ORCKA Homepage - Recently Updated Pages

Rivers - Southern Alberta

-Wilco- — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 11:05:42 CDT

Here is the section where members can update information about rivers in the area. Here are some guidelines about updates

Include date and river flow if known (cms)
Pictures are welcome, but keep image size down to 500pixels on whatever is the long edge or use links from other sites
Descriptions of key features will help others decide if they want to run the river at those flows.

Feel free to make other suggestions as we improve the site!

Green dots represent Alberta Environment gauging stations.

Recreational Flows

Wilco and I built the table below after: (1) sorting through 2500 River Trip Reports submitted by different paddlers, (2) looking at guide book recommendations and (3) considering the discharge (flow rate) that provides a sufficient depth (75 cm for 'preferred' flow). We suggest that the 'minimum flow' is about as low as you'd want to paddle without scraping over too many rocks. The preferred flow is the low end of the flow range that many paddlers favor and would be worth a trip. (Stew)

For the upper St. Mary, the Highway 501 gauge is right near the take-out and with a bit more water than at the border, the minimum flow at that location might be around 25 cms.

Also note that rivers change, especially with major floods that widen the channel and this changes the flow need. For example, after the major 2005 flood on Willow Creek, the minimum flow rose to about 10 cms.

River Reach	Hydrometric Gauge	Minimal Flow	Preferred Flow	Mean Discharge
		m3/s	m3/s	m3/s
Red Deer River Basin
Upper Red Deer	Burnt Timber	23	30	20.9
Lower Red Deer	Red Deer	28	45	48
Bow River Basin
Upper Bow	Lake Louise	12	18	10.5
Upper Bow	Banff	25	40	39.6
Middle Bow	Calgary	40	60	91.7
Lower Bow	Carseland	45	65	108
Upper Elbow	Bragg Creek	10	15	7.83
Lower Elbow	Below Glenmore Dam	9	14	7.89
Upper Highwood	Diebel's Ranch	13	18	12.6
Lower Highwood	Near the Mouth	15	20	18.3
Oldman River Basin
Belly	Mountain View	10	15	8.69
Castle	Beaver Mines	17	25	15.8
Crowsnest	Frank	7	13	4.83
Little Bow	Carmangay	2.5	4	1.43
Upper Oldman	Waldron	16	25	12.9
Lower Oldman	Lethbridge	30	55	82.5
Upper St. Mary	International Border	17	30	20.6
Lower St. Mary	Near Lethbridge	19	35	14.9
Upper Waterton	Waterton Park	16	30	18.2
Lower Waterton	Glenwood	21	40	26.7
Willow Creek	Lane Creek	6	10	3.17
South Saskatchewan	Medicine Hat	60	100	191
Milk River	Milk River	13	20	9.02

Elbow

-Wilco- — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 11:03:40 CDT

OPTION 1
Here is a few notes: I'll update them soon. Thanks Lyle

Put In - Canyon Ck
Take Out - Paddy's

10 to 20 Low but runnable
20 to 35 Medium level Still easy and some play spots appear
35 to 50 High level Some rapid start getting faster and sticky holes start to appear. Good play level.
50 to 80 Flood level Grade of rapids start to increase and speed of water is significant.
80 to over 100 Bomber roll required swims will be long. Big water with big play. around 250 (1995) Run away freight train. Huge bus eating holes. Big water play

OPTION 2
Put In - Falls
Take Out - Canyon Ck
10 to 20 Low but runnable
20 to 35 Medium level Still easy and some play spots appear
35 to 50 Holes are stronger. Rapid start to push grade 5. Falls packs a punch.
50 to 80 Fall approaching unrunnable. Force of rapids significant and river contains rocks and debrie. Bomber roll required swims will be long.
80 to over 100 Only the most macho need to apply.
around 250 (1995) Oh my god!

River Flow Theory

-Wilco- — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 10:59:48 CDT

KNOW THE FLOW WHEN YOU GO

The evolution of the internet provides great information for paddlers. As well as surfing standing waves in our favorite rapids, we can now surf websites to investigate new boats and gear, different rivers and what’s up in the paddling scene. Perhaps the most useful new web resource is ‘real-time’ stream flow data. Around 1995, Alberta Environment (AE) introduced the ‘Flow Phone’, a digital dial-up where we could phone a toll-free number for flow information for selected river reaches. A couple of years ago, AE introduced an internet site that provided these data. With the new millenium, AE has upgraded their website to include ‘Near Real-Time Hydrometeorological Data’? It’s great. This new system has far more streams and gauging sites and provides hourly or half-hourly data for the past few days up to about six hours prior to your internet visit. We can now find out more current flow conditions and also determine the recent pattern. Is the river rising or falling and is it likely to be suitable for a Saturday splash? We can also access the data after a trip and keep track of the flow that provides ideal conditions in our favorite rapids or play-spots. In the style of Goldilocks we can find out what’s too low, what’s too high and what’s just right.
The Alberta flow data can be accessed through the ‘Near Real-Time Hydrometeorological Data’ of Alberta Environment’s website
http://www.gov.ab.ca/env/water/. Or you can go directly to those data through
http://www.gov.ab.ca/env/water/Hydrometeorological/Index.html

