Mountain Buzz banner

rogue trip report 4/5/11

4K views 21 replies 9 participants last post by  Ladderboy 
#1 ·
hello all, i just got home from a 5 day middle/lower rogue float.
12,500cfm almeda park launch, made it down too wildcat in 3 beers. fun fast water, mule creek canyon was really fast. we blasted out of the canyon to find slow water for the springers. fishing is picking up down low. we stayed 3 nights on the lower fishin, and campin. weather was killer,
first sunburn of the year, ya.
we didn't see another person or boat till foster bar.
the big storm we had a month ago blew down a lot of trees,
there's a 60' tree floatin around clay hill lodge. and blowdowns all over the river.
the rapids where washed out, just big wave trains.
good trip, no people, prime pick of camp spots,going again next week.
 
#3 ·
Sounds like a good trip. We headed over that way weekend of 3-26. Hoping to run the Illinois but it surged past our cutoff. So we put on at graves and took off at Foster. I think it hit right about 16k while we were on. Glad to hear you had nice weather, it rained pretty much every minute of our trip.
It was kind of weird going right over the top of rainey falls and the picket fence at blossom. We also saw not a soul on the entire river.
We hiked up Tate creek to the 'slide' but it was just a raging torrent. Do you know at what flow that slide is a little more tame?
 
#4 ·
Rogue next week

I was happy to see your report. I have a trip on the Rouge from Alameda bar to Foster bar planned next week, current river level around 10000cfs. I am new to IKing, but have a 2 friends going with a lot of experience. I have spent 5 days in an IK (Owhyee last spring and the Wilson this past weekend, both class III rivers). I am gaining experience and am not afraid of taking a few swims as long as the consequences of said swim are not too severe. I am concerned that the Rogue may be a bit too much for me at the current flows. First off, do you guys think that I would be in over my head on the Rogue? Second, can you give some more detailed info on the rapids at current levels? I am interested in info on Graves Creek Falls, Rainy Falls Ladder, Tyree, Mule Creek Canyon, Blossom Bar, and any other rapid that you think would give me trouble. ANY and all advice is welcome and very much appreciated. Thanks for reading,

Matt
 
#5 ·
Matt you can take the fish ladder and avoid Rainey. Your only concern on the rest of the river is (probably) blossom bar. I think you said IK most of the issue is with pinning rocks or falling out of your craft and getting lodged against a rock. I'm sure with scouting you can find safe sneaks around these hazards

The earliest I've ever done was memorial day not sure what the flow was but I ran Rainey on a 16' sotar cat and it was a rush but really easy compared to other things I've experienced
 
#6 ·
The picket fence will be well covered at 10,000. It's pretty well covered at 6,000. Mule creek can be hectic and if your concerned it's easy but a bit time consuming to scout from the trail on RR. Whens it's big (>10K) you can cover a lot of ground in a hurry and sometimes the eddies have eddies but the everything still ends in a pool , so if you flip hold onto your gear as best you can and try to ride it out to the bottom. 'Upper Black Bar' might be worth a scout to see where the green tounge is in the middle line.
Have fun! and don't forget to hike up to the water slide on Tate Ck.
 
#7 ·
I read your post a little closer so I' ll add some more...stay in the current and off the eddy lines until you reach the bottom of things. Blossom will be kicking, so scout from the right to pick your line. Devils Staircase (just below Blossom) most likely will have a big wave at the top and at that flow goes on for sometime, you can usually cheat past the entry wave far left if your so inclined, then just bomb down the middle after that. The best advice for Mule at any flow is...paddle like hell. Lots of 'you-tube' videos at high flows to check out too.
once again, have fun
 
#8 ·
We ran from Graves Ck to Foster about ten days ago. Very we and rained the whole time. At this flow Rainey was totally washed out. We ran the main chute or falls if you could call it that. No big deal. Really no problem areas anywhere. I would scout Blossom though. Thomas
 
#9 ·
hello, Ben I also walked up to tate creek, wow... it's a water fall.
good news the dam log jam that was there all summer is now washed out. making the water slide safe again. I don't know about the flows of tate, but i'd guess it'll drop fast after snowmelt.
El matador, are you guys taking a raft ?? I wouldn't want to swim mule creek, water was pumping super fast and really pushy on the walls. like pretender said, Paddle like hell.... the rest was just big wave trains, blossom bar was gone, but there was a hole we hit and dam it was big, made my 16' cat humble. i think it was volkswagon rock ??? rainy falls was no big deal, the fish ladder looked crazy... if you could even get into it.. the main falls seemed way safer.
el matador what day are you lanching ?? i'm also going again next week if water drops.
high water camps, wildcat,mule creek,tate creek all looked good.
have fun,
 
#10 ·
Hey Everyone,

Thanks for taking the time to give all the advice above. Planning on putting in on Wednesday Afternoon at Alameda, maybe Thursday morning if we get a late start out of Portland. We will be in Aire Lynx II IK's. We will be watching the weather/water levels closely and things still may change on our end.

