One of my all time Favs.... Lake Creek!

[RDNEK]

Meng we have to get you out in the BC some time soon..

Anyway.. Here are a few of the Caldron.. This drop has, can, and will give out ugly beat downs from about 400 and up..

Kev givin a bit to the gods..



Both of these shots are at high water.. Jones and Finney from last year..







Here is the run in to the caldron at high water..




At the end of the drop and the end of the run.. I just love it here in the bottom of the caldron..



Yea this is a great run. One the best in Colorado..

[HuckinAZ]

HAHA! Mark, yea man that was my first time running left side (deemed "middle left" by Dave) 2 summers ago... scary. Actually I was thinking of my last trip to Lake this past summer with Cody and Fil, we lapped brains and P probably 10 times, and sure enough on my last lap i hit something funky and landed with my left shoulder/back in the fan rock. Ask Dustin i think he saw it, it was the same day that him, Jed, and crew were out there doin the video on the CKS blog.

Anyone out know what happened to Johnny a while back on cauldren? I seem to remember hearing a crazy story about him doing some funky piton up againts the right walland running the rest backwards and upside down???

[kayakerkev]

I saw that line by meyers, went for kind of a right wall ride on the cauldron but got stuffed, hard piton. Its no easy drop and running it at the flows in these pics is balls out props to Bj and finney.

[JCKeck1]

I love Lake. But those cauldron shots are making me nauseous just sitting here in the winter. What flow is that?

Back in the day, Pete Iscaro took a swim there with water and recirced at least 4 times before getting a bag from the wall on river right. I'm not sure most people's rope would reach that far, much less accurately. Another reason that waist bags are great, but bring a real rope in your boat.

I've heard that the magic level is 450 in the cauldron. At exactly that level it turns from good to terrifying. Can any older gents confirm this? I've always run it around 400.
Joe

[marko]

Yeah, Joe, it's about 450 that the eddies on both sides start getting nasty and pulling back into the falls. Even at 400 they start getting a bit roudy. I got my ass kicked at around 500. It's funny, because when we were scouting the cauldron that night I told my buddy about the Pete I story. I quote, unquote said, "if any of us gets stuck in those eddies we're screwed." Talk about eating my own words...There was no rope to rescue me and I got recirculated twice. The whole time I was getting pummeled I kept thinking about how Pete had to get roped out, and knew I didn't have a rope for me that night. THe second dunking took me deep and then spit me out at the bottom of the river. There was nothing "enjoyable" about that experience.

The pics of Billy and Finney are stout... makes my stomach churn thinking about that level.

For anybody looking to try this rapid I would recommend 300 to 350ish. Even down as low as 150 is fun for the first timer...

[RDNEK]

Oh yea some good days and some highlights for me..


That day marco got worked you could boof over the "notch" just above the caldron.. This = super high.. That same day when we got down to the last eddie.. Fk this I thought and bailed got out right in that eddie.. It was gettin too high for me and I just did not feel it.. Dave was with us and cleaned her.. We saw marco and crew headed to the put in as we were drivin home..

My high water limit for the caldron stops just about the same time as someone could get out of a boat down in there and toss me a rope.. If that rock bar on the river left bottom is too far under the water it caldron is a no go for me.. And this is just about 450 or so..

I was up there - not in the group but at the takeout.. For not one workin but two nights in a row for pete.. Nasty, shitty beatings.. I cant believe he came back for a third night! Zach is the man..

More days than I care to admit standing on moving logs, hanging from ropes, and all with a chainsaw... This year Lake will need it again..

The old toaster..

Also if you dont know where the campground holes (2) are.. You will swim..

Patagonia Nat and the moonlight run of the upper..

A shot.. Just one of Jack at the put in..

The day Brian flipped, broke his hat, and paddle in the paralyzer.. One of the worst hits I have ever seen and he walked away.. I still have the head trip hat I bought right after that..

Driving up (what seems like every time we go) at a high or low questionable level and having no idea what so ever what the water level is going to be until we pull over at the ft guage..