If you are going to the Kananaskis, you can access Trans Alta Utilities' website at http://www.transalta.com/Website/river.nsf. The American agency, U.S. Geological Survey, keeps track of their stream flow data and has had a friendly and comprehensive real time hydrometric site for a number of years. It can be reached at http://water.usgs.gov/realtime.html. Before you head south to Montana, Idaho, or points beyond, a stop at the USGS site can reveal what’s going on with the American rivers.
We’ve found it a bit harder to find flows for British Columbia rivers but there are some websites including B.C. Hydro’s site at http://eww.bchydro.bc.ca/powersupply/reservoir_hydromet/hydromet/colum.html.
and Environment Canada's http://www.weatheroffice.com/water/Map.asp.

HOW ARE STREAM FLOWS MEASURED?

Well, if anybody cares, they’re not. The actual measurement is of ‘stage’, or river height. A gauging station is typically located in an accessible location like a bridge and it usually consists of a metal culvert that is vertically buried near the stream edge. There’s a small shack on top of the culvert and this contains an instrument that measures the water surface in a well created by the culvert. That instrument often consists of a float assembly that rises and falls with the rise and fall of the river since there’s a pipe linking the culvert well to the stream. The gauging station shack also typically has some exterior features including an antenna to transmit the data to a Provincial database center and often a solar cell to power the unit. These gauging stations are often situated at our put-in or take-out bridges and once you start noticing them, you’ll find they’re very common in southern Alberta. After stage is measured, the data are converted to ‘discharge’, or rate of flow, using a ‘ratings’ or ‘stage-discharge’ curve. At different flows, someone will visit the gauging site with a device that measures stream velocity. That instrument looks like a small torpedo or metal fish with a propeller and is very heavy to permit its systematic suspension at different positions across the river. Thus, someone works across a bridge (or uses a cable car. This is why they’re common across our rivers) measuring water depths and velocities. These values are then accumulated across the river to calculate the overall flow. These calibrations are conducted at various flows and are plotted to produce the ratings curve that relates river flow to river height. The river height that is continuously measured in the gauging shack is thus converted to flow, which is reported.

A typical gauging station. This one is on the Elk river near the town of Fernie, BC.

The inside of the gauging station. Note the paper copy as well as the electronic recorder on the right.

A typical torpedo used to determine river velocity

In the last 20 years there have been many people, and many approaches that have contributed in the determination of what makes a good river level. Some of these methods include:

Professional Judgement, a single visit

Professional Judgement, multiple visits

Surveys of paddlers and paddling goups an clubs

Present Flow Surveys - take out interviews

Multiple Flow Comparison - Users who have used the site at different times

Controlled Flow Study - Deliberate flow regulation and assessment

Consistent proportions of mean annual flow

Single Transect Method - depth criteria at shallowest point and determine discharge

The LOW (minimum flow discharge that will still provide a reasonable quality paddling experience - a flow tht paddlers would return to) and IDEAL the lower end of the "ideal" flow range) flows on this website are based on an average of profesional Judgement, Multiple Flow Comparisons, surveys of over 4000 paddlers from the last 20 years, and a Depth Discharge Method (low (Minimal) means 0.6 cm and ideal (Sufficient) means 0.75cm).

Kananaskis

-Wilco- — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 10:41:53 CDT

Stream Team's Kananaskis River

OPTION 1
Put In - Barrier Dam
Take Out - Canoe Meadows
Distance - 4 km
Gradient - 10 m/km
River Grade - II
Contains Rapids - Class I to II+

OPTION 2
Put In - Canoe Meadows
Take Out - Canoe Meadows
Distance - 1 km
Gradient - 10 m/km
River Grade - II+
Contains Rapids - Class I to II+

OPTION 3
Put In - Canoe Meadows
Take Out - Highway 1 - Seebe Reservoir
Distance - 6 km
Gradient - 5 m/km
River Grade - I
Contains Rapids - Class I to I+

Highwood

-Wilco- — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 10:40:49 CDT

Stream Team's Highwood River

OPTION 1
Put In - Eyrie Gap
Take Out - Group Campground
Distance - 6.5 km
Gradient - 7 m/km
River Grade - II
Contains Rapids - Class I to II+