Kaya Dog- If your crew is putting in on Wed or Thurs, maybe we will cross paths. If you have any interest in joing up, you are more than welcome. The more the merrier and safer... but understand if you dont. Feel free to email me at mkpatrick at hotmail dot com if interested or via PM here on the boards. Take Care,

Matt
 
#11 ·
#13 ·
Hey Guys,

I am really on the fence about this trip. I think Mule Creek may be the crux of the trip at current levels. Plan to portage Blossom at this point. Rain is coming, expect levels from 7000 to 10000cfs. Do you guys think the river has the potential to go above my projections? I may try to go out to the Owyhee for a 3 day float from Rome, did it last year, but it is a easier river. This may be redundant, but if anyone can add opinions about mule creek canyon at current levels, I would appreciate it. Again, I am new to IKing and would be in an Aire Lynx II. I do have a friend going who is very experienced. I have spent 5 days in my boat and ran the Owyhee and Wilson Rivers, which are both class III. How severe, in your opinion, are the consequences if we take a swim in mule creek canyon? With the river running so fast, will we have plenty of time to regroup if we take a swim? Sorry if I am beating a dead horse, I am just trying to get as much info as possible to make a safe decision. Thanks again,

Matt
 
#14 ·
Who's carrying your gear or are you doing the whole river in one day?

It would be wise if you attempt this to go along with some people and gear appropriate to assist in your rescue. Strength in numbers. That being said I think the rogue is somewhat dam stabilized and not as subject to fluctuations due to rain like the Illinois is. But don't take my word on it there may be quite a fluctuation

I don't have any experience in an IK on this river around these flows so that's all I can offer. Around June mule creek is just kinda swirley and it's really not that difficult. Not much to grab hold of if you get tossed from your boat
 
#16 ·
IMO the Rogue is no tougher than the Lower Owyhee. I guess Rainie Falls is something to think about but at 6000 or so it was covered up when we ran it a couple weeks ago. Blossom had some big holes in it that were easy to miss, I would at least scout it though. The water was fast after Blossom so a flip may make it difficult to get regrouped. Mule Creek Canyon was fast and had some weird eddy lines, no rapids of any difficulty. Just watch for the eddy lines. Not a tough trip depending on your experience. Also I was in a Cat and not a I.K.
 
#17 ·
Mule can be a problem for inexperienced paddlers in narrow boats, esp. at higher flows. If you have rafts in the group or can follow another group down...no problem. If you out of you're boat and in that RR eddy between the 'Narrows' and 'Coffee Pot' it can be a bit scary. I've taken a couple of swims in there; once on my first trip and once a few years latter with flows around 6K...I was in a little playboat and that mysto wave in the narrows threw me into the wall face first as I flipped. thankfully I avoided a broken nose as my helmet had a wire cage on it. (totally freak accident I should point out). The Rogue flows 24/7/365, if your schedule is the lest bit flexible it's easy to score cancellations in the summer and a first time with sunny skies,warm temps. and flows less than 3.5k is a good way to visit this great place.
 
#19 ·
Hi my name is Aaron and I think you and a couple of your friends are planning a trip on the lower rogue this thuresday- Sunday in you IK's??? I am panning on going down with Kaya dog (ben). Keep me posted if you guys are still planning on doing the trip. I will be going as long as it is not going to be raining the whole time.




El Matador said:
I was happy to see your report. I have a trip on the Rouge from Alameda bar to Foster bar planned next week, current river level around 10000cfs. I am new to IKing, but have a 2 friends going with a lot of experience. I have spent 5 days in an IK (Owhyee last spring and the Wilson this past weekend, both class III rivers). I am gaining experience and am not afraid of taking a few swims as long as the consequences of said swim are not too severe. I am concerned that the Rogue may be a bit too much for me at the current flows. First off, do you guys think that I would be in over my head on the Rogue? Second, can you give some more detailed info on the rapids at current levels? I am interested in info on Graves Creek Falls, Rainy Falls Ladder, Tyree, Mule Creek Canyon, Blossom Bar, and any other rapid that you think would give me trouble. ANY and all advice is welcome and very much appreciated. Thanks for reading,

Matt
 
#20 ·
Hey Aaron,

We are in for the Thursday through Sunday float with Ben. We really appreciate you guys letting us tag along. We are a group of 3 guys in our thirties and will be on Sotar/Aire IKs. Weather looks a little suspect, it definitely looks like we are going to get a little rain, but hopefully things will work out. We are pretty laid back, Scott and I are pharmacists and Kelly is a Nurse. We all work at St. Vincents Hospital together in Portland. Scott and I have limited experience, but Kelly has been boating for years. Kellys brother could not get off the hook from work- he is the other guy I mentioned in my original post that also has a lot of experience. Looking forward to meeting you guys, it is always a good time meeting folks on the river- I hope you make it. If you have any questions, feel free to give me a call at 503-853-4311. We plan on driving down Wed afternoon and camping at Almeda Bar, hopefully be on the river sometime mid morning on Thursday. If anything changes with your plans, you can post here or call me, we have a bit of flexibility in our schedule.


Take Care,

Matt
 
#22 ·
Sweet, yeah ben and I are really stoked about this trip. I am running a 15ft sotar and I am more than willing to carry your gear. It sounds like you guys and ben are planning most of the trip.
I have alot of extra gear so let me know if you need anything. I will PM you my number and other stuff.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top