Hi, I think this would be a great place to post ANY river or water park or LAKE related activity in any of the city stops. I spent a ton of time doing research, above, but the locals of course know more. So if you live in the host towns, post your river and lake and canoe stuff and pool stuff here. Abby

Posted 10 months, 3 weeks ago ago #242577

Tube-Brai update: Sunday, July 8th:
First off thank you to everyone who encouraged me to continue with this adventure. DORTHY! You helped me get up, dust myself off and continue forward. Your kind words make this possible. I can’t wait to meet you.

FAQ: Does your TUBE-BRAI tube include the cost of shuttle?
Answer: It includes the cost of river shuttle in Cherokee Only, plus you keep the tube for adventures down the road. In Webster City free shuttles take you to camping along the river. In Lake View there is mostly lake floating there near camp grounds. I have contacted other area chambers to try and find shuttle routes in regards to camping and floats and they are trickling in.

FAQ: How long is the Cherokee float?
Answer: Float one mile to take out at Iowa River Tours, or continue floating another .6 miles to Spring Lake Park. Cherokee Sponsored Shuttle takes you back to your campground or come back to IRT for another go.

FAQ: What is the shuttle like?
We have a truck pulling a pontoon boat that seats about 20-25 people with tubes. The shuttle upriver will travel about 10 miles an hour and will take about 10 minutes. Therefore a shuttle will be going up about every 20 minutes until 7:00 PM. You must get on the shuttle at Iowa River Tours, it will not stop in between.

FAQ: Are there revised hours?
Yes we are starting shuttle at 10:00 AM on the 21st and 22nd.

FAQ: Are there showers at IRT take out?
Yes. They are located at the green space, just on the other side of Iowa River Tours. You can see them from our base camp.

FAQ: Are lifejackets required?
No. When you buy your tube you will sign a release form for the shuttle, but since you are buying your tube and ultimately responsible for yourself, lifejackets are not required by the DNR.

FAQ: Is there food at take out?
Answer: IRT read the blog about big food rip-offs on Ragbrai and am doing my best to secure tasty food at normal prices. As it stands as of Sunday, July 9th, we will have frozen food like ice cream and pizza and smoothies. Then have microwaves for individuals to use to cook these items. We won’t cook it for you because commercial kitchen regulation compliance would then up the price… The frozen microwave meals will most likely be provided through our company via the Schwans Frozen Food Company, so the prices will be their normal prices and not up-priced for the event. For those of you that don’t know, Schwans company is a fleet of frozen food trucks that go door to door in the Mid-west selling high quality frozen meals, you can look them up to see their prices. http://www.schwans.com

FAQ: Can we take beer/drinks on the river?
Yes, but no open containers are allowed on the shuttle, and you must be seated when shuttle is moving.

FAQ: Can unregistered people go on the river shuttle?
Yes. You just need your wrist band and a tube.

FAQ: Are we associated with CreekFest in Cherokee the night of the 22nd?
Those going to Creek Fest may get tubes from us, but our shuttle only goes to the Little Sioux River put- in. If you want to get to Creek Fest it is a different shuttle and one not affiliated with official in-town Ragbrai events. Creek-Fest is a separate event and separate ticket prices apply for music events etc. There is a shuttle at Sinclair’s aka “Sparky’s” to Creek Fest and yes you can bring your tube on that shuttle too. Go to http://www.creekfestcherokee.com

FAQ: Is it dangerous?
The river is shallow, as we are in a drought. Your main dangers are trees in the water, sunburn and submerged things that you can’t see, so keep your feet at the surface and save excess libations for when you are off the river. We recommend taking a small first-aid kit in a couple of zip-locks just in case.

FAQ: Can we camp on the sandbars?
No. But in Anamosa the Wapsipinicon River (all areas below Central City) is designated as a “meandered stream” meaning sandbar camping is okay. I got this from Nate Hoogeveen’s book “paddling IOWA”. A great resource which from now on I will reference as *NH-PI.