OPTION 2
Put In - Group Campground
Take Out - Greenford
Distance - 12 km
Gradient - 6.5 m/km
River Grade - II+
Contains Rapids - Class I to IV

OPTION 3
Put In - Greenford
Take Out - Ings Creek
Distance - 16 km
Gradient - 7 m/km
River Grade - III
Contains Rapids - Class I to IV

OPTION 4
Put In - Ings Creek
Take Out - Longview
Distance - 12 km
Gradient - 4.5 m/km
River Grade - II
Contains Rapids - Class I to III

Milk

-Wilco- — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 10:37:40 CDT

Stream Team's Milk River

OPTION 1
Put In - Whiskey Gap (Highway 501 Bridge)
Take Out - Eagle Bridge
Distance - 7 km
Gradient - 1.5 m/km
River Grade - I
Contains Rapids - Class I

OPTION 2
Put In - Eagle Bridge
Take Out - Del Bonita (Highway 62 bridge)
Distance - 19 km
Gradient - 1.5 m/km
River Grade - I
Contains Rapids - Class I

OPTION 3
Put In - Del Bonita (Highway 62 bridge)
Take Out - Town of Milk River
Distance - 90 km
Gradient - 1.5 m/km
River Grade - I
Contains Rapids - Class I to I+

OPTION 4
Put In - Town of Milk River
Take Out - Gold Spring's Park
Distance - 18 km
Gradient - 1.9 m/km
River Grade - I
Contains Rapids - Class I

OPTION 5
Put In - Gold Spring's Park
Take Out - Coffin Bridge
Distance - 20 km
Gradient - 1.9 m/km
River Grade - I
Contains Rapids - Class I to II

OPTION 6
Put In - Coffin Bridge
Take Out - Weir Bridge
Distance - 23 km
Gradient - 1.9 m/km
River Grade - I+
Contains Rapids - Class I to II+

Some of the rocks in the Milky water are hard to see and thus near impossible to miss. Remember the milk is famous for wrapping canoes with unattentive canoers. (20cms)

The Big Rock in Big Rock Bend. Stay river left or take a break on the rock (18cms)

About 0.5 km above Poverty Rock. (Flow is at 18.5cms)

Poverty Rock - main campground on this section

OPTION 7
Put In - Weir Bridge
Take Out - Writing-On-Stone Provincial Park
Distance - 10 km
Gradient - 1.9 m/km
River Grade - I
Contains Rapids - Class I

Milk Flowing through Writing on Stone

OPTION 8
Put In - Writing-On-Stone Provincial Park
Take Out - Deer Creek Bridge
Distance - 8 km
Gradient - 1.9 m/km
River Grade - I
Contains Rapids - Class I

St. Mary River - Lower

-Wilco- — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 10:08:23 CDT

Stream Team's Lower

OPTION 1
Put In - Gaylon Dudley's Access - 10.5 km SW of Magrath's Junction 62 on highway 5 turn right and follow it to a dead end. Just walk down to the river
Take Out - Gaylon Dudley's A Frame - about 200 m south of the dead end is a road that heads N (right) follow this about 1 km to the river. Note: prior permission should be sought.
Distance - 1.6 km
Gradient - 2.7 m/km
River Grade - II
Contains Rapids - Class I to II+

OPTION 2
Put In - Gaylon Dudley's A Frame - about 200 m south of the dead end is a road that heads N follow this about 1 km to the river. Note: prior permission should be sought.
Take Out - Kim and Joan Christensen's Farm - 4 km SW of Magrath's Junction 62 on highway 5 turn right (blue agrium buildings) and follow this to the Christensen's Farm House at the end of the road. Just Walk down to the river. Note: prior permission should be sought.
Distance - 5.6 km
Gradient - 2.7 m/km
River Grade - II+
Contains Rapids - Class I to III

OPTION 3
Put In - Kim and Joan Christensen's Farm - 4 km SW of Magrath's Junction 62 on highway 5 turn right (blue agrium buildings) and follow this to the Christensen's Farm House at the end of the road. Just Walk down to the river. Note: prior permission should be sought.
Take Out - Johannes Bevers access - 1.6 km SW of Magrath's Junction 62 on highway 5 turn right and drive to the end of the road. Park here and walk down to the river. Note: prior permission should be sought.
Distance - 7.6 km
Gradient - 2.7 m/km
River Grade - III
Contains Rapids - Class I to IV+

