Canews is PTCC’s living newsletter — a place to find what’s coming up, celebrate recent trips, and share useful tips and stories from our community. This page is updated regularly, so check back often.

Trip spotlight

Wiener Roast

The long-time tradition, Paddle Trails Canoe Club's annual Wiener Roast, took place on March 7th, and it was very successful. This was again a joint trip with Washington Kayak Club, and we had 18 participants including PTCC members, SteveR and ILeanaA in OCs, TomM and DennisT in IKs, GraceD, BillP, BobS, DougK, JohnK and Kanako in hard shell kayaks.

The crew were helpful packing food and firewood, performed well in rapids, efficiently started fire and grilled wieners and marshmallows like pros!

Wiener Roast Video

2026 Classes & Training Schedule 

We’ve got a full lineup of classes this season—whether you’re just getting started or looking to level up your river skills.

Whitewater Playboating (Canoe Only) – May 16 (part of the Spring Bash!)

Take your Class II+ skills further with surfing, eddy work, and playboating techniques.

Free • Capacity: 6 boats

Fundamentals of Solo Canoeing (Class II) – May 30–31

Build confidence navigating rapids, obstacles, and river strategy in a dynamic environment.

$75 • Capacity: 6 boats

Fundamentals of Tandem Canoeing (Class II) – June 6–7

Develop teamwork and advanced techniques for running Class II water safely and efficiently.

$75 • Capacity: 6 boats

Swiftwater Rescue (ACA Level 4) – June 13–14

Essential rescue skills for river paddlers—self-rescue, throw ropes, pins, and group safety.

$150 (members) • Capacity: 12 paddlers

Intro to Paddling Saltwater – June 21

Learn tides, currents, and coastal hazards for nearshore paddling in Puget Sound.

$50 • Capacity: 6 boats

Intro to Canoeing (Lakes) – June 27

New to canoeing? Learn the basics, strokes, and boat control on flatwater.

$50 • Capacity: 6 boats

Intro to Canoeing (Class I Rivers) – July 18–19

Step into moving water—eddies, current, and foundational river skills.

$75 • Capacity: 8 boats

River Safety Skills Practice – TBD

Hands-on rescue fundamentals: swimming rapids, throw ropes, and unpinning boats.

Free • No capacity limit

Trip Coordinator Spotlight: Kanako Iwata-Eng 

Kanako is one of our region's most prolific paddlers, often on the water more than 200 days/year.

How did you first get into paddling?

Eddie Bauer where I worked was sponsoring a professional kayaker, Ben Stooksberry.  He went around the world, kayaked extraordinary rivers and made films.  One of those films interested me.

What’s one early paddling memory that still sticks with you?

Each time I drive in the Flaming Geyser State Park, I remember my first swim in the river (Green Yo-Yo) which started a chain reaction.  A few more swimmers at the same time.

What inspired you to start coordinating trips?

As a new paddler, I first waited for trips to be posted/announced, but it was never enough, so I tried to fix it.  I planned trips I wanted to do, recruited on-the-water leaders and safety boaters (mainly for myself), and extended my joy (suffering?) with other members.

How do you usually choose which trips to coordinate?

I coordinate something I want to paddle myself. 

Do you have a favorite river to paddle or coordinate trips on?

Not a particular river, but last several years, it's been my joy to coordinate the PTCC tradition, Wiener Roast, which I took over from Don Bottles.  

What helped you feel ready to coordinate trips?

Know the gauge and the runnable range for your particular group.  If you don't know the gauge, know someone who can teach you.

What advice would you give someone considering coordinating their first trip?

To coordinate a trip, you don't necessarily know the river, as long as you have an on-the-water leader.

What’s your favorite kind of paddling?

Class 3-4 Whitewater.  Exciting and humbling.

Favorite piece of gear?

A swim cap.  I don't like to get my hair wet.  (I know I'm in a wrong sport.)

What do you love about the PTCC community?

Fun group of people.

🏁 Upcoming Races & Events

Spring brings a full lineup of whitewater action—from festivals to first-time races to classic Northwest traditions. Whether you’re racing, spectating, or just soaking up the scene, there are plenty of ways to join in.

Access & Conservation Corner 

Our Access and Conservation Chair, Merkys Gomez, has been representing the interests of canoers and kayakers on an advisory committee to the WA Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Below is a summary of the March 18, 2026 Region 4 Planning Advisory Committee Meeting. The focus was on boating (Motorized v Non-Motorized). Tom O’Keefe (from American Whitewater) and Merkys moderated the meeting portion focused on non-motorized boating. Official notes will eventually be on the WDFW site: (https://wdfw.wa.gov/about/advisory/wampac#meeting-calendar).

