Lower Canyon Creek, Oregon (3.11.12)

For some reason I always seem to forget about Lower Canyon Creek as a legitimately fun class IV run that's relatively close to Eugene (about an hour away) and is often at a good level. Furthermore, it can be combined with the upper section (one of the best class Vs in Oregon) for a long day of sustained whitewater -- for a trip report of Upper Canyon Creek, go here.

On this particular trip, we actually used it as a back-up after getting shut down at Wiley Creek by the road gate, and at the Soda Fork of the South Santiam by low water. For the record, the Upper Soda Fork probably had enough water but after dropping and scouting the crux section, we decided that it was basically a piece of $hit consisting of multiple pin/piton spots throughout its entire length. At one point during the scout, I remember hearing Nate Merrill say, "Well, I haven't seen one drop I'd want to run...", which I really couldn't come up with an argument against.

Scouting the crux section of The Soda Fork -- A big thumbs down

We had also considered running Upper Canyon, but we had a relatively large group that consisted of mixed ability levels, not the best combination for a run of that level, especially since we were running low on time. I was actually quite content with running the lower, as I was already a bit tired from hiking with my boat and sometimes it's nice to have a low stress day on the water. With that, we loaded up and headed to our new destination.


When we got to the takeout, we ran into a couple of Corvallis boaters who had just finished up the run. They stated that it was at a fun level, although a tad low (for the record, we had ~300cfs on Pat Welch's calculation gauge). Since we were already in our boating gear, we wasted little time dropping off the car before heading to the put-in. The trail from the road to the put-in is a bushwhack affair, and was actually developed by some Corvallis boaters who wanted to do the run without having to commit to the much harder upper portion. This trail deposits you about 1/4 mile below the crux upper drops, "Terminator" and "Day of Judgment". Since I wanted to take pictures of the crew coming through one of the first big rapids of the lower, I quickly scrambled down the trail to put on. Once at the water's edge, it appeared that the level would be a nice medium-ish flow.

Our flow for the day, ~300cfs

Aaron takes a moment at the put-in

Joni, happy to be putting on a creek with water

After sliding into the water I headed down solo to setup. The first of the bigger drops is about an 1/8 mile downstream and starts as the creek makes a sharp left-hand bend. I quickly ran the lead-in before eddying out on river-left above the last ledge. I wanted to give it a quick scout as well as see if it would be a good spot for photos. After determining that it probably wasn't the best spot, I started hiking back to my boat, only to see that the crew had caught up and were already dropping in. Resigned to my current position, I quickly ran back down so I could flip off a couple pics as they ran the final ledge. After everyone had come through I put my gear away, jumped in my boat and headed down. The last ledge is actually a fun little boof, that's typically run center-right.

Anna runs the last ledge of the first big drop

Alex follows up with a nice boof off the bottom ledge

Just below this first drop the creek continues wrapping left through a small boulder garden that I always find hard to run cleanly. After navigating this stretch we continued down through a fairly long section which was mainly class II with a couple IIIs. The next major obstacle was Osprey, the most difficult/dangerous drop on the run, and a class V in anyone's book. The first thing that is worth noting on this one is the lead-in. It's basically a shallow gravel bar that feeds directly around some guard rocks and into the main part of the drop. Therefore, if this is your first time down, be very cautious as you approach it, since you could run out of eddies, forcing you to run it sight unseen. The next thing to be aware of is the hole at the bottom of the drop is extremely retentive and also feeds underneath the massive boulder guarding the right side of it. This is a very dangerous spot for a swimmer, and I've seen some very good boaters get served here -- in one case, having to be pulled up from underneath the rock with a rope that he grabbed just before going under. That said, it is certainly runnable and has been many times, just make sure to scout thoroughly (including from below) and set good safety. I've never had a desire to run Osprey, and probably never will, so I shouldered my boat and started hiking without even looking at it. Both Aaron and Nate gave a look for a few minutes before finally conceding and portaging as well. One last note, regarding the portage, it's usually done on the right and should be done with caution, as it's quite slippery with the route along a sloped wall -- a fall here would deposit you in the crux of the drop feeding directly into the troublesome hole.