OPTION 4
Put In - Johannes Bevers access - 1.6 km SW of Magrath's Junction 62 on highway 5 turn right and drive to the end of the road. Park here and walk down to the river. Note: prior permission should be sought.
Take Out - Welling Ford - heading south on highway 5 turn right at the highway 5 Raymond junction and follow the road to the river.
Distance - 5.6 km
Gradient - 2.7 m/km
River Grade - I+
Contains Rapids - Class I to II

OPTION 5
Put In - Welling Ford - heading south on highway 5 turn right at the highway 5 Raymond junction and follow the road to the river.
Take Out - Airport Bridge - heading south from lethbridge on highway 5 turn right at junciton 508 (2.9 km S of the Lethbridge Airport intersection) and follow the road to the river.
Distance - 50 km
Gradient - 2.7 m/km
River Grade - II
Contains Rapids - Class I to III

OPTION 6
Put In - Airport Bridge - heading south from lethbridge on highway 5 turn right at junciton 508 (2.9 km S of the Lethbridge Airport intersection) and follow the road to the river.
Take Out - Popson Park - on Oldman River - Access from West Lethbridge
Distance - 8 km
Gradient - 2.7 m/km
River Grade - I
Contains Rapids - Class I

Red Deer

-Wilco- — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 10:03:11 CDT

OPTION 1
Put In - Banff Boundary (Highway 501 Bridge)
Take Out - Highway 40 (Forestry Trunk Road) Bridge
Distance - 26km
Gradient - 7.5m/km
River Grade - II
Contains Rapids - Class I-II+
OPTION 2
Put In - Highway 40 (Forestry Trunk Road) Bridge
Take Out - Gleniffer Reservoir
Distance - 42km
Gradient - 5.5 m/km
River Grade - II+
Contains Rapids - Class I-III+
Note: there are multiple access points within this section to modify the length of the trip
OPTION 3
Put In - Dickson Dam
Take Out - Red Deer
Distance -
Gradient - 1.1m/km
River Grade - I+
Contains Rapids - Class I-II
Note: there are multiple access points within this section to modify the length of the trip
OPTION 4
Put In - Red Deer
Take Out - Highway 27 Bridge
Distance -
Gradient - 0.8 m/km
River Grade - I
Contains Rapids - Class I-I+
Note: there are multiple access points within this section to modify the length of the trip
OPTION 5
Put In - Highway 27 Bridge
Take Out - Highway 884 Bridge
Distance -
Gradient - 0.4 m/km
River Grade - I
Contains Rapids - Class I
Note: there are multiple access points within this section to modify the length of the trip

Sheep

-Wilco- — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 10:02:51 CDT

OPTION 1

Put In - Blue Rock Run

10 to 15 runnable
15 to 20 Good low level
20 to 35 Medium level Water between rapids starts to move at a good pace. Still plenty of eddies and scouting oportunities.
35 to 50 High to flood level. Fewer eddies and harder to hit. Boat scouting starts to be difficult. Holes start to have significant punch and major rapids start to get difficult.
50 to 75 Oh Boy! Rapids start to become continuous. More commitment, because less oportunity for stopping and scouting. Some drops, like avalanche, may require running blind.

Blakiston Creek

-Wilco- — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 10:02:24 CDT

Stream Team's Blakiston (Pass) Creek

Above Red Rock Put In: Hike about 500m up the Snowshoe cabin trail. Where the trail makes a right hand turn and starts a short climb up the hill, head down to the river that is visible just through the trees.
Take Out: Confluence with Red Rock Canyon.
River Grade: III+
Rapids: III & IV
Distance: 500m
Gradient: n/a
Notes: This is a bit of work for two distinct drops that are often covered in wood. The first rapid consists of a short set up into 2 narrow channels around a large boulder. Either line goes. Broaches are the biggest concern. The next rapid has two distinct lines. Going with the main current left, throws one into a very intimidating boiling hole with little recovery time for the large waves and holes that follow below. A cleaner (and safer) line is to the right. A narrow channel pours cleanly over a 4 foot drop before joining back up with the froth in the main channel. This drop is easy to spot and get to by walking up the grass from the bridge that leads to Blackiston falls. Upper Section Put In: The bridge going to Blackiston falls. This is also the confluence with Red Rock and Pass Creek.
Take Out: Just above Ruby Creek. (Most people will continue on to take out at the Crandell Lake Campground Bridge, linking the upper and middle sections together)
River Grade: II
Rapids: II to II+
Distance: 8.5km
Gradient: 7m / km
Notes: Only try this section at high water, otherwise expect to grind the bottom of your boat to dust. At high water the creek flows very quickly. There is only one distinct rapid on the entire section. The rest of the run is through continuous 2 to 3 foot high haystacks. A fun run if you catch it during its short peak. There is one river wide log jam. Middle Section Put In: Ruby Creek. Pull out on right hand side of road, about 3 km past the turnoff to the Crandell Lake Campground. Carry your boat down the open slope for 100m.
Take Out: Crandell Campground bridge.
River Grade: III
Rapids: II to III+ (IV+/ V- portage)
Distance: 2.0km
Gradient: 10m / km
Notes: This is a crystal clear river in a beautiful setting. The river is fairly bony so be aware that at anything except high flows you will be scraping the bottom. The middle rapid will be a portage for all but the insane. Watch for a large white colored ledge on the horizon line with a beige slab of rock visible off in the distance. The river funnels into a bathtub sized hole that is severely undercut on all sides. Portage either side, although river right is less bushy. Most people scout the church camp canyon section from this portage as well. At low water, the last rapid before the church camp bridge is fairly technical. A bit of foresight is needed to figure out when to fit in the proper paddle strokes. At higher flows it is a big flush full through lots of holes. While it looks fairly mellow while scouting from both the Church camp bridge and the top of the river, experience has taught a few paddlers not to underestimate how squirrelly the near the end can get. Lower Section Put In: Crandell Lake Campground bridge
Take Out: Rock Rock Canyon turnoff
River Grade: II
Rapids: I+ to II-
Distance: 16km
Gradient: 6m / km
Notes: An uninteresting fast water flush and boat scraper. The water is pretty shallow, so only try this section at higher flows. The depth above the bridge is the depth of the creek you will be paddling. Watch for sweepers coming in from the shore.

