Jackson Creek
Location - Southern Oregon Cascades
Difficulty - Class IV-IV+ Length - 8 miles
Level - 2,000 cfs on South Umpqua
Date - March 2008
Difficulty - Class IV-IV+ Length - 8 miles
Level - 2,000 cfs on South Umpqua
Date - March 2008
Spring was slow to come after a winter of epic snows in the Cascades and
we took advantage of one of the first warm weekends to head south and
explore Jackson Creek, a steep tributary of the South Umpqua River. This
seldom run stream has several stretches of significant whitewater
dropping between 160 feet per mile and 200 feet per mile, with lower
gradient and quick moving stretches between. Past trips dealt with
significant amounts of wood and we were curious to see what the run
would hold in store for us.
The drive south was uneventful and soon we turned onto a well
maintained Forest Service Road that paralleled Jackson Creek. The
lower parts of the creek looked to hold plenty of water and the several
ledges we saw in this stretch looked fun. Eventually the take out was
reached and we geared up. I was eager to be checking out yet another
new run within a few hours of Eugene. Tall Sugar Pines were the primary
vegetation and some early season flowers were already poking through
the groundcover. The day was already getting warm when we began the
drive to the put in.
The road quickly turned to dirt and downed trees became alarmingly
frequent. If a maintained road had this much blowdown blocking it, what
would the river be like? After making a faulty left turn and driving a few
hundred feet up before being blocked by deep snow we corrected our
mistake and found the riverside route once again. Our next obstacle was
rockfall from the steep and unstable cliffs above the road. Many stones
and small boulders blocked the way for Scott’s low clearance Subaru.
Three of us moved the debris for a few hundred yards while the vehicle
slowly came along behind us. Soon we passed an old washed out bridge
that one of the two who had made the run before thought might be the
put in. Unsure, we continued on another half mile before the road was
blocked by impassable snowdrifts. Like it or not, this is where we would
be putting in for our run on Jackson Creek.
The stream started out shallow and frequently obstructed by alders and
occasionally larger logs. In the first quarter mile we were forced out of
our boats perhaps 4 or 5 times, but the carries were generally quick and
easy due to the shallow gravel bed nature of the river. In about fifteen
minutes we reached the old bridge where Shawn and Scott thought they
had put in before and that is when there memory kicked into gear and
they realized that this was indeed the best put in. In less than a quarter
mile the river narrowed down and entered a mini gorge at the head of the
first section of fun rapids. The woody nature of the last half mile
combined with the blind and steep nature of the rapid ahead and forced
us to make a scout from river left.
we took advantage of one of the first warm weekends to head south and
explore Jackson Creek, a steep tributary of the South Umpqua River. This
seldom run stream has several stretches of significant whitewater
dropping between 160 feet per mile and 200 feet per mile, with lower
gradient and quick moving stretches between. Past trips dealt with
significant amounts of wood and we were curious to see what the run
would hold in store for us.
The drive south was uneventful and soon we turned onto a well
maintained Forest Service Road that paralleled Jackson Creek. The
lower parts of the creek looked to hold plenty of water and the several
ledges we saw in this stretch looked fun. Eventually the take out was
reached and we geared up. I was eager to be checking out yet another
new run within a few hours of Eugene. Tall Sugar Pines were the primary
vegetation and some early season flowers were already poking through
the groundcover. The day was already getting warm when we began the
drive to the put in.
The road quickly turned to dirt and downed trees became alarmingly
frequent. If a maintained road had this much blowdown blocking it, what
would the river be like? After making a faulty left turn and driving a few
hundred feet up before being blocked by deep snow we corrected our
mistake and found the riverside route once again. Our next obstacle was
rockfall from the steep and unstable cliffs above the road. Many stones
and small boulders blocked the way for Scott’s low clearance Subaru.
Three of us moved the debris for a few hundred yards while the vehicle
slowly came along behind us. Soon we passed an old washed out bridge
that one of the two who had made the run before thought might be the
put in. Unsure, we continued on another half mile before the road was
blocked by impassable snowdrifts. Like it or not, this is where we would
be putting in for our run on Jackson Creek.