Portaging Osprey

Just below Osprey are a couple of really fun ledge drops. The first is typically run down the left through an S-Turn slot, where I had headed down to setup for pics once again. After signaling the line to the crew and watching them drop through I quickly ran the drop and blew past the others to setup for the next one.

Alex drops into the fun S-turn slot

Joni, on the same drop

The following ledge drops about 6' or so between a rock outcropping on the left and a cliff wall on the right. Everybody plowed though this one right down the middle with a water-boof over the small hole at the base. This is also a really beautiful section of the creek, and worth taking in the view.

Nate lines up the second ledge below Osprey

Bobby takes his turn

The crew regroups below in the beautiful canyon setting

Once past these ledges, the creek mellows again for an extended period of time through II/II+ water. Just as with Osprey, it's very easy to get complacent in the calm stretch, which at one point feeds into another significant hazard, "Constrictor". Once again the creek floats down a shallow section before dropping though a narrow slot, over a small 2' to 3' ledge, and into a boily cauldron, which feeds from well downstream. I have heard of people running this drop successfully, but never seen it myself. Definitely use caution here and once again make sure to set safety if you do decide to give it a go, a swim would be pretty dangerous. For the rest of us folks, a couple eddies and easy route around it facilitate a portage on the right.

Soon after Constrictor the walls closed up a bit and we entered the last gorge section. One of the first drops happens at a left bend where the creek goes over a small ledge (best run on river-right) and enters a narrow moving pool, which funnels into a log jam. This hazard is hard to spot from above and may even be covered over at higher flows. This jam has been here for at least a few years which is why I knew of it. Since the drop above tends to flip boaters I decided to take out above it and make the easy hike on the left. The portage around both the upper ledge and the log jam is very easy on river-left.

Looking down toward the logjam, which
can be seen in the middle of the picture.

Nate choices to make the portage a little more fun

More fun class III water followed until we reached the last major drop of the run. Actually a two-part drop, we all ran the first ledge down the fun sliding boof against the left wall. The right line goes as well, and is also quite fun -- it looks like you're going to slam into a piton rock at the bottom of the ledge, but you end up sailing right over. It should be noted that the run-out does have some pieces of wood in the water, but really isn't an issue as long as you're in your boat. Furthermore, this particular section seems to always collect wood, so scout accordingly.

Joni fires up the fun ledge drop against the left wall

Aaron gets an auto-boof off the same ledge

Below the initial ledge and run-out is another small ledge with a couple of rocks to navigate above it. I actually got bobbled just above the ledge and flipped coming off. Even though I rolled up pretty quickly, the water was pretty effing cold and it gave me a nice ice-cream headache.

Joni enters the second part of the drop

Anna lines up on the final ledge

The next bit of water to the takeout is pretty uneventful class II/III. There is one more mini-gorge starting just up from the Highway 20 road bridge that crosses over the creek (the take-out). The goal here is to catch the one to two boat eddy on river-right just above the bridge. If you miss this eddy, you go to the penalty box and are forced to take out a hundred yards or so near the confluence with the South Santiam -- not a big deal, just a little more hiking. Speaking of the South Santiam, you can also choose to follow it down to a take-out at Cascadia State Park. This sends you through one of the coolest stretches of that river, a long narrow gorge through vertical/overhung walls. The gorge is not difficult (mainly class II), but does have some pretty swirly water and a tricky hole that forms somewhere in there at higher flows.

Looking upstream from the take-out bridge on Hwy 20

Since we were all a bit tired and running out of light, we decided to take out at Hwy 20. After climbing up the steep bank, we loaded up and headed out. We did make one stop in nearby Sweet Home for some Mexican food at Los Dos Amigos -- not the best, but certainly passable. Once again, Lower Canyon Creek is a great run that would be perfect for aspiring creek boaters, or veterans, if looking for a nice low-stress run through a beautiful canyon coupled with some fun whitewater.

