Canyon Creek Oregon - The Lower Run
Location - East of Sweet Home, Oregon
Difficulty - Class III-IV Length - 5 miles
Level - 300 cfs Date - 2/10/2008
Difficulty - Class III-IV Length - 5 miles
Level - 300 cfs Date - 2/10/2008
With so many cool canyons and gorges in the Pacific Northwest
there are lots of rivers called Canyon Creek. In the foothills of
the Cascades about an hour northeast of Eugene one
particular Canyon Creek holds a great variety of rapids in a lush
gorge. This river contains enough high quality whitewater that it
is considered Canyon Creek Oregon, meaning that all other
Canyon Creeks in the state are irrelevant when compared to
this stretch of river. The upper reaches of this run are regarded
as some of the most difficult and dangerous rapids in the area
with undercuts, boulder sieves, and wood all being very
common. Canyon Creek also lies in an area that is very
geologically active, meaning that rapids change often change
from one year to the next and landslides dump piles of rocks
into the river and floods shift boulders and smash apart ledges.
Many people describe the upper parts of Canyon Creek as
holding some of the best class V rapids in the state. Canyon
Creek's reputation as a river jammed up with wood, sieves, and
nasty portaged had kept me away until I finally decided to check
out the lower part of the run first just to see what the drainage
was all about.
there are lots of rivers called Canyon Creek. In the foothills of
the Cascades about an hour northeast of Eugene one
particular Canyon Creek holds a great variety of rapids in a lush
gorge. This river contains enough high quality whitewater that it
is considered Canyon Creek Oregon, meaning that all other
Canyon Creeks in the state are irrelevant when compared to
this stretch of river. The upper reaches of this run are regarded
as some of the most difficult and dangerous rapids in the area
with undercuts, boulder sieves, and wood all being very
common. Canyon Creek also lies in an area that is very
geologically active, meaning that rapids change often change
from one year to the next and landslides dump piles of rocks
into the river and floods shift boulders and smash apart ledges.
Many people describe the upper parts of Canyon Creek as
holding some of the best class V rapids in the state. Canyon
Creek's reputation as a river jammed up with wood, sieves, and
nasty portaged had kept me away until I finally decided to check
out the lower part of the run first just to see what the drainage
was all about.
On a chilly day on February a group of us from Eugene decided to head into the
canyon Creek drainage to check out the lower six miles of the river. Corvallis
based boaters have bushwhacked into Canyon Creek below the tough class V
upper section enough times that a pretty well defined path can be followed down
to the river below the most difficult drops. The lower run provides a nice section
of remote feeling river with two stretches of fun class III/IV rapids and a tricky
class IV+ in the middle of the run.
On the day we headed into the Canyon Creek drainage snow levels were low
enough that reaching the upper put in would have been impossible. Also
complicating things was a huge landslide that destroyed the main shuttle river
last fall. Getting in to the upper run now requires driving up and over a high
ridge on logging roads or making a two mile hike. We were up for a mellow day
and very content to scramble down to the river below the big slide. We did walk
up the hundred yards from the road closed sign to check out the damage
caused by this slide. A massive house sized boulder had broken off of the
canyon wall above the road, taken out a large stretch of the road itself, and
ended up in the middle of the river along with numerous other enormous
boulders. One of the most difficult and steepest boulder gardens of the upper
run, Day of Judgment, is now a terrible looking sieve as just about all of the
water in canyon Creek flows under the massive boulders that came down in the
slide.
After carefully slipping and sliding down the steep path to the put in for the lower
Canyon Creek run we were treated to views of a nice gorge with tall rock walls
rising above the water. Nice looking class II boulder gardens led away from the
put in with clear greenish water and vibrant mossy trees hanging over the
stream. The fun boulder slalom lasted for a few hundred yards before the river
steepened into the first nice drop on the lower run. This class III+ of easy IV
features a twisty leas in followed by a nice river right ledge with a sweet little boof
flake in its center. This whole stretch was free of wood and everyone had nice
lines through the drop. Even though the whitewater was pretty easy, the low
flows revealed that many of the boulders in Canyon Creek are undercut and in
general the river bed has a jumbled and rough unfinished look to it.
This first set of rapids was high quality and in an amazing setting. With more
water some stout holes would start to develop and everything would have more
of a push to it. Despite the mere 300 cfs in Canyon Creek the river was plenty of
fun and the actual rapids had more than enough water to run them. I would not
venture in to the canyon if levels were any lower as the long stretches of cobbled
class I and II would become extremely shallow and annoying. Quite a bit more
water would have been fine for this lower run, and only a few spots would get
burly even at very high flows.
canyon Creek drainage to check out the lower six miles of the river. Corvallis
based boaters have bushwhacked into Canyon Creek below the tough class V
upper section enough times that a pretty well defined path can be followed down
to the river below the most difficult drops. The lower run provides a nice section
of remote feeling river with two stretches of fun class III/IV rapids and a tricky
class IV+ in the middle of the run.
