Rock Creek. Do the kayakers spoil the beauty for you there?

Mill Creek represents the Mahoning county parks. They ban kayaking on the creek, roller blading on the paved trails, and mountain biking on every bit of dirt trail. By doing this they are not providing the recreational opportunities that happen in other areas around us. In short, they are far behind the times.

Your stance appears to literally be a case of 'not in my backyard.'

If you would like to discuss this further lets keep it off the board.

Steve Z
sgzohio"AT"yahoo.com

BOBK · 05-30-2014, 02:11 PM

You're right, they are behind the times. They should also allow speed boats on the lakes and off road 4 wheelers on all the paths. How selfish of us not to think of the people that enjoy those types of vehicles, too.

Erik1969 · 05-31-2014, 11:48 PM

More ramblings! I loved Mill Creek park as a teen (still do as an adult). I ran cross-country in high school and ran every trail in the park many, many times. It is a jewel!

Steve I have hiked Mill Creek (Grand trib.) and yes it has the potential to be a great II-II+ run.

I paddled the Slip today. It was +4" a really great level! We had one brand new kayaker (had roll lessons in pool) in a big creek boat run Rosepoint to Eckert successfully.

I paddled my new Pyrahna Burn today! It is as close to "unflippable" as I have paddled. Great boat!

Going to Headlands near Mentor tomorrow to practice/teach rolls to my daughter(s) @4:00 PM if anyone wants to practice/learn rolling your welcome to join!

Erik1969 · 06-01-2014, 12:02 AM

More ramblings! I loved Mill Creek park as a teen (still do as an adult). I ran cross-country in high school and ran every trail in the park many, many times. It is a jewel!

Steve I have hiked Mill Creek (Grand trib.) and yes it has the potential to be a great II-II+ run.

I paddled the Slip today. It was +4" a really great level! We had one brand new kayaker (had roll lessons in pool) in a big creek boat run Rosepoint to Eckert successfully.

I paddled my new Pyrahna Burn today! It is as close to "unflippable" as I have paddled. Great boat!

Going to Headlands near Mentor tomorrow to practice/teach rolls to my daughter(s) @4:00 PM if anyone wants to practice/learn rolling your welcome to join!

05-29-2014, 09:48 PM	#1
Erik1969 Junior Member Join Date: May 2014 Posts: 4 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTW/F/M Award(s): 0	Hello New guy! Hello everyone. I am Erik Blohm and have been checking out your group for a little while. It looks like a good place to meet others to paddle. I have been whitewater/sea kayaking for 10 years now. Local Rivers I have run. -Cuyahoga most of it including gorge and Kent section(many times). -Rocky River West branch (II+) -Big Creek near Chardon (very nice class III) -Chagrin Aurora branch (nice class II+) -Grand River many times and play at Harpersfield wave whenever it is in! I once paddled it on a warm October evening Harpersfield to Hidden valley with the full moon lighting the way awesome! -Ashtabula -Neshannock and Bear Creek LOVE BEAR!!! (Steve Z showed me those! Thanks Steve) -Slippery Rock Kennedy Mill to Eckert or Harris maybe 100+ times (I really love the Slip!) -Yough many times -I love to surf kayak on Lake Erie at Walnut beach and Headlands. -Cheat Narrows, Lower Moose, Ocoee, Nantahala. -I once ran Mill creek below Lanternman to silver bridge. Does anyone know how the park views this? We did it stealth. Anyway I am not bragging by any means! Just want to say I am experienced. I Live in Garrettsville and have run Silver Creek many times. The section is only .75 miles long but at higher levels approaches II+ (the dam and falls are III+) a real nice surf wave sets up on it! I am starting to work on promoting it as a Whitewater play run. While I like easy class IV I also enjoy the Clarion and local class I-II and flatwater at local lakes. I have 4 girls (10,9,7,5) and a boy 13 and want to get them into moving water this summer locally. I am going to buy a Canoe to get them started. I am not a canoe'er! I am a pilot and have a lot of weekdays off but no partners so I often paddle solo. Anyway I look forward to meeting and running some local stuff!

05-30-2014, 07:28 AM	#2
swampboy62 Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: Warren, Ohio Posts: 141 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTW/F/M Award(s): 0	Hey Erik! Good to hear you're still paddling! I kind of faded out of whitewater for a couple of years and focused on mountain biking, but I miss it a lot and hope to get in some local runs this year. Bear Creek has been on my mind lately with the rain events we've had. That creek is just a lot of fun! Deer Creek is another one I'm waiting to get back on. Never heard of Silver Creek - I had to check out the Garrettsville area on hillmap to find it! But if you register with American Whitewater you can add it to the river info pages, and that will at least give people a reference if they're interested in running it. Do you have a gauge correlation with Eagle Creek for runnable levels? Also never heard of Big Creek - looks interesting. Do you know anything about Mill Creek that drains into the Grand River at Hogback Ridge Metropark? It looks interesting, and the birdseye view on Bing Maps shows a mess of rapids. I'm hoping to get in a lower Slip run pretty soon. It's been a while, so I'm waiting for the levels to drop to 'tame'. Might be able to pull it off this weekend, but more likely next. I will try to remember to post it up before hand. And Mill Creek in Mill Creek Park is off limits. I don't agree with this, and am not sure it's even legal for a local park district to declare a public waterway off limits. Nevertheless you can get ticketed for paddling there. It's really a shame too - Mahoning County's only whitewater is verboten. Goes well with the fact that Mahoning County also has zero miles of legal mountain bike trails. Steve Z Last edited by swampboy62; 05-30-2014 at 07:33 AM.

05-30-2014, 09:37 AM	#3
BOBK Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Posts: 227 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTW/F/M Award(s): 0	Mill Creek Park is known as The Green Cathedral for a reason. It is still a place where you can go to enjoy the quiet noises of nature, away from the madness of the modern world. It is also a small sanctuary for quite a bit of wildlife. It has maintained its level of pristine beauty because it has not allowed mountain biking on any of its 15 miles of paths and confined boating to only 2 of its 3 lakes and not on Mill Creek itself. Those of us fortunate enough to have had the park as our backyard understand the need to continue to adhere to this policy. There are plenty of other places to go as evidenced by Eric's list. __________________ BOBK <IIOX> KAYAK - Backwards or forwards, the only way to paddle.

05-30-2014, 02:11 PM	#5
BOBK Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Posts: 227 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTW/F/M Award(s): 0	You're right, they are behind the times. They should also allow speed boats on the lakes and off road 4 wheelers on all the paths. How selfish of us not to think of the people that enjoy those types of vehicles, too. __________________ BOBK <IIOX> KAYAK - Backwards or forwards, the only way to paddle.

05-31-2014, 11:48 PM	#6
Erik1969 Junior Member Join Date: May 2014 Posts: 4 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTW/F/M Award(s): 0	More ramblings! I loved Mill Creek park as a teen (still do as an adult). I ran cross-country in high school and ran every trail in the park many, many times. It is a jewel! Steve I have hiked Mill Creek (Grand trib.) and yes it has the potential to be a great II-II+ run. I paddled the Slip today. It was +4" a really great level! We had one brand new kayaker (had roll lessons in pool) in a big creek boat run Rosepoint to Eckert successfully. I paddled my new Pyrahna Burn today! It is as close to "unflippable" as I have paddled. Great boat! Going to Headlands near Mentor tomorrow to practice/teach rolls to my daughter(s) @4:00 PM if anyone wants to practice/learn rolling your welcome to join!

06-01-2014, 12:02 AM	#7
Erik1969 Junior Member Join Date: May 2014 Posts: 4 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTW/F/M Award(s): 0	More ramblings! I loved Mill Creek park as a teen (still do as an adult). I ran cross-country in high school and ran every trail in the park many, many times. It is a jewel! Steve I have hiked Mill Creek (Grand trib.) and yes it has the potential to be a great II-II+ run. I paddled the Slip today. It was +4" a really great level! We had one brand new kayaker (had roll lessons in pool) in a big creek boat run Rosepoint to Eckert successfully. I paddled my new Pyrahna Burn today! It is as close to "unflippable" as I have paddled. Great boat! Going to Headlands near Mentor tomorrow to practice/teach rolls to my daughter(s) @4:00 PM if anyone wants to practice/learn rolling your welcome to join!