The Prime Time log has shifted downstream this year, but you've gotta get right.
The chute/hole at the bottom of Sideways.
The gradient continues to the bitter end, including this elbow cruncher just above the take-out eddy.
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Low Water Big South 7-17-07
Low water Big South is still one of the best creek runs in the Front Range- especially in late July. When the level gets down to the bare mininum, the lower half offers the best bang for your buck. The low water Peterson Lake put-in.
The Prime Time log has shifted downstream this year, but you've gotta get right.
The chute/hole at the bottom of Sideways.
The gradient continues to the bitter end, including this elbow cruncher just above the take-out eddy.
The Prime Time log has shifted downstream this year, but you've gotta get right.
The chute/hole at the bottom of Sideways.
The gradient continues to the bitter end, including this elbow cruncher just above the take-out eddy.
High Water Bailey 7-14-07
Bailey at 700 cfs is awesome. Miles on end of big curling waves, boofs and holes.
First Fall is drop is extremely dangerous. Most of the water goes under the left wall and the hydraulic is bad...but Fred styled it:
Jace enjoying the good stuff.
The steeps is great at high water. This hole led to a couple swims recently.
Most folks who venture into Supermax at these levels just run the sneeky line on Tampax, which seems to go pretty well.
The meat line is hard, but believe it or not, this line did not result in a swim.
First Fall is drop is extremely dangerous. Most of the water goes under the left wall and the hydraulic is bad...but Fred styled it:
Jace enjoying the good stuff.
The steeps is great at high water. This hole led to a couple swims recently.
Most folks who venture into Supermax at these levels just run the sneeky line on Tampax, which seems to go pretty well.
The meat line is hard, but believe it or not, this line did not result in a swim.
Low Water Black Rock 7-13-07
Black Rock at 300+ is still worth it after work. All of the rapids including Rigo are straightforward. They are all technical IV+ in nature and good fun so long as you stay upright. Ian in Black Rock- this is a good line- watch out for the undercut!
Boofing in the Narrows.
Boofing in the Narrows.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
More Black Rock 7-12-07
Black Rock is still fun at 400 cfs. The water is clear and warm right now and the rapids are still filled in.
Alex hits a longboat boof after Mr. Bill in the Narrows:
If you are thinking of running Rigor Mortis, this is the time to do it. At 400 cfs, its really pretty friendly for a rapid that might rip your head off.
Alex hits a longboat boof after Mr. Bill in the Narrows:
If you are thinking of running Rigor Mortis, this is the time to do it. At 400 cfs, its really pretty friendly for a rapid that might rip your head off.
Saturday, July 7, 2007
More Big South 7-7-07
Another great trip down the Big South and some more pictures.
At least Wierd Creek is pretty.
Ian in Taco Bobs:
Me entering Bar Room Brawl.
cool ledge after Cool World:
Top of Slideways:
The big hole at the bottom of Slideways:
At least Wierd Creek is pretty.
Ian in Taco Bobs:
Me entering Bar Room Brawl.
cool ledge after Cool World:
Top of Slideways:
The big hole at the bottom of Slideways:
Wednesday, July 4, 2007
Big South 7-4-07
The Big South Fork of the Cache la Poudre is a classic kayak run. The run takes paddlers through 12 miles of largely pristine wilderness with a wide variety of large rapids. There is a new gauge under the highway bridge at the takeout that has six hash marks painted on a rock. For our run, the level was just under the 3rd mark up from the bottom. This apparently corresponds to a little under 300 cfs, which is on the lower side of medium. This is a good level for both the big drops (says the folks who ran them) and for the many in between rapids.
The first two miles of the run are on Wierd Creek, which is a tributary to the Poudre. The water in this creek is released from Long Draw reservoir. Put-in on Weird Creek:
The largest rapid on the Weird Creek section is Rock Lobster. As shown in the photo, this rapid is a genuine piece of shit. It is pretty representative of the character of Weird Creek, which kinda sucks.
Soon after reaching the confluence with the Poudre, paddlers reach Starter Fluid, which does not suck. It is a fantastic rapid with a few Class IV S-turns leading into an 8 foot boof:
The character of the next couple miles is pool and drop with rapids of varying size and difficulty.
Joe- about to make contact in Bar Room Brawl:
And nailing the line at Cool World:
After the Peterson Lake (flat section), you reach the lower half, which is more continuous and has several good rapids.
Canning in progress at Pin Cushion:
Slideways is one of the last rapids and one of the best. The entrance has a 4 foot boof followed by an 8 foot boof:
The bottom of the rapid is a steep chute into a big hole. Everyone in our group punched it with no problems.
Overall, this a great run, but a long tiring day. The window for flows probably will be over soon, so get it while you can.
The first two miles of the run are on Wierd Creek, which is a tributary to the Poudre. The water in this creek is released from Long Draw reservoir. Put-in on Weird Creek:
The largest rapid on the Weird Creek section is Rock Lobster. As shown in the photo, this rapid is a genuine piece of shit. It is pretty representative of the character of Weird Creek, which kinda sucks.
Soon after reaching the confluence with the Poudre, paddlers reach Starter Fluid, which does not suck. It is a fantastic rapid with a few Class IV S-turns leading into an 8 foot boof:
The character of the next couple miles is pool and drop with rapids of varying size and difficulty.
Joe- about to make contact in Bar Room Brawl:
And nailing the line at Cool World:
After the Peterson Lake (flat section), you reach the lower half, which is more continuous and has several good rapids.
Canning in progress at Pin Cushion:
Slideways is one of the last rapids and one of the best. The entrance has a 4 foot boof followed by an 8 foot boof:
The bottom of the rapid is a steep chute into a big hole. Everyone in our group punched it with no problems.
Overall, this a great run, but a long tiring day. The window for flows probably will be over soon, so get it while you can.
Monday, July 2, 2007
Black Rock 7-2-07
The Clear Creek season just keeps on going. We ran Black Rock after work today at about 600 cfs. This is an excellent water level for the run. I'd say its a bit tougher than Bailey at 600. Black Rock rapid is first with a pushy,technical lead in and an undercut on the bottom left. The run-out to Black Rock rapid:
The Narrows is the next biggie. This rapid is a classic case of way bigger at river level than it looks from the road. Entrance to the Narrows:
The Mr. Bill hole is the feature that immediately grabs your attention when scouting, but it has a nice boof flake and a smooth line. The hole after it, on the other hand, is a bit sticky. Paul impressed us with all the latest rodeo moves (in a Nomad). Christian taking the conservative line, just punching the hole cleanly:
Finally, there is Rigor Mortis. This seems like a really tricky level for Rigor as shown in this photo (Its blurry because I was already going for my throw rope when I took it).
The Narrows is the next biggie. This rapid is a classic case of way bigger at river level than it looks from the road. Entrance to the Narrows:
The Mr. Bill hole is the feature that immediately grabs your attention when scouting, but it has a nice boof flake and a smooth line. The hole after it, on the other hand, is a bit sticky. Paul impressed us with all the latest rodeo moves (in a Nomad). Christian taking the conservative line, just punching the hole cleanly:
Finally, there is Rigor Mortis. This seems like a really tricky level for Rigor as shown in this photo (Its blurry because I was already going for my throw rope when I took it).
Upper Animas 6-29-07 to 7-1-07
The Upper Animas is a classic river trip in the San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado. The trip is 26 miles and can be done in a day if needed. We had raft support and spent two nights on the river with a long middle day and a train shuttle at the end. This is a highly recommended way to run the river. Before the trip, I heard we were packing light. As it turns out, the rafters' version of "squalor"(sp) is pretty damn nice. We had about 1500cfs at Durango and 700 at Silverton. I thought twice as much would be good. The rafters said that a bit more would be ideal.
There is a low railroad bridge about a mile from the put-in that should be portaged by rafters who wish to avoid damaging their boats.
The view from our first campsite (taken from the seat of the groover).
Most of the action came on day two. The first "big rapid" is the Garfield Slide. It is neither a slide nor is it really that big (at this flow). Jen runs the slide:
Dave- same:
No Name is the biggest rapid on the river. It is a long, pushy, but straghtforward rapid with a nasty spot on the left at the bottom. No one in our group explored this spot. Jesse runs super smooth line through the crux on the Cat.
The paddle assist raft finishes up No Name almost as smoothly.
Night two- another of the many great campsites on this stretch.
We woke up early Sunday and caught the tourist train back to Silverton with time to spare (no Rockwood Box- maybe next time). This is a great river trip and I can't wait to go back. There are all kinds of options for this trip: from a long day trip, to self support kayaking, to several days on a raft with layovers. You really can't go wrong with any of them.
There is a low railroad bridge about a mile from the put-in that should be portaged by rafters who wish to avoid damaging their boats.
The view from our first campsite (taken from the seat of the groover).
Most of the action came on day two. The first "big rapid" is the Garfield Slide. It is neither a slide nor is it really that big (at this flow). Jen runs the slide:
Dave- same:
No Name is the biggest rapid on the river. It is a long, pushy, but straghtforward rapid with a nasty spot on the left at the bottom. No one in our group explored this spot. Jesse runs super smooth line through the crux on the Cat.
The paddle assist raft finishes up No Name almost as smoothly.
Night two- another of the many great campsites on this stretch.
We woke up early Sunday and caught the tourist train back to Silverton with time to spare (no Rockwood Box- maybe next time). This is a great river trip and I can't wait to go back. There are all kinds of options for this trip: from a long day trip, to self support kayaking, to several days on a raft with layovers. You really can't go wrong with any of them.
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