Waterton

-Wilco- — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 09:55:22 CDT

Stream Team
OPTION 1
Put In - Waterton Park Entrance
Take Out - Reservoir - just south of Twin Butte on Highway 6 turn E and follow the gravel road 13 km to the bridge on the river
Distance - 30 km
Gradient - 2.5 m/km
River Grade - II
Contains Rapids - Class I to III

OPTION 2
Put In - N of Waterton Reservoir on Highway 505
Take Out - Waterton River Bridge on Highway 2
Distance - 31 km
Gradient - 3 m/km
River Grade - II
Contains Rapids - Class I to III

Photos

-Wilco- — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 17:57:45 CDT

Collect photos of the team in action throughout the season!

Encourage everyone to upload their photos here to create the ultimate team scrapbook.
Don't like this table? Delete it and create your own photo page. (To delete a table: Click EasyEdit, then right-click on the table to bring up the "Tool Tips" menu. Select Delete Table.)

	Stew on Rain Wave (51 cms, Di)
Jeff Lower St. Mary put-in (169 cms, Stew)	Janson Blender - top wave (55 cms, Stew)
Janson - Blender (55 cms, Stew)	Janson - Twisted Sister (55 cms, Stew)
Janson - wave below DT (55 cms, Stew)	Jeff running hairpin
Wilco running Hairpin as seen from river right (60cms)

Crowsnest

-Wilco- — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 17:47:07 CDT

Stream Team's Crowsnest River
OPTION 1
Put In - Bellevue
Take Out - Lundbreck Falls - 1 km W of Lundbreck turn S and follow road to Lundbreck Falls.
Distance - 22 km
Gradient - 6.5m/km
River Grade - II
Contains Rapids - Class I to II+

Cascades flowing out of Frank Slide - not normally paddled due to boulder sieves and sharp edged upstream facing boulders (30cms).
OPTION 2
Put In - Lundbreck Falls - 1 km W of Lundbreck turn S and follow road to Lundbreck Falls.
Take Out - Crowsnest River Bridge on Highway 3
Distance - 2.5 km
Gradient - 3.5m/km
River Grade - II
Contains Rapids - Class I to III

Rat Wave

For those of us who'd rather watch than participate in the grade V Lundbreck Lemming Leap, there's a much tamer paddle that starts at the campground below the Falls. It's an hour paddle to the take-out at the dirt-road bridge below Highway 3. A nice grade II run with 'the ledge' that's II+ or maybe a III at some flows and lots of mini-ledges. Maybe the most reliable wave is 'Rat Wave', or if you blow off the back, 'Rat's Wave'.

We've surfed it at flows above 6 cms and here it is at 22 cms, when it's flatter and flushing out.

Posted by: Stew & Di

Below: Craig and Di on the Lower Crownsest (13 cms, Stew)

Lundbreck Falls at 50 cms (May 25 2008 (Stew))

Lundbreck Falls at 2 cms (Stew)

OPTION 3
Put In - Crowsnest River Bridge on Highway 3
Take Out - Oldman Reservoir - 1 km W of Lundbreck turn N and follow road accross Crowsnest river, turn Right at junction and follow road to parking lot at beginning of Oldman Reservoir
Distance - 5.6km
Gradient - 2.7m/km
River Grade - II
Contains Rapids - Class I to II+

Paddle Tips

-Wilco- — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 17:41:34 CDT

*Can't Hold your breath for long? Here's an article that has some tips for you (see attachments).

