# Scariest rapid/river in the country?



## Xtraheat (May 10, 2010)

The Colorado thread was so interesting... What do you all think the scariest rapid or stretch of river in the country is?


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## Livingston (Jan 8, 2004)

File:Wyoming Sinks Canyon 1.jpg - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


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## doublet (May 21, 2004)

zion gnarrows


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## Xtraheat (May 10, 2010)

I know you all are just kidding, but I actually have run that river (it's the Popo Agie River right?) It's a lot of fun


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## jgrebe (Jan 16, 2010)

Wherever those hillbillies in Deliverance live


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## lmyers (Jun 10, 2008)

Technically it's not in the country, but in North America I would say the Grand Canyon of the Stikine.

http://broadbandsports.com/taxonomy/term/5361


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## kadzukes (Apr 7, 2010)

jgrebe said:


> Wherever those hillbillies in Deliverance live


Priceless answer!


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## caspermike (Mar 9, 2007)

xtraheat , hasslehoff was providing the picture of the actual sinks aka the hole in the ground where the entire river disapears underground.. very scary indeed


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## yak1 (Jan 28, 2006)

How about the one you run every day that had a strainer float into last night?


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## ibyakn (Jul 18, 2007)

*Crack in the Rock*

For me it's Crack in the Rock on section IV of the Chattooga. It's not a a difficult rapid but I get the heebies each time I'm above it and coming through Corkscrew. The first time I had paddled that stretch, after an overnight drive from Wisconsin, a member of the sheriff's office was there and informed us that someone had died in Crack the day before. He asked us to keep an eye out for a body and if we saw something to call the office. Needless to say it was a pretty somber day on the river for us.

M2


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## Xtraheat (May 10, 2010)

caspermike said:


> xtraheat , hasslehoff was providing the picture of the actual sinks aka the hole in the ground where the entire river disapears underground.. very scary indeed


You're right... I didn't look at closely enough; quite scary!
Thanks for that link about the Stikine, and you might be right about it.
I agree that Crack in the Rock is terrifying, just knowing that so many people (competent boaters too) have drowned there.

For me, Coming Home on the Lower Meadow would definitely be the scariest/most dangerous rapid that I have ever run, and I don't intend to ever repeat that


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## TakemetotheRiver (Oct 4, 2007)

> For me it's Crack in the Rock on section IV of the Chattooga.





> Wherever those hillbillies in Deliverance live


Same river...


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## jonny water (Oct 28, 2003)

Poudre Falls. Whenever I look at the falls, I always imagine missing the last chance eddy and dropping down into the mini gorge above the falls. After realizing that I wasn't going to be able to get out of the river, I would be forced to run the falls. I don't think I would be able to successfully navigate that line! But imagine if you had to run it.....


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## passport (Apr 10, 2007)

Selway Falls


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## caspermike (Mar 9, 2007)

jonny if you had to run it i would be thinking paddle hard


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## Jahve (Oct 31, 2003)

Here in the Ark valley it is the middle line on the Paralyzer... 

It does not come in until 1200 - 1500+ cfs so yea it is the most scary rapid around here.


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## Rich (Sep 14, 2006)

RDNEK said:


> Here in the Ark valley it is the middle line on the Paralyzer...
> 
> It does not come in until 1200 - 1500+ cfs so yea it is the most scary rapid around here.


 
Where is this?


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## caspermike (Mar 9, 2007)

lake creek of the ark


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## craven_morhead (Feb 20, 2007)

Rich, it's on Lake Creek.


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## Jahve (Oct 31, 2003)

Lake Creek.. 

This pic is at about 1500 cfs she looks good to go ...


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## Xtraheat (May 10, 2010)

Wow! I never realized that there was a middle line at any flow


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## Jahve (Oct 31, 2003)

Xtraheat said:


> Wow! I never realized that there was a middle line at any flow


Yea the mythical paralyzer middle line. It seems to get a taker every third year or so. I only know of a handfull of middle line runs... 

The deal with the middle line is that it takes over 1000 cfs for even the thought of a attempt. Also at say 1200 there is no eddie between the paralyzer / kiss me so it all becomes one rapid. If you are goin to try it I would say 1200 - 1400 is the prime level... Others may not think so but at 1000+ cfs the middle is the only line in the paralyzer that goes. 