Baird swimmin Brains..

The super cool people who own "a creekers dream"...

Paddle stroke #1, 2, and boof of the year while wonderin how Selby talked me into a park and huck for day 1..

Watchin Todd miss the last eddie at the caldron and drop her backwards.. All at a high flow..

Every day that someone says.. I can boof the middle of brains.. Who wants to give her a shot this year??

Nimby of this past year as the entire Demshitz crew "blue angles" down the top of nimby.. With the log still there.. Not for me I put in past the log and as I was settin up for the boof... Down came a boat, paddle, then lady.. NOT a good place to swim..

Only takin one car and throwin bones for who has to hitch the ride..

Sittin in that last eddie above brains and lookin around for who's eyes are showing that they are going to drop first..

No scout runs with the guy you met at the put in..

The "bed and breakfast" sneak..

303 burgers at the takeout..

I cant wait for the summer of 08... Lookin back at all these pics even got me fired up to paddle..

[Mike Harvey]

Originally Posted by JCKeck1

I've heard that the magic level is 450 in the cauldron. At exactly that level it turns from good to terrifying. Can any older gents confirm this? I've always run it around 400.
Joe

For me, I like the lower stuff (Brains down) anywhere between 400-200. I have never run any of the lower drops higher than 400. The upper is great at higher flows (400-700?). But I am scared to even drive the pass when that creek is over 900 or so.

Plenty of sick dogs have run that creek at higher flows than I am comfortable but it has already been well established that I am a Salida-puss, playboater so take my advice with a grain of salt.

Party Time Wood in NIMBY

[WesternMD]

Zack Hubberd is from WV, but I believe he was around in the Euro Kayak days. Also, don't forget about long time Ark valley vid boater (now local) Ronny Tomlinson, aka Ronny T! Also there was a crew of core boaters that worked and ran with Ronny. I believe that Polk Deters was around in '95 as well, and Maro Callela worked for Ronny as a BJ vid kayaer. He was the first dude I ever saw splat a rock! There were many great boaters in that time era!!

[RDNEK]

Originally Posted by WesternMD

Zack Hubberd is from WV, but I believe he was around in the Euro Kayak days. Also, don't forget about long time Ark valley vid boater (now local) Ronny Tomlinson, aka Ronny T! Also there was a crew of core boaters that worked and ran with Ronny. I believe that Polk Deters was around in '95 as well, and Maro Callela worked for Ronny as a BJ vid kayaer. He was the first dude I ever saw splat a rock! There were many great boaters in that time era!!

Now that was a crew of Ark boaters! Zach is still here and every summer I try to get out to lake with him. Ronny T is well a BV legend and bought a house ans still here. We still watch some of that old high water footage every once and a great while.. There was some kayakin talent back in thoes days hangin out at the old dirt lot. Also you cant leave out True, and Ronnie R.. Good times..

Not to skip over Western Md and Bro, Shane, smurf and we cannot leave out NASCAR Chris Nasca was huckin her in 95..

As far as levels on Lake I go for.

All the upper section 1200 - 1500 cfs..

Nimby 900 or so and it gets too big for me..

Brains is out above 800cfs..

Paralyzer is good to go to 600cfs..

Kiss me never goes all that good..

Caldron I have ran up to about 600 but now I am runnin like a girl if it is over 4' as we pass the lowhead dam or 450 to 500cfs..

At below 400 nothing on the upper is worth it.. Everything on the lower goes and this is the perfect time for the "bed and breakfast" sneak.

Just my levels and I like more water than less..

[WesternMD]

Another big '95er was Chris Coobs!! That dude was a great boater. And in the Steve True days, don't forget BURT!! Big Burt was the Man!
I cccaaann still remember in '95 coming back to the shop after working all day on the river, and seeing Ronny T's Cypher, litterally ripped in half from an extremely HIGH water run gone bad on Lime Creek. Those dudes were firing up all kinds of now classic runs, at high flows that year!!