After a couple of failed attempts to find a significant stretch of the river to paddle, we packed the car and drove three hours northwest to Lake Oroville. I was drawn to explore the lake for its significance as California’s second largest reservoir and because I could not erase the powerful internet images of its parched banks, etched in my mind. Lake Oroville’s receding shoreline now lies 245 feet below where it should be. Photographs generate striking imagery, both beautiful and alarming. Although the majority of California’s drinking water actually flows from the Colorado River delta, Lake Oroville gets a disproportionate share of the drought press coverage. Nowhere in the western United States so sensationally displays the severity of the drought in a compact and digestible snapshot.
Just before the sun began to slip behind the bordering hills, we arrived at the far east corner of the lake we discovered a steeply winding road that led to an old boat ramp, perfect for launching my board. I entered the water and paddled along the motionless lake’s sheer, sandy shoreline. Hundreds of feet above me was the treeline that marked the full capacity levels of the reservoir. I began to feel as if I was floating in a slowly draining bathtub.
Unfortunately, record temperatures and a severe rain deficit have contributed to the reservoir’s drastic disappearing act.
There is no fantasy quick fix for plugging this draining tub. Remarkably, Lake Oroville is still a beautiful place and very much open for business, despite its low water levels. The primary marina is operating in full force and the locals are adapting. It’s what we do.
