This Happy Valley paddler makes history traveling aboard his giant, homegrown gourd down the Columbia River.
For Happy Valley resident Gary Kristensen, carving a pumpkin isn’t just a fun way to celebrate Halloween.
In May, he beat his own world record — you could even say he squashed it — by growing and paddling a giant pumpkin 58 miles down the Columbia River. His paddle from North Bonneville, Washington, to St. Helens, Oregon, set a new world record for the longest journey traveled in a pumpkin boat.
This year’s trip broke the record he set last year with a 46-mile paddle on the same river.
“I’m attempting to set the record again because I feel like I could have gone farther the first time,” Kristensen said before taking off on his second record-setting paddle in May.
And he didn’t stop there. He went on to win the Tualatin’s West Coast Giant Pumpkin Regatta Oct. 19 in yet another giant pumpkin that he grew himself and carved into a boat. It was his fifth time winning that race.
“Gary is just wired a little different than the rest of us,” fellow pumpkin grower Jim Sherwood said.
To break his own world record, Kristensen said, he had to learn from his first paddle down the Columbia River.
“I learned that you need current,” Kristensen said. “And the best current is going to be in late May, early June, usually when you have a lot of snowmelt.”
To take advantage of those conditions, he began growing his pumpkin months earlier than usual. A longtime competitive grower, Kristensen decided to plant in January — a rare choice in the Pacific Northwest, where early pumpkin starts typically fail due to cold weather.
“I decided I’m going to start a pumpkin in January, something I’ve never seen anybody else do before,” he said. “Usually if you plant a plant too early, they just don’t grow.”
The effort paid off. By late May, the pumpkin weighed 916 pounds — large enough to serve as a competent boat for the multi-day trip. Kristensen launched on May 23 from North Bonneville, Washington, paddling steadily along the Columbia before finishing in St. Helens the following day.
After setting the record, Kristensen officially retired the pumpkin by cutting it up into pieces and sinking it in the river.
“It’s been a good boat,” he said. “Hard to do because I wanted to keep going. And I think the pumpkin wanted to keep going too.”