The stream started out shallow and frequently obstructed by alders and
occasionally larger logs. In the first quarter mile we were forced out of
our boats perhaps 4 or 5 times, but the carries were generally quick and
easy due to the shallow gravel bed nature of the river. In about fifteen
minutes we reached the old bridge where Shawn and Scott thought they
had put in before and that is when there memory kicked into gear and
they realized that this was indeed the best put in. In less than a quarter
mile the river narrowed down and entered a mini gorge at the head of the
first section of fun rapids. The woody nature of the last half mile
combined with the blind and steep nature of the rapid ahead and forced
us to make a scout from river left.
Shimmying along a narrow mossy shelf showed a tight river left slot dropping into a somewhat
sticky looking hydraulic, but a sliding boof on the right bypassed this. From here the river
pinched to just more than a boat width across and dropped over a few more three to five foot
drops before dropping out of sight again into what looked like an even steeper and more
congested rapid. Good eddies could be found between the two drops so we ran the first class
IV without any incidents and eddied up on river right to scout the remainder of the drop.
Scouting proved wise since one of the two lead in slots was clogged with wood and the crux of
the drop contained a tricky move or two. A lack of eddies meant that a misplaced piece of
wood could quickly prove disastrous through this class IV+ drop. The scout showed a fast
lead in on river left through a narrow chute leading to some fast and shallow middle ground
that rechanlized and narrowed above a large mid river boulder that supported a very thin
pillow and looked capable of pinning a boat. Two options presented themselves here; drive
through a slot to the right of the rock and over a 6 foot drop or make a hard move to the left
before heading into a double boof depositing you just above a final 4 foot drop through a
nice hole.
sticky looking hydraulic, but a sliding boof on the right bypassed this. From here the river
pinched to just more than a boat width across and dropped over a few more three to five foot
drops before dropping out of sight again into what looked like an even steeper and more
congested rapid. Good eddies could be found between the two drops so we ran the first class
IV without any incidents and eddied up on river right to scout the remainder of the drop.
Scouting proved wise since one of the two lead in slots was clogged with wood and the crux of
the drop contained a tricky move or two. A lack of eddies meant that a misplaced piece of
wood could quickly prove disastrous through this class IV+ drop. The scout showed a fast
lead in on river left through a narrow chute leading to some fast and shallow middle ground
that rechanlized and narrowed above a large mid river boulder that supported a very thin
pillow and looked capable of pinning a boat. Two options presented themselves here; drive
through a slot to the right of the rock and over a 6 foot drop or make a hard move to the left
before heading into a double boof depositing you just above a final 4 foot drop through a
nice hole.
Almost immediately below this drop the river spreads out with most of
the current heading left and dropping through a jumbled boulder
garden before a five or six footer. I found myself running this blind and
driving hard right off of the drop to land in an eddy in case the main line
was obstructed. Others were thinking about scouting but Shawn came
down next and I lost sight of him as he approached the main drop. The
next thing I saw was the bottom of a yellow boat falling over the drop.
There was an audible crack as he banged his head, which led to a
swim. Somehow when Shawn came out of the boat he ended up right in
the eddy with his boat. Once I knew he was ok I took off downstream
after his paddle, but was unable to locate it. The others eventually
retrieved it upstream.
After this fun section of water the river mellows again and the wood
situation starts to get a little annoying. Eventually you find yourself
running through a mini gorge with quality class IV rapids sliding over low
angled ledges. This leads to a sharp right hand turn with an obvious
horizon line at a spot where there are some tall rock walls. While there
are tempting eddies on river left at the very lip of the drop the safest
scout is from river right. The first ledge, a six foot drop, has a large tree
jammed in it that makes a terrible sieve type hazard on river left. There
is a thin runnable line on river right that kind of involves boofing off of
the root wad. This is totally clean and fun, but there is a smaller ledge
and hole not far above the main drop that could mess with boaters and
push them into the severe log hazard. Our group contained four solid
boaters and I was the only one to run the drop. It is one of the best
drops on the river, but be careful and scout for new wood.
the current heading left and dropping through a jumbled boulder
garden before a five or six footer. I found myself running this blind and
driving hard right off of the drop to land in an eddy in case the main line
was obstructed. Others were thinking about scouting but Shawn came
down next and I lost sight of him as he approached the main drop. The
next thing I saw was the bottom of a yellow boat falling over the drop.
