Western PA class II whitewater Saturday

[swampboy62]

Looks like my Saturday (May 17) could be opening up, and I hope to get over to the Allegheny River area and paddle some class II whitewater while the water is up.

Plans are fluid, and nothing is guaranteed. But the likely scenario is to drive over to Scrubgrass Creek near Kennerdell and scout water levels. If Scrubgrass looks good, then I'll likely make a run or two of the short lower section. If Scrubgrass looks high, then I'd probably head over to the other side of the Allegheny and try for Deer Creek (one of my all time favorites). If Scrubgrass looks low I'll consider either Bear Creek or East Sandy Creek.

I've paddled all these creeks several times and have a pretty good idea of what to expect. Plan as of now is to hike or bike any shuttle.

I'll be checking back on the board a couple of times tonight and early tomorrow as well. If you have the equipment, skills and will to deal with the uncertainty of chasing water in the Allegheny Gorge you're welcome to come along.

Steve Z

[swampboy62]

No takers but I headed out as planned.

Scrubgrass was just a little bit low, but East Sandy was just about at its best level. Lots of fun, lots of waves.

Steve Z

[swampboy62]

Used the GoPro for a little while today. It seemed like it wasn't working right (but apparently it was) so the footage is all from the first 1/4 of the run, but here is a look at the creek at the optimum level:

http://youtu.be/zFD-SNbh2Mc

I used the mountain bike as the shuttle, using the route from Rockland Road to the Belmar Trailhead:

https://mapsengine.google.com/map/ed...k.kDjsz5x3Xbj0

And here is the American Whitewater page for the run:

http://www.americanwhitewater.org/co...etail/id/1605/

If you like easy whitewater, this one is a great run.

I hope to get out and paddle some more this year. Hopefully there will be more rainy days and I'll be able to get in some days on my favorites - Deer Creek, Bear Creek, Neshannock Creek, Scrubgrass Creek and Slippery Rock Creek.

I'll try to remember to post up, but a lot of times these trips are short notice, as it's hard to guess water levels until the rain stops. Trips will be leaving from Warren.

Steve Z

[mfdanko99]

Thanks for posting the info on east sandy. That is one of the runs I want to do. Wasn't able to yesterday.
We need to hook up, I am just north of you in Champion.

Thanks again and nice video

[JPTolson]

Originally Posted by swampboy62

I hope to get out and paddle some more this year. Hopefully there will be more rainy days and I'll be able to get in some days on my favorites - Deer Creek, Bear Creek, Neshannock Creek, Scrubgrass Creek and Slippery Rock Creek.

Other than the gage on Slippery Rock, are there any painted gages on bridges of launch ramps for these creeks, or do levels correlate well with any USGS gages?

[zzrufus1]

Steve & Mike,

I am in Warren as well and would be interested in these runs... even on short notice I might be able to make them. Please let me know if/when you can make these trips.

Thanks,

Steve L.

[swampboy62]

Originally Posted by JPTolson

Other than the gage on Slippery Rock, are there any painted gages on bridges of launch ramps for these creeks, or do levels correlate well with any USGS gages?

That's a tough one. As you know there aren't many USGS gauges in the area that are on the smaller creeks - most are on the main rivers. That makes it hard to gauge when they're running.

You guys are familiar with Neshannock, and its loose relationship to the Slip gauge. The only other gauge around there is the Shenango at Transfer, and that is dam regulated.

East Sandy Creek is fairly well linked to the Oil Creek gauge at Rouseville. Look for 3.5 feet on the Oil Creek gauge, but be aware that E. Sandy rises before, and falls before, Oil Creek. So if the Oil Creek gauge is dropping and just a bit above 3.5 feet that means that East Sandy already dropped and its too low. Same with a climbing gauge - if Oil Creek is climbing and maintaining that rate of climb, but is below 3.5 feet, it is likely that East Sandy is ahead of that climb and will be good to paddle.

For the other creeks what I usually do (and its far from fool proof) is look for high levels on the Slip guage at Wurtemburg - at least 3000 cfs. If the gauge is climbing, or just recently peaked, it will usually mean that there's a good chance that there will be something running in the Allegheny gorge area. So then I'll head east on I-80 and get off at exit 35 to check on Scrubgrass Creek - it's the closest to the highway and easiest to get to.

If the level is good on Scrubgrass then that can be the destination for the day (you can judge by the water level at the Rankin Chapel Road bridge - if its runnable there the level is good). It has a easy foot-shuttle run that is just over a mile long, but can be done several times. Or if you have multiple vehicles and feel like an adventure you can put in on the next road up and boost the difficulty level from class II to class III.

If Scrubgrass is HIGH then I'll head east to Deer Creek, which empties into the Clarion River on the other side of the Allegheny. This is another one you judge by the level at the take-out bridge on Huckleberry Bridge Road. This run is about 4 miles, with 24 class II rapids - one of my absolute favorites in the area.

If the level at Scrubgrass looks like its at least enough to paddle there is another opportunity probably at Bear Creek, about 10 miles further south on the Allegheny. This one might be a wee bit tougher than Deer Creek, but it's pretty straightforward for the most part. Judge the water level by looking at the take-out bridge on the S. Jackson Road extension.

My boats haven't been getting enough water time lately and I hope to get some decent runs in this year. If water levels rise and I'm heading out I'll remember to post up here. There will definitely be some lower level runs (say 300 cfs) of the lower Slip coming up soon.

Steve Z

EDIT: Almost forgot to mention checking where the precip fell. You can use the Accuweather map for precip in the last 24 hours and compare it to this map I made:

http://www.waldensridgewhitewater.co.../WesternPa.jpg

It will help pinpoint which of the small watersheds actually got the most intense rainfall. Using that map can really improve your chances of finding the right creek after a heavy precip event.

[JPTolson]

Thanks for the detailed response on levels/gages etc. Need to keep it handy for future reference. Deer Creek must be a hoot!

jp

[swampboy62]

Originally Posted by JPTolson

Thanks for the detailed response on levels/gages etc. Need to keep it handy for future reference. Deer Creek must be a hoot!

jp

It really is an outstanding class II run. I'd compare it to the North Branch Potomac at release, except it's 1/6 the distance away and has more rapids spaced closer together. And there's a GREAT double surfing wave towards the end.

Now I'm wishing it would rain again.

Steve Z

[paul isaac]

The little Shenango river has a gage on it and drain 104 square miles. It borders Otter creek a trib. to Neshannock and Sandy. It's major trib. Crooked creek and the Shenango both rise from Hartstown swamp. If Pymatuning has any effect on Little Shenango's gage it can't be much. It may be useful as a correlation but I haven't tried to use it.