Silverton Hike & Huck (3.10.12)

With the weekend fast approaching and a dismal forecast for bringing any local runs into a fun runnable level, I was planning to spend it both days scouting out some new creeks in the area. I did try and get a crew together for a trip up to Canyon Creek (WA), but even that was a little low and didn’t generate much interest. Then I got a call from Jacob who invited me on a mini huckfest near the town of Silverton (OR), which I graciously accepted. The plan was to hike into a ½ mile stretch of Abiqua Creek to run a pair of falls in the 15’ to 20’ range, and then head over to Upper Butte Creek Falls to fire off a line or two. I was also able to round up Roman for the trip north, who seemed pretty enthusiastic about the idea.

Saturday morning we got out of town on time and headed for the meeting place, just off the highway at a Fred Myers in Salem. We rolled in at the exact time that Both Jacob and Andrew Bradley did, and after some greetings, Jacob informed me that we’d also have recruits coming from Corvallis and Portland. In addition to the four of us, we would have Brandon Bloomquist, Nate Merrill, Anna Herring, Joni Randall, and Michael Freeman.

Before heading to Abiqua Creek, we made a quick stop in Scotts Mills (OR) for a quick huck on Scotts Mills Falls, located right in town on Butte Creek. This waterfall drops about 20’ in total -- The first ~4’ drops over a cement diversion weir, followed by a rocky middle section, and finally over a semi vertical curtain of around 10’ tall (for more information on the falls, go here). At first glance I wasn’t really sure I wanted to run it, and to be honest it looked pretty trashy. Then I watched Nate Merrill have really a nice line, which had me hiking back up to get my boat.

Nate with a very convincing line on Scotts Mills Falls

By the time I had gotten geared up and ready to go, Nate and Brandon had run multiple laps, so it must have been pretty fun. After sliding into the duck pond above the falls, I paddled the short bit of flat water to the lip and dropped in. Having much more speed than anticipated I completely missed my boof and basically flopped over the last pitch into the boil below. Obviously not happy with that line, I hiked back up for another. This time I was much more prepared and hit my line just like I wanted to, feeling much better about walking away from this one. Roman also fired up a couple laps with us and had good lines as well. Probably the best line of the falls was Andrew's, who threw a nice freewheel off it -- unfortunately no cameras were out at the time.

Brandon finishes up nicely on one of his laps
(photo by Jacob Cruser)

The author takes his turn
(photo by Jacob Cruser)

Another view of the author running the falls, on a different trip
(photo by Alex Scott)

Once we had our fill in Scotts Mills, we headed up the road to our put-in on Abiqua Creek. Since I wasn’t driving I don’t really remember the route, although I do recall a long steep descent into the drainage on a fairly developed gravel road. Once the creek came into view, Jacob mentioned that this was where we would be hiking in from.

Since the takeout was only ~1/2 mile downstream, we decided to just jog up for the cars after the run, so with that we started the short/steep descent to the creek. The area had obviously gotten some weather, as the bushwhack trail was fairly wet and greasy with mud. For the last pitch we setup a rope and lowered boats down to mitigate the chance of a boat tumbling into the creek. This effort proved futile, as two of the water crafts found their way into the creek and running the falls without their pilot. The first boat that went into the water happened as I was still lowering myself down – I basically looked to my right (after hearing yells and crashing sounds) to see a speeding green torpedo hit the water and drop out of sight around the corner. Soon after, a couple figures could be seen giving chase, which included some cliff jumping near the falls. Nate, quick on the draw, jumped in his boat and headed downstream to help, while I hung out to ensure more weapons wouldn’t be deployed into the water. After the dust had settled a bit, I hiked down to the lip of the falls to see if the situation was under control. Although there was no sign of the green boat or its original owner, Jacob and Nate gave me the head-tap, indicating that things were good. As I turned to return back upstream another unmanned boat flew into the water. I quickly yelled to Jacob “Boat in the water!”, which was kind of ironic since it was actually his boat – apparently a victim of the domino effect. Since he was staged just below the first falls, he was able to quickly corral it once it dropped over and floated free of the veil. Luckily this would be the last of our put-in struggles, so we could now focus on what we had come to do, huck some really fun/clean waterfalls!

Since there was a great perch at the lip of “Momma Duke’s”, the first waterfall, I setup with my fisheye lens to take some shots of the first few boaters running the falls. One of the first things I noticed was that the right line was almost identical to Big Kahuna (Canyon Creek, WA), in both height and style. Nate Merrill was first and lined up the main line on the right, taking a delayed boof halfway down and landing nicely on the boil below. Anna was next and went for the high point a little further left, which looked like a fun line as well, although it didn't produce as big of a boof as I had expected it to.

Nate drops the main line at Momma Duke's Laundry Chute

Nate, mid flight

Anna fires up the line just to the left

Now chomping at the bit, I went up to take my turn. The lead-in was very straightforward, but did push a little more to the left than I had expected. With a correction stroke or two, I lined it up and threw in a boof about a quarter of the way down, landing pretty flat. Although soft, it was still enough of an impact to tilt my head-cam down. I quickly paddled over to the rocks on the other side of the pool to set up for some photos, this time from below. We each ended up running another lap or two on Momma Duke's before continuing downstream.

Michael lines it up at Momma Duke's

Joni throws in a nice delayed boof

Nate on another lap over Momma Duke's

The author droppin' down the Laundry Chute -- taken on another trip
(photo by Alex Scott)

Just a couple hundred feet below Momma Duke's was the second large horizon line, known as Peony Falls. I had headed down before the others to find a good place to set up for photos and give it a quick scout. This drop was more vertical and a bit taller, it looked all of 20' tall. It also appeared unbelievably clean and I couldn't wait to run it. There really wasn't a great place to setup for photos from above, so when the other showed up I asked if they'd hold up so I could setup from down below. After confirming the line with Jacob, who had run it before, I got in my boat and peeled out of the eddy. The line I had planned to hit had a delayed boof ~5' down from the lip. As I dropped over I held my stroke until I saw the sweet spot, then pulled, landing at the base with nice angle. I quickly paddled to a rock outcropping, climbed out, readied my camera, and gave the rest of the crew the thumbs up.

One by one our crew dropped over the falls, using a variety of lines -- some boofs, some plugs, but all ending with a big smile. The hike back up to run it again was definitely harder than the one for Momma Duke's, but also more rewarding. We each ran a couple of laps, and with more time I would have hiked it a few more times. I actually over-boofed it on my second lap, but luckily I was bent far enough forward to protect my back. I had charged the drop from further up and hit the more pronounced flake just to the right of where I had run it the last time. As I went airborne, my bow lifted above my stern, and I basically landed stern first. Although it was pretty damn fun and the landing didn't really hurt, I still felt pretty foolish for showboatin' at the risk of a back injury -- oh well, live and learn I guess...

Anna drops over Peony Falls

Brandon fires up Peony Falls while Anna and Michael look on

Nate plants a nice stroke at the lip...

...and flattens it out nicely

Roman at Peony Falls

Joni

Andrew, with a very similar takeoff to Nate's...

...and landing

Brandon sits front row for the show

Jacob looking smooth at Peony

Michael with a great line

The author droppin' in -- taken on another trip
(photo by Alex Scott)

The author gettin' the nose up -- taken on another trip
(photo by Alex Scott)

Now that we were burning daylight and pretty worn-out from all the trips up and down the falls, we headed downstream to the takeout at the lip of the big boy, Abiqua Falls. After dropping over a couple of fun smallish drops, the creek entered an ever tightening gorge that was very reminiscent of the geology on Eagle Creek in the Columbia River Gorge. Jacob recommended leading from this point since he was the only one that knew the run, coupled with the fact that we would need to portage around a section that was not completely obvious from above. As we continued down cautiously, we finally came to the spot, The Cattle Ramp. Basically the creek narrowed down to an 8' wide chute that ran about the length of a football field before taking the final plunge over the 100' tall Abiqua Falls. There was a slow moving pool above the falls that allowed for us to take out, however, a couple pieces of unfortunately placed wood blocked passage in the chute itself. The portage wasn't that bad, but I could see it getting pretty sketchy as water levels increased. After the portage, you put back on in the pool above the falls, cross it, and take-out on the other side. Using a two part rope system, we towed the boats up to a section of trail that was conducive to shouldering them. A short hike later and we were back at the road, just down from where the vehicles were parked. Once they were retrieved and gear was loaded, we headed off to our next destination, Upper Butte Creek Falls.

Looking down the Cattle Ramp

Joni, Jacob, and Anna on the portage route around the Cattle Ramp

This picture shows some of the bothersome wood

The portage ends right below the two sticks in the
water, and just above the lip of Abiqua Falls, where
the creek drops out of view at the top of the photo.

Looking back up at the Cattle Ramp
from the lip of Abiqua Falls -- Stunning!

Andrew scouts the line, possibly for another day...

A view of Abiqua Falls, from the lookout downstream

Conveniently, Butte Creek was just on the other side of the ridge that we had driven up; however, just as inconvenient was the unexpected road gate that would necessitate a couple miles of hiking just to reach the falls. The group quickly agreed that it wasn't really worth it, and decided instead to head over for a lap or two on the Silverton Speedway.

The section of Silver Creek between the reservoir and the town of Silverton was basically class II, with a nasty 10' drop about halfway through. By the time I had pulled up, much of the group was already out scouting this ledge; in fact, the other Nate was already headed back to his boat to take a run at it. The main line over the ledge didn't look bad on its own, in fact it looked like a fun little boof; however, the landing didn't look nearly as good, and there was a near vertical log in the run-out just to the left of it. With the group looking on and staged with safety, Nate peeled out of the eddy and lined up for the drop. As he rounded over, he hit a nice delayed boof, but even this wasn't enough to keep his bow from smashing into a hidden underwater ledge, which none of us had seen. To me it actually appeared that he pinned for just a split second before getting pushed left into the log. Since there was room behind the log, it didn't end up being much of an issue, and probably acted more as and insult to injury. Now that this hidden hazard was discovered, no one else gave serious consideration to repeating the line, and instead opted for either a right side line (which pushed quite quickly into another log), a midstream shallow slide, or nice seal-launch on river-left (which is what I chose).

Nate drops over the 10'er. The ledge he pitoned is pretty
obvious in this photo, but wasn't in person. Be very careful
if you choose to runs this drop, which I would advise against...

Below this ledge the river continued its class II nature, so Roman, Brandon, and I pulled over and ran up to retrieve the cars while the rest of the crew continued down to a take out at a park in Silverton. From there we parted ways, heading back home in different directions.

Conclusion:
I thought this was a fantastic day of running waterfalls – nothing huge, but really clean and fun. Although a shuttle car wasn’t needed, I would consider this more of a Hike & Huck, as opposed to Park & Huck, at least for Abiqua Creek where you have to work a little for it. That said, Abiqua is also a very special place that would be worth dropping into for the scenery alone. The Cattle Ramp into the 100’ Falls is one the most beautiful sections of water that I’ve seen anywhere, making the 2 runnable waterfalls upstream just the icing on the cake. I was a little bummed that we got shut down at Upper Butte Creek Falls, where I was looking forward to getting in some “Oregon Tuck” practice. I still don’t know why they feel the need to gate it off, especially since it cuts off access to hikers as well, which will now have to put-in a lot more work to view the falls. Regardless, I would certainly do a return visit to run the drops on Abiqua, which would be really great on a warm day with time to do multiple laps.

As for flow, we had ~260cfs on the Butte Creek calculation gauge, which can be found here (thanks again Pat!). This flow was just fine for the falls, but I would agree with Jacob that 300 – 400cfs might be a bit better, and that much over this might make it a little sketchy for the portage at the Cattle Ramp.

For Jacob's trip report of the first descent down Upper Abiqua Creek, which includes this section and how the falls were named, go here.

Some footage from our huckfest:



Some addition footage of my second time, at a similar flow:

Huckfest - Butte/Abiqua Creek from Nate Pfeifer on Vimeo.