Lower Muddy Fork post
Printed From: ProfessorPaddle.com
Category: General
Forum Name: Whitewater Forum
Forum Discription: Open Discussion Forum. Whitewater related subjects only
URL: http://www.professorpaddle.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9996
Printed Date: 04 Jul 2026 at 3:24am
Topic: Lower Muddy Fork post
Posted By: water wacko
Subject: Lower Muddy Fork post
Date Posted: 26 Aug 2010 at 5:58pm
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Here's a http://creeksides.blogspot.com/2010/08/lower-muddy-fork.html - LINK to my trip on the Muddy Fork. A sweet trip I'll be back for, come fall. Enjoy.
- Brett |
Replies:
Posted By: septimus prime
Date Posted: 26 Aug 2010 at 9:41pm
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Nice pics, Brett. I am looking forward to this one.
------------- Jon Shell Bee |
Posted By: water wacko
Date Posted: 27 Aug 2010 at 7:55am
| Thanks, man. It's a good one. |
Posted By: James
Date Posted: 27 Aug 2010 at 9:51am
It would be great to get some beta up on these two runs since we don't have any details yet. I just added a seperate spot for the lower canyon.
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Posted By: Travisimo
Date Posted: 28 Aug 2010 at 10:14pm
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I know I'm gonna sound like a pompous jerk for wording it like this... but. Lower = great fun run. btw GREAT trip report guys!!!! I was almost there with you and I feel like a puss... but I got no sleep... blah blah... I would have been there with you if you needed another paddler to get er' done... Glad some folks got in there!!!! So for the but... DO NOT DO THE UPPER, unless you do what we did. Scout every drop, this will probably take a week of pure work and ropes (mind you we even had a helicopter scout). There are EVIL drops in there. I will never go back for any reason. I will eventually edit my videos of all the drops. I do wish I had my HD GoPro, but I was only on the waiting list when we ran it. If somebody would like to help me edit the videos, I'll post them sooner  Too many things goin on right now, but seriously...that section is class 6 at most levels. ------------- H2O please |
Posted By: Travisimo
Date Posted: 28 Aug 2010 at 10:36pm
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I'll further say that the upper isn't the kind of run you will see on videos. Not photogenic just really, really deadly. It only has a 30 footer and a 40 footer and the pleasure/pain ratio is not worth it. At most levels the 30 footer actually has a wicked hole that's 8' wide and the canyon is100' tall there. Don't screw up. The 40' falls you could hike in and huck, as long as you don't mind a couple mile hike and a couple thousand foot elevation gain hike back out in the forest... up and down valleys the whole way... GPS will help. I wouldn't personally do it without GPS... I could help with actual GPS tracks as we did it so many times on our scouts and saved them... "The Pinch" as we called it is prolly the most deadly rapid. The entire river swings wildly left into a wall with about a 9' pourover that tries to smash you into the wall and leave you in a terminal room on river left... the bedrock leans the wrong way and actually gets so shallow you can't get a paddle in till the last second... be on line. Next GET THE EFF outta the river and portage!!!! It will be a PIA but if you don't you'll face a canyon at least 150' deep with no way out... several biggish drops and if it's low enough to be sane... the whole river will disappear into a toilet bowl and if you aren't as good/lucky at climbing as one person I know (and watched) then you may have to find out where that underground tunnel in the picture goes. I am saying this because I think it should be REMOVED as a link James. I know I'm far from the best paddler here, but I may be the luckiest. The upper is not a "Run." ------------- H2O please |
Posted By: Travisimo
Date Posted: 28 Aug 2010 at 11:30pm
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Dammit... James can I edit these into one coherent post??? Further, the hole is right around the corner ABOVE the 30 footer... with no banks really... at low water if you're in control you can get out and scout... at high water it's scary... (we ran the whole river but on different weekends on different trips at different levels over 2 months...) I also need to add that we set up a zip line past a class 6+... it may be unportageable at river level. There was a fresh dead baby deer in the middle of it when we ran it... If you don't have gills... don't run it. Bambi was proof... Once you are in this canyon... you will not leave without being VERY prepared. Here is the pinch, there is NO way out from where I'm standing. I had a plan for my father to come down with a walkie talkie if I didn't return home at this spot.... he had GPS coordinates. We didn't have the benefit of a large support group to help us... We both ran this later the same day. I have video of both runs... Varying results  Here is the zip line rapid from below (class 6+)... The spot to stop above this is a tiny moving eddy. Here is the only way down if you find yourself in here with no zipline... Don't miss