On the day we headed into the Canyon Creek drainage snow levels were low
enough that reaching the upper put in would have been impossible. Also
complicating things was a huge landslide that destroyed the main shuttle river
last fall. Getting in to the upper run now requires driving up and over a high
ridge on logging roads or making a two mile hike. We were up for a mellow day
and very content to scramble down to the river below the big slide. We did walk
up the hundred yards from the road closed sign to check out the damage
caused by this slide. A massive house sized boulder had broken off of the
canyon wall above the road, taken out a large stretch of the road itself, and
ended up in the middle of the river along with numerous other enormous
boulders. One of the most difficult and steepest boulder gardens of the upper
run, Day of Judgment, is now a terrible looking sieve as just about all of the
water in canyon Creek flows under the massive boulders that came down in the
slide.
After carefully slipping and sliding down the steep path to the put in for the lower
Canyon Creek run we were treated to views of a nice gorge with tall rock walls
rising above the water. Nice looking class II boulder gardens led away from the
put in with clear greenish water and vibrant mossy trees hanging over the
stream. The fun boulder slalom lasted for a few hundred yards before the river
steepened into the first nice drop on the lower run. This class III+ of easy IV
features a twisty leas in followed by a nice river right ledge with a sweet little boof
flake in its center. This whole stretch was free of wood and everyone had nice
lines through the drop. Even though the whitewater was pretty easy, the low
flows revealed that many of the boulders in Canyon Creek are undercut and in
general the river bed has a jumbled and rough unfinished look to it.
This first set of rapids was high quality and in an amazing setting. With more
water some stout holes would start to develop and everything would have more
of a push to it. Despite the mere 300 cfs in Canyon Creek the river was plenty of
fun and the actual rapids had more than enough water to run them. I would not
venture in to the canyon if levels were any lower as the long stretches of cobbled
class I and II would become extremely shallow and annoying. Quite a bit more
water would have been fine for this lower run, and only a few spots would get
burly even at very high flows.
After settling down to quickwater and class II for some distance
the river eventually gets steeper and is pinched down by a huge
pile of boulders. This marks the start of Osprey Rapid, a tricky
class IV+ drop ending in a sticky hydraulic backed up by a large
undercut boulder and sieve like area. This rapid certainly
deserves a scout from river right and many solid boaters choose
to portage. At the low level we had the drop looked very runnable
and the hole didn’t look too bad, but it recirculates from a long
ways downstream and the nasty rocks just below the hydraulic
would make swimming potentially dangerous. The boiling and
swirling water just above the last drop in Osprey would make
keeping up speed and holding the correct line difficult so we all
decided to portage. The steeply sloping ledges make a team
effort helpful here, but it wouldn’t be that hard to complete the
portage alone. I always hate portaging rapid that look fun and
relatively easy, but in this case there was an equal likelihood of
cleaning the last hole or ending up getting beat down in it
regardless of the line you managed to take. It making it through a
drop involves as much luck as it does skill then I will usually opt to
portage, especially when the consequences involve swimming into
a huge undercut boulder.
Downstream of Osprey a few fun ledges wait, one with a narrow
river left slot and another with a fun boof down the middle. Slowly
the run picks up and ledges become more frequent as the river
cuts its way through a narrow canyon. Most of the drops here are
ledgey and the lines are straightforward, but a fair bit of wood has
accumulated and care should be taken while boat scouting your
way down. Everything is runnable here, but a very narrow crack
drop called the Constrictor should be checked out and probably
portaged on river right. The whole creek pours through narrow
crack only three feet wide and drops over a low ledge that creates
a terrible looking hole backed up by a pool full of strong boils.
More fun class IV ledges follow with obvious lines. A bunch of
quality ledge drops are packed into this short stretch and most
boaters should be entertained. The best rapid in this stretch is
near the end and features a steep six foot ledge requiring a
strong move to the left at the bottom to avoid a huge boulder
blocking most of the flow. This is a great stretch of river and would
be really excellent for training solid intermediates looking to get
into creek boating. However, this neat drop marks the end of the
bigger rapids. From here to the highway bridge a bunch of fun
class III ledges form some fun little playspots in a unique canyon
setting. Eventually the road is reached and take outs are possible
on river right above and below the bridge. If you miss the take
outs and continue through the sharp class III into the South
Santiam River there is no escape from the fifty foot deep canyon
until it opens up about a mile downstream.
the river eventually gets steeper and is pinched down by a huge
pile of boulders. This marks the start of Osprey Rapid, a tricky
class IV+ drop ending in a sticky hydraulic backed up by a large
undercut boulder and sieve like area. This rapid certainly
deserves a scout from river right and many solid boaters choose
to portage. At the low level we had the drop looked very runnable
and the hole didn’t look too bad, but it recirculates from a long
ways downstream and the nasty rocks just below the hydraulic
would make swimming potentially dangerous. The boiling and
swirling water just above the last drop in Osprey would make
keeping up speed and holding the correct line difficult so we all
decided to portage. The steeply sloping ledges make a team
effort helpful here, but it wouldn’t be that hard to complete the
portage alone. I always hate portaging rapid that look fun and
relatively easy, but in this case there was an equal likelihood of
cleaning the last hole or ending up getting beat down in it
regardless of the line you managed to take. It making it through a
drop involves as much luck as it does skill then I will usually opt to
portage, especially when the consequences involve swimming into
a huge undercut boulder.
