"Wilko" wrote in message
news:8Nq9b.42339$tK5.5098975@zonnet-reader-1...
riverman wrote:

The interesting thing about western ratings is that there is no
numerical
classification for 'unrunnable'.

Ehm, having only run a few rivers west of the Appalachians, I think that
you might mistake Grand Canyon ratings for "western rivers" ratings,
Myron. The creeks and rivers I saw up close in Colorado were classified
I to VI, noting that my paddling buddy is from Colorado...



Hmmm, I guess I missed the gist of your post, then , Wilko. Other than the
Grand Canyon scale (which I have never heard anyone but the Utah Mormons,
novices or marketers refer to as the 'Deseret Scale') there isn't a separate
rating scale for Western Rivers, so you must be referring to how the rivers
are rated? I know that because of geology, geography, plant cover and
relative age, Western water has a completely different 'feel' than Eastern
water, so as a result a Western class 4 can be completely different than an
Eastern class 4. And the nature of the boaters and their skills plays a big
part in that, too. The western boaters are more familar with open, big
water, so 'Carolina Steep Creeks' have been traditionally a challenge.
Eastern boaters are used to manuvering through rock gardens, so the
traditional '40 foot wave' is a real challenge to them. Also, the
familiarity with the types of boats plays a real role.
I once heard this summary, which is pretty good:

Back when the Americas were settled (from East to West), the natives in the
East used canoes as essential transportation, so from the earliest days,
everyone in the East had canoes and were taking them through the tightest of
spots, rather than take the time to portage. As people got more adventuous,
they began running more technical rivers in canoes, and the recreation
industry developed to support this, with durable boats and paddling gear,
and the right techniques.
The western natives, OTOH, did not run their rivers because they didn't take
them anywhere they wanted to go, and in many cases the rivers were hard to
access. That was, until after WW2, when a surplus of army rafts became
available and people started taking them on rivers for recreation. Rafts
have never been 'essential transportation'.

As a result, eastern rivers are rated for canoes, and eastern boaters have
grown up with hard boats as part of their culture for 250 years. Western
rivers are rated for rafts, and western boaters have had rafts are part of
their culture for 50 years. It wasn't until the mid 70s that the two started
to mix: some eastern boaters brought canoes to the west and started running
the big and small rivers (hey, *I* even managed to bag a first descent!) and
some western boaters brought rafts to the east and started running the
narrow rivers.

As a result, the very foundations of the east vs. west rating system is
different. The boats, the culture surrounding the boats, the 'genetic
resonance' of the boaters, and the entire outlook on the style of water is
different.

Is that what you meant?

--riverman