Canoe

In a summer wonderland of theme parks and sparkling beaches, city officials soon will be offering canoe and kayak trips along the upper reaches of the Los Angeles River. Tickets for the Los Angeles River adventure are expected to go on sale as early as July 8, and promoters are promising a ride like no other. The route through the San Fernando Valley's Sepulveda Basin flood control channel will take customers along a 3-mile stretch of river where the water is 10 to 15 feet deep and edged with willows, sycamores and slanted concrete walls a stone's throw from the 101 and 405 freeways.

New York Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano fired Scott Boras as his agent Tuesday morning. Rapper Jay-Z announced the formation of a new sports representation group, Roc Nation Sports, on the same day. In related news, Jay-Z's group already has landed a big-name client: Cano, who will be a free agent at the end of this season unless he re-signs with the Yankees before then. Roc Nation, an entertainment company that represents such acts as Rihanna, Shakira and Timbaland, is teaming with Creative Artists Agency, which already has a baseball group that says it has negotiated $100-million-plus contracts for Ryan Braun, Matt Cain, Ryan Zimmerman and Buster Posey.

Although this quiet town on the Russian River was named for a trader in pioneer times, today its name is more likely to be associated with canoeing and wine tasting. Those are the favorite activities of summertime visitors, who also are drawn to the area by its country inns and excellent restaurants. At Trowbridge Recreation, near the river, rent a canoe to explore the rural and redwood scenery of Sonoma County. Then exchange your paddle for a stemmed glass to sample the region's fine wines, including the champagnes of Korbel and Piper Sonoma.

Here's a romantic way to view next weekend's Perseid meteor showers and get some exercise too: Take a canoe trip at night. Wanderlust Tours, a company in Bend, Ore., is offering such outings on the Cascades lakes. A spectacular display of "shooting stars," the periodic Perseids this month will peak Aug. 11-12, according to the website of the American Meteor Society , a nonprofit scientific organization of amateur and professional astronomers. The deal: " Starlight Canoe Tours " run from 8 p.m. to midnight.

Robert Melford doesn't remember much about the day he nearly lost his life. The 26-year-old assistant Boy Scout leader can't recall the 20-foot powerboat slamming into the canoe from which he was fishing. He doesn't remember the frantic shouts for help, the blood from the gaping gash in his head, the chilly water of Lake Mohave as he went under. The last thing that Melford remembers is dozing in the red canoe, absorbing the desert sun and waiting for the bass to bite. He said his memory picks up about a week after the April 1 accident.

Enjoyed your coverage of eco-tours to the Amazon ("Exploring Amazonia," July 21). I have just returned from a fabulous adventure to the other end of the Amazon, the River Napo out of Coca, Ecuador. Biological Journeys, McKinleyville, Calif., arranges trips to the La Selva Jungle Lodge from Quito. This tour company made excellent arrangements for me, and once there via motor canoe and paddle canoe, I saw the rain forest, countless butterflies, birds, monkeys, insects, bats, fish, medicinal plants.

"One, TWO, three, tip!" I crash into the water with three 10-year-old girls giggling and screaming. Despite my warnings, the girls haven't securely placed the paddles under the gunwales. They start floating away. I have one hand steadying the canoe, the other reaching for the blades; with my legs, I'm trying to scramble into the water-filled boat. The girls are spilling out of the canoe, threatening the precarious balance, shrieking as we make no further progress toward shore.

The boyfriend of a San Clemente woman found stabbed to death inside her apartment was arrested in Texas where he was found sleeping in a canoe along the banks of the Rio Grande, police said Monday. Robert Karl Russell, 40, was arrested on suspicion of weapons violations and will be questioned in the death of Cheryl L. Joyner, authorities said. Police in Cameron County, Texas, said they found the victim's car parked near the place where they arrested Russell.

Former CIA Director William E. Colby probably suffered a heart attack or stroke while he was out canoeing, and then fell into the water and died, the Maryland medical examiner's office said. An autopsy found evidence that the former spymaster, 76, had suffered from hardening of the arteries, Chief Medical Examiner John Smialek said. The body was found after an eight-day search.

I enjoyed the article on Tahaa ["Afloat on Society's Fringe," Oct. 19]. About 35 years ago, my brother and I, both in our 50s, visited there. A brochure in our Raiatea hotel said it would be a fun boat ride, so we asked about getting there. A guy named Joe took us to his boat, which was a canoe with an outboard motor. The minute we left it started to rain. We spent a half-hour in the open ocean -- no radio, out of sight of land -- but we got there. We were in bathing trunks, so Joe asked us if we wanted to dive and see the fish.