There was an audible crack as he banged his head, which led to a
swim. Somehow when Shawn came out of the boat he ended up right in
the eddy with his boat. Once I knew he was ok I took off downstream
after his paddle, but was unable to locate it. The others eventually
retrieved it upstream.
After this fun section of water the river mellows again and the wood
situation starts to get a little annoying. Eventually you find yourself
running through a mini gorge with quality class IV rapids sliding over low
angled ledges. This leads to a sharp right hand turn with an obvious
horizon line at a spot where there are some tall rock walls. While there
are tempting eddies on river left at the very lip of the drop the safest
scout is from river right. The first ledge, a six foot drop, has a large tree
jammed in it that makes a terrible sieve type hazard on river left. There
is a thin runnable line on river right that kind of involves boofing off of
the root wad. This is totally clean and fun, but there is a smaller ledge
and hole not far above the main drop that could mess with boaters and
push them into the severe log hazard. Our group contained four solid
boaters and I was the only one to run the drop. It is one of the best
drops on the river, but be careful and scout for new wood.
Below here the whitewater becomes more sporadic, and while there are still some fun ledge
drops, the wood situation starts to get out of control. For the next few miles we largely
bounced down shallow class II while ducking, dodging, and bashing our way through bending
alders and fallen trees. If you do this run I can almost guarantee that at some point you will
feel like a class II rapid might maim you. Somewhere in this stretch there is an island with a
steep ledge at its base. This fun looking drop has what is probably the largest hole on the
river below it, with a river wide strainer less than fifteen feet below it. We portaged on the
right.
One fun series of class IV ledges remains with many strainers and trees in the quickwater
between. This stretch is probably not actually very long, but when you have to get out of your
boat every fifty yards it slows things down. The situation got so frustrating that I eventually
ended up getting off of the water less than a quarter mile from the takeout and hiking down
the road back to the vehicles. No rapids were missed by doing this.
Overall this was a great day. Jackson Creek hold some really nice rapids, but the longish
drive combined with the large number of strainers makes this a trip I would not repeat more
than once a year. If it weren’t for the wood situation I think that our crew from Eugene would
paddle down here much more often. This year’s record low elevation snowpack must certainly
have contributed to the amount of wood and it is hard to say when this run will clean up again.
drops, the wood situation starts to get out of control. For the next few miles we largely
bounced down shallow class II while ducking, dodging, and bashing our way through bending
alders and fallen trees. If you do this run I can almost guarantee that at some point you will
feel like a class II rapid might maim you. Somewhere in this stretch there is an island with a
steep ledge at its base. This fun looking drop has what is probably the largest hole on the
river below it, with a river wide strainer less than fifteen feet below it. We portaged on the
right.
One fun series of class IV ledges remains with many strainers and trees in the quickwater
between. This stretch is probably not actually very long, but when you have to get out of your
boat every fifty yards it slows things down. The situation got so frustrating that I eventually
ended up getting off of the water less than a quarter mile from the takeout and hiking down
the road back to the vehicles. No rapids were missed by doing this.
Overall this was a great day. Jackson Creek hold some really nice rapids, but the longish
drive combined with the large number of strainers makes this a trip I would not repeat more
than once a year. If it weren’t for the wood situation I think that our crew from Eugene would
paddle down here much more often. This year’s record low elevation snowpack must certainly
have contributed to the amount of wood and it is hard to say when this run will clean up again.
I ran first and made the move to the left after some excitement with a small unseen rock that
led to an impromptu eddy turn and a somewhat scary ferry before cleaning the rest of the
rapid. Shawn followed and ran river right, making that line look nice, and Scott came last. He
ended up driving into the big boulder and pulling off a dead vertical splat in his creek boat
above the gnarliest part of the rapid. I still think he should have claimed that this was done on
purpose, but it was impressive enough that he collected himself and finished off the drop in
style.
After this excellent introduction the run becomes less continuous, but fun drops lie spaced out
between stretches of mellower class II-III. Wood is very common and even the class III drops
were not taken lightly. A few class IV’s are thrown in this stretch for good measure.
