Flow: a little faster at first, then slow/stagnant upstream of falls.
Weather: sunny, clear, and a little hot
People/Boats: Chris S in Kestral, Chris N in "Albert Hall", Jeremy in canoe, Jeff and Jack in sit-on-top hardshell sea kayaks.
Distance: about 10.5 miles
This is a great longer trip. The put-in at Hebb Park requires a day pass purchase. Intially the river moves at a moderate pace, and then picks up a little. The Willamette Narrows was very impressive - large outcrops of rock, and lots of small channels to explore. Here's a nice picture of the narrows from somebody else's post.
Lunch at Willamette Park, then we built up some speed and shot the falls at Oregon City. (just kidding) We took the locks to get around them instead. 5 locks, with a total drop of about 50 feet. Takes about 30 minutes to go through, and you hang onto a rope from the side while the water drains out. Interesting and fun.
Towards the end, we went up and took a look at the falls from downstream. The current coming off the falls is pretty substantial, but the flow entering from the west side by the old mill was even moreso. Fast and completely chaotic flow, if you aren't solid in your boat you will take a swim trying to cross it. If you can pull that off however, you can get a nice close up view of the falls that not that many people will ever see.
Both Willamette and Clackamette Park were swarming with people - lots of families out taking a dip. I could have done without the crowds myself.
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