Backyard First Descent The First SUP Descent of the Spokane River

It had taken four days of paddling to get here.We had paid the physical price for the 112 miles traveled. All three of us had numb toes, Ali and I had swollen feet, and blisters covered both Grace and Ali’s hands.The wildfire smoke was thick and orange with the sunset light. We had been fighting a headwind all afternoon, but even that wall of suffering could not dampen our explosive enthusiasm as we pulled into the Columbia River to complete the first SUP descent of the Spokane River.

Earlier this year I had the idea to SUP the entire length of the Spokane River, so I did some research; discovering that nobody else had completed the task only made me more intrigued. A few phone calls later, and I had Allison Roskelley, and Grace Robison convinced. We would start in August, pushing off from the city beach in downtown Coeur d’Alene, Idaho onto the tail waters of Lake Coeur d’Alene where the Spokane River begins, and end our adventure at the confluence of the Columbia River in what is now Lake Roosevelt. It would be one hell of a backyard adventure.

The Spokane River starts in Idaho and flows west, where it quickly crosses into Washington State. The Spokane, like