Rock Creek: Ryan Allen Rd to Columbia River (Money Drop)

This is the section with the famous Money Drop, an ever-changing drop near Stevenson Washingon in the Columbia River Gorge.

It's worth scouting the two big drops before putting on, this can be done via Iman Cemetery Rd.  Some routes have no tresspassing signs, but there are ways to get a good look.

Downstream of the put in bridge is 1/4 mile of warm up before the first falls.  This is a 30 footer that is run middle.  Below this first falls the river bends right as it goes over some more bedrock.  Get out on the left after the bend, and well before entering the low angle slide into Money Drop to get one last look from the left side.

Money Drop is a high speed, low angle ramp of 50 yards or so into a vertical drop of variable height.  You can typically count on it being over 50' tall.  It can be tricky to set the correct angle, resulting in many chaotic descents of the drop.  Recently (2016) the lip seems to have cleaned up and people no longer seem to have so much issue.

Andrew Bradley dealt with the tricky pre-2016 lip by boofing as big as possible.  While Andrew says his hit was soft, this technique is not recommended, at least one person has broken their back here.

Photo: Jeremy Lynn

Money drop from Andrew Bradley on Vimeo.

The level was about 10.10 feet on the Rock Creek gauge under the Ryan Allen Rd Bridge when Andrew and John ran it.

You can use the EF Lewis gauge to guestimate when Rock Creek will run. 

That gauge had a little under 2000 cfs when Andrew and John ran Money Drop.

Danimal rafted this one too.  Amazingly, he landed upright in the raft, unhurt. The level was pretty low that day, around 9.5'.

The falls was measured at 51' high the day he did it.

March 14, 2010

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STORY

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Andrew here, checking in after an exciting trip to Stephenson!

The first time I had looked at Money Drop I had been kayaking for about a year, I knew some day I would want to run big stuff and put this on the list. A few weeks back John Edwards and I had been to Money Drop and put in an all day scouting mission. We hiked in across from the drop and all around the lip trying to see different angles of the waterfall. Getting down to water level in this area is abnormally challenging due to the waste deep mud and failing hillsides associated with the active landslide. During this first scouting mission we had decided we wanted a safety boater in the pool to help pick up the pieces if one of us was hurt or out of our boat. We also checked possible put in areas and running the 30ft drop up stream. The flow that we had was around 1,100-1,200cfs.  The boil at the bottom was huge but manageable if you were up for the task; but at this flow the only way to get a safety boater in the pool was to have someone run the drop first.

       Jump forward to February 2012 when John Edwards, Jeremy Lynn and myself found ourselves here again at a lower flow in the range of 800-900cfs (just under half the EF Lewis gauge). We found this flow to still provide an ample boil.  This would be John's 7th time here and we now had a sufficient amount of people to safely run the drop.  The key piece of the puzzle for us was getting a safety boater in the pool below, which was pretty easy on this day.  Thanks Jeremy!  When we were there it had been raining and snowing with very little sunshine. We wondered around the drop scouting and talking about our possible lines and where we planed to hike our boats down for around 5 hours that day before running the drop. If you take a look at the photos most of the waterfall is not vertical at all, so boofing or over rotating are both very real possibilities.

Side view  

After looking at the risks I knew I needed a stroke but if it was too big I would be boofed out and with no stroke I would be kicked all crazy.  John went first with a plug line.  He over rotated a bit and became  unfolded near the bottom, taking a really big hit.  Fearing a similarly painful experience, I made sure I focused on staying locked to my deck.  I accelerated quickly towards the falls, the speed was exhilarating.

Very fast lead in

  As I approached the lip I focused on the transition for floating to freefall.  I took a full stroke that kept my bow way up.  After taking the stroke I knew I was boofing out.  I stayed forward in my tuck all the way to the bottom.  The thought came into my mind to stomp the bow back down, but I knew that has been the cause of broken backs in the past (including one on this very drop).  I fought this urge and remained forward until I reconnected, I was surprised when the landing proved to be really soft!  With my back still intact and another drop successfully descended I was super stoked! After it was all said and done John and I both had run it and had very different lines.  John was ejected from his boat, while I boofed and could not have landed much flatter. We both walked away safe and injury free, which is the number one goal on drops of this magnitude.   We both gained some more big drop knowledge to apply to our next endeavor, as well an experience that can never be taken away!  I fully anticipate coming back in the future to try and stick a different line off this drop.  Best of luck to those that attempt this tricky waterfall!

John's Line 

Boof!

video

-Andrew

Lake Creek Slides

Beta

1 mi

Stream:   This is a unique run in Oregon's Coast Range, with fun slides in the beginning (unusual for Oregon) and some boulder gardens in the second half (typical of Oregon).  The run starts right where the lake exits into the creek, just upstream from a bridge with the foot gauge on it  44.1617, -123.5707 .

The first 1/3rd of the run is made up of slides and can be scouted from a nice walkway and mini-park at the end of the walkway. This scouting area is accessed by parking here 44.1594, -123.573.

The slides start out low angle, gradually tilting steeper as they approach the only vertical drop of the run (10-15').  

The main line on this drop is down the center, what to do after landing is the biggest cause for pause.

When there was still a log in the main line people used to put in on river right at the lip of this drop (missing out on the low angle slides upstream) for a fun hop, skip and splash.

Joe Kemper running the right side of the first drop, back when there was still a log in the main line.

(log gone as of 2016)

Photo: Lucas Rietmann

The runout here is odd, but people bounce their way through.  Alternately, boof into the eddy on the left next to the fish ladder to do a quick portage around the boulder pile. 

 Next is another fun ramp run on the left that ends in a short drop, with a nice eddy to regroup in just below on the left.  Good clean fun.

The trickiest slide is next.  Here a tough to scout (if flows are up) boulder garden pushes left at the lip of the slide which is not where you want to be.  Either make a quick portage of this lead in on the left or stay in control and drive back to the right through a couple small holes to run the final slide center or right and avoid a nasty log and root-wad on river left at the bottom.

Both the paddle and portage routes are shown here.

The slide below, with the log hazard visible at the bottom left.

It is possible to lap one or more of these slides, but generally it is not considered convenient enough to do a whole bunch of laps on all of them.  The easiest to lap is the middle slide if the water is lowish.

The pool below the final slide exits into the IV-V (depending on flow) boulder garden stretch, which takes up the middle third of the run and blind parts should be scouted for wood, though the run was portage free in January 2021.

The boulder gardens are pretty steep and considered fun by most Willamette Valley boaters, but not by all.  The final drop in this section is the most unique and can provide exciting lines.

Below this airplane move, the last 1/3rd or the creek eases from III-IV down to moving flatwater as it approaches the bridge.  Stay on guard here as Iv'e seen a couple hiccups through here and wood is usually still present.

The only thing left to do is reset shuttle and head up for another round.  While the first lap can take a couple hours, 20-30 minutes laps are common once the wood situation is known and lines are dialed.

Flows:  The definitive gauge is the visual "Triangle Lake gauge" that exists on the put in bridge. The gist with some wiggle room is 7.0-7.5 is low but fun, 7.5-8.0 is medium, 8.0-8.5 is pushy.

- Over 8.5 (water even with the step in the concrete) is high but even at 10' it did not look un-runnable (most paddlers would not run it at that flow though).

- Minimum is users choice, people have been known to slide down a couple of the slides in the Summer.  Though most boaters, myself included, would consider flows under 7' too low and 6.5 an un-floatable flow.

To ballpark flows before heading out, use the Siuslaw Gauge near Mapleton.  Look for between 6' and 9' for class IV/V levels, though it goes much higher (looked doable for the elite at 18'). Keep in mind the Siuslaw gauge is far downstream on a much larger river, so is only reasonable for estimation purposes.

If you get there and it is too high for your taste, check out either the Play Run or Sweet Creek.

Access:  Find Triangle Lake on a map (West of Eugene).  The run begins immediately as the run exits the lake on the south side.  

There is a gravel parking area near the Blachly Lane Picnic area (44.161891, -123.570914), and path leading upstream to a convenient put in. 

The take out is at a bridge about 1 mile downstream (44.147849, -123.582892), after a turn onto Fish Creek road.  There is limited parking, refer to the map below.  

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Original write-up

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We joined Nate Pfiefer and crew last weekend to check out the section of Lake Creek exiting Triangle Lake.  There have been many descents of this section, but up to this point no online documentation aside from a short video from Oregonkayaking. 

This section has got a lot of descents this year, and the general consensus is that it cleans up as the water starts to rise, but once the rocks are covered, it becomes hard class V in a hurry.  Emile ran it years ago in a playboat on several occasions at 10-12' and said it was good to go, but they did not run the boulder gardens below the slides.  There are rumors of it being run even higher.

Here is a video of Kory and I running it in 2015 at about 7.75' on the put in/Triangle Lake Gauge.                    0:00 - 1:30


Birthday Boating with Kory Kellum from PMacy on Vimeo.

This run is really not to be missed if you are a local, its short, but a blast.  3 good slides and a half mile of 4/5 boulder gardens depending on flow.  The river carves through sandstone instead of the usual Oregon Basalt, providing unique rapids.

    -Jacob

Winter Sunshine

With a warm and sunny weekend in the forecast, I spent Friday afternoon trying to decide whether I wanted to spend Saturday kayaking or hiking with some friends around Portland. After checking some water levels, I decided that I could have my cake and eat it to. Eagle creek was to be the destination and the crew was to include both paddlers as well as folks just interested in a long hike in a beautiful place.

By the time Saturday morning rolled around, our group had ballooned out to 8 people in all. Kayakers: Dan Rubido, Cruise Control, Andrew and myself. Hikers: Miranda Merrill (sister), Skip Rasmussen, Jordan Fry, and Devin Geddings.

Special thanks go out to the hikers, who were more than willing to help out when it came to carrying paddles, food, water, and various other items that decreased the weight on our backs.

Since we already have a write-up on eagle creek, I'll keep this post fairly short and laden with photos.

The long hike to the put-in. (the hike really wasn't as hard as I predicted)

Photo: Devin Geddings

Lunch time at Punch Bowl Falls

Jacob takes stokes #3 and#4 of the day. Skoonichuck Falls.

Photo: Scott Rasmussen

The hikers (Devin, Skip, Jordan, Miranda)

One of the numerous class IV rapids nestled deep in eagle creek gorge.

Follow the leader!

Jacob with his fans.

Andrew and Dan deep down.

Cruise Control scouting ol' Punchy.

Dan with a picture perfect line off Punch Bowl.

Photo: Andrew Bradley

Worth the hike! Punchbowl video

The first 5 videos(as of Feb 2012) on Richard Lewis Wolf's Youtube account continue the documentation of our trip.

Habitat: The Rafting Film

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/habitat/habitat

This is a film Ryan and Hans have been working hard on for years. I have seen a lot of the edited parts and they are really good. This is the type of film whitewater has been lacking for a long time.  Instead of   "browning" and ego boosting, the film dives into explaining the sport; where it started, and how it got where it is now.  It looks at all aspects of the sport, from unforgettable guided overnight trips, to the bonds forged in the tightest canyons of the PNW. Every whitewater boater has been asked why they do what they do, I know for me its difficult to give an answer I am satisfied conveys how I feel. This film captures that answer and so much more.  This film has the best rafting footage ever captured, no question.  It is made in a way that anyone can get into and enjoy whether they boat or not. They need some help, so if you can, give and you shall receive!

 Photo by Javier

   photo Nate Merrill

 

-Jacob

 

Canyon Creek, Oregon

Darren Dangerdeeds likes Canyon Creek, OR.

BETA

Stream: This is a benchmark run in the Willamette Valley.  Once considered a classic run, a landslide into Day of Judgement (the largest rapid of the run and one of the best in Oregon) rendered that drop a mess and changed the dynamic of the run.  

The run is still good, but feels like more of an adventure run than a classic nowadays.  The first two miles after the boulder-bar beginning are steep and can easily take twice as long as the lower 5 miles.  Reading and running is not a good technique on the Upper section.  If it's your first time, my recommendation would be to catch all the eddies and scout all the rapids until you are past Black Creek. 

Below the bridge at the put in, boulder bar floating eases you into the day.  There is some wood to dodge, and the last few times Iv'e done the run Iv'e done one easy portage up here.  As the river consolidates (you can use a scrambling put in here to avoid the boulder floating at the beginning), the first rapid is quickly reached.  A bouldery lead in turns into bedrock at Chocolate Chips, scout right before entering the small boulder garden.

Josh Roach, Chocolate Chips.

 Photo: Thomas Imes

Downstream is another boulder garden leading into Chicken Little, which has some small scouting eddies on the left.  This rapid can collect wood.  It is easiest to scout left, but a partial portage on the right into a sneak line is what I have done when wood blocks the main line.  Eddies are not always generous on this run, so take a good look for them before committing to any moves.

After Chicken Little, getright against a wall to scout the next straight-away that ends in an eddy on the left that should be caught before the river disappears into some boulders.  Scout from this eddy, and most likely make a strong ferry back to the right to the line you picked out.

More good rapids continue downstream, even though they can be read and run, I recommend scouting everything on this run your first time down.

1-2 rapids later there has been a logjam extending from the left bank, with one log reaching all the way to the right bank.  There is a last chance eddy above it on the right, with a bugger rock to mind.  Sometimes we have been able to sneak by or over the log, sometimes we have to portage.  

Good rapids continue below the portage, including this great boof.

The boof is an important marker, because just downstream is Demon Seed, a rapid that looks like it may be read-and-run, but is actually a portage for most people.  Demon Seed looks like a mini-BZ Falls, but flows under the right wall.  Of the people I have seen run this drop, most go under the right wall, but have always flushed quickly.  I don't fancy the thought of being under the wall so have always made the quick portage on the right.

The whitewater opens up downstream, becoming read and run for awhile.  This changes when the stream bends right at a small gravel bar with the road visible downstream, high on the right.  Scout Terminator from this gravel bar.  Terminator deserves respect and safety is a good idea.  There is a sieve on river left that is mostly, but not entirely out of play.  The pocket on the right is more in play, though good safety can be set here.  An ideal line threads between the rock in the center that divides the flow and that right pocket.

Just downstream is a big ledge, before the river drops around a room-sized rock and enters Day of Judgement.  Day of Judgement was once considered one of the best rapids in Oregon, but a landslide that occurred before I ever ran the creek changed the rapid forever.  My first time down, the Dinsdales and I ran a sneak channel to the left of the big rock.  Iv'e chosen to take the sloppy portage on the right each time since.  The middle line has been run, with poor results.  Day of Judgement does change every year, and we keep hoping some day it will return to a worthwhile rapid.  Portaging on the right is better than the left, but still requires concentration as it's on a steep scree-field.  

The boulder garden downstream ends in a rapid that looks heinous from above, with logs sticking up vertically but actually is pretty easy compared to most of the rapids encountered so far.  Every time I have run the creek, driving left of the logs has been hunky-dory, though I do like to boat scout from a tricky eddy on the right just before the horizon to make sure things haven't changed.

On a low water trip, the right channel looked better.

A rapid or two are between here and Black Creek, which enters down a tumbling cascade on the right, which must be forded to scout the next ledge.  The line on this ledge changes with water levels, so it's worth a look.

Just around the corner it looks like there is a big wood hazard, but as of 2019 it is safe to read and run through the right channel to an eddy on the right, from which you can see there is a clean line.

Fun class IV continues as you enter the Lower section.  There are two rapids to look out for on this lower stretch, and paddlers need to keep an eye out for both to prevent accidentally running them.  

After the initial set of fun rapids on the lower section, there is a lull.  Keep an eye out near the end of this lull for brushy banks and large boulders visible downstream.  If you see those boulders, quickly make your way to the right bank, into a small channel to the right of a brush bar to scout Osprey, one of the biggest rapids on Canyon Creek.  It is important to make it into that tiny right channel to scout, or you will be forced to run this common portage blind.

The next notable ledge downstream looks like it can be run anywhere from above, but in reality needs to be run left at most levels.  Branches sometimes complicates this.  Things maintain a quality class IV nature downstream of here, interspersed with sections of easy and often scenic floating.

The next notable rapid comes at the end of a class II straight away, ending in what looks like a small pinch/ledge.  Eddy out right here to scout the Constrictor, another common portage.  While the drop is small, many people make the easy portage on the right.

More fun rapids continue, along with some more easy floating.  There is a beautiful gorge down in this lower section, and some more good rapids.  This gorge tends to collect wood, but usually nothing requiring a portage, stay vigilant.

One of the cruxes of the run is actually catching the take out eddy under the bridge.  It is pretty small, so if too many people try to catch it at once, it would be possible for someone to get blown downstream.  If that happens, getting out becomes more difficult as vertical walls make it difficult to exit the creek.  This eddy can be scouted from the take out bridge while setting shuttle.

If there is time, a lower take out can be used at Cascadia State Park.  This allows paddlers to pass the normal take out and float into the South Santiam, where it passes through one of the more scenic gorges in the state.  There are not any notable rapids, so it provides an opportunity to soak it in.

If you are doing the full run, keep in mind this is a 7 mile run and the upper two miles are not conducive to boat scouting.  Moving with urgency will keep you from dealing with a setting sun.

Flows:  300-700 on Pat Welches estimate is good for a first time go if flows are not rising.

Here is a photo from the Hwy 20 bridge at minimally fun levels for the lower section, I wouldn't think the upper would be worthwhile at this level.

Access:  Take I-5 to Highway 20 and head east.  After passing through the town of Sweet Home it's about 16 miles to the bridge over Canyon Creek at the take out.  44.396770, -122.447861

A gravel road takes off to the right just after the bridge and heads up to the put in.  There are 3 put in options, located at these mileages past the turn off from Highway 20:

4.9 miles (44.361064, -122.382634):  A steep trail leads down to the creek here at the bridge over Black Gate.  This is considered the lower put in and skips the two miles of challenging creek boating above.  It is a great intermediate run by itself, and is a nice intro to creeking sort of run.  It is also possible to hike in at the base of Day of Judgement, to add a couple IV-IV+ rapids to the lower run.

6.6 miles (44.341517, -122.365220):  If you want to get right into it, you can schwack down to the creek from one of the pull-outs either 100 yards upstream or downstream of this point.

7.1 miles (44.333839, -122.361907):  Turn right and the road quickly leads to a bridge.  This is the put in I like best.  It gives you about 15-20 minutes of open floating through boulder bars before the first rapid.  I have always had exactly one easy wood portage when I have put in up at this bridge.

 

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Original Write-up
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Our first time down,


    As told by Andrew Bradley



Nate, Jacob and I had been talking about what we should do for this up coming weekend. Flows in the Portland area were not looking super promising so Nate and I packed up shop and headed to Corvallis for the weekend. Saturday morning flows were looking great on Canyon Creek.  There is a general consensus that the creek gets pushy over 500 cfs so we were anxious about what it would feel like.  The gauge showed ~600, but Rick had run the creek at 650 on the gauge and said this felt higher.  We surmised the estimated gauge is different based on a rising vs. falling stream (we had a falling level).

       Our main concerns with the creek at this level was new wood from the ice storm that had come through the North West Region the previous week and the rumors of abundant undercuts due to the unstable geology. Rick and Dan lead us to a put in just above Chocolate Chips that avoids the mile of wood and flat water above, its exciting starting the day off with a class five!  The rapid starts off with a small boulder garden that progresses into a series of small ledges where the water is eventually funneled into 7ft wide crack.  The first 3 boaters flipped, and the last 3 stayed dry.  Moving into the next series of rapids is a pushy technical boulder garden that is leading into Chicken Little. This rapid looks ugly but go's pretty smooth; there is one massive old growth that looks like it has been stuck in the rapid for a while but is easily avoidable.  It can be portaged.

 Brian Butcher, feeling it.

 Photo: Lucas Rietmann

 After finishing the crux part of the drop the river is split into two channels for about 200yards.  Both channels are currently clear of wood.  As the channels regroup the creek rips into a technical boulder garden that is quite long and fun.  The last horizon needs to be run on the right (easier said than done).  At this level a couple of us were able to cut right from the left channel which worked, but is not the preferred line. The left half of the river pours into a nasty sieve with a root wad stuck in the middle.

       Next up was a ledge drop that was reminicent of sacriledge on the the little white. Big hole and all. A few more boulder gardens and a flume found us scouting Stuff Sack, more commonly known as Demon Seed. Three people ran stuff sack on this day.  This drop has a very clear line and a very clear undercut pocket on the right. Terminator is the next significant rapid followed by Day of Judgement, both of which you can scout from the road as you drive up to do the upper section. Terminator, which is known for the nasty sieve on river left, is cleaner than I had imagined, but still possesses significant consequences for a blown line. Both the aforementioned seive and pocket on the right side complicate things. There is a sneak on the left for Day of Judgment at the flows we had that starts off very manky and ends in a clean 8ft ledge.  

  Photo: Lucas Rietmann

          The section imediately below Day of Judgment should be approached with caution. It is the only section on Canyon Creek that cannot be scouted and is un-portageable. It is  important that after committing to the lead-in, you catch the large eddy on river right just after to gorge walls close in. From this eddie, you can boat scout the crux section (Jacob was able to hop out and get a visual, but that option may not exist at lower flows). The entire right side of the river charges beneath an old growth log and then flows into an undercut. The left side of the river is very manky and contains several rocks that could pin a boat. The line is the cut just above and to the left of the old growth root wad in the center of the river.  If you run this thing correctly, the spray from the water hitting the root wad will actually envelope you as you drop through the narrow channel. Although this drop isn't too difficult, it is one of the more consequential rapids on Canyon Creek.    Below this gorge, the run then alternates between large ledges and flatwater. Before you reach the put-in for the lower section, there is one giant ledge hole to be aware of. On this day, two of our group went for a ride, but were able to escape.  

It is common for boaters to just run this lower section (class IV), however the first ledge of the lower section held a swimmer for about a minute on this day, so be sure you have a solid boof before attempting the run, especially at this level.  Watch out for Osprey after the first mile or so of flat water, it would be easy to mistakenly enter this rapid. Dry out in the brush on the right to scout, if you see large boulders downstream it might already be too late, get into the right channel and paddle hard. The run over all is generally clean and definitely worth doing.  

Keep an eye out for Constrictor as well, a small/narrow 3' drop at the end of a class II straight away with a vicious hole that is typically portaged on the right.

A special thanks to Dan Rubado and Rick Cooley for showing us the lines, we would have been in the dark without you guys (literally). 


Canyon Creek, OR from Andrew Bradley on Vimeo.

-Andrew