FAQ: Is it going to be too low to tube the Little Sioux?
We are in a drought and the river is dropping every day. We ran the river today, 12 days out and it is still a nice flow. We think it will be fine for Tube-brai. There may be some shallow spots, but generally speaking you will still have a nice float, with some minimal scraping in spots. The good news is it becomes less dangerous for beginners too.

FAQ: Are there river gauges we can consult?
*NH=PI:
Anamosa: Wapsipinicon at Station 05421000: “200 cfs is pleasant for paddlers”, tubers can go lower.
Cherokee: Little Sioux at Station: 06605850: “300 cfs minimum” for paddlers, tubers can go lower
Lake View: It’s a lake, no problems here.
Webster City: White Fox access to Riverside Park, station 05481000 is your gauge, 200 cfs to avoid too much scraping for paddlers, tubers a little less. White Fox access to Riverside Park run is .6 miles. *When White Fox Creek enters from the right The river falls over a small drop with a wave in the center of the stream. Not sure if this is true at lower levels.
Marshalltown: Is low flow right now and good for a dip. They also have a nice YMCA.

Posted 10 months, 2 weeks ago ago #247404

WEBSTER CITY WATER/ Tubing possibilities
The shuttles will take people to various shower and camping areas.
With that in mind – the shuttles that go to the Willson Brewer Park, Nokomis Park and Riverview Park are very near the Boone River.
A shuttle will also be going to the swimming pool because of showers.
And the shuttle going to Brewer Creek Park is next to Brewer Creek.
Hope this helps.
Cathy Olson
Administrative Assistant
Webster City Chamber of Commerce
628 Second St. PO Box 310
Webster City, IA 50595
515-832-2564

Posted 10 months, 2 weeks ago ago #248337

Hello, Abby again.
So after reading the blog about food rip offs on RAGBRAI I thought I would publish our price list of num-nums ahead of time so you know what will be available at take out. That said there are a lot of good eats in Cherokee, but if you need food right off the river, this is what we have

Iowa River Tours Food Price List

Pepperoni Or Cheese Pizza slice $2.75 

Ranchero Sandwich: ham, bologna and salami with swiss and American Cheese on Kaiser Roll $3.75

Mini Meatball Sandwich: $2.25

Garden Veggie Cheese Omelet $2.75

Ham and Cheese Omelet $2.75

Healthy Turkey sausage, Egg white and low fat cheese on english muffin   $3.50

Gooey Pecan Caramel Roll $2.75

All those items are high quality from Schwans– you just microwave on site. We have 4 microwaves running for event. Also have power drinks etc. but don’t know the cost yet on those. Ice cream below….
Ice Cream: all $1.00
  Fudge Stick
  Ice Cream Sandwich 
  Vanilla Cone with chocolate drizzle and peanuts
  Sherbet Pushup 

Hope you have a safe ride!

Posted 10 months, 1 week ago ago #256740

A couple of questions from Vegans going on Tube-Brai came in last night. As of right now we don’t have any Vegan entrees at takeout, we have vegetarian, but not Vegan. look to the Spice Rack on Main street or the Health Food store on Second Street for vegan options as I don’t think we will be able to secure a licensed distributor in time. We have some seating in back and a sandbar to the South that I am guessing will quickly turn into gathering central!
Please be safe!
Abby

Posted 10 months, 1 week ago ago #258209

No. Sorry. I thought of that but then decided on the fat float your rear higher in shallow water tubes…

ALSO FOOD AT TAKE OUT UPDATE:
We secured a smoking deal on Powerade yesterday, so in line with the fair prices on Ragbrai food blog rip-off comments..Drum Roll please… we will be selling 32oz Powerade for just $2.00. That’s cheaper than you can get it at major stores. Thanks for the hot lead Stan!!!

Have Fun! I am so excited to meet all my new Cyber-Cycle friends!
Abby

Posted 10 months, 1 week ago ago #259326