 High waters cause high dangerous flow. As we continue to search for new locations while the Rivers continue to rise in Kansas. We've found fun and excitement right here in our own backyard. If kayaking around the Wichita area you must drop in for an evening or quick trip at the newly built stair step passage. The passage is along the Arkansas River and offers a quick fix to those long weekdays. The central location (right off of the Lincoln street dam) offers 300 feet of excitement at less than 5 minutes away.
Check out the article from the Eagle here
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 Friday, May 24th, a couple of us headed out to Marion County Lake to get a little paddling in along with some off-shore fishing. The afternoon started off a little windy, but Marion's quiet coves made paddling easier and the surrounding trees shielded us from choppy waters. After about an hour on the water, the winds died down, the clouds parted and the sinking sun came out with just enough light left to offer us a solid hour of dusk fishing. Our patience paid off, as we started hitting bass, blue gill and crappie using plastics and rooster tails roughly 20 yards off the shoreline. By the time we were ready to paddle in, we'd landed about a dozen fish and hooked at least another half dozen.
All said, Marion County Lake shouldn't go overlooked by any kayaking anglers. The lake is big enough to offer a variety of fishing terrain, yet small enough to paddle almost anywhere you want to go. And the fish are there if you know where to look. It certainly lands a spot on our list of new favorite fishing holes and is more than accommodating for novice to experienced paddlers.  No matter what type of boating you enjoy. Ultimately, as the weather begins to warm our anticipation to hit the water grows stronger and stronger. This year, please be aware of our Kansas lakes and the affect that the drought has caused. Most of the lakes in Kansas are on average 3 - 6 feet low and have exposed many new obstacles in the water.
Check the link for a full list of Kansas lake levels and stay safe. If you find anything out of the ordinary don't hesitate to let us know what you find.  As the rain continues to fall, it becomes apparent that not all of our Kayaking trips will be sunny with a high of 70-degrees. Our latest trip took us to the big town of Oxford, Kansas. Located south of Wichita, right off of the Kansas turnpike. The town offers a great drop location at Cave Park, alongside the Arkansas River (Ark River). After dropping our kayaks at Cave Park and taking the secondary vehicle approx. eight miles down the road to 202 Rd, we slowly began to realize that the weather might not be in our favor this evening. Once we hit the Ark, all our problems and the weather seemed to disappear. We enjoyed a great three-hour paddle down the sixth largest river in the U.S. The trip offered a few spots of low flow, but nothing that couldn’t be maneuvered by kayak, and no real hauling had to be done. Paddling with the current made it more difficult to pick up trash along the side; however we did manage to grab several very random articles. In our combined efforts, we scraped up: Two duck decoys, one Air Jordan basketball, a five-gallon oil container and the typical bottles and cans. The duck decoys now reside in our office as decorations. 
 Our first stop of the year began where we left off in 2012 – El Dorado lake at the mouth of the Satchel Creek. Immediately after parking the truck along 177, we quickly came to realize the devastating effect two years of drought have had on the area. The creek was down a great deal, which made maneuvering even more of a struggle. After kayaking about 3/4 of a mile up Satchel creek, we found ourselves carrying our kayaks more than paddling them. On the bright side, we managed to scoop up a ton of trash and found more fishing bobbers than any one man needs. Let's hope the rain keeps coming so our season isn't cut short because it's sunsets like these that keep us coming back out.  |