Sharing our kayaking photos on Flickr has been a
wonderful experience. The feedback we have gotten from our Flickr
Contacts has improved
our
kayak photography immensely. You can also find us on Facebook now.
Kayaks for Oklahoma
For the last 6 years Dianne has paddled a Heritage Angler 9.5 kayak that we bought at Academy Sports in
Tulsa. We are big fans of
Heritage Kayaks.
They have great features for a very affordable price.
Recently, Dianne
decided to give Old
Town Kayaksa try, so we bought her a Vapor 12 Angler XT Kayak.
Although we only go Kayak Fishing occasionally, Dianne has really enjoyed
the added stability and storage space that a kayak rigged for fishing
offers.
The old Perception Swifty 9.5 foot kayak that Tom
paddles has been discontinued by
Perception Kayaks,
but it is TOTALLY still be continued by Tom.
Tom likes rugged, brightly colored kayaks with comfy seats and foot pegs.
The Swifty was a great fit for Tom. It may be a little slower on the
water than longer kayaks, but it is much easier to load and unload.
My wife Dianne and I love paddling our kayaks in the rivers and lakes of Oklahoma. However, it can be quite a bit of work planning and executing successful boating trips. Even for tame-water-paddlers like us, getting the right info at the right time can be difficult.
Knowing what bodies of water are worth paddling, knowing where to find the put-ins and take-outs,
monitoring the river levels,
arrange shuttle services and finding
camping spots or other local lodging resources
can be tough. OklahomaRoadTrips.com is here to help.
We also buy quite a bit of kayaking gear, so expect to find
some reviews and recommendations especially for kayak
fishing equipment. If you live far from a big-box
Sporting Goods store, like we do, you may appreciate the
Amazon.com links to paddler supplies like
kayak sprayskirts,
light-weight kayak paddles,
kayaking t-shirts and even
Kayaks for Sale. We get a small bit of change from each
sale to help keep this website free for all. Links on the
Menu to the lift will take you to specific pages with
information on each of the major kayaking paddling locations
around Oklahoma and in the Ozarks.
On this site, we try to help our fellow canoeing fans find
the information they need to find the best canoe trips and
kayak adventures around Oklahoma.
Canoeing and kayaking on the Illinois River & The
Lower
Mountain Fork River got us hooked on paddling lakes and slow
rivers...even the occasional fast water journey. We hope
you try it it too! You don't need a helmet to be a
helmet-wearing extreme sports guru to have a great time
kayaking.
Can't find any kayaks for
rent where you live? We can help you
buy a kayak. However, I always recommend renting them a
few times before buying. Renting kayaks is a good
introduction to paddling as it is usually only available on
safe, easy waterways. Also hauling kayaks is no cakewalk,
leaving them at the takeout and heading immediately for the
nearest BBQ joint is a fine luxury indeed. Also lake
paddling is very different from running rivers with
whitewater, you will want to choose your boat accordingly.
Sometimes,
Dianne and I even leave Home Sweet Oklahoma to paddle in
Arkansas,
Missouri or
Texas.
I can't help you perfect your Eskimo Roll, but I hope to share with
you some ways to enjoy Oklahoma life
when it is simply too sunny to go bowling. We get out from
time to time with a group called the Oklahoma Flatwater Paddlers. We
also try to post all of the upcoming kayak demos and paddling
classes that we hear about on our Oklahoma kayaking blog.
Most years in
Oklahoma, you will find there are some sunny 60 degree days ...sprinkled
throughout the winter months. For winter paddling, Dianne
and I look for sheltered waters you won't find on many tourist maps.
You can find them listed on our
Oklahoma paddling blog
and leave us your comments and tips as well. Get in on the
discussion, maybe you will meet some other local kayakers. We are
also members of the
Oklahoma Flatwater Paddlers Group, a great group for Sooner
State kayak and canoe
In addition to Oklahoma's officially recognized
scenic rivers, we also frequent the paddling spots not listed on the
official records as scenic...but we like them. I think
the Lower Mt
Fork River provides the finest canvas for scenic nature photography
that any Oklahoma pixel hound could ask for. We also enjoy paddling some of
Oklahoma's lakes and reservoirs.
Let us know which Oklahoma rivers and creeks you enjoy
paddling by leaving a comment on our blog. If you have a little time, check out our
online stores listed below. They help pay the hosting costs to keep
this Oklahoma Kayaking information available online for free.
Scenic Rivers in Oklahoma
There are six eastern Oklahoma rivers covered by the Oklahoma Scenic Rivers
Commission: The Barren Fork River, the Illinois River, Flint Creek, Lee Creek, Little Lee Creek and the Upper
Mountain Fork
River. I've been told that the Barren Fork River is all
commercial and offers no float trip opportunities for Oklahoma paddlers.
Sad news, if it is true. If it isn't, shoot me an email via the
Contact Us link on the menu in the top left-hand column of this page
or leave a comment on our Kayak Oklahoma Blog.
This site is authored by paddlers and for
paddlers. We provide location information for Oklahoma kayaking and canoe
enthusiasts, camping spot reviews, river reports, kayak
launches, outfitters lists and more. We do get a
small commission from Amazon.com and Google for the
click-through ads for the products on our site. However, if we
endorse a product... it is because we used it. We don't do
paid endorsements.
Labor Day Weekend Special at OKC Kayak in Oklahoma City -
Rent any Kayak or Canoe $50 for the entire weekend!