At these flows the lateral commin off the river right wall in kiss me is bigger than a bus and if you screw it up the only escape from the hole on the bottom left in either via the cave or undercut.. That is if you could get out of the hole and I would say that there is a 89.5% chance that you would just cycle in there for hours.... Also where this hole is located it is almost impossible to set up a rope so you guessed it you are on your own - no way to set saftey... 

Also no margin for error in the top half as even a boat width or less off line and you would get the slam of your life - pry break one or both legs. 

Yep scary fo so....


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## phlyingfish (Nov 15, 2006)

There's certainly worse rapids out there, but of the rapids I run regularly, Nutcracker on the North Fork Payette always makes me nervous. Long, technical, two big bad holes right at the top, and major consequences for being upside down or out of your boat.


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## Xtraheat (May 10, 2010)

For those of you who have never seen Coming Home:












That doesn't look TOO bad right? Well, look at where 90% of the flow goes:


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## BLott (Mar 27, 2010)

^^is that "I'm Coming Home Sweet Jesus"? i've heard about it but never seen it.


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## jonny water (Oct 28, 2003)

I scouted Lake Creek with my wife but didn't know exactly where the paralyzer was located. We kept hiking up until we came upon a rapid that didn't look like it had any good line to take and my wife said, "Sure looks pretty paralyzin' to me." And we agreed, that must be the said rapid.

Although I don't plan on running that rapid, I sure hope to make a go at the upper and some of the lower this year.


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## FLOWTORCH (Mar 5, 2004)

Lots of shit scares me, rarely actually captured on camera though, paralyzer doin just that....


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## Xtraheat (May 10, 2010)

BLott said:


> ^^is that "I'm Coming Home Sweet Jesus"? i've heard about it but never seen it.


Yep


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## Xtraheat (May 10, 2010)

While not the hardest, it is one of the few rapids that I know of (or have run) where one tiny little error, even if you don't flip or swim or even get much off-line, will result in death


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## Jahve (Oct 31, 2003)

Just caus I like pics - here are 2 more pics of the paralyzer. The second one gives you a good idea of the size of that thing...

I think this was about 650 cfs..


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## Xtraheat (May 10, 2010)

Nice pictures! Just wondering... What would generally happen if you swam Paralyzer at normal flows?


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## Xtraheat (May 10, 2010)

jonny water said:


> Poudre Falls. Whenever I look at the falls, I always imagine missing the last chance eddy and dropping down into the mini gorge above the falls. After realizing that I wasn't going to be able to get out of the river, I would be forced to run the falls. I don't think I would be able to successfully navigate that line! But imagine if you had to run it.....


What exactly is so bad about it that makes it unrunnable to even the extreme hair-boaters? I've looked at it, and I can never see myself running it; however, with all these crazy boaters, it seems like people would run it more. I don't remember it very well, but I know people say that the third falls is lethal. How come?


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## craven_morhead (Feb 20, 2007)

Xtraheat, I think it's because unless you stay on that long spine to the right, you're sentenced to the river-left death pothole/undercut.

In other news, is the teacup sneak on paralyzer still a no-go? I vaguely remember hearing about it getting filled-in.


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## Jensjustduckie (Jun 29, 2007)

Xtraheat said:


> What exactly is so bad about it that makes it unrunnable to even the extreme hair-boaters? I've looked at it, and I can never see myself running it; however, with all these crazy boaters, it seems like people would run it more. I don't remember it very well, but I know people say that the third falls is lethal. How come?


At super low water you can hear the rocks in the pothole banging around like giant pool balls. We tossed a big log in and counted to 137 before it popped out downstream, I can only imagine what a beating you would take if you went into that cave and how long it would take you to circulate out at med/high flows.


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## Xtraheat (May 10, 2010)

Well, those are good reasons!

Does anyone know what the Clark's Fork of the Yellowstone is like (the Box)? I've heard that it is quite serious


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## GAtoCSU (Apr 18, 2005)

Xtraheat said:


> What exactly is so bad about it that makes it unrunnable to even the extreme hair-boaters? I've looked at it, and I can never see myself running it; however, with all these crazy boaters, it seems like people would run it more. I don't remember it very well, but I know people say that the third falls is lethal. How come?


