The esoteric river is full of wildlife, fig trees, and serenity.
Whenever I order people I ’m work to kayak the LA River , I get clean stare and raised brow .
“ LA has a river ? ” some ask , assuming that the graffitied concrete transmission channel they ’ve visualize in motion picture likeGrease , Point Blank , Terminator 2 , andDrivewere picture show deception or filmed somewhere far , far away .
The answer is , indeed , yes . The esoteric river , which stretches 51 miles from Canoga Park to Long Beach , was once the website of the Tongva federation of tribes ’s colony as well as the city ’s main water source . Aftera serial of withering floodsin the early twentieth century , however , the city implemented integrated channels and dams to get it under control . With the city ’s focus on flood direction , the arena began to urbanize , and the river ’s flora and fauna were ignore . The river became polluted with trash and toxic chemical and was evennamed one of America ’s most endangered riversin 2022 .
Did you know LA had a river?|Photo by: Citizen of the Planet/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
All of this changed , though , in 2008 , when George Wolfe organized a group of environmental enthusiast to illicitly kayak and canoe along the river to prove it was navigable . The three - sidereal day journeying catch the attention of the National Environment Agency , and the river earned protection under the Clean Water Act .
On my most late trip withLA River Expeditions , a kayaking term of enlistment radical founded by Wolfe , around 15 people ranging from families to excited seniors assembled at the Sepulveda Basin Dam for the first expedition of the season , which runs from Labor Day to late September . After putting on gloomy lifejackets and pick out one of the vibrant kayak clump together in the ankle - thick water , we launched off .
Within only a few minutes the poke of cars on the 101 and 405 thruway faded away and were replace by birdsong and the spattering of water . Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree , bushes , and reeds surrounded us , and a Anas platyrhynchos with her new-sprung duckling trailed in the lead . Several royal risque Hero perched silently near us before flying away , and an osprey circled above . egret , kingfishers , and a gray Hero of Alexandria our tour guide Gary nicknamed Doug rest nearby . After kayak the LA River for over a decade , I ’ve learned the early daybreak trips are particularly special , with hooter , deer , and Canis latrans still meander in the cool melody .
The LA River is home to egrets, herons, and kingfishers, amongst other wildlife.|Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
As he consume from the river ’s walnut tree and common fig tree trees , Gary pointed outmustard plantsand California sunflowers , occasionally pulling into the riverside to show us the leaves of various plants that can be used as a salve or a poultice .
Indigenous tribes and the Spanish pobladores valued the river and its surround as a vital informant of food and water , he explain , and every kayaking misstep calculate to highlight these natural factors and dispel the idea that the river is just a concrete wasteland .
While the river is more lavish than rookies must have expect , evidence of climate change was visible . As we glided into the “ Grand Canyon , ” a long , 20 - groundwork - high cliff that ’s the result of erosion induce by non - native works , we saw that more of late - fallen ground had created a new island , which force us to get out and walk our kayaks around . Gary head out the scraps of plastic bags that hung from the trees overhead , revealing how high the water system level can get when there are weighed down rain , a sobering reminder that the tripe we discard travel immediately from the streets into the river , and then to the ocean . There were also shopping cart stick out from the sandy river bottom like bizarre urban art .
Photo by: Citizen of the Planet/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
When we reached the bowlder that block the waterway , we waved to several fishermen who were casting for wolf fish , carp , and tilapia , despite the fish not being necessarily suitable to take home for dinner due to pollution . We then embarked on the second , short part of the kayaking journeying at Glendale Narrows . Rowing into an area called Rattlesnake Rapids , we kayaked through “ boulder garden , ” which gave us fun little bumps up and down the H2O . While it ’s just white water rafting , this section was catchy and less serene than the first ; nonetheless , we ended the journeying more or less wet and enliven . Before we turned to go back , I drop as much meter as I could wading in the H2O , soaking in the natural ambient sounds , already looking forward to my next expedition .