Texas Kayaking
Watch our
Flickr Photostream and our
Kayak Texas page for details and pictures from our
recent Caddo Lake road trip to Uncertain, Texas. Caddo Lake
is a little over five hours drive from our home in Okmulgee,
Oklahoma. It offers shady paddling, great fishing and
scenery like nothing that exists in Oklahoma or anywhere
else in the Ozarks or the plains.
This Summer, we have been going out for a lot of kayak
fishing trips. You can check out a collage of catfish
pictures from Dianne's adventures on our
Deep Fork River page. This weekend Dianne and I have
been trying a little 'Mothership Kayaking'. Since Dianne has
been suffering from some tendonitis lately, we thought it
would be a great time to try using our motor boat to extend
our kayaking range. That motor boat catches catfish pretty
good too and it hauls more cold beverages. Too bad I
had to tow it back to the boat ramp with my kayak when we
run it out of gas! That's nearly enough to make swear off
aluminum boats forever.
Visit our kayaking blog and leave
a comment, I would love to hear about your adventures
paddling in the Oklahoma region.
June is a great month to go
kayak fishing for catfish in Oklahoma. Dianne and
I took our kayaking buddy Greg out for some fishing with
limb lines on the Deep Fork
River. The catfish were biting strong, due to a
mayfly hatching. They brought home many pounds of
fillets over the weekend and I brought home the pictures to
share with our readers. If you are interested in
learning how to use limb lines to catch loads of big
catfish, just check out our new kayak fishing page.
The Caddo River near Caddo Gap, Arkansas got hit with some
devastating flooding. Don't try kayaking in that area until
you have spoken to a local outfitter. Flooding like
this often changes the river conditions radically.
Today's scenic Class I float trip can easily turn into a
dangerous Class III adventure through debris, trees and
wrecked facilities. Contacting a knowledgeable canoe
outfitter is your best tactic for avoiding unhealthy
surprises.
Last Summer, Dianne and I enjoyed an
exciting whitewater
kayaking float trip at Turners Bend on the rushing Mulberry
River in Arkansas. Visit our
Mulberry River outfitters page. This river is rainfall
dependent, so Spring and Fall are the best seasons for
kayaking it.
Try some
flatwater kayaking on
Oklahoma's lakes! Wondering what could be fun about
baking in the sun in the middle of a huge lake? Flatwater
kayakers seek out the skinny water. We look for the
backwater creeks and narrow, curvy, tree-lined channels of
water that motor boaters avoid. To learn what kind of fun a
$400 boat can provide you in Oklahoma: check out the
dawn mists rising over
Grave Creek on Lake Eufaula or the tree leaf filtered light
of lower Salt Creek on
Okmulgee Lake. Kayaking rocks!
Oklahoma Flatwater Paddlers - Great Group for Oklahoma
kayakers. Paddling is safer and more fun with friends, meet
some of ours!
Got a specific Oklahoma float trip destination in
mind? We have detailed pages on many Oklahoma waterways.
Most Okies float the Illinois River, but that is only the
beginning of great canoeing spots in the Sooner State. Want
to talk paddling? Hit me up on
Twitter,
Flickr or
Facebook - Username: FreeWine.
"The movement of a canoe is like a reed in the
wind. Silence is part of it, and the sounds of lapping water, bird
songs, and wind in the trees. It is part of the medium through which
it floats, the sky, the water, the shores….
There is magic in the feel of a paddle and the
movement of a canoe, a magic compounded of distance, adventure,
solitude, and peace. The way of a canoe is the way of the
wilderness, and of a freedom almost forgotten.
It is an antidote to insecurity, the open door to
waterways of ages past and a way of life with profound and abiding
satisfactions. When a man is part of his canoe, he is part of all
that canoes have ever known." –SIGURD F. OLSON, The Singing Wilderness, 1956
Choosing a new kayak paddle can be tough but very
rewarding. There are many things to consider as you try to
arrive at the perfect compromise of weight, stiffness,
durability and price. Kayak paddles are made out of plastic,
aluminum, graphite, kevlar, carbon, wood and fiberglass. The
materials used in the kayak paddle construction have major
impacts on the weight, stiffness durability and price of a
kayak paddle.
If you are whitewater kayaking you will need a shorter
kayak paddle than one designed for flatwater kayaking.
Touring or flatwater paddles often come in a two piece
option, which offers easier storage and transportation, but
a new point of potential failure. Symmetrical blades use
more energy but will pull you through the water quickly.
Asymmetrical kayak paddle blades require less energy.
Browse Kayak Paddle features and prices.
FYI - Carlisle has identified a potential safety issue
with some Magic Poly and Magic Plus kayak paddles
manufactured between October 2007 and April 2008.
(Carlisle
Kayak Paddle Recall PDF)
Your local lakes and river may have additional
permit requirements that go beyond state boat stickers and
boat registration numbers. Texas doesn’t require
registration of paddle-powered canoes and kayaks.
Okmulgee Lake
Kayaking
For our family, kayaking is quickly changing from a hobby to more of a lifestyle. Since we have to manage quite a bit of Oklahoma kayaker resources, I thought it would be handy to have the whole thing on the web and maybe some other folks could benefit as well.
Expect us to post campground reviews, trip reports, Oklahoma paddling photos and news about great outdoor fun happening all over the Ozarks. Although we live in NE Oklahoma, we love to visit our Ozark neighbors and we occasionally even stray into Texas.
Last Summer, Dianne and I enjoyed an
exciting whitewater
kayaking float trip at Turners Bend on the rushing Mulberry
River in Arkansas. Visit our
, 1956