Most of the conversation revolved around 3 issues:

1.     Types of Launches & Associated Parking – the terms being used haven’t had a formal definition and it’s not clear what one will encounter. Current examples are: concrete ramp, gravel ramp, unimproved ramp and hand launch. Lots of discussion about how to clearly define those, not just for how to launch but also for how vehicles can have their vessels access the water and/or park. E.g. can a vehicle drive down a gravel ramp to launch a boat? This was a productive discussion and will hopefully lead to a clear definition that will aid users.

2.     Funding – this was a difficult topic. Many of the lands were acquired via fishing. However, funding and use type has changed over the years. Funding now also comes from other sources (like the discover pass, which gives access to state lands for all). Use has been changing, with an increase in non-motorized uses. Also, as we move into the future, motorized use may decline and/or seem less palatable due to prices and/or carbon footprint so we need to think about the future. But where the money comes from and what it’s available for. Understanding the money and considering funding sources will be a big issue and something worth educating ourselves about.

3.     Amenities – Bathrooms were a big point, particularly for WDFW sites which can often be nearby private property so maintaining clean sites where people have a place to use the bathroom is important. Another point that was well-received was a request for a staging area for non-motorized boats.

We are now done with the topic specific meetings. The next round of meetings will focus on the watershed level (presumably, which sites to prioritize for improvements). It’s likely that the next meeting will not take place until the fall, but I will keep you all posted. 

As always, please feel free to reach out with any questions/thoughts/comments. 

Thanks,

Merkys (PTCC Access & Conservation Chair)

What is your life worth???

This last summer I got to do a 4-day trip on the Selway River.  It had been awhile since I last did it.  Don’t get to do it very often.  The river was very, very low, too low.  But it was good to be outdoors enjoying the wilderness.  However, the last night we camped on the river I had an incident that ruined the trip and made it more difficult for the other members of the trip.

This last night there were a number of large black wasps buzzing around us but we would wave them away and they basically didn’t really bother us much.  I got up out of my camp chair to do something, and when I sat back down I pressed my back into the back of my chair where one of the large black wasps had perched.  He did not like it one bit and stung me good.

Now I have had a previous encounter with a wasp on the Twisp.  I was driving my van and one flew into the window and stung me behind my back.  Without going into details, I spent 2 hours in a Twisp Clinic and took a number of drugs.  I recovered that night.  After returning home I went through 2 years of immunology shots to help my system deal with any future stings.  Apparently I did not take the shots long enough.

So, when I got stung on the Selway I broke out with rashes on my back, stomach, tops of my feet, and my lips started tingling.   I felt terrible from the itching and internally.  Luckily, Aaron had a Garmin InReach whose capabilities include satellite messaging.  With it he was able to get emergency services via text messages. 

Mary Keppler was my temporary nurse and she asked me if I wanted Aaron to call in emergency help, which we knew meant a helicopter.  I felt without emergency services I might not survive the night!  They flew in a helicopter and Life Flighted me to a hospital in Missoula, MT.  Again, they gave me several drugs and released me 3 hours later.  So, I survived to write this article.  The cost of that LifeFlight was $56,000!  Luckily insurance paid it all.

A special thanks to Mary, Kanako, and Aaron for taking care of me, getting emergency services and dragging my boat and gear down the river to the takeout through 2 Class IV rapids.

Many of you have gone into the wilderness like this.  Many times it's without any emergency satellite messaging capability.  That could be a fatal mistake.  Ask yourself, “How much is your life worth?”  Satellite messaging systems are not as expensive as they used to be.  A satellite messaging system can generally get you help in an emergency.  And, these days you can get a cellphone with emergency SOS satellite messaging capabilities. 

When I got home from the trip I began researching satellite messaging options.  I discovered some of the new cellphones have this capability.  Well I was ready for a new phone anyway.  I decided to get the latest Google Pixel 10 Pro XL.  It has satellite messaging capability.  If no cell or wifi signal is available the phone can connect to satellites and send out text messages very similar to InReach.  To my surprise this capability comes free with the phone - no charges for its use.  However, they do say, “it’s free for now” so they might charge in the future.  I won’t go into the wilderness any more without my satellite capable cellphone.

The latest Apples phones also have satellite messaging capability.  And, when I did my research Motorola was also working on it for their new phones.  More cellphone companies may have added the capability since the time of my research.  It is not available on old phones - don’t bother to look for it.

Consider upgrading your phone.  It's a small price to pay for surviving your wilderness trip that went wrong.  You might not have any allergies like me, but many things can happen in the wilderness at any time, on and off the river. The backcountry skiers in the California avalanche used a cell phone with satellite messaging to contact emergency services and get help in for the survivors.

By the way, I am back getting more immunotherapy shots for wasps.

If anyone would like more information about low water Selway or wasp/bee therapy get in touch with me.  Happy boating!

Bob Schneider