I'm with these guys in saying Poudre Falls at a good flow is the sketchiest that I would run.

If you mess up that bottom drop (or swim into it from the middle big hole) it's your last.

Without that heinous bottom drop, it would be ran all the time.

Personally, I would run Paralyzer over Poudre Falls


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## Xtraheat (May 10, 2010)

Is Paralyzer as (or more) dangerous as Coming Home would you all say?


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## craven_morhead (Feb 20, 2007)

Having seen neither rapid in person, my expert opinion is that coming home is more likely to kill you, and paralyzer is more likely to seriously injure you.

Ah, internet boating...


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## progers (Jan 27, 2004)

Xtraheat said:


> Well, those are good reasons!
> 
> Does anyone know what the Clark's Fork of the Yellowstone is like (the Box)? I've heard that it is quite serious


Hands down, makes my heart race thinking about it. Yes, it's serious. Personally I swam through the suckhole sieve on the honeymooner stretch, and that experience changed my life. Three years later I ran the Box, and the decision to drop in gave me some pretty serious mental anguish due to my previous incdent.


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## Mike Reid (Jun 4, 2009)

*Juicer NF of the Payette*

This 30' wall of water will get your attention..


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## lhowemt (Apr 5, 2007)

Isn't that Juicer at the peak flows last weekend? Crazy. Juicer used to be my favorite rapid, now replaced by Blackerbee on the SF of the Clearwater. Big, bouncy, holey, dropy, and LOOOOONG. Not the scariest, but my new fave.


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## loot87 (Jun 30, 2008)

Crack in the Rock is serious, but you have plenty of time after Corkscrew to grab a rope. The left crack is the one you have to worry about. Middle and right are OK. I heard about a woman drowning in the left crack because she tried to get her boat to the left shore while being hit by THREE ropes. The Chattooga, Meadow, and Green all have really dark reputations because of undercuts, but they're not the same as these crazy steep western runs, like Paralyzer, Poudre Falls, and Lake Creek.


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## Xtraheat (May 10, 2010)

While I agree with you about two of those, you've obviously never been on the meadow


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## loot87 (Jun 30, 2008)

True. But the Meadow gets run. And a majority of them survive.


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## Xtraheat (May 10, 2010)

Has anyone ever died on lake creek?


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## loot87 (Jun 30, 2008)

Don't know. And I don't mean any disrespect to the Meadow. But these mountain runs look scarier to me than pool drop undercut runs. Just my opinion. I'm not going to ever run either of them... or the Green for that matter.


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## [email protected] (Apr 26, 2006)

The great falls in the black canyon is the scariest rapid i have ever seen anybody run, there are at least 5 places that could kill you if you fuck the class 5 move above them up.


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## Xtraheat (May 10, 2010)

loot87 said:


> Don't know. And I don't mean any disrespect to the Meadow. But these mountain runs look scarier to me than pool drop undercut runs. Just my opinion. I'm not going to ever run either of them... or the Green for that matter.


I agree that they are visually much scarier, but I'm much more nervous when I'm running something riddled with deadly undercuts than a high volume slide. But, believe it or not, I paddle an OC-1 and the occasional C-1, so I don't know if I could ever run something like paralyzer anyways


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## Xtraheat (May 10, 2010)

[email protected] said:


> The great falls in the black canyon is the scariest rapid i have ever seen anybody run, there are at least 5 places that could kill you if you fuck the class 5 move above them up.


Do you have any pictures?


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## [email protected] (Apr 26, 2006)

It is impossible to get a picture of the whole rapid because it is a 1/4 mile long and drops some where around 60-80 ft. IT has about 5 hard moves that blowing the line could put you in a sieve the last move is a 20 footer that you have to boof right or you go into a cave that drains out thru a sieve, it is a drop that must be seen in person to get a feel for it. here is a pic: Black Chasm Action - Christ-Ian styles the bottom of the great falls portage 20 footer, has anyone run this one? Mountain Buzz Photos


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## SimpleMan (Dec 17, 2009)

Satan's sack. It's everywhere.


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