NEW YORK - The New York Yankees dialed long distance again Saturday as Robinson Cano and Curtis Granderson each clubbed two-run home runs off Angels starter Jerome Williams in a 5-3 victory at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees, who have won 17 of their last 22 games against the Angels in the Bronx, lead the major leagues with 138 home runs, and of the 423 runs they have scored on the season, 218, or 51.5%, have come via the home run. The Angels scored twice in the top of the first when Mike Trout and Erick Aybar each singled, Mark Trumbo drew a two-out walk to load the bases and Alberto Callaspo lined a two-run single to right field.

Robinson Cano had a rough night Monday at the Home Run Derby in Kansas City. But he didn't get any sympathy from the crowd at Kauffman Stadium -- in fact, those folks likely had a lot to do with the 0-for-10 performance of the defending Derby champion. The New York Yankees second baseman was booed relentlessly starting the first time he was shown on the big screen during batting practice, with the jeers turning to cheers only when Cano recorded an out. He received a standing ovation when leaving the field with a goose egg on the scoreboard.

Hey, at least Matt Kemp didn't aggravate his hamstring. Otherwise, Kemp looked a lot like someone who hasn't played a major league game since May during Monday's All-Star Home Run Derby at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City. While the Angels' Mark Trumbo was advancing to the semifinals with seven homers,  Kemp hit only … one. Last year he hit two. Doubt the Dodgers were too upset that Kemp, on the disabled list with a strained hamstring, was eliminated in the first round.

Angel ace Jered Weaver came out of Monday's game after 12 pitches, injuring his lower back while throwing a first-inning strike to New York Yankees cleanup hitter Robinson Cano. After delivering a 1-0 pitch, Weaver leaped off the mound in pain. Manager Mike Scioscia and a trainer ran out to Weaver, who tried to talk them into leaving him in the game. But after tossing a warmup pitch to catcher Bobby Wilson, it was obvious Weaver was in too much pain to continue. Frustrated, he walked off the mound and into the clubhouse.

Here are some good places for eating experiences: Local eatery. Hawaiian Style Cafe, Waimea. This low-key breakfast joint is an obsession with those who have tried it. Lines of locals form on weekends, and the place closes when it runs out of food. The Loco Moco (eggs, hamburger and gravy over rice) is the "local food" you are looking for. (808) 885- 4295. Romantic dinner. CanoeHouse, Mauna Lani Bay Hotel. A beachside location, indoor-outdoor seating, live Hawaiian music and plenty of fresh fish make CanoeHouse the place for a romantic splurge or special occasion.

Although Colombia's armed forces delivered a serious blow to the country's largest rebel force with the killing of its leader, analysts Saturday held out little hope for a peace initiative by the decimated but still potent leftist insurgent group. The 63-year-old rebel leader, who went by the alias Alfonso Cano, was killed Friday in a military operation in southwestern Colombia. At a news conference Saturday, President Juan Manuel Santos called on the rebels to lay down their arms.

CONSIDERING the title of the new solo exhibit by the artist known as Swoon -- "Drown Your Boats" -- it's not surprising there's a canoe sitting in the center of the New Image Art Gallery in West Hollywood. On a wall above floats a life-sized pair of skeletal mermaids, white paper cutouts rendered in the artist's lacy signature style. But turn just slightly, and the scene shifts: a Mexico City street sweeper emerges on the opposite wall. Behind him, a New York City takeout window bustles.

One team member nearly drowned. One fell off a cliff. One wanted to call it quits one day into the competition. Such were the trials and tribulations of Team Rockport, the five-person squad from Orange County that traveled to Patagonia, Argentina, in early December for the world's toughest extreme endurance event, Raid Gauloises ("Endurance on the Edge," Nov. 29). Team Rockport was, along with nearly a dozen others, disqualified five days into the competition for failing to reach a mandatory checkpoint by a certain time.

NEW YORK -- Robinson Cano hit a grand slam and drove in six runs, rookie Ivan Nova pitched brilliantly into the ninth inning in an unusual relief appearance and the New York Yankees shook off a 23-hour rain delay to beat the Detroit Tigers 9-3 in their suspended playoff opener Saturday night. A day after rain wiped out aces Justin Verlander and CC Sabathia after only 1 1/2 innings, the game resumed in the bottom of the second. No national anthem, all Yankees. Cano barely missed a homer on his tiebreaking double in the fifth and New York broke it open with a six-run sixth against Doug Fister.

The Angels roughed up Mariano Rivera twice in three days. They did not have to face Alex Rodriguez or CC Sabathia. They still lost the series. So, since the Angels are a team with October aspirations, just how do they match up with the New York Yankees? "If you go by payroll, they've got us beat," outfielder Torii Hunter said. The city of New York went into full panic mode on Thursday, even though the Yankees beat the Angels, 6-5. Rivera had his third consecutive poor outing — this time giving up a three-run home run to Russell Branyan — forcing the fans of the spending champions to freak out about what might happen in the ninth inning come October.