*When side surfing on a nice wave-hole, do NOT brace upstream if current grabs the edge of your boat. I have seen a few paddles been broken this way (and a few shoulders been dislocated). Just tuck tight and prepare to roll.

Belly

-Wilco- — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 17:38:46 CDT

Stream Team Info
OPTION 1
Put In - Belly River Campground - about 2 km S of Belly River Bridge on Highway 6 between Waterton and Chief Mountain International Border Crossing
Take Out - Belly River Bridge on Highway 5
Distance - 16 km
Gradient - 5.7 m/km
River Grade - II
Contains Rapids - Class I to II+

OPTION 2
Put In - Belly River Bridge on Highway 5
Take Out - Belly River Bridge on Highway 800
Distance - 18 km
Gradient - 5.7 m/km
River Grade - II+
Contains Rapids - Class I to III

OPTION 3
Put In - Belly River Bridge on Highway 800
Take Out - Belly River Bridge on Highway 505
Distance - 31 km
Gradient - 4 m/km
River Grade - I+
Contains Rapids - Class I to II

OPTION 4
Put In - Belly River Bridge on Highway 505
Take Out - Oldman River Bridge on Highway 509. Note: there are 2 other take outs along the way including highway 2 bridge at km 35, and highway 511 bridge at km 66
Distance - 126 km
Gradient - 1.5 m/km
River Grade - I
Contains Rapids - Class I

St. Mary River - Upper

-Wilco- — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 17:35:06 CDT

Stream Team's Upper
OPTION 1
Put In - Cook's Ranch - 1 km downstream of St. Mary's International Border Crossing
Take Out - K.N. and Della Stewart's access - Make on immediate right (SW) on the south side St. Mary Bridge on highway 501, drive 4.5 km, and turn right. Drive to the end of the road and go through the cattle gate and follow the road allowance to the river.
Distance - 9.6 km
Gradient - 3.8m/km
River Grade - II
Contains Rapids - Class I to II+

OPTION 2
Put In - K.N. and Della Stewart's access - Make on immediate right (SW) on the south side St. Mary Bridge on highway 501, drive 4.5 km, and turn right. Drive to the end of the road and go through the cattle gate and follow the road allowance to the river.
This access has changed. The new access is as follows:
To use the new access drive past Kimball and up the usual hill. At the top of the hill, continue past the old turn to the right that we took
for the prior access and continue southward for 3.2 km (2 miles). However, the road angles to the right to avoid a wetland area. Follow the road as it then turns to the right (west) and continue for another 2.5 km, with another slight loop around another wetland. Then turn right again (north) and the road allowance heads down to the river. This new access route takes you to the upstream end of the meander that used to provide the put-in. I'd guess that the shuttle drive will be about the same time as the old shuttle but there'll be no big hill.
Take Out - Kimball Feed Lot - Make on immediate right (SW) on the south side St. Mary Bridge on highway 501, then drive 2 km and turn right towards the white house with the large garage (Kimbel Feedlot)and follow it to the river.
Distance - 6.4km
Gradient - 3.8m/km
River Grade - II
Contains Rapids - Class I to II+

Lisa back surfing Double Trouble (Class II) approximately 4.8 km downstream from the put in at a low cms. Yup, that is an old-style Dancer.

OPTION 3
Put In - Kimball Feed Lot - Make on immediate right (SW) on the south side St. Mary Bridge on highway 501, then drive 2 km and turn right towards the white house with the large garage (Kimbel Feedlot)and follow it to the river.
Take Out - Woolford Provincial Park
Distance - 13 km
Gradient - 3.8m/km
River Grade - I+
Contains Rapids - Class I to II

ORCKA Contributors

-Wilco- — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 17:08:30 CDT

Name: Mark Iwaasa Paddling Experience: 7 years Paddling Preference: Class III-IV	Name: Stew Rood Experience: yes, I have hit many rocks Preference: Class II-IV, kayak, canoe & raft	Name: Janson Smith Experience: 3 years (July 2005) Preference: Class II - IV
Name: Wilco Tymensen Experience: Paddling since before Playboats got shorter than 14 feet. Paddling Preference: Class II-IV, Kayak, Canoe	Player Name: Stats:	Player Name: Stats:
Player Name: Stats:	Player Name: Stats:	Player Name: Stats:
Player Name: Stats:	Player Name: Stats:	Player Name: Stats:
Player Name: Stats:	Player Name: Stats:	Player Name: Stats:

Willow Creek

-Wilco- — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 09:44:31 CDT

Stream Team's Willow Creek
OPTION 1
Put In - Bridge about 20 km West of Willow Creek Provincial Park
Take Out - Bridge about 12 km West of Willow Creek Provincial Park
Distance - 8.9 km
Gradient - 4.2 m/km
River Grade - II+
Contains Rapids - Class I to IV

OPTION 2
Put In - Bridge about 12 km West of Willow Creek Provincial Park
Take Out - Ford about 7 km West of Willow Creek Provincial Park. Make right turn here and go to river about 1.5 km.
Distance - 6.4 km
Gradient - 4.2 m/km
River Grade - II
Contains Rapids - Class I to II

OPTION 3
Put In - Ford about 7 km West of Willow Creek Provincial Park. Make right turn here and go to river about 1.5 km.
Take Out - Willow Creek Provincial Park
Distance - 10.5 km
Gradient - 2.5 m/km
River Grade - I+
Contains Rapids - Class I to I+

OPTION 4
Put In - Willow Creek Provincial Park
Take Out - Highway 520 Bridge
Distance - 30 km
Gradient - 1.9 m/km
River Grade - I
Contains Rapids - Class I to II+
Note: This section contains several access points throughout the trip

OPTION 5
Put In - Highway 520 Bridge
Take Out - Highway 519 Bridge
Distance - 33 km
Gradient - 1.2 m/km
River Grade - I
Contains Rapids - Class I to I
Note: This section contains several access points throughout the trip

OPTION 6
Put In - Highway 519 Bridge
Take Out - Highway 811 Bridge
Distance - 36 km
Gradient - 1.1 m/km
River Grade - I
Contains Rapids - Class I

June 1, 2008 - Matt & Jollin in OC2 and Di and Stew in kayaks paddled the 10 km 'canyon' run. About 16 cms and with brown water there were lots of rocks hit. No fences.

Grade II run with a few II+'s and Goose Neck was probably a III. It's an S-turn, finishing with a tightish boulder garden - here are Matt & Jollin looking back upstream at the end of Goose Neck.

Some surfing ... do they or don't they?

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Oldman - Boulder Run

-Wilco- — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 09:42:55 CDT

Boulder Run is below the Oldman River Dam outflow and thus has paddleable flows all summer long. Built in the era of slalom paddling, the emphasis was on eddies but there were attempts to create a number of surf waves. These were largely produced by adding concrete bridge support slabs but those were tumbled downstream with the flood of 1995 (concrete is only slightly more dense than water).

Paddlers hope that there will be an effort to re-establish some surf/play waves and there was one nice, natural sandstone feature right at the top, 'Turbo' (right below the turbine, below). However, after the work to install the turbine, some steel rebar was left behind in the sandstone - ouch!

Turbo (70 cms (above) 30 cms (below)) - rebar showing at low water (below right).

BELOW THE BOULDER RUN - Lower Oldman
Lower Oldman River

Put In - Boulder Run
Take Out - Grand Forks - Bow River confluence. Note: there are several take outs along the way including: Oldman River Bridge on Highway 785; Oldman River Bridge on Highway 2; Oldman River Bridge on Highway 811 (Fort MacCleod); Oldman River Bridge near Monarch (old Highway 3 bridge); Oldman River Bridge near Monarch (new Highway 3 bridge); Oldman River Bridge near Kipp (highway 509); Popson Park (West Lethbridge); Lethbridge weir; Oldman River Bridge in Lethbridge; Oldman River Bridge on Highway 845 Bridge (N of Coaldale); Oldman River Bridge on Highway 864 (N of Taber); Oldman River Bridge on Highway 36 (N of Taber) If we call the put in below the dam km zero then from the dam to lethbridge is 160 km and a further 160km to the forks (junction of the bow and oldman to form the south sask. From the dam to the next major river access (highway 2) is 56 km. There is camping here I believe. This section contains no big rapids. Only 4 small class I rapids. (at km 21, 23, 43, and 51). Note: there used to be a weir at km 35. I think it is just upstream from a red and white radio antenae that is on river right. If I am not mistaken the portage is on river left Highway 2 to fort macleod is another 3 km with one class I rapid in the middle. Fort Macleod to highway 3 bridge is 48 km and contains 3 rapids. Both class II (31 km below fort macleod) which are found on river left. Highway 3 to Popson park (lethbridge) is 48 km and contains 7 class I rapids (km 0 is the bridge and the rapids are at km 0, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 27) There is a weir in lethbridge that needs to be portages. (lots of signage that you are approaching it.) Camping on river left at the highway bridge (3 km below the weir) Highway 3 bridge (camping spot) to Highway 25 bridge is 44 km with 2 class I rapids (24 and 32 km downstream from the bridge) Highway 25 to Taber provincial park is 40 km with no rapids (camping at the park) Taber provincial park to highway 36 bridge is 24 km with no rapids Highway 36 to the forks (south sask) is 28 miles and contains 2 class I rapids 16 and 17 miles below the bridge. When ever we go canoe tripping we normally cover around 30 km per day. It is not normally a long hard day but definitely an enjoyable one. We can continue that pace day after day and will take 16 days to paddle 500 km. We have paddled 50 km in one day but find that it is a long day. Distance - 316 km
Gradient - 1.5 m/km
River Grade - I
Contains Rapids - Class I
Di surfing the Pearce wave upstream from Monarch at about 18cms.