the eddy or fall into the river on the "portage" there is a death spot below this... Sorry we haven't done video yet... we're not gonna get paid a penny, we're not pros and not quick at editing video... I'd like to make a really good one rather than putting our raw bad stuff up on youtube like I normally do. I don't know why we did it in the first place! We read the Bennett description and thought we were in for a portage fest.... What we faced was the deepest most difficult canyon I've ever seen. There are many drops... you can't portage most of them... It feels like Robe canyon... but there is no way out if you swim. We set out for a day mission and wound up with a 2 month life changing expedition full of mistakes and triumphs... Don't run any river unless you can see every drop AT THE SAME LEVEL you run them at... Some runs will make this very difficult. I really don't want anybody to die that thinks they can just go to the putin and do this run. This is not a "run." The Bennett book putin is a suicide mission at best... for a one day trip. Anyone interested still call me 206-931-6486... I'll give you all the beta I have over a few beers... It will take a while  ------------- H2O please |
Posted By: Travisimo
Date Posted: 28 Aug 2010 at 11:51pm
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The Bennett book trip report is incorrect... coming from someone that was there that day so many years ago. Run the lower section!!!! it is AWESOME and going NOW. I'd do it this weekend if I were you! I may join you even, that or the Ohane or Upper Upper Cispus... what else is flowing???  ------------- H2O please |
Posted By: James
Date Posted: 30 Aug 2010 at 8:36am
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Trav, Cool awesome beta, but remember the run can be a punisher and still be one of the those "wish ya didn't" documented runs. Why? So other folks know you have been there and that is what to expect. If you remove it altogether someday someone else will go, hey lets go get that and might well get in over their head, unless they have that helicopter!!!! - Bennett did alot of those and basically says wanna get screwed go check it out. But at least you know not to expect a quality weekend of boating... lol Are there any drops in the lower part? The canyon looked amazing but I only saw a few smaller rapids on Brett's video. |
Posted By: Travisimo
Date Posted: 30 Aug 2010 at 11:17am
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There are definitely drops in the lower! I'd say class 4+... many of them. All but one is walkable/scoutable without climbing to the lip (a long way up). It's worth it! The upper is I'd say the most dangerous "run" you have listed... combined with the bad beta from Bennett (wrong put-in for the lower) I'm really afraid somebody could die. There is really no way outta that thing and it's long. ------------- H2O please |
Posted By: Travisimo
Date Posted: 30 Aug 2010 at 11:24am
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You have a point James... I guess I mostly feel guilty for not editing that video to show exactly what's in there... Then people can decide for themselves... ------------- H2O please |
Posted By: water wacko
Date Posted: 01 Sep 2010 at 5:09pm
| Hey Travis, where does the putin in by Bennett actually put you in relation to the canyon? At the top of the third canyon? |
Posted By: Travisimo
Date Posted: 02 Sep 2010 at 2:48pm
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Depends on how you count canyons... but it puts you at a large flat gravelly section before what will be a portage at the entrance to the canyon with the scary stuff in it... People have run the top Canyon that goes below the Stevens Canyon bridge... Then it canyons up, and nobody will run that section alive... very big drops that slam into walls. Then it opens up and you're at the Bennett putin. Then it opens up and you're at the zone where we put in for the lower canyon. ------------- H2O please |
Posted By: jP
Date Posted: 02 Sep 2010 at 3:21pm
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just took a very quick peek at your pics, Bret- looks beautiful. I'd be willing to go check that out sometime. just glossed over the thread, though- maybe later when I have more time I'll check it out in depth. Prolly just show up at the put-in osmetime and explore it for myself.
Thanks though, at any rate. ------------- 🐋🐋🐋🐋🐋🐋🐋🐋🐋🐋🐋 |
Posted By: water wacko
Date Posted: 02 Sep 2010 at 7:12pm
| Thanks, man. |
Posted By: Travisimo
Date Posted: 02 Sep 2010 at 11:47pm
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When you make that 2 mile hike in... you better tell me so I can meet you JP! It's a GREAT run... and a good workout! I now have my kayak/backpack system worked out too! ------------- H2O please |
Posted By: apexskier
Date Posted: 04 Sep 2010 at 11:36am
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I'd be happy to do some editing for you. Send me a message and we can work out transferring the footage. That's some crazy water up where you were!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1j6RerQBfQc - YouTube video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1j6RerQBfQc - YouTube channel |