One of the best stretches of rapids comes when a high cliff wall towers several hundred feet
out of the water on river left. This eroded away lava rock is impossible to miss and the
gradient noticeably steepens through this section. We wanted to look for wood before
committing and a few small river right eddies let us do this. The first twenty or thirty yards of
boulder garden were clean and a big river left boulder held a sufficient eddy from which we
would probably be able to boat scout the next drop. No one had problems through here, but it
when we eddied out above the next bigger drop it was clear that a piece of wood was wedged
vertically in the center of the steep, almost vertical chute. Shawn had run this first and he was
signaling to move hard left, which we all did with varying degrees of success. I am pretty sure I
smacked the wood with my right arm and I know some of the others did.
led to an impromptu eddy turn and a somewhat scary ferry before cleaning the rest of the
rapid. Shawn followed and ran river right, making that line look nice, and Scott came last. He
ended up driving into the big boulder and pulling off a dead vertical splat in his creek boat
above the gnarliest part of the rapid. I still think he should have claimed that this was done on
purpose, but it was impressive enough that he collected himself and finished off the drop in
style.
After this excellent introduction the run becomes less continuous, but fun drops lie spaced out
between stretches of mellower class II-III. Wood is very common and even the class III drops
were not taken lightly. A few class IV’s are thrown in this stretch for good measure.
One of the best stretches of rapids comes when a high cliff wall towers several hundred feet
out of the water on river left. This eroded away lava rock is impossible to miss and the
gradient noticeably steepens through this section. We wanted to look for wood before
committing and a few small river right eddies let us do this. The first twenty or thirty yards of
boulder garden were clean and a big river left boulder held a sufficient eddy from which we
would probably be able to boat scout the next drop. No one had problems through here, but it
when we eddied out above the next bigger drop it was clear that a piece of wood was wedged
vertically in the center of the steep, almost vertical chute. Shawn had run this first and he was
signaling to move hard left, which we all did with varying degrees of success. I am pretty sure I
smacked the wood with my right arm and I know some of the others did.
We had to stop several times on the way to the put in to clear rockfall from the road so we could proceed. We
were obvious the first vehicle to travel here this spring.
were obvious the first vehicle to travel here this spring.
Shortly below the put in we came to a classic high quality class IV boulder garden that lasted for a few hundred
yards. The rapid was clean and we were hopeful the creek would remain free of wood.
yards. The rapid was clean and we were hopeful the creek would remain free of wood.
The lead into the first boulder garden led through this tight slot. The scenery
along this stretch, and much of the creek, is quite nice.
along this stretch, and much of the creek, is quite nice.
Shawn running the direct river right line through the crux of the first, and in my opinion, best rapid on Jackson
Creek. More of the same lies out of sight just upstream.
Creek. More of the same lies out of sight just upstream.
We took our time and thoroughly scouted this rapid, setting safety, and being on
the look out for hidden logs or other hazards.
the look out for hidden logs or other hazards.
Somehow this line ended up not going nearly as bad as it looks like it is about to in this picture.
The run out of the first big rapid was shallow class II that lasted for a ways until the
next good drop.
next good drop.
Scott finishing up the left line at the first rapid after recovering nicely from his big splat.
By the time we reached this fun slot we had seen enough wood to be convinced to
scout every drop with a horizon line.
scout every drop with a horizon line.
Shawn enters the second longest rapid of the trip, a nice boulder garden that
continued around the corner at the bottom of the picture.
continued around the corner at the bottom of the picture.
Here I am making the making the move to river right to avoid running this drop into the sieve created by
the large tree wedged in the drop.
the large tree wedged in the drop.
The line at this drop was pretty easy, but missing to the left would result in an automatic pin. The log in this
drop is not visible from upstream and it creates a severe hazard.
drop is not visible from upstream and it creates a severe hazard.
The run out of the drop with the log was a fun mini gorge dropping through another fluffy hole.
Another fun drop found high up on Jackson Creek.
One of the last drops on Jackson Creek is a fun double ledge drop. Here Shawn charges down the first
part of this series.
part of this series.