Is Moose Creek clear of wood from the put-in to the Glenn Hwy takeout, or just the upper section? Thanks
-Justin
It is full of wood that is where my kayak was in a log jam
Hey Justin, it is not as continuous as the upper but does have some good sections. You should be able to work your way down it with caution, even at a higher flow like now, 290cfs, just watch the bends. There are two drops which have old trusses beside them, one on right the other on the left, both have water that runs under them so steer clear of those banks, other than those spots and wood it is pretty easy.
Specifically I’m curious it there are sweepers strainers across the entire channel that require a portage, from the put-in at the end for Buffalo Mine Rd. near the gate (and just below where the ATV bridge used to be), to the Glenn Highway. A few friends and I floated it at the end of September last year, and it was quite fun, but it was just after the flooding, so we scouted every bend, and found lots of trees requiring portages. I’m just trying to figure out if folks have been floating all the way to the highway, or just to where the road stops paralleling the creek. Thanks for your work up there Mark.
-Justin
Yesterday after work, Pete and I floated Moose (bridge to the pavement break) at 266 cfs. Great after-work float. One hour walk in, one hour float out. Just as we were getting to the bridge put-in, a shot range out. A guy accompanied by his two not-so-docile-looking dogs was target shooting from the bridge. He turned out to be decent enough and suspended his shooting until we got our boats in the water and took off.
No dumps, but the creek threw us around a fair amount and Pete got delayed in a sticky hole. Super fun. My hat goes off to you guys who ran this at 340+.
Paul, the ledge 100 yards below the big rock on the left is pretty sticky, but the backwash is not very wide, so speed makes it un-noticable, but lack of speed… that one has got most of us at one time or another.
The creek is just perfect for skill building, it is very busy for long periods of time, and just gets harder and harder the higher the water gets.
Walk up and try Woody Boof, scout it though, because of wood, it’s alittle tricky and looks sticky, in the middle. It is perfect to build good boofing skills, at around 275 where we ran it, and is doable at higher flows. Use the large eddy 100 yards down on the right to do laps.
I’ve been working on wood removal from Moose the past few days. I believe all of the wood that is near the road (on the upper section) has been removed. Water level is too low, but as soon as it goes up I’ll make sure the rest is clean.
If you haven’t run Moose-you should. It is quite the run when there is enough water.
Upper Moose is wood free. Lower Moose (end of pavement to the highway) has about 4 necessary portages, only one of which is long.
John, Andy, and I finally ran most of the upper, upper section of Moose Creek, about a mile and a half above bridge, which is a class IV trip, at 240-ish where we ran it. The creek is very much like a small L. Su., longer tighter drops, closer together, some rapids have really nasty lines that would hurt, so scout as you go up. You will have to portage about 5 minutes around the cabin section, put back in right below the giant cottonwood below cabin, then it’s all clean through Woody Boof to the bridge/ old put in.
The run would be doable at 220 or so, but very scrapy, 250-270 probably best, any higher it would get intense, and pushy, the upper reaches would start looking class V-ish.
I ran Moose Creek yesterday from about a mile above where the pavement ends to the highway. There are 3-4 mandatory portages, two due to logjams and others from river wide sweepers. They are all fairly easy to spot in advance. Lower part of the river was getting pretty bony at the water level I was seeing but it still a fun splashy ride.
We ran it on the 6/25 (~250 cfs) and 6/26 (~260-280cfs) 3 times from the bridge to the Glenn Hwy, we had 4 portages due to wood. The rain on the 26th made the first part quite the ride. Fun creek, easy shuttle! I look forward to scouting above the bridge!
Hey guys, the land above the bridge is private, both sides of the creek, the drive crossing the creek is private. If you do the upper upper, do not cross the creek, the owner has contacted me and said people were sneaking through his yard, around his house, etc., (stay along the creek, again do not cross ). If people behave up there we may not get any hassle. The owner seems like a pleasant guy, help keep the trash picked up, and respect his property, I like to boat up there and do not want to get hassled because of others actions.
Have fun.