Castle River

-Wilco- — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 09:37:56 CDT

This is a template page

Link to current flows

This is a great class III-IV river with east portages around the major rapids.

Below are pictures of the major features at specific flows.

	Castle Falls @ 85cms Water is moving pretty good with the best line down the center Ferrying was a bit of work. A boiling drop on river right that would probably not be that sticky, but not the best line. Tight river left is part of a smiling hole that would not be sticky either, but not the best line. All 5 paddlers ran center with no issues of getting stuck, one swimmer due to boily water.
	Looking Downstream at the falls at 6cms. Now you know what is under the water.
	Looking Upstream at the falls at 6cms. Now you know what is under the water.
	Narrowgate @ 85cms No gravel bars above the drop so easier to line up for the drop. Appeared quite clean, with an easy line at center. River left had a tighter feature that appeared to flush, river right dropped into a squirly pool, followed by the main drop. All paddlers ran close to center. 4 paddlers ran center with no issues.

Here's a map that shows the 'gravel-pit' take-out for the Castle Canyon run. Grade estimates are consistent with Stuart Smith's book and the grade probably increases to IV at about 100 cms or so. In 1995 it hit about 1000 cms (!!) and floated the Canyon Bridge off its concrete pad and the bridge floated/tumbled downstream and was smashed up in the canyon. Most of the steel debris was removed with the flood clean-up but there are still some blue girders in the river, on river left in the boulder garden just below the canyon. (Stew)

Jeff and Irene in Castle Canyon (above) and lunch wave (below) (29 cms, Stew)

From Canyon Bridge (300 cms, Stew)

Stream Team's Castle River
OPTION 1
Put In - West Castle Road - 1 km SW of Beaver Mines Lake turn off on Highway 774 turn N and follow road to bridge on river
Take Out - Castle Falls - follow West Castle Road N for 5.5 km.
Distance - 8 km
Gradient - 6.3 m/km
River Grade - II+
Contains Rapids - Class I to IV+

OPTION 2
Put In - Castle Falls - follow West Castle Road N for 5.5 km.
Take Out - N.B.Kirk's access - about 1 km N of Castle River Bridge on Highway 507 turn W and follow road for about 5 km and turn S to follow road allowance to river.
Distance - 8.8 km
Gradient - 4.5 m/km
River Grade - III
Contains Rapids - Class I to IV+

OPTION 3
Put In - N.B.Kirk's access - about 1 km N of Castle River Bridge on Highway 507 turn W and follow road for about 5 km and turn S to follow road allowance to river.
Take Out - Rodeo Grounds - by Castle River Bridge on Highway 507.
Distance - 8 km
Gradient - 4.5 m/km
River Grade - I+
Contains Rapids - Class I to III

OPTION 4
Put In - Rodeo Grounds - by Castle River Bridge on Highway 507.
Take Out - Canyon Bridge - about 2.5 km S on Castle River Bridge on Highway 507 turn E and follow road to bridge on Castle river.
Distance - 7 km
Gradient - 4.5 m/km
River Grade -II
Contains Rapids - Class I to III+

OPTION 5
Put In - Canyon Bridge - about 2.5 km S on Castle River Bridge on Highway 507 turn E and follow road to bridge on Castle river.
Take Out - Bruno Yagos' access - Follow road E for about 2.5 km and at junction turn right (E), then after about 1.5 km turn S and follow road to river. Note: Prior permission should be sought.
Distance - 2.6 km
Gradient - 8 m/km
River Grade - III
Contains Rapids - Class I to IV

OPTION 6
Put In - Bruno Yagos' access - Follow road E for about 2.5 km and at junction turn right (E), then after about 1.5 km turn S and follow road to river. Note: Prior permission should be sought.
Take Out - Castle River Bridge on Highway 3A
Distance - 10.5 km
Gradient - 3.4 m/km
River Grade - II
Contains Rapids - Class I to III