Minibear ... no stories to tell from my guiding days on the OP that I can recall. I've been pretty fortunate, and also tend to be pretty careful
I've seen lots go down over the years ... even watched two boats go down on the same sweeper on consecutive days in the Hoh about 7-8 years ago.
My only near close-call with the drifter came on my second float trip ... a trip down the upper Wynoochie in late summer, I think it was late Aug. or early Sptember. (I don't remember where we put in or took out ... just that it was way too long a float and we rowed the last two miles or so in the pitch black).
We came down through a very shallow riffle that pushed up against a pile of logs. I got to learn the hard way about proper set-up and the inability to do much with the oars when you can't grab water.
I put the boat up on the logs and the water pinned it. Never took a gunnel under fortunately, so we climbed out with a rope tied to the anchor bracket and finally worked it free.
Perhaps a good lesson to have learned early on as it gave me some serious butt-pucker factor about the whole deal with my new boat and how at times, there's not much you can do ... you gotta plan ahead. I think it also gave me a little more respect for the rivers than I might not have had otherwise.
Won't say that nothing could ever happen ... too many variables outside of your control. The thread about my frat bro that I posted yesterday illustrates that point.
Any new channels we run across in the Hoh, I'll usually scout anything I can't see all the way through. Generally I'll go up before a trip when things are still out just to take a look after massive high waters.
I don't think I'll be going over that infamous rock at Oxbow though ... I don't have the strength to push out from behind it either. That's why you go AROUND it in the first place
A certain someone forgot that
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