Downstream of Osprey a few fun ledges wait, one with a narrow
river left slot and another with a fun boof down the middle. Slowly
the run picks up and ledges become more frequent as the river
cuts its way through a narrow canyon. Most of the drops here are
ledgey and the lines are straightforward, but a fair bit of wood has
accumulated and care should be taken while boat scouting your
way down. Everything is runnable here, but a very narrow crack
drop called the Constrictor should be checked out and probably
portaged on river right. The whole creek pours through narrow
crack only three feet wide and drops over a low ledge that creates
a terrible looking hole backed up by a pool full of strong boils.
More fun class IV ledges follow with obvious lines. A bunch of
quality ledge drops are packed into this short stretch and most
boaters should be entertained. The best rapid in this stretch is
near the end and features a steep six foot ledge requiring a
strong move to the left at the bottom to avoid a huge boulder
blocking most of the flow. This is a great stretch of river and would
be really excellent for training solid intermediates looking to get
into creek boating. However, this neat drop marks the end of the
bigger rapids. From here to the highway bridge a bunch of fun
class III ledges form some fun little playspots in a unique canyon
setting. Eventually the road is reached and take outs are possible
on river right above and below the bridge. If you miss the take
outs and continue through the sharp class III into the South
Santiam River there is no escape from the fifty foot deep canyon
until it opens up about a mile downstream.
After finishing our run I was left with the strong urge to come back soon and
run the more difficult upper rapids on Canyon Creek. It seems like the river
would be pretty manageable at lower flows, but I definitely see how it would
become challenging class V at higher flows. Even at low water Terminator
looked like a sweet drop and Osprey would have been pretty stout had we
paddled it. This is a run close to Eugene that is very worthwhile and it is likely
that we will be making many return trips.
run the more difficult upper rapids on Canyon Creek. It seems like the river
would be pretty manageable at lower flows, but I definitely see how it would
become challenging class V at higher flows. Even at low water Terminator
looked like a sweet drop and Osprey would have been pretty stout had we
paddled it. This is a run close to Eugene that is very worthwhile and it is likely
that we will be making many return trips.
From the put in for the lower Canyon Creek run you can see the massive boulder that
caused the road destroying landslide which blocked Day of Judgement with piles of debris.
caused the road destroying landslide which blocked Day of Judgement with piles of debris.
From the put in you can look up at Terminator, one of the best boulder
gardens on the upper run. It looked really sweet the day we were there.
gardens on the upper run. It looked really sweet the day we were there.
Nate and Pete getting ready to run the lower stretch of Canyon Creek
Oregon just below Day of Judgement.
Oregon just below Day of Judgement.
A nice little class III rapid starts the run which contains a fairly continuous stretch of similar
rapids for about a half mile. Here Arthur warms up and enjoys being on the water.
rapids for about a half mile. Here Arthur warms up and enjoys being on the water.
The best set of rapids in the first mile of lower Canyon Creek starts as a steep boulder
garden and ends in a nice five foot ledge with a built in boof ramp.
garden and ends in a nice five foot ledge with a built in boof ramp.
Our crew of boaters works their way downstream through a fun boulder garden below the
ledge pictured above. Shortly after this the river flattens out for a good distance.
ledge pictured above. Shortly after this the river flattens out for a good distance.
Jason and Nate portage Osprey Rapid, the biggest and nastiest rapid on lower Canyon
Creek Oregon. .
Creek Oregon. .
Our crew of boaters works their way downstream through a fun boulder garden below the
ledge pictured above. Shortly after this the river flattens out for a good distance.
ledge pictured above. Shortly after this the river flattens out for a good distance.
About a mile below Osprey Canyon Creek enters another fun stretch of
class III-IV whitewater that contains fun ledge drops and some interesting
little playspots that would get better with more water.
class III-IV whitewater that contains fun ledge drops and some interesting
little playspots that would get better with more water.
From above Osprey looks like a really high quality rapid snaking through
the midst of huge boulders, but a sticky hole at the bottom is backed up
by a giant undercut boulder seen on the right side of the picture.
the midst of huge boulders, but a sticky hole at the bottom is backed up
by a giant undercut boulder seen on the right side of the picture.