Several new sections since the last version.
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                        Gorge FAQ

Here are some common questions and their answers about the Columbia
River Gorge. Compiled by Wilton Hart (wiltonh@windsurf.CCI.tek.com)

1.  What is the windsurfing season in the Columbia River Gorge?

         Early season starts in April or early May and lasts through August.
              West wind is most common with many windy days.
 
         Late season starts in September and goes through November.
              West and East wind days with more no wind days.



                 Precentage of Days With Wind Over 15 MPH


100-|
    |
    |                                     G     G
    |
    |                                                 G
 90-|                                            
    |
    |
    |                               
    |                              G                   
 80-|
    |
    |                                             
    |
    |  
 70-|                         G                             G
    |                                                                      
    |                  G                                           
    |                                                        
    |      G
 60-|            G                                                    
    |             
    | G                                                            G
    |                                                                    G
    |       
 50-|
    |
    |
    | 
 40-|
    --------------------------------------------------------------------------
      J     F     M     A     M     J     J     A     S     O     N     D

                            Months of the Year



2.  What is the water temperature?

    Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
     38  39  43  50  56  63  68  72  67  60  53  44   (Average in Degrees F)

3.  Where can I stay?

         Depending on the race schedule there may be very few motels available
         in Hood River.  You can travel East to the Dalles or West to the
         edge of Portland.  

         There are a number of state parks where you can camp.  Most of the
         year you can find a place to stay without a problem.  On holiday 
         weekends you should plan to get a camp spot by noon or you may have
         trouble.  The favorite windsurfing camp spot is Memaloose State Park.
         It cost about $8.00 per night which includes hot showers.

         Some of the other parks are as follows:
 
    Name            Location                                   Comments 
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
    Skamania Lodge  Washington - In Sevenson 
    Home Valley     Washington - 15 miles West of the Hatchery Trains/Sailing
    Viento          Oregon - 5 miles West of Hood River        Trains/Sailing
    Tucker Park     Oregon - 5 miles South of Hood River       Quiet 
    Great American  Oregon - 15 miles South of Mosier          Quiet 
        Adventure
    Memaloose       Oregon - 12 miles East of Hood River       My favorite 
    Avery Park      Washington - 8.5 Miles from East of the    Free/Sailing
                       Dalles Bridge 
    Maryhill Park   Washington - North end of Sam Hill Bridge  Expert Sailing
    Peach Beach     Washington - Just East of Maryhill Park    Expert Sailing
              
         People who do not wish to camp you can try one of these:

    Name             Location               Phone             Comments
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Skamania Lodge     Stevenson Washington 1-800-221-7117    New and very nice
    State Street B&B   Hood River             503-386-1899    River View
    Tillicum Inn       The Dalles           1-800-298-5161
    Best Western       The Dalles             503-296-9107
    Inn at the Dalles  The Dalles             503-296-1167    View of the Dam
    Inn at Hood River  Hood River             503-386-2200    On the River
    Lone Pine Motel    Hood River             503-386-2601    View of River

         People who wish to rent a place should try the following:

    Name                                               Phone
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Northwest Investment Management - Hood River       503-386-3770
    Mid-Columbia Property Management - Hood River      503-386-3770
    Vacation Rentals - Summer Only - Hood River        503-386-6800

4.  Do I need a car?

         It is possible to sail in the Gorge without a car.  You must purchase
         a package deal from one of the outfits that have equipment as well as
         a place to stay.  There are several that offer sailing from their own
         beach in Rowena.   

         A car makes  sailing the Gorge much easier.  If you find the wind
         to strong or to weak in one place you can usually move East or West to
         a place that fits your needs.  A good roof rack is a must.  If you
         are driving 65 MPH on the freeway into a 40 or 50 MPH head wind your
         boards and gear are seeing over 100 MPH of wind.

5.  Where can I rent or purchase equipment?

         There are more than 20 windsurfing shops in the Gorge.  Most are 
         located in Hood River but both the Dalles and Lyle have shops also.
         Most shops rent equipment as well as sell new equipment.  

         The largest selection of used equipment is at Windance.  They usually
         have 30 to 40 boards and several hundred sails on consignment.  They
         also have lots of new equipment and good advice.  2ND Wind Sports
         and Bob Dill also have used equipment.

             Dill Sailboards              503-386-6202
             Front Street Sailboards      503-386-4044
             Hood River Windsurfing       503-386-5787
             Lester Polyester's Surf Shop 503-386-5524
             Meadows Windsynergy          503-FUN-WIND
             Rushwind                     503-386-3278
             Sailboard Warehouse          503-386-1699 1-800-992-SAIL
             Sailboards Hood River        503-396-5363 1-800-662-5363
             2ND Wind Sports              503-386-4464
             Windance                     503-386-2131
             Big Winds                    503-386-6086
             Gorge Windsurfing The Dalles 503-298-8796  1-800-772-3889
             Sail World                   503-386-9400

         The above list shows shops but in some cases they make their own
         line of equipment.  Windance is a good example.  They build their 
         own boards as well as run a shop.  There are a number of other 
         companies that build equipment but may not have a shop.  Here is
         a list:

             Gorge Technology             503-386-2862
             Chinook                      503-386-6086
             Pro Motion                   1-800-798-1628
             4 Knots                      509-493-4088
             Padz                         503-386-1980
             Windsurifng Hawaii           509-427-7444
             Preister Built Sailboards    503-478-3233   1-800-755-RACE
             Logosz Works                 503-386-2242
             AHD                          509-427-4444   1-800-477-2431
             Hi-Per Tech                  503-386-6608
 
6.  What equipment works best in the Gorge?

         You can use almost any type of equipment if you are willing to drive
         to a spot that has the correct conditions.  If you plan to sail the
         intermediate or advanced spots you will need good high wind equipment.
         The most popular board would be about 8'6" in length and the sails
         would be from the low 3 meters to 5 meters.

7.  How well do I need to sail before it will be fun?

         You can sail at almost any level in the Gorge.  Due to the wind 
         going from very light to very strong in less than 20 miles you can
         choose a place that fits your needs.    

8.  Where can I take a lesson?

         Most of the shops offer lessons but there are some people who 
         make lessons their total business.

         Big Winds                              503-386-6086
         Duke of Nuke, Inc (Pat Dougherty)      503-386-6500  800-342-6048
         Front St. Sailboards                   503-386-4044
         Hood River Windsurfing (John Guay)     503-386-5787
         Gorge Windsurfing ( The Dalles)        503-298-8796  800-772-3889
         Rhonda Smith Windsurfing               503-386-WIND

9.  Where should I sail?

         This is a hard question because your ability will match some sites
         better than others.  The following list shows some of the more common
         places and what works best there.  

         Beginners:  Long board experience but no waterstarts
 
         The Hook (Hood River Sail Park West)  Learning Waterstarts
         The Dalles Sail Park                  Learning Waterstarts
         Home Valley                           Long board mornings short board
                                                  afternoons

         Intermediate:  Waterstarts are good but may not be able to jibe

         Hood River Marina                     Learning jibes on flat water
         Hood River Event Site                 Small Swells
         Stevenson Sail Park                   Small Swells less wind
         Bingen Sail Park                      Small Swells
         Rowena                                Small Swells

         Advanced:  Can waterstart in 20 seconds and jibe most of the time
                    in rough conditions, including winds to 40 knots and 
                    swells to 6 feet. 

         Spring Creek Fish Hatchery            Large Swells lots of wind
         Doug's Beach                          Large Swells lots of wind
         Swell City                            Large Swells lots of wind
         Maryhill State Park                   Large Swells lots of wind
         Rufus                                 Large Swells lots of wind

         If you would like more information about where to sail and what you
         might find at each location, you need a copy of a small book called
         3.5.  The address is listed in secton 12 below.

10.  What things are there to do when the wind does not blow?

         If the wind shuts down in the Gorge you can almost always drive to 
         the coast and sail there.  It will take from 2 to 3 hours depending
         on where you choose to sail.  The Jones Beach area near Clatskanie
         gets good wind when the Gorge shuts down.
         
         There is good hiking, rock climbing, mountain biking and falls to see
         as well as lots and lots of shopping to do in the windsurfing stores 
         so you will be ready when the wind starts to blow again.  Remember, 
         Oregon at this point has no sales tax.

11.  What kind of hazards are in the Gorge?

         The commercial barge traffic is a possible threat to windsurfers
         who do not watch where they are going.  Barges create a large wind
         shadow so you never want to get to close downwind of them.  They cannot
         stop very quickly so if you fall in front of them it is up to you to
         get out of the way.

         The Columbia River Gorge has a plant called Poison Oak.  It has three
         shiny leaves that grow together from the ground or in a bush.  The
         leaves have oil (Urushiol) on them that causes an allergic reaction
         for most people.  The first symptoms is a spot that itches.  It will
         show up about 2 or 3 days after touching the plant.  The spot then 
         swells up and finally breaks open to an ugly weeping sore that still
         itches.  The best solution is to stay away from the stuff.  If you get
         into it and start to itch, get some good strong soap such as Lava and 
         scrub the spot VERY VERY well.  You can also use alcohol.  If you catch
         it soon enough, (within about one hour) you can stop the reaction.  
         Remember that anything such as a wetsuit or cloths that you touched 
         during the 3 days needs to be washed.  If it gets too bad you will 
         need to visit a doctor. 

12.  How can I get weather information for the Gorge?

         Bart's Best Bet can be heard every morning on Q104 FM in the Dalles.
         He gives the days weather "GUESS" and some information about where
         the best wind might be found.  His message is given at the following 
         times. (7:20,7:50,8:20,8:50,9:20,9:50)  He also supports a phone line 
         which is updated at 10AM every morning.  It has a 3 day forecast for
         the Gorge.  The number is 503-386-3300 in Hood River.

         Windsight is a company that provides weather information for the
         Gorge.  They offer a Windsight Card which can be purchased at most
         of the shops and allows you to call a number and specify what type
         of information you wish to get.  The more information you request the
         more it costs.  Windsight is the only place that has current wind 
         speeds at the sailing locations.  You can also order a card by calling
         1-800-934-2278.

13.  Where can I get medical care?

         There are hospitals in Hood River, The Dalles, and White Salmon as
         well as a Quick Care clinic in Hood River.
         
      Hood River Memorial Hospital-13th & May St Hood River   503-386-3911
      Mid Columbia Medical Center-1700 East 19th Street The Dalles 503-296-1111 
      Skyline Hospital-211 Skyline DR White Salmon            509-493-1000
      Care Corner-1151 May St Hood River                      503-386-1111

14.  How can I get more information?

         There are a number of places to get more information.  The following
         sources are related mostly to windsurfing.

         My favorite for descriptions of sailing sites is the "3.5 Gorge Annual
         Edition".  The cost is $1.95 in the Gorge, $2.95 else where in the
         USA and $3.95 in Canada.  Write to MBA, PO Box 336, Hood River, OR, 
         97031.

         The oldest publication is the Gorge Guide.  It can be purchased from
         Gorge Publishing, Inc., P.O. Box 918, Hood River OR 97031 or Phone
         503-386-7440 or Fax 503-386-7480.  The cost in the past was $3.50. 
         It gives maps of the sailing locations and the towns along with stores
         and restraunts.  It includes lots of advertisements from